Algae scrubber ideas

[Silent]

I go 1.0 watt to 1.55 watts per 4 square inches per side. That's just what I researched & it works.
I only use red 660nm. Others like a small amount of blue, or violet, but when I mixed in some blue I got more mucky slimey brown growth mixed in, interfering with the nice lush green growth.
I also have found that with just the red you bypass the initial yucky slimey growth & go straight to the good stuff, although this may not be the case for everyone.

What about the white? Does it not grow algae as well as just red does?

 

[Scrubber_steve]

What about the white? Does it not grow algae as well as just red does?

No, its a waste of wattage.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

No, its a waste of wattage.

there will be some red spectrum in the whites, but its minimal even in warm whites.
Red is the spectrum - 660nm

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

Is hydroponic lighting in the red wavelength

 

[NHgoalstop]

I threw a quick one together one day, waterfall style. It started to grow algae in about 4 days with a large led grow panel I picked up cheap. I ended up taking it down because of a huge jump in evaporation and salt spray. I will end up making another as soon as I pick up some clear and some black acrylic to make an enclosed unit to solve those issues I had. Waterfall was very simple though. I just hooked up a small pump in my sump and pumped it in some pvc pipe tha flowed over the mesh. Worked pretty well considering it took me 30 minutes to make it.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

Is hydroponic lighting in the red wavelength

red with some blue usually, & used for terrestrial plants

 

[KleineVampir]

I threw a quick one together one day, waterfall style. It started to grow algae in about 4 days with a large led grow panel I picked up cheap. I ended up taking it down because of a huge jump in evaporation and salt spray. I will end up making another as soon as I pick up some clear and some black acrylic to make an enclosed unit to solve those issues I had. Waterfall was very simple though. I just hooked up a small pump in my sump and pumped it in some pvc pipe tha flowed over the mesh. Worked pretty well considering it took me 30 minutes to make it.

I like that because it's something you can just put in the water. I don't like the idea of having to run my overflow pipe into the scrubber before it hits the sump. That would be a whole replumbing job.

 

[Hyde2406]

Noice, mate! That's a beautiful sight, isn't it? Are those yours or someone else's?

I'm thinking about just breaking down and buying a santa monica drop 1.4 unit. Instead of being on here trying to reinvent the wheel, I could just do something actually good for my tank and do away with all my silliness in the sump. Kinda tempting to just leave the knitting mesh in there with the kessil over them, but I suppose it's probably like 25% of the effectiveness of getting the real deal.

I use a drop 1.2 in a 34 gal red sea and I love it, I fed 1-2 cubes a day. I've run a Santa Monica drop for 6 years and had the lights on my last one go out and I lost a ton of coral. But I'll never run a tank without a scrubber. Plus they're amazing with customer service. I bought mine 6 years ago and when the lights went out 3 months ago, they sent me a replacement they had at no cost. They even said I could send the broken one back and they would fix it if they could, but it would need to be completely re done so I kept the one they sent for free and bought a new 1.2x drop. I don't mind spending money on equipment I'll have for years made by a company that treats people compassionately.

 

[KleineVampir]

What about the white? Does it not grow algae as well as just red does?

Technically speaking, there's no such thing as white. That would have all the colors in it to some extent. Red, green, and blue. In this case a 'white' light would be producing red, green, and blue. The red is good, so is the blue (apparently to a lesser extent for scrubbers.) and green would be totally useless since all green photosynthetic organisms reflect green light rather than absorb it.

 

[Hyde2406]

What about the white? Does it not grow algae as well as just red does?

It gets too bright and hot and you'll grow Algae everywhere but at the center of the white light, which is just a waste of space

 

[Hyde2406]

Well that's good to hear, considering I just bought their 1.4 unit!

Don't get disappointed if you don't get growth right away, it usually takes a month or two for my tanks. 4 days is crazy fast, but when you get dark slime clean your scrubber every week you will eventually get the nice green Algae

 

[NHgoalstop]

I like that because it's something you can just put in the water. I don't like the idea of having to run my overflow pipe into the scrubber before it hits the sump. That would be a whole replumbing job.

Here's a crappy pic of it running in the sump.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

I like that because it's something you can just put in the water. I don't like the idea of having to run my overflow pipe into the scrubber before it hits the sump. That would be a whole replumbing job.

you can run a dedicated pump - no plumbing change required

 

[S2G]

I go 1.0 watt to 1.55 watts per 4 square inches per side. That's just what I researched & it works.
I only use red 660nm. Others like a small amount of blue, or violet, but when I mixed in some blue I got more mucky slimey brown growth mixed in, interfering with the nice lush green growth.
I also have found that with just the red you bypass the initial yucky slimey growth & go straight to the good stuff, although this may not be the case for everyone.

That's what I was hoping for. Last go around I mixed blues and got a mix of junk. This go around I grabbed deep red at that same wattage. Do you blast it 100% day one or do you dim it for awhile?

I'm pretty certain the deep reds are the ticket with chaeto as well.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

That's what I was hoping for. Last go around I mixed blues and got a mix of junk. This go around I grabbed deep red at that same wattage. Do you blast it 100% day one or do you dim it for awhile?

I'm pretty certain the deep reds are the ticket with chaeto as well.

how long a photo-period you run depends on the level of NO3 you want to maintain. Longer lighting period = more photosynthesis = more inorganic nutrient assimilation. Depends on the system overall, the correctness of sizing the screen, the light intensity & spectrum.

I have run 24/7, & the growth accelerated significantly, but after a few weeks growth slowed considerably when NO3 & PO4 bottomed out.

A couple of months ago I dropped a razor blade into the tank & couldn't find it. So it was inevitable it would rust & release the various metals it contained (only a 50 gal system). A couple of weeks later I got bad case of hair algae growing all over the rock work (which is what I expected), for the first time in 4 years (since I put the scrubber into action). I don't run a skimmer or GAC. I just went 24/7 with the photo-period & the green hair eventually disappeared again. Went back to 12 hour photo-period after that.

 

[KleineVampir]

I think I'm gonna run the drop 1.4 on the night cycles only. Should the bubbles be on all the time or could they just turn on with the night cycle too? I have no doubt the lights could be turned off during the day but I dunno about the bubbles. Might be kinda weird for the algae to have to adjust to bubbles and no bubbles.

I'm thinking maybe I should get some drop 1.4 action on video since apparently there aren't a ton of videos on it.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

Might be kinda weird for the algae to have to adjust to bubbles and no bubbles.

No. Many algae are in the tidal zone & spend hours completely out of the water every day.

 

[KleineVampir]

No. Many algae are in the tidal zone & spend hours completely out of the water every day.

So might as well run the bubbles on the night cycle too is what you're saying? They will still be underwater, just not moving or anything.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

I'd leave the bubbles off when dark, unless Santa Monica tells you different

 

[KleineVampir]

I'd leave the bubbles off when dark, unless Santa Monica tells you different

Well I looked at the manual and it says leave the bubbles on 24/7. You might be able to turn them off at night but they don't advise it.