My new experiment

[Ryan925]

Wanted to start a thread on my latest diy gadget. I understand that many discus keepers like to keep it simple, with tried and trued methods, like BB, sponge filters and large daily changes. I also realize that many members are open to the use of technical components and other diy gadgets that can better their overall experience.

I will say I understand nothing takes place of wcs but if something works why not utilize it.

My new diy project is an algae reactor. As I know the benefits of scrubbers I wanted to experiment with something similar without the large space requirements. My hope is to see the results in two different areas for myself. One obviously is nutrient export between wcs. Yes I will still do my normal wcs but I would like to see if there is any change on params.

The other is I have had a bit of trouble this summer with some green algae. My guess is the amount of sunlight the tank gets from the kitchen window here in sunny California. I can't get the wife to stop opening the blinds while I'm at work so here I am.

This project may show positive results and may not but as a person that likes to tinker and diy I figure it's worth a shot.

In an earlier post I diy'd a purigen reactor. Essentially what I have done is taking the existing reactor (obviously removed purigen), placed plastic knitting mesh inside and wrapped with a warm led strip light.

I have been running approximately 12 hour light cycles thus far. I will be adding a wemo switch so that it's automatic but have been manually turning off and on at this point.

I installed Saturday and today see noticeable algae growth. Now we shall see if there are results. If not, didn't cost much more than an led strip from Amazon.
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[DonMD]

What is it you hope it will accomplish? Reduce algae in your tank? I am not familiar with this idea, and nutrient export . . . huh? Thanks.

[Ryan925]

What is it you hope it will accomplish? Reduce algae in your tank? I am not familiar with this idea, and nutrient export . . . huh? Thanks.

My hope is by growing the algae where I want it it will keep it out of my tank as well as suck up nutrients at the same time. Same principal as an algae scrubber. I've seen this applies to salt tanks so figured I'd give it a go since its so simple. As i said I like to tinker:)

[Poppa Ryno]

Interesting experiment.
Following to see how it goes.

[Phillydubs]

Interesting baby girl keep us posted on the effectiveness...

[Kyla]

Neat idea. Might be able to put some pothos cuttings in the tank to compete with the algae as well if u like the look of them

[brewmaster15]

Nice Naquadah generator Ryan.:)well as a stargate fan thats what it looks like to me!

Seriously though will you be monitoring and testing any parameters? At the least I think you can get some interesting data on Nitrate levels.

al

[Ryan925]

Nice Naquadah generator Ryan.:)well as a stargate fan thats what it looks like to me!

Seriously though will you be monitoring and testing any parameters? At the least I think you can get some interesting data on Nitrate levels.

al

Lol the stargate reference flew right over my head:)

I will monitor nitrates for reference and hope to see my algae in the tank gone. It's not huge but unsightly nonetheless

[Ryan925]

One week later.
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[zhuls1]

This thread got me thinking, What if you used a cheap protein skimmer instead of a reactor, that would keep the algae well oxygenated and could have better growth.

[brewmaster15]

Interesting Ryan, didn't know what a wemo switch was so I looked it up. High tech little bugger..

That LED strip is a DC right? They make a real inexpensive DC timer you could wire inline...I have a few here I picked up on ebay for a few bucks.


https://www.ebay.com/itm/1PC-Fashion-Digital-LCD-Programmable-Time-Counter-Timer-Switch-Relay-16A-DC-12V/122818193963?epid=2215402955&hash=item1c9888ea2b:g:--kAAOSwfa9Zp3MB

al

[Ryan925]

Interesting Ryan, didn't know what a wemo switch was so I looked it up. High tech little bugger..

That LED strip is a DC right? They make a real inexpensive DC timer you could wire inline...I have a few here I picked up on ebay for a few bucks.


https://www.ebay.com/itm/1PC-Fashion-Digital-LCD-Programmable-Time-Counter-Timer-Switch-Relay-16A-DC-12V/122818193963?epid=2215402955&hash=item1c9888ea2b:g:--kAAOSwfa9Zp3MB

al

Thanks for the heads up Al. I'll definitely look into that. Wemo are a bit pricey so that's probably overkill for this. I do really like them for filters and lights though.

[Rosskeegan24]

Very interesting idea ! I really want to set up an algae scrubber/reactor, the benifits can be huge.
I have even seen people run full salwater tank on algae scrubbers alone.
You could even add some sort of moss onto the mesh.
I might even try a HOB version of this, thanks for the idea !

[Ryan925]

Very interesting idea ! I really want to set up an algae scrubber/reactor, the benifits can be huge.
I have even seen people run full salwater tank on algae scrubbers alone.
You could even add some sort of moss onto the mesh.
I might even try a HOB version of this, thanks for the idea !

I too thought the hob idea would be a simple way to do it.

So I did a 70%-80% wc on Saturday. Tested nitrate last night and was at 5 or even slightly less. Algae is noticeably less but not gone completely

[Neptune]

FYI these are pretty common on the saltwater side. You can buy some really spendy commercial ones!!

You should try adding some red to your LED's, might help with faster growth.

The really expensive ones use violet based phosphors for a better photosynthetic curve.

[Neptune]

Why turn it off? Let it run 24/7..

[Ryan925]

Well my experiment has definitely and proven a few things.

As I was very busy with work and tht holidays I actually went a week without water change. After a full week my nitrate was at 7.5 and my algae is gone. It's quite evident this works to lower nitrate and I'm sure phosphate as well while also freeing display of algae

I never intended this to be a replacement for wc. Often time I see posts stating wc are based on nitrate levels. We all know there is much more to water quality than just nitrate. After a full week I could see the fish were a bit less active than usual. After an 80% wc they instantly pepped up including colors

[JamesW]

Is the algae just growing on the walls or do you have scrubbers or something in the reactor for it to grow on?

[Ryan925]

Is the algae just growing on the walls or do you have scrubbers or something in the reactor for it to grow on?

I have a plastic mesh in there. I think it's called knitting mesh. I just cut the sheet to fit the height and rolled it in