The Dynamic Aquarium, algae turf scrubbing

[Dary421]

As always,..i'm jealous! .

 

[Gregcoyote]

Don't be. Just think of the thousands of pounds of salt, hours of work and multiple near fatal electrical shocks. Only mad people keep reefs for very long. But I was watching my 11" engineer gobies earlier this evening and thought how fortunate I am to have this kind of life in my home. It seems like yesterday when growing coral seemed like a fantasy, now I have to cut it back.

 

[Dary421]

Don't be. Just think of the thousands of pounds of salt, hours of work and multiple near fatal electrical shocks. Only mad people keep reefs for very long. But I was watching my 11" engineer gobies earlier this evening and thought how fortunate I am to have this kind of life in my home. It seems like yesterday when growing coral seemed like a fantasy, now I have to cut it back.

Wow...In the last two years Most of those bad things have already happened to me.,lol., I must now be an official " reefer"

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Your tank is a real inspiration. A-MA-ZING

 

[Gregcoyote]

Wow...In the last two years Most of those bad things have already happened to me.,lol., I must now be an official " reefer"

You bet you are. The scale doesn't mean much. Keeping your reef happy is just as much a challenge as keeping a big one together. In fact, other than toting endless bags of salt, it might be