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I bought some furniture to put a couple of Nano’s on because it was the quick and easy option. The gaps around the doors and drawers though let the humming sound of the filters out so I’m now wishing I built my own.
I bought some 3/4” bore reinforced hose for another job and was quite surprised how supple it is. It bends nicely but doesn’t seem any more susceptible to kinks than standard aquarium hose. I’m thinking I may get some next time I replumb one of my filters. Anyone on here tried it?
I bought these 16/12 adapters from Amazon. They are very nicely made and have a good bore size of 12mm. This makes them a bit large on the outside for 12mm hose but you can get the hose on ok if you put it in hot water first.
The underside of most canister filter heads are generally quite flat. On some models this requires rocking the filter backwards and forwards to expel trapped air. If the underside was conical I would expect any trapped air to be quickly expelled? A quick sketch, blue is a grid to retain media...
Most canister filters with external pumps seem to have them mounted horizontally. This means the outlet from the canister is off to one side, the ADA is a classic example of this. I’ve always thought that if the inside of the canister lid was slightly conical the filter would be self purging...
I use the Habistat high power mats on my 60L and 37L Nano’s. They manage ok in our lounge with the Elitech’s set to 25°C. In a cold room I suspect even these high power ones would struggle.
In the 1980’s I used an under tank mat on a 50 gallon aquarium and that worked ok. For some reason they...
I use Elitech thermostats on my two Nano’s with under tank mats.
https://www.elitecheu.com/collections/heating-and-cooling-thermostat/products/elitech-atc-1550-digital-temperature-controller-thermostat
I’ve been considering a new setup again and my thoughts turned to a suitable cabinet. I don’t like many off the shelf Aquarium cabinets and they are generally much too low for my liking at only 75 - 80cm high. After a quick Google I came across this site and thought it may be of interest to...
I’m wondering if this might be handy for monitoring my canister filter flow? I’m using 16/22 hose though so it may restrict the flow. It has four modes, one of which is litres per minute.
I’ve had two sets of 12/16 (one now retired) and one set of 16/22. They’ve all been fine but the skimmer on one set (retired) was useless.
Not much to go wrong with the plain non skimmer ones as far as I can tell. I got my last set from Riverwood...
I use High Power Habistat under tank heaters (11” x 11” - 25W) on my 60L and 37L. Run at 25°C and controlled by Elitech thermostats.
https://www.globalgeckos.co.uk/habistat-high-power-heat-mat-select-your-size
I’d like something simple and flexible. I doubt they’ll be cutting the power overnight as they’d not gain much by doing that. I think it more likely I’ll be around at the time and I’d like the flexibility of plugging in what I want as I need it. I read online the likelihood of power cuts this...
I’m still considering a manual backup system at the moment. The reason for this is that I might decide to use it with a variety of equipment.
I’m looking at a a 1000w pure sine wave inverter and a 12V 100-120 Ah Deep Cycle AGM battery. I already have a suitable charger for the battery.
When I see tanks like this I wonder what size/thickness glass can safely go braceless. It’s one of the things I like about my two Nano’s but I’m still thinking about replacing them with a bigger tank.
Anyone know why they don’t make the tubes out of stainless steel? In fact, with a little imagination a S/S heater enclose could be made to look pretty good. So much so you may not want to hide it?
I was thinking of that myself. I use a couple of these on my under tank heaters, they aren’t that expensive.
https://www.elitecheu.com/collections/temperature-controller/products/elitech-atc-1550-digital-temperature-controller-thermostat?variant=40190520393881
I use carbon under tank heaters on my two Nano’s. They were very popular in the 1980’s - 90’s. I had one on my 50 gallon tank for maybe ten years without any problems. I don’t know why they stopped selling the high power ones for aquariums. The “high power” Vivarium ones I bought are just...
Thanks folks. I’ve made a plastic plug to fit into the inlet so I won’t be reusing it for the time being as it never worked very well anyway.
