Jeffrey's "Big Boy"---120g Planted: Updated 8-17-2010 w/ pictures

[epond83]

Did i miss how the new water enters the system or are you still working on that?

Also a slight delay between opening the NC Solenoid and the closing the NO Solenoid might be a good idea so as not to make to much back pressure if the one closes faster then the other opens or something.

[jmhart]

Originally Posted by epond83

Did i miss how the new water enters the system or are you still working on that?

Also a slight delay between opening the NC Solenoid and the closing the NO Solenoid might be a good idea so as not to make to much back pressure if the one closes faster then the other opens or something.

I got a little lazy on the drawing.

There's a manifold before the MD 7(in the latest diagram). There are 4 lines coming into it. 1 co2, 2 ferts, and the 4th is refill water. Here's where I got lazy, the drawing doesn't include the refill solenoid.

The solenoids that are on the drawing are wired together, so that N.O. is open when water goes into the tank, and N.C. is closed. Then, for water change, they switch. They'll pump for approximately 3 minutes, and then close. There is a mini-float switch in the tank, that is will be looped with the refill solenoid and controller. A minute or so after the drain solenoids are done, the controller will turn on power to the refill solenoid, and leave power on for 5 minutes(or whatever I determine is the amount of time to refill and top off), but the solenoid valve will be shut off by the float switch when the tank is full. Then, a minute or so later, power will be shut off to the solenoid/float switch loop until the next time it's scheduled to run.

If you are familiar with systems like this, that made sense to you. If not, just hang out and I'll get a diagram with control up here in a couple days.

[billb]

Hey Jeffrey - I like the new lay out. Looks good.

One thing you could now consider is to replace the Mag 7 with a Needlewheel to mist your CO2. I believe your new plan has the CO2 by pass the filters and I didn't see a reactor. I have a similar situation with my 60 gallon and it works well.

Bill

[jmhart]

Originally Posted by billb

Hey Jeffrey - I like the new lay out. Looks good.

One thing you could now consider is to replace the Mag 7 with a Needlewheel to mist your CO2. I believe your new plan has the CO2 by pass the filters and I didn't see a reactor. I have a similar situation with my 60 gallon and it works well.

Bill

Bill, that's a good idea. I was kind of thinking about doing something like that, so I sketched it out. I'm including a reactor and venturi loop into the setup.

[epond83]

looking pretty sweet. So i've been doing some looking into UV sterilizers, seams the max rated flow on them isn't always the most effective flow, wouldn't a 15 watt UV's be better suited for the flow on one Eheim 2028? If you plumbed it before the N.C. Ball Valve and drain i would think it would work better. I've also have read that you only need 1 to 1.5 turn over on a UV to get rid of algea and what not.

[jmhart]

Originally Posted by epond83

looking pretty sweet. So i've been doing some looking into UV sterilizers, seams the max rated flow on them isn't always the most effective flow, wouldn't a 15 watt UV's be better suited for the flow on one Eheim 2028? If you plumbed it before the N.C. Ball Valve and drain i would think it would work better.

Probably, and if the UV isn't working how it should, I'll move it.

I've also have read that you only need 1 to 1.5 turn over on a UV to get rid of algae and what not.

The UV won't be running 24/7. I'll probably only have it on for 2 hours a day.

[Regloh]

Originally Posted by jmhart

The UV won't be running 24/7. I'll probably only have it on for 2 hours a day.

I wouldn't turn it on unless you have a problem... I have no experience with big tanks like this, but on my 55 I had a UV sterilizer running for probably a week in the last 5 years...

[jmhart]

Originally Posted by Regloh

I wouldn't turn it on unless you have a problem... I have no experience with big tanks like this, but on my 55 I had a UV sterilizer running for probably a week in the last 5 years...

It's not just for algae, it's for pathogens too. This tank is going to have some pricey Apistos, and maybe some Discus or Altums.

In the past, I've never had UVs on a timer. I'm going to have to do some research and calculations on exactly how long to leave it on to protect the tank, and obviously I'd like to leave it on for the minimum time.

[Regloh]

Oh, good point...

When you do your reseach, also consider the life of the bulb when you cycle it on and off... These kind of bulbs take a bit of a hit everytime you turn them on...

[epond83]

Also something to consider is that if you want the UV to kill Parasites to need about 1/3 of the flow that it takes to kill Bacteria and Algae.

[jmhart]

Originally Posted by Regloh

Oh, good point...

When you do your reseach, also consider the life of the bulb when you cycle it on and off... These kind of bulbs take a bit of a hit everytime you turn them on...

That is definitely something to research. I feel like the general consensus has been that it's better to turn it off than leave it on all the time, again to preserve bulb life.

But, I know that light bulbs, as with pretty much all electrical devices, do take a hit like you said when cycled on and off. UV bulbs are freakin' expensive, so I definitely want to prolong bulb life.

I wonder which is worse.

Anybody have any thoughts?

Originally Posted by epond83

Also something to consider is that if you want the UV to kill Parasites to need about 1/3 of the flow that it takes to kill Bacteria and Algae.

That is a good point. Moving the UV over to a single 2028 may be the way I go after all.

[jmhart]

Well, I finally did some real actual work on this thing. We've got a club auction coming up on March 7th, so I'm trying desperately to have it cycled by then.


When I was growing up, I was the youngest of 3 boys, and we ALL played with Legos. By the time I came along, we had multiple big popcorn tins filled with Legos. Basically, any part you could even want for anything you could ever want to build.

I tried to apply that approach to this.





Blank slate:





Finished product:



Left Side:




Center:




Right Side:





Obviously I could have built the thing with a few less 90 elbows, but I was building for form and function. I was trying to maximize my left over space in the stand.

And, for the record, I still had to make 1 more trip to Home Depot, and 2 more trips to Ace for more parts.

I let it all dry overnight, so water test will be today. Cross your fingers.

[thrak76]

Looks great! Not that i really know anything about plumbing...
I like the Legos analogy as well. I hope all goes well with your water test.

[Yellow Jacket]

Looking good!

[jmhart]

Originally Posted by thrak76

Looks great! Not that i really know anything about plumbing...
I like the Legos analogy as well. I hope all goes well with your water test.

Originally Posted by Yellow Jacket

Looking good!

Thanks!



Little update:


I'm glad I made it so the two circulation loops could be isolated. I started to fill it all up and found a pretty bad leak coming from around my MD7. The housing has a big crack in it. I'll have to fix that later, but...

Since I urgently need to get it cycling, I just closed the valve on that side of the filtration loop, and filled up the other side. Everything is holding pretty well at this point.

I'm filling it up about 25% a day, to let the stand, tank, and everything get used to the weight. Afterward, I'll drain it all out and put substrate in.