Ludnix's 50g Cube

[ludnix]

Curious, but to replicate the AB+ schedule using a hydra, wouldn't you have to compensate for the different number of diodes, the wattage assigned to each colour, etc, in order to get the levels of each spectrum right? I think you could effectively run about an equivalent of 60-70% power of the AB+ schedule.

If you're trying to match it I would definitely go down that path. I just used their relative settings as a guide for mine as they are both using very similar LED arrangements. They are both CREE for the work horse LEDs so they are going to produce very similar spectra. I don't believe that Ecotech has released any of the spectrometry data associated with the schedule though so it would be difficult to match without having a Radeon to measure against. That said when the acclimation period is over I will post some PAR readings for the tank. I would, however, be hesitant to compare the readings from my probe to another, there's a lot of extra calculation to do with the Apogee SQ-420 that I can't be certain is going to match the results of the tool used in the Coral lab paper.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Great pics! Thanks for sharing!

 

[ludnix]

More 3d prints!

I try to make my water changes as easy as possible. This keeps me motivated to do them on time and regularly. To help I've printed a parameteric scoop, you can just pick your exact volume needed and it can print it out. Two scoops of salt and my usual bucket is perfectly set to 1.026! I previously had to get the 1 cup measuring cup and 1/8th cup measuring cup and dirty them both.

I also worked up a new version of the Hydra light shroud. I added some side vents to better accomodate the airflow of the fan on the heatsink. It wasn't getting hot and I didn't notice the fan increasing if at all before, but I figured better airflow couldn't hurt. I also improved the fit so it's much easier to take on and off now.

This one is printed in White PLA with 24% infill resulting in a more translucent part than the PLA/PHA cool grey I used before. I really liked the glow that came through before I so wanted to increase it a bit, it is probably brighter in the photos than in person.

I will be printing one in solid black on Monday when the Black PLA arrives. What do you all think so far?

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

More 3d prints!

I try to make my water changes as easy as possible. This keeps me motivated to do them on time and regularly. To help I've printed a parameteric scoop, you can just pick your exact volume needed and it can print it out. Two scoops of salt and my usual bucket is perfectly set to 1.026! I previously had to get the 1 cup measuring cup and 1/8th cup measuring cup and dirty them both.

I also worked up a new version of the Hydra light shroud. I added some side vents to better accomodate the airflow of the fan on the heatsink. It wasn't getting hot and I didn't notice the fan increasing if at all before, but I figured better airflow couldn't hurt. I also improved the fit so it's much easier to take on and off now.

This one is printed in White PLA with 24% infill resulting in a more translucent part than the PLA/PHA cool grey I used before. I really liked the glow that came through before I so wanted to increase it a bit, it is probably brighter in the photos than in person.

I will be printing one in solid black on Monday when the Black PLA arrives. What do you all think so far?

I think I'm jealous of your 3d printing. LOL Great innovation!

 

[ludnix]

I think I'm jealous of your 3d printing. LOL Great innovation!

Thanks mdbannister, I have been waiting nearly a decade for the price to drop on home printers and it's finally within reach for me. I think it's going to be another few years before the affordable models are reliable enough to be as common as inkjet printers, but we are on our way to the future!

 

[lake985]

More 3d prints!

I will be printing one in solid black on Monday when the Black PLA arrives. What do you all think so far?

That's fantastic...really digging the honeycomb side vents! So when are you going to buy a commercial 3d printer and start selling these things? I'd love one of those for my Kessil AP700.

 

[ludnix]

That's fantastic...really digging the honeycomb side vents! So when are you going to buy a commercial 3d printer and start selling these things? I'd love one of those for my Kessil AP700.

Thanks Lake985, it will need to be a big printer for that fixture!

 

[lake985]

Thanks Lake985, it will need to be a big printer for that fixture!

Ha! Starting a gofundme campaign now...

 

[Greaps]

Great innovation, honestly could make some coin printing them for ati t5's and common leds, I absolutely hate being blinded by a fixture nearby.

 

[Liquid360]

I highly recommend, since u love gadgets, the new Kessil H80 for the sump [emoji4]

 

[ludnix]

Great innovation, honestly could make some coin printing them for ati t5's and common leds, I absolutely hate being blinded by a fixture nearby.

I will be opening up an Etsy store for my prints, I am unfortunately limited to about 8"x8"x8" or so for printed objects. Anything bigger will need to some assembly.

