fishyfish22
Premium member
Hello everybody. Most of you know me because I like to hand around the forum and sometimes post but I spend a lot of my time observing and reading up on new things there are to learn.(I'm shy like that) I currently have a 180 gallon reef set up(I'm planning another thread on it later on) and I am currently in high school(in the summer between sophomore and junior) and I got the idea that I would be cool to have a smaller tank. My only problem is that It is rather difficult for me to have one because the flooring in most of my house is wood and when water gets under wooden flooring it messes everything up and raises the edges so my parents are completely against me getting a nano for my room or for the upstairs. I see their point though and they're right. Plus I don't' have a source of money since nanos are expensive and I'm currently unemployed(these darn senior graduates took all of the available jobs also i can't drive XD) so I'm trying to go diy on almost everything. I'm growing out some frags that I will eventually hope to sell to fund this but at the moment I plan to let them grow. At least until I get everything I need planned out and I am completely sure of what I need to do.
Here's my idea:I would like to have a 5 gallon nano reef...in my school locker. that's right. you read correctly. a small aquarium in a locker. i did the specs and i have about a square foot of locker space. perfect for a small 5 gallon plus whatever i could use. i rarely use my locker so the space won't be wasted except in the winter to hang up jacket or coat. as far as the rules go i read and reread the student handbook and there is nothing specified or that says that what i'm doing violates any of the rules. besides, i run the aquariums at my school so even if something was against the rules(which there isn't) id probably just get warned and asked to take the set up down.
please don't try to talk me down for thinking about the idea, instead try to provide ways to fix the problem there might be. i know it's possible if enough people help.
so i was thinking it would be better to write out a list of things that the average reef tank needs, and then work on building each one individually one by one. think of them as challenges.
things a good reef tank needs:
-good lighting
-good flow
-saltwater XD
-good filtration
i took an electronics class me freshman year and i know how to solder from it and about diodes, resistors, etc but i don't know everything so please bear with me if i need an explanation on something
i like the way this tank is setup as far as filtration goes. only problem is the water pump...if possible i would like to do something very similar.
http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/132714-my-55g-pico-with-built-in-fuge/
challenge 1:lighting
so as far as lighting goes, i was thinking diy led, since leds require the least amount of energy to run. i want to try some sps (simple ones, some birdsnest and montis), lps, and some softies(definitely zoas and mushrooms) in this tank. so far i planned out on another forum that if i were to use three 3w royal blue colored led's and 3 warm whites i would need 132.48 wattage hours of power, which would be 12 D-Cell NiMH batteries because they would be on for 8 hours a day and i can recharge them, when i come into school at 7:30 in the morning and off at 3:30 pm. eight hours. during the night they'll recharge and ill come back the next day with a freshish set. during the weekends the lights will be off(i read this was ok for the corals)the main problem that is driving me insane is a power source
as far as i've planned i would need 12 D-cell NiMH batteries(expensive but long term not as expensive as alkaline) anyone know if the lighting i have would be accurate for some smaller sps? (i know if they work for sps they'll definitely be enough for lps and softies) also how would i go about setting it up as far as the wiring and circuitry? anybody know of another rechargeable power source that is less expensive than NiMH batteries?(i found a store where i can buy a pack of 2 for $6, so it would have to less than $72 and legal in the united states please)
challenge 2:as far as flow goes i have nothing thought up. i was thinking of using a battery operated marina air pump but i have no idea how i would do it. i was thinking something magnetic but still, i have no idea how that would work. any ideas? concepts? like i said, if i can figure out how to make a good battery powered pump i could set up something similar to the tank in the link and that would basically fix current and filtration.
challenge 3: as far as the water goes, i will be using the same salt i use in my 180 gallon and i will do tri weekly(mon, wed, fri) water changes. i will also be dosing if necessary and adding supplement if necessary, so this isn't really a challenge but if there is anything i missed please fill me in. i found this really cool water changing system on another forum(forgot where) in which i have a gatorade/water bottle with a hole drilled in the cap. in the hole there goes a syringe, at the end of the syringe there will be airline tubing that will go into the tank. at the the other end of the syringe there will be a small hole in which water will come out from the suction force that is made when the syringe is pulled. this is the first thing that i will be making since it is the easiest and i already have all the pieces. pics to come soon.
challenge 4:the filtration. as far as this goes, i think i'll be fine with biological filtration, but if not i can add a sponge or something like that to the filter part of the tank. if no filtration is necessary(external) i might end up not adding the second part and just adding the battery diy pump into the tank directly(after i make sure it won't get ruined or electrocute the water of course) i plan on keeping mostly corals and some shrimps along with a small clown goby and an atlantic blue tang. haha jk XD no atlantic blue tang that'd be crazy and straight up cruel.(although if anybody has any idea for a second fish i could do please lmk)
please people, we can make this work if enough people add what they can.