I’ll try the bleach. ;)
Most of what I’ve seen on here looks like it requires either diagonal bracing or at least a sheet of some good plywood to prevent wracking. I’ve built several work benches and always brace or use plywood and I’ve not had any movement.
The last cabinet I made just had a centre support at the front against which the doors closed. If memory serves it was a square section of hardwood probably around 40 or 50mm. 900mm is not that long so you could probably do away with this though if the cabinet is well braced at the top to...
Does your filter have a stainless steel impeller shaft? If so these can wear quite badly sometimes and the impeller will rattle around. Many manufacturers use Ceramic shafts that seem to wear a bit better. Luckily you can buy these on eBay - provided they have your size...
Any old foam won’t help, it needs to be closed cell. You first need to isolate the vibrations from the filter going into the cabinet. Mines on a foam and cork mat. Gaps around the cabinet door let out sound as well. Any gaps where the hoses exit the cabinet need to be covered somehow as well.
My...
I’ve had a variety of different skimmers over the years and I haven’t found anything that works particularly well long term. I’ve also seen a display tank that had a weir at one end and that still had surface film!
I’ve been considering the safety of unbraced tanks and can’t help thinking it’s a combination of not only the height but also the length of the longest side on a rectangular tank? Is there a good online source that works it out for you?
What height are most folks Aquarium Cabinets? In the past I’ve made cabinets using easily available doors or made use of existing furniture. Just wondered what folks think is a good height?
I’ve used stainless mesh on my other skimmer to stop all but the tiniest shrimp being sucked in. It is a problem with any system with a surface intake. I’ve heard of folks having the same problem with a weir filter.
I neglected to say earlier but a box of Siporax media came with the last filter I bought and seems to be working well enough. It’s also easy to clean at filter maintenance time.
No, I haven’t lost my marbles just yet. :)
The hygienist at my dental surgery recommended that I get an electric toothbrush a few months back. Being time to change the brush head I wondered what I could do with the old one. Aquarium cleaning brush obviously!
I tried it out today and it worked...
I tried to cut some Acrylic with a jigsaw many years ago - big mistake. A hacksaw works fine though if you’re cutting small pieces. I generally gave up using it though. I did need to make some frontsight elements many years ago though and I used to cut the Acrylic into 1” squares with a hacksaw...
I was surprised to learn many years ago that most if not all plastics absorb moisture. I’ve seen instructions that say Acrylic should be dried before bending.
No you can machine Acrylic just fine it just needs to be done with the right tools. Cutter speed must not be too high or the plastic melts. Tools need to be very sharp and in the case of Acrylic keep vibrations to a minimum.
I’ve just done a quick search and although there are lots of other...
Does it need to specifically be Acrylic? I’ve done some machining on a variety of plastics over the years and avoid Acrylic like the plague because it breaks so easily. For clear plastics I used to use Polycarbonate but have also tried PETG. Polycarbonate was used in those NASA bubble helmets in...
I’ve got a thing about wood screws ever since I went to Canada. The most widely used over there seem to be Robertson Square drive. As a result I’ve only ever bought square or Torx drive screws over the past 20 years. I’ve always disliked pozidrive and Phillips screws. I also like Spax screws...
Can I just say it’s very easy to split MDF if you don’t pre-drill and use the right type of screws. A guy at work didn’t do this and got lots of splits in a toy box he was making. As an alternative you could screw through the sides of the MDF panels into hardwood battens inside the cabinet. If...
Their online shop is still open and they were originally responding to emails. I can’t help wondering if these thermostats are manufactured abroad and packed with unprotected plugs how many of them get damaged in transit before they even get sent to customers. The box is only just big enough and...
I got it direct from Elitech at £15.99 inc delivery but curiously delivered by Amazon Prime, as was the replacement. As they haven’t responded to emails I do have an outstanding case lodged with PayPal. I’d really like an undamaged unit but I have an STC1000 somewhere I bought years ago that I...
