Hey Guys,
I am new the ARC forum, but thought I would start some threads about my tank. I live in Valdosta, and am a member of the FPRS (Florida Panhandle Reefers Society). I won this tank as part of a raffle and have been modifying parts of it since I have had it. I will post some old pics for it, and will try and get some new ones up when I can.
The current configuration:
12G Current USA Aquapod
Tank Mods:
Stock return replaced with MJ 900
Acrylic piece added to inside of overflow (facilitates actual surface skimming)
inTank guard for rear chambers (prevents jumpers from getting into the back)
25W Heater
Chamber 2 refugium:
LED light bar
LR rubble
Chaeto
de*nitrate media bag
Hood mods:
Stock fan replaced with SilenX fan, second SilenX fan also added.
Fan slits in fan grill opened up for airflow.
Vent slits in hood opened up for airflow.
Foam weatherstrips added to direct airflow inside the hood over lights, around the reflector, then out of fan ports.
Tank Setup:
Aquapod 12G Stand
ReefKeeper 2 Controller (w/ pH probe and Temp probe)
mini-ITX computer running myReef 1.0 (for RK2)
Livestock:
Mostly softies such as zoanthids and mushrooms. The LPS torch coral that came with it is still there in the center.
Current inhabitants:
Pair of Harlequin Shrimp
Yasha Goby w/ Pistol shrimp
Six-line Wrasse
General notes -
I never understood why the built a AIO unit with air vents and built in fan grills, then covered them with another layer of plastic. It's like putting a flat metal plate with only a few slits behind the grill of your car... completely defeats the purpose. I simply removed the part that covered the vents/ports inside the hood. It has increased airflow dramatically, keeps the temperature down, and has no effect on tank aesthetics, because the mod isn't really visible. The temperature profile of the tank is now entirely within an acceptable range, and doesn't shift much at all. There is a fan that sits on top of the hood that is set to come on if the tank goes above 78.5F, which rarely happens, maybe once every other day. This little bit of hood modding has basically fixed one of the largest problems with the various AIO units.. heat.
Although I currently don't run it much anymore, there is a small ITX computer connected to the RK2 which runs a myReef 1.0 webserver. The webserver basically displays graphs of the pH and Temperature over time, and the states of the individual outlets on the RK2. A pretty neat feature if you want to see whats going on with your tank from work or anywhere else in the world. It is also really good to watch to get control of your temperature profile and get an overall profile of your tanks daily pH shift. The software also tracks the % of time that any individual outlet stays on, so you can see how much use your heater/fan get. The computer also had a web cam attached that served a live image of the tank on the webpage, but I have since turned it off as I couldn't find a suitable place to mount the camera in front of the tank.
Immediate plans for the tank.... I think I may get a hole saw so I can mount the RK2 controller inside of the stand, to keep in line with the concept of a sleek simplistic setup look. I am not a big fan of wires everywhere, and the more I can hide, the better. I also have some other zoanthid frags I want to add to the AP from my other tanks. I have some watermelon, Tubb's blues, and another light blue-purplish/green morph I want to add. I have also considered adding a dosing pump to the unused outlet to dose kalkwasser at night, depending on the pH reading, but since there isn't any SPS, and only 1 LPS, I see it as somewhat unnecessary. I guess it's good to have the future potential though.
I will try and get some updated pictures of the tank up here soon, since the old ones are gone, and they are really out of date anyway.
Landon
I am new the ARC forum, but thought I would start some threads about my tank. I live in Valdosta, and am a member of the FPRS (Florida Panhandle Reefers Society). I won this tank as part of a raffle and have been modifying parts of it since I have had it. I will post some old pics for it, and will try and get some new ones up when I can.
The current configuration:
12G Current USA Aquapod
Tank Mods:
Stock return replaced with MJ 900
Acrylic piece added to inside of overflow (facilitates actual surface skimming)
inTank guard for rear chambers (prevents jumpers from getting into the back)
25W Heater
Chamber 2 refugium:
LED light bar
LR rubble
Chaeto
de*nitrate media bag
Hood mods:
Stock fan replaced with SilenX fan, second SilenX fan also added.
Fan slits in fan grill opened up for airflow.
Vent slits in hood opened up for airflow.
Foam weatherstrips added to direct airflow inside the hood over lights, around the reflector, then out of fan ports.
Tank Setup:
Aquapod 12G Stand
ReefKeeper 2 Controller (w/ pH probe and Temp probe)
mini-ITX computer running myReef 1.0 (for RK2)
Livestock:
Mostly softies such as zoanthids and mushrooms. The LPS torch coral that came with it is still there in the center.
Current inhabitants:
Pair of Harlequin Shrimp
Yasha Goby w/ Pistol shrimp
Six-line Wrasse
General notes -
I never understood why the built a AIO unit with air vents and built in fan grills, then covered them with another layer of plastic. It's like putting a flat metal plate with only a few slits behind the grill of your car... completely defeats the purpose. I simply removed the part that covered the vents/ports inside the hood. It has increased airflow dramatically, keeps the temperature down, and has no effect on tank aesthetics, because the mod isn't really visible. The temperature profile of the tank is now entirely within an acceptable range, and doesn't shift much at all. There is a fan that sits on top of the hood that is set to come on if the tank goes above 78.5F, which rarely happens, maybe once every other day. This little bit of hood modding has basically fixed one of the largest problems with the various AIO units.. heat.
Although I currently don't run it much anymore, there is a small ITX computer connected to the RK2 which runs a myReef 1.0 webserver. The webserver basically displays graphs of the pH and Temperature over time, and the states of the individual outlets on the RK2. A pretty neat feature if you want to see whats going on with your tank from work or anywhere else in the world. It is also really good to watch to get control of your temperature profile and get an overall profile of your tanks daily pH shift. The software also tracks the % of time that any individual outlet stays on, so you can see how much use your heater/fan get. The computer also had a web cam attached that served a live image of the tank on the webpage, but I have since turned it off as I couldn't find a suitable place to mount the camera in front of the tank.
Immediate plans for the tank.... I think I may get a hole saw so I can mount the RK2 controller inside of the stand, to keep in line with the concept of a sleek simplistic setup look. I am not a big fan of wires everywhere, and the more I can hide, the better. I also have some other zoanthid frags I want to add to the AP from my other tanks. I have some watermelon, Tubb's blues, and another light blue-purplish/green morph I want to add. I have also considered adding a dosing pump to the unused outlet to dose kalkwasser at night, depending on the pH reading, but since there isn't any SPS, and only 1 LPS, I see it as somewhat unnecessary. I guess it's good to have the future potential though.
I will try and get some updated pictures of the tank up here soon, since the old ones are gone, and they are really out of date anyway.
Landon
