Mega Powerful Nitrate and Phosphate Remover - DIY!

[dawnmarie]

Go through the examples and look for an idea...
http://www.algaescrubber.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=26

Many good ideas in your link.
As for lighting, I won't pretend to know the difference between 10,000k and 2,000k, but is there a target # that is optimum or is the 2000 to 6500 range all the same ? How would grow lights do ?
There seems to be a lot of choices, styles and price ranges to choose from.

 

[SantaMonica]

Just ask for a 3000K. A grow light would be a good choice too.

 

[cowboyish1]

I just became a member after reading this thread on algae scrubbers. I love the idea!

So, is anyone willing to build and sell a small compact acrylic algae scrubber with integrated light(s) for a small tank (20 gals and less)? It would have to be an above-the-tank model, and since the tank is a display tank in the main part of my home, I would want the scrubber to look decently presentable. Something more opaque to block the light glare would be good too.

If interested, get back to me with pictures/schematics and cost.

Thanks!

 

[cypherljk]

Very interesting.. a science lesson here..

 

[Ali1]

In the beginning it said the general rule for the screen is dependent on the size of the tank 12x12= 144=144G tank. Later on, it states it doesn't matter how high it needs to be. The reason I ask is because the water level in my sump is really low, just enough to cover the return pump. So if i lower the screen all the way down to let it touch the water, i would have a hard time positioning my lights to aim directly at the screen. So if i just attach an extra screen at the bottom of the first screen to let it sit in the water, is this okay? Should I still scrub the bottom screen down or it doesnt matter. As long as the light can accomodate the 12x12 area, it doesn't matter how much extra screen you have left over?

 

[Ali1]

Can anyone tell me why my scrubber is doing this ? It keeps spitting out more water on the very end of the right side every few seconds. This large spill is causing a big splash.

Don't worry about the height of the screen, I will take care of that once this issue is fixed.

 

[SantaMonica]

Cowboy if you want to buy one, wait a bit, there will be scrubbers for sale. Acrylic is hard to build.

Ali1 extra screen on the bottom is no problem. And, your flow will even-out in as algae fills in.

 

[hobbes4]

New Year Update: Screen Roughness

It's becoming more and more clear how important a rough screen is. A year ago it was thought that lighting was most important, but only because you could see new growth easily from stronger light. The effects of a smooth screen are not nearly as obvious, because you start losing small pieces of algae off the screen bit-by-bit, but they are covered up by the other algae. So here is an example of how fast a brand-new screen can grow; it is just 4 days old, but it is two layers of cactus-rough plastic canvas:

Which gives us a new goal:

What was used to get the plastic canvas cactus-rough?

 

[dawnmarie]

Hey SantaMonica. I'm ready to drill holes in a perfectly good wall and thought I'd run this by you before I do. The attached drawing shows my setup plan. The algae scrubber screen is 12.5 long X 22 High in a 20l x 10d x12h sump. Fed by a Little Giant 2-md pump (440 Gph @ 4.5' of head).
My questions are : Should I use the 5 mesh or 7 mesh screen (I have both)?
Second, I have read the sticky on pipe flow and sizing (more than once) and am still not sure whether to use 1" or 1 1/4" for the return line.
Lastly, I need to drill the glass sump for the return. How close to the bottom should I drill the side ? Do I need to have a certain amount of water always in the sump for the screen to contact or is this unimportant ? If it is unimportant it might be easier to drill the return centered in the bottom.
Pictures coming soon and Thanks for the help

 

[hobbes4]

Does anybody have the link to the thread where this scubber was made? I think it was on some SW site.

Will there be any problems with water getting on the lights?