Not having much luck.
I’ve already got an ATC-1550 running on my 37L Nano with an under tank heater and it works great so I ordered another for the new tank. Duly ordered it arrived a week later with a damaged case because the mains lead was packed with the metal plug pins against the casing...
I don’t think drilling the worktop is that extreme to be honest as long as it’s done carefully. Should you ever not need them a couple of nice blinking plugs for the holes needn’t look bad. Cutting holes in the doors is not a good look in my opinion but it’s your call.
These are in Lidl at the moment for around £3. The long one is about 12mm dia the small one about 11mm and the fat one is about 22mm. Might come in handy for cleaning some bits.
I emailed the manufacturers (more likely importers?) of the heating meat telling them how I’m using their mats and asking if they can supply other sizes, particularly of the high power ones. Sadly they never replied. The tank is extremely stable temperature wise at the moment.
Well the outside temperature has dropped and although we obviously have the CH on during the day it’s set quite low during the night and the tank is very stable temperature wise.
I’m thinking of maybe setting up another Nano, this time a 60 litre and although this isn’t a cheap heater option I...
I would have preferred to just buy one but couldn’t see anything suitable. I bought SES E14 lamps so maybe that was a mistake. If I’d chosen a different fitting maybe there would be a better choice of lamp holders? The COB LED seller on eBay sells the lamps in about five different fittings.
I bought a cheap COB Lamp on eBay and made up this. It looks a bit like a Laboratory retort stand (and you could use one) but I actually made the base and column. I already had the boss and clamp but I bought a new clamp as it was a bit tatty. I had to make the light fitting as I couldn’t find...
I cut off the end of some 99% commercially pure Titanium rod that I had and turned a 10mm disc a few mm thick from it. I placed it in some 12% H2O2 and nothing happened. Looking closer I could then see a continuous stream of micro bubbles coming off the disc.
I made a background for one of my tanks many years ago. It was made with Polyurethane foam that was carved to shape once dry. This was then painted with Epoxy resin with sand applied whilst it was still wet. It was very effective and concealed the inlet and outlets nicely.
So far so good, the heater has been running now for a few weeks and the temperature has been stable. I suppose the real test will be in the winter time.
Most of us will find a scraper useful at some point. I used to have one of those Algarde ones with the planting fork on the other end. They work well enough but they are only about a 30cm long. Some years back I bought one of the Tetra ones and it works very well. The reason I decided to post...
I was looking for something in the shed a couple of weeks ago and I found the old thermostat I used over 30 years ago!
Things have moved on a bit from those days! :lol:
Yes quite. I admit I’ve done water changes before hastily switching the glass heater off! In fact I’ve probably done it a few times many years ago. Luckily no bangs or 240 volt water!
Anything’s possible I suppose but as I said at the start these were very popular for many years. I ran one for ten years and a friend used one for fifteen years without issue. Why would it not work now? The mats are the same but thermostats seem even better these days.
Glass heaters were well...
I’m still collecting bits but here’s a shot of the heat pad installed under the tank. The power connector is about 6mm thick so I could have used 8mm foam for the support but I chose 10mm to be on the safe side. I just cut a square to relieve the plastic part and a slot for the cable.
I like...
Mine arrived the other day, all trimmed to size and under the tank. I don’t know what grade it is but suspect it’s the CF45 though and I’m sure it will be fine.
It says this one has a one year life span so I’m guessing it’s left in the tank?
https://www.swelluk.com/jbl-ph-sensor/
I’m sure someone on here can give you a definitive answer, if not you could email JBL.
I’m going to use an under tank heater on my Nano and unfortunately there is a plastic moulding that covers the electrical connections where it joins the mat. On my old tank I just made a cutout in the underlay for it but these latest mats seem to have a thicker connector. I’m waiting till it...
No, it had braces front and back. It was 10mm glass obviously. The matting is only there to take out any irregularities between the tank and the base, at least that’s what I was told.
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