I highly recommend, since u love gadgets, the new Kessil H80 for the sump [emoji4]

I was drooling over this fixture a little while ago! I think I am going to make a refugium light though, it won't be as pretty, but I have all the parts available in my closet from other older builds.

 

[ludnix]

I am really excited by next 3d print. This is an adapter for my camera to fit onto my microscope. Forgive the white electrical tape, I was trying to block some more of the light as I didn't print this one with thick enough walls to block the light completely.

It can be downloaded here if you had the Canon EF mounted camera: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1894805

Here's one of the first videos from it. I'm hoping to improve the clarity with a new print of the adapter in black which will block light better.

Pick the gear and 1080p for the best clarity, these are tiny critters and are hard to see in low definition.

This is some the sand from the dirtier parts of my sandbed. When I say dirty I mean diatom ridden, my high nutrients are continuing to feed some diatoms and bryopsis algae in the tank. I am planning to try some fluconazole for the Byropsis, but I want to get the nutrients under control first so I'm not just treating the symptom.

 

[ludnix]

I printed a copy of the light shroud for one of the people who requested it. After trying it on the light my girlfriend tells me this is the color we need. It looks like I'm printing another for myself now, ha! Although I'm still partial to the glowing white, I'll defer to my better half and agree the black is sexy.

 

[lake985]

my girlfriend tells me this is the color we need.

Ha! I love it! At least you already know what "we" really means.

The black shroud does look pretty sharp though.

 

[ludnix]

Happy wife, happy life, right? I'm certain the same applies to live-in girlfriends The black and white plastics has gotten me to thinking about some of the really cool combination I could do with multiple colors. I've started work on the refugium light and I'm very excited to share the progress soon. I have about half of it printed and 90% of the design finalized, I'll post pics of what's done tonight!

 

[ludnix]

I finished up the refugium light. It's made from of the spare parts I had in my electronics bin with a fancy 3d printed housing. This one has a large shroud to block light from getting to my skimmer and plumbing. The housing is black PLA with a thin white PLA panel to glow purple when the light is on.

I need to do a heat test and see if the heatsink gets warm enough to justify a fan after 16 hours of use. We may be in the process of moving to a new house nearby next month so I may hold off the installation of the refugium or any other aquarium equipment until then.

 

[sebastiaan1985]

Nice build! Following!

 

[ifarmer]

I printed a copy of the light shroud for one of the people who requested it. After trying it on the light my girlfriend tells me this is the color we need. It looks like I'm printing another for myself now, ha! Although I'm still partial to the glowing white, I'll defer to my better half and agree the black is sexy.

very nice. i love it.

 

[ludnix]

So possibility turned into reality and we ended moving this last weekend. I have moved tanks before and it's never fun, but fortunately, this was a very short in town move.

For the move, I started a new 44g trash can full of saltwater to have on hand. Ideally, I would use as much of the old water as possible but I would toss any that ended up cloudy or dirty from disturbing the sand bed. I ended up using the whole trash can.

I setup two totes next to the location of the tank and used one for rocks and corals and the other for a few bare rocks and the fish. I didn't want the corals releasing toxins or slime that might affect the fish, or scared fish to swim into the corals. They are large totes you can see in the first photo but they really do not hold much, I would say 20g worth of coral and rock each.

Moving the actual tank itself I was fortunate enough to have a friend help carry it over. I bought two Handle On Demand suction cups for extra grip. It really made the move easier not having to worry about hands slipping on a salty tank. I cleaned the suction cups the night before and the tank right before we attached them. They are rated for 200lbs each and cost about $12 on amazon.

In the above photo you can see the tank filled and fish floating. My temp in the trashcan was a little low at 76F with my target of 78F but I transfered the rock and coral regardless. I floated the fish to acclimate them. It took about two hours for the whole system to get back up to temp. I had released the fish after about 20 minutes though.

The SPS loved the move I guess. They were showing great PE immediately and seemed to appreciate the large water change. The Whisker corals got pretty beat up in the move though and had trouble inflating all of their vesicles. I suspect they banged up and had a lot of punctures, it's been a week since the move and they are looking much better now though.

 

[ludnix]

And here's a week after the move. These photos are a little lower quality than usual I still haven't gotten my camera out so these are some cell phone shots.