Algae scrubber

[wake125122]

So I am looking to make a DIY algae scrubber. What kind of lighting can I use on this? I was thinking of using some old heat light but swaping out the bulbs to something more algae friendly. They are basically just normal clip on lights with heat light bulbs. Nothing fancy about them. What kind of light bulbs can I use. Can I just use anything or do I need to get something specific?

 

[bcavalli]

Adam (@anit77) or Ricky (@ricky5415) have had great experience with building and using one (hopefully they will chime in).  Another option is a chaeto reactor.  (You can click on their @username above to send them a message).  They will also receive a notification that they have been mentined.

 

[Adam]

How big of a scrubber are you planning to make? Based on the size I can recommend the light(s) and pump size.

I'm going to do a write up on the one I made soon. It's a fairly large one but being DIY it was very cost effective, probably about $150-170 total. This includes 2 50w led grow lights and a dedicated pump for it. The pump was the single most expensive component at about $60, Jebao DCP-5000.

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[wake125122]

Wow, how big are you making it? I was going to use a left over pump I had from an old protein skimmer. I was going to make it as big as I can in my sump but I have limited room. I also plan to add about 3 other reactors so space is getting to be a premium lol.

 

[Adam]

I'd need to know the dimensions you have to fit it. Mine is in a medium sized tote and uses a full 12x18 plastic canvas sheet. I run it externally from the sump. Depending on the size you're looking to do would decide the light size, 10w or 20w and 1 or 2 of them. Lighting the sheet from both sides gives the best results.

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[wake125122]

How did you do your holes for the water? Did you cut a slit in it or did you drill a bunch of holes in the bottom of it?

 

[Adam]

Drilled the two 3/4" pipes. There's a slit the the 1" center pipe to hold the canvas and used rings cut from a larger pipe to hold it in place. That center pipe comes right out very easily. The bottom of the tote has a 1-1/2" bulkhead for the drain.

 

[wake125122]

How powerful of a pump are you using?

 

[wake125122]

Is this a powerful enough light?

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[ricky5415]

U want a grow light with more 4:1 red to blue ratio. Prefer led. I will go with a bigger controllable pump and adjust it from there. Just depend on the size of your ATS

 

[danh]

I moved over to the light that Adam is using. I like it. Growing really nicely so far.

 

[wake125122]

What kind of light is that?

 

[Adam]

If you can give me the rough dimensions of the scrubber you're planning to make I'll link a light from Amazon.

I'm using a DCP 5000 to run mine but yours sounds like it will be quite a bit smaller. You need a minimum of 35gph of flow per linear inch of canvas. This is actual flow not something you pull from pump curves. So if it's 10" long you'd need 350gph. Depending on the plumbing I'd say a pump capable of delivering double or triple that is needed.

 

[ricky5415]

Led flood light 50w

 

[ricky5415]

Grow led light

 

[Adam]

Something like this is a good place to start on the light.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00KL8OW0U/ref=mp_s_a_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1511197899&sr=8-8&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=led+grow+light+20w&dpPl=1&dpID=61WL4ezqQUL&ref=plSrch

There are quite a few to choose from that are like this from 10w and up. It all depends on the length of the canvas you're going to go with.

 

[enderg60]

I use two of these for my 24" x 18" scrubber.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00S2DPYQM/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Work fantastically.

 

[Adam]

Those look good too Ender. If they are kept dry they could be a nice option. There are a lot of choices out there that aren't expensive. I went with 2 of these for mine because they are IP66. Got lucky and picked them up on sale for $25 each.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B010FMFZVG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Once I know the size of the sheet and how he plans on installing it I can narrow down the list for him.

 

[wake125122]

I actually went with this one. Since I already have a light fixture. Do you think this will be good enough?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TT3EKD2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Adam]

Only for a very small one. Like 8"x8" max. Don't really know if it would even be worth doing one that small.

That light would be better on a Fuge and not a ATS. One thing you never stated was the size of your system...