any questions feel free to ask. i do not have anything yet(except syringe water changer) as far as leds or batteries. i'd like to have everything planned out first before i order the parts i need from ebay or go to the store to buy
Here's my idea:I would like to have a 5 gallon nano reef...in my school locker. that's right. you read correctly. a small aquarium in a locker. i did the specs and i have about a square foot of locker space. perfect for a small 5 gallon plus whatever i could use. i rarely use my locker so the space won't be wasted except in the winter to hang up jacket or coat. as far as the rules go i read and reread the student handbook and there is nothing specified or that says that what i'm doing violates any of the rules. besides, i run the aquariums at my school so even if something was against the rules(which there isn't) id probably just get warned and asked to take the set up down.
please don't try to talk me down for thinking about the idea, instead try to provide ways to fix the problem there might be. i know it's possible if enough people help.
so i was thinking it would be better to write out a list of things that the average reef tank needs, and then work on building each one individually one by one. think of them as challenges.
things a good reef tank needs:
-good lighting
-good flow
-saltwater XD
-good filtration
i took an electronics class me freshman year and i know how to solder from it and about diodes, resistors, etc but i don't know everything so please bear with me if i need an explanation on something
i like the way this tank is setup as far as filtration goes. only problem is the water pump...if possible i would like to do something very similar.
http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/132714-my-55g-pico-with-built-in-fuge/
challenge 1:lighting
so as far as lighting goes, i was thinking diy led, since leds require the least amount of energy to run. i want to try some sps (simple ones, some birdsnest and montis), lps, and some softies(definitely zoas and mushrooms) in this tank. so far i planned out on another forum that if i were to use three 3w royal blue colored led's and 3 warm whites i would need 132.48 wattage hours of power, which would be 12 D-Cell NiMH batteries because they would be on for 8 hours a day and i can recharge them, when i come into school at 7:30 in the morning and off at 3:30 pm. eight hours. during the night they'll recharge and ill come back the next day with a freshish set. during the weekends the lights will be off(i read this was ok for the corals)the main problem that is driving me insane is a power source
as far as i've planned i would need 12 D-cell NiMH batteries(expensive but long term not as expensive as alkaline) anyone know if the lighting i have would be accurate for some smaller sps? (i know if they work for sps they'll definitely be enough for lps and softies) also how would i go about setting it up as far as the wiring and circuitry? anybody know of another rechargeable power source that is less expensive than NiMH batteries?(i found a store where i can buy a pack of 2 for $6, so it would have to less than $72 and legal in the united states please)challenge 2:as far as flow goes i have nothing thought up. i was thinking of using a battery operated marina air pump but i have no idea how i would do it. i was thinking something magnetic but still, i have no idea how that would work. any ideas? concepts? like i said, if i can figure out how to make a good battery powered pump i could set up something similar to the tank in the link and that would basically fix current and filtration.
challenge 3: as far as the water goes, i will be using the same salt i use in my 180 gallon and i will do tri weekly(mon, wed, fri) water changes. i will also be dosing if necessary and adding supplement if necessary, so this isn't really a challenge but if there is anything i missed please fill me in. i found this really cool water changing system on another forum(forgot where) in which i have a gatorade/water bottle with a hole drilled in the cap. in the hole there goes a syringe, at the end of the syringe there will be airline tubing that will go into the tank. at the the other end of the syringe there will be a small hole in which water will come out from the suction force that is made when the syringe is pulled. this is the first thing that i will be making since it is the easiest and i already have all the pieces. pics to come soon.
challenge 4:the filtration. as far as this goes, i think i'll be fine with biological filtration, but if not i can add a sponge or something like that to the filter part of the tank. if no filtration is necessary(external) i might end up not adding the second part and just adding the battery diy pump into the tank directly(after i make sure it won't get ruined or electrocute the water of course) i plan on keeping mostly corals and some shrimps along with a small clown goby and an atlantic blue tang. haha jk XD no atlantic blue tang that'd be crazy and straight up cruel.(although if anybody has any idea for a second fish i could do please lmk)
please people, we can make this work if enough people add what they can.
any questions feel free to ask. i do not have anything yet(except syringe water changer) as far as leds or batteries. i'd like to have everything planned out first before i order the parts i need from ebay or go to the store to buy
Just trying to be realistic, but I would love nothing more than you to prove me wrong. Keep us posted.
