It's so on now - 72g Reef build

[neilanh]

Finally got off my lazy butt and setup the ATO.

Not much to see, but here goes anyway.

The solenoid - dual switch system

All closes up neatly in this little box

Here's the acrylic holder I made for the 2 switches

And, the setup operational. Patent Pending on my resorvoir idea.

Don't mind the wires, I'll get those cleaned up shortly.

 

[jcmelski]

How do you compensate for water that was taken out by the skimmer? Why two switches?

 

[Ziggy953]

How do you compensate for water that was taken out by the skimmer? Why two switches?

Are you talking about the water that is injected into the skimmer body or the water that is pulled out into the collection cup?

The water that is injected into the skimmer body is immediately replaced with water coming out of the skimmer. The water level doesn't drop/change. The very minimal amount of water that is "skimmed" out of the tank isn't going to make much difference to the SG overall.

I'll let Neilan explain the reason behind 2 switches. (think fail safe....)

 

[Tank2379]

Yeah why 2 switches? Now with the Switch I take it one is in the Sump and the other is in the Fuge?

 

[bawel]

mannn...neilanh, great progress, your tank looks super awesome!

 

[Tank2379]

Just notice the Orange Spot Gobie.... Cool little guy... Did not want to pair up with any Shrimp (Pistol) well with the one I had he made a mess of everything... I think it was a wild Pistol not sure what kind... But I hear the Tiger Pistol and the Randall Pistol shrimps do well with the Orange Spot.

 

[neilanh]

Alright, so Ziggy commented on the skimmer thing - basically what's removed by the skimmer is so minimal it's not an issue.

Why 2 switches. Well, like Ziggy said it's a fail safe. The lower switch is set at my desired water level. The upper switch is just some arbitrary distance above. I set my upper one just to make sure the wiring from the lower didn't interfere with it.

Picture this. A snail gets into your sump. He decides to go checkout your switches, and gets himself lodged in the switch so that it can not float. The switch gets stuck in the lower position, telling your controller that you need water. The controller, eager to do his job, closes the relay supplying power to the pump. The pump springs into action, providing refreshing, clean RO water into your sump. Yet, that pesky snail is still there, as the water level continues to rise, and rise, and rise.

So, the second switch is the fail safe. First switch gets stuck, second switch has it's back. Both switches must be down for the circuit to close and send electricity to the pump. If either switch is in the up position, power cannot be applied.

I know, lots of words for a simple explanation, but I don't want you to get bored around here.

 

[GhostKnife]

You set up a normally open circuit. With switches that are in parallel with each other. Nice. I have to fill my tank with about 4 cups of RODI every day. Just found this out because I came home today with a tank full of bubbles. I was worried about my pump but it is okay. Yikes. A new regiment is now in effect.

 

[GhostKnife]

Ahhh what type of pump do you have in your little reef crystal/ RODI bucket? Do you have a heater on it? That may sound dumb but I didnt know how little or how much it would top off during the day.

 

[jcmelski]

I figured it was a failsafe of some kind but I wasn't sure. What is the part number to the solenoid and it's base/holder looking thing. this looks simple to make. Could you post a diagram of your set-up?

 

[neilanh]

The pump I'm using is actually what you see on top, the blue and red thing. It's called an aqualifter. It's a vacuum pump, rather than a conventional pump. Regular pumps, like maxijets etc, work too, I just had this laying around. This one is a slow pump, 3 gallons per hour, so it works well in a top off system.

I do not heat the water. It hovers at room temperature, and since I'm adding so little at a time throughout the day the tank heaters can handle it.

 

[GhostKnife]

You can always just skip the electric part and get a float switch that is gravity fed. It looks like Neilan's setup called for a little umf to get the water into his sump. If the bucket could sit higher than the sump that is all you will need.

 

[neilanh]

Yes, a gravity feed is another option as well, I just went this route.

 

[GhostKnife]

I like your setup neilanh!! How often do you have to fill the bucket with RO?

 

[neilanh]

dunno yet, just setup yesterday. Bucket's about 1/2 full, so I'm figuring 2.5g per day.

 

[GhostKnife]

On a 5 gal bucket I think thats around about what reef crystals comes in. Not bad at all. I came home today to bubbles in my tank from the water level being low. I have been topping off yet I forgot yesterday so never again. I was a little mad at myself but Im still learning the ins and outs for sure. Nice work.

 

[Ziggy953]

Where did you get your ATO system?

 

[ccCapt]

Very nice job! Did you build it from scratch or buy a kit?

 

[neilanh]

The relay and float switches were bought used from a local WAMAS member for $25. The aqualifter I've had laying around for quite some time, it was originally purchased to be used as my automatic fertilization system on my FW planted tank, but it didn't have the lifting power so I moved to mini-jet 606s for that application and the aqualifters have been consuming space in my garage ever since.

 

[jcmelski]

Does that member offer the relay and float switches for sale? What part number is that relay?