Journal of a Mad Scientist: ADA 120-P (56K warning!)

[SuRje1976]

Well the mailman just brought me a gift. The lily pipes for the 2217 came today. I ordered the CalAqua Labs Fluxus system for the second filter (ADA Lily Pipes on the 2128) to vary the flow of water a bit, and possibly avoid "dead spots."

They came in this box:




And look like this:




As you can see, the outflow looks just like the ADA outflow, but with the cone inverted. The inflow is a little different. It has 2 extra sets of openings a little higher up on the pipe. There is also a small hole at the very bottom of the pipe. CalAqua states that these improve water circulation. They have a bunch of pictures in their online gallery to attest to this. Whether there will be a noticeable difference in terms of their practical application, I don't know. I will report observations here!

[SuRje1976]

Ok, I was able to get the power strips mounted and the stand light installed today. I've got some pics:

Power Strips mounted to MDF:




MDF Mounted to stand's back apron:




The strips installed:




The light went in front of the power strips, leaving enough room to get plugs in and out:




These shots give me an opportunity to describe how I intend to place the balance of the equipment in the stand.

The Eheim 2217 will be in the front on the left. It's inflow will be come from the left front of the tank. It's outflow will run across the front of the stand, through the instrumentation unit, and terminate in the right front of the tank.

The CO2 canister will be placed behind the 2217. It is too tall to fit toward the front once the drawers are in place.

The Eheim 2128 will be located on the right hand side of the stand. It's intake will come from the right rear of the tank. It's outflow will run across the back of the stand, through the UVS, T'ed to the Auto Water Changer, and terminate at the left rear of the tank.

The pH controller, air pump, and fertilizer system will stay where they are in these pics. I think that about sums it up! Suggestions?

[Nightshop]

Simply Amazing. I'm assuming the tank has yet to arrive, right?

[SuRje1976]

Originally Posted by Nightshop

Simply Amazing. I'm assuming the tank has yet to arrive, right?

Nope - no tank yet. I may have it by early next week though!

[Nightshop]

Haha, I can only imagine how excited you must be. I know I would be!

[logan]

i think your wood stain abberation isn't from shrinkage, but more because they hired some new guy that used too much wood glue when putting in that moulding. he didn't wipe it up with a wet cloth, but got lazy with a dry cloth. stain doesn't go so good with wood glue.

[SuRje1976]

Originally Posted by logan

i think your wood stain abberation isn't from shrinkage, but more because they hired some new guy that used too much wood glue when putting in that moulding. he didn't wipe it up with a wet cloth, but got lazy with a dry cloth. stain doesn't go so good with wood glue.

Goodness, I hope that isn't the case! Panels should NEVER be glued in on the edges with frame and panel construction - defeates the purpose. It's on the inside as well. It doesn't look/feel like glue though. I'll know for sure when I get the right stain/dye in my hands. If it's glue, the stain/dye won't take. Then I'll have to get fancy with the Dremel.

[logan]

you don't really have to get fancy, you can just use some sand paper... the problem is getting the stain to match the existing stain, which will be next to impossible. i'm also assuming that they used a polyurathane coating on top, which you'll definitely not be able to stain unless you sand... i'd say take it back if it bothers you, or paint the whole damn thing. on the quick cheap side, i would actually just find some colored pens and try to match it by 'drawing' on the sealant with some browns/greens/blues until you hit it.

[sNApple]

those power bars are pimp, that beaker set up is intense too

[esarkipato]

Great thread, you are an exremely thorough aquarists I especially love the looks of your dosing system. Is it based on a timed pump or what?

[jt20194]

Sergio, please document your dosing system. It looks very interesting. I know that you are using RO/DI water and wanted to see what you decided on in so far as dosing. Thanks for keeping us posted.

JT

[SuRje1976]

Logan - Thanks for the tips! I WILL be able to match the color closely enough, I've done quite a bit of woodworking and refinishing, and remember the issue is right at a shadow line, so if it is off by a hair, it won't be detectable.

sNApple - Thanks! I originally intended to display the fertilization setup, so I went overboard with the "containers." I have since decided to put them in the stand so as to not divert attention from the tank itself.

esarkipato - Thank you for the kind words. The dosing system is on 3 timed peristaltic pumps and 1 timed magnetic stirrer. The design was inspired by a handful of people here, like Bill (bharada), and Steve (scolley).

JT - I intend to document the fert dosing system in detail once it is completely integrated into the new tank, I promise. I've been testing the system on my old setup for a couple months and it worked great, but there are a couple of issues I'm anticipating, specifically the back pressure the pumps will be working against. In the old setup, they just dripped directly into the tank. They'll be plumbed inline on the new setup. I'm not using RO anymore, as I had issues with the Equlibrium dosing that I couldn't overcome (well, I could, but it would require me to either get an industrial magnetic stirrer and a much larger reservoir, OR refill the current setup every 10 days, which is not really inline with the level of automation I'm after!).

[dufus]

Mad scientist!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
that dosing system looks freakin awesome!
the powerbars are definatley bad ass. this is gonna be an iced out tank, i can tell.(yes, i used metal, rock, and Gangsta terms in one post!)

[Betowess]

Wow, I missed a few of these posts. So is that a two set up fert with PO4 on the left and traces NO3 and K on the right? Can't wait to read the write up. Those beakers, well, it looks positively 19th century/Darwinian. LOL I really like the stand and hardware too. You'll have to describe your whole setup. Are you using an Aqua Controler like Steve? Great Thread!

[fresh_lynny]

wow, Sergio, you are taking me back to organic chem lab with those glass dispensers....wooohoo love it.
so far so great~