Sam's Oceanic 120 - DIY solutions

[NowGlazeIT]

Was your media white or purple when you tried it? if purple it could have been spent. I guess all it would take is a puncture in the bag and time. I guess if your skimmer couldn't pull through the media it wouldn't work either.
I was extra careful to install it in a way that I shouldnt get kinked hoses. I am concerned about condensation / water in the line clogging it so I may print-out a drip-trap.

It was white but the skimmer did bog down a bit when I attached the airline. The chamber thinned out and the bubble line dropped. Didn’t pair well I’m guessing

 

[Projects with Sam]

It was white but the skimmer did bog down a bit when I attached the airline. The chamber thinned out and the bubble line dropped. Didn’t pair well I’m guessing

I think you could raise the skimmer to reduce head pressure to get more air. Or do I have that reversed.... I so want a DC skimmer pump.

 

[NowGlazeIT]

I think you could raise the skimmer to reduce head pressure to get more air. Or do I have that reversed....

Raising the skimmer would have been a good idea(the skimmer could have benefited from less pressure). The added air restriction made a audible difference on the pump’s ability to function. I did not troubleshoot around it. Instead I took the loud sound as a red flag towards my pump’s longevity. Last I checked ph hovers around 7.9 not great but the coral keep on keepin on.

I so want a DC skimmer pump.

Dc is clutch for skimmers because you can lower or raise the power at the touch of a bottom. Comes in handy for me because I crank up the power when the skimmer neck gets dirty or just after a cleaning.

 

[Projects with Sam]

I still have the solenoid opening to ambient air at 8.1pH for now. I've learned my lesson about abrupt change...

I'm stoked; I'm seeing pH numbers that I haven't before.

 

[Projects with Sam]

Checked on my pH this afternoon and found this:

Checked the CO2 scrubber and found that where I thought it would fail, it did... I just didn't anticipate it would fail so soon. I unclogged the air-line but feel I really need to find a more permanent solution.

Posted another fish tank build video:

 

[rmorris_14]

Checked on my pH this afternoon and found this:

Checked the CO2 scrubber and found that where I thought it would fail, it did... I just didn't anticipate it would fail so soon. I unclogged the air-line but feel I really need to find a more permanent solution.

Posted another fish tank build video:

I didn’t get a notice about the video on YouTube
Thanks for the heads up!!

 

[Projects with Sam]

Ate all my Zoas... (I did, thankfully, save a bunch in my exile tank.)
Storage / Sump room --> Fish storage /QT/Food room

Fixed (I think) my CO2 scrubber. added a drip-catcher to prevent liquids making it to the CO2Scrubber. Modified my Filter floss roller to accept the 200 yd. rolls of floss from Steve @ Precision Converting.

 

[Goaway]

Never met a large angel that didn't enjoy soft coral. They'll find them eventually. Beautiful emp though.

 

[jsker]

Just stopping in, great build thread.

 

[Projects with Sam]

Never met a large angel that didn't enjoy soft coral. They'll find them eventually. Beautiful emp though.

He wasn't doing well in a Pal's FOWLR tank because he had other large angels. He was rehomed to me for some frags and baby cardinals when they're ready. I love the fish but its a bummer I'm limited in my corals. He grunts a lot - I hear him chatting all day with the other fish. Well, I am hoping he'll leave the cabbage leather, devil's hand and toadstool alone.
I know he loves neon candycane and blastos too...
Have you seen the video of him eating out of my hand?

 

[Goaway]

He wasn't doing well in a Pal's FOWLR tank because he had other large angels. He was rehomed to me for some frags and baby cardinals when they're ready. I love the fish but its a bummer I'm limited in my corals. He grunts a lot - I hear him chatting all day with the other fish. Well, I am hoping he'll leave the cabbage leather, devil's hand and toadstool alone.
I know he loves neon candycane and blastos too...
Have you seen the video of him eating out of my hand?

Emps are a true joy. I loved mine. Yes I did see most of your vids, that one included. You, nowglazeit, lost and stange are all serious with your builds. I'm back here with my coffee chilling and seeing what you guys build and come up with. There are a few others to name. But, looks like most of their projects are done.

They grow fast. Get him as much nori as he can stomach. Sump sponge too. I used to buy mine infested clove polyps for a snack. Talk about spoiled.

 

[Projects with Sam]

Rehomed corals to escape the angelfish.

My scrubber drip-catcher works! Don't know how I get so much. I have the skimmer a few inches above recommended turned all the way down... don't know how I get any skimmate at all!

 

[Projects with Sam]

I don't mean to, but I keep calling the Emperor Angelfish 'Timmy'. I keep trying to look into the tank to see what other corals he's eaten and he gets all up in my grill and grunts at me. I inadvertently find myself scolding him for eating the corals - he just seems like a Timmy so that's the name I derisively use when scolding...

 

[Goaway]

Little fish with a big bark. I absolutely love them!

 

[Projects with Sam]

Fish Utility Room Buildout:
The sump closet was dingy with two metal shelves, one was decrepit, and one of those plastic-drawer stacking bins that never works because the plastic buckles under the weight and its hard to get the drawers out... I had my fishy stuff in disarray in the drawers and on the other nasty shelf.

I couldn't do anything about it though because the conduit in the first photo didn't run against the other wall... I built a metal shelf around it before...
So, I had todo a bunch of electrical before I could rehab the room. I even tied into a GFCI in the other room and pulled the wire to have a GFCI outlet in there now.


Also, I noticed my CO2 scrubber was acting oddly so I checked it out and the media chamber had a lot of water in it. I think the skimmer was having trouble pulling air so I hooked up an aqua lifter pump to help out. Its on the same extension cord as the skimmer so the apex will turn it off when the skimmer is turned off. I think it turbo-charges the skimmer and now water in the CO2 media chamber can bubble-away...


I've been lax about checking my levels and I let my Alkalinity drop too low... I've corrected and have upped my kalkwasser dosing substantially.

 

[Projects with Sam]

Timmy taught my Sailfin how to eat from my hand!

 

[907_Reefer]

Just caught up on your build, awesome stuff sir!

Timmy is freakin' cool!!

 

[Projects with Sam]

So I was Tung-oiling my kids new workbench and I had the windows open in the basement and the tank got too hot and had to put bags of ice in it to cool it off. So, I put a fan to help with the cooling and omg its really flattening out my heating curves.

I am really surprised how much a 140mm fan will cool.

 

[rmorris_14]

So I was Tung-oiling my kids new workbench and I had the windows open in the basement and the tank got too hot and had to put bags of ice in it to cool it off. So, I put a fan to help with the cooling and omg its really flattening out my heating curves.

I am really surprised how much a 140mm fan will cool.

I believe it! I have a little personal sized fan leaning up against the wall right near my ac vent blowing air on the tank. It's not even blowing it on the waters surface. Just literally blowing towards the tank. I no longer have high heat issues. When the AC is running a lot , it actually can cool the tank down too much. It is a very ridiculous looking, super low tech setup (you know my style ), but it works. Husband and father both question me on it. But every time they turn the fan off, I start getting notifications that my temp is getting too high.

 

[rmorris_14]

BTW .....yours looks way more well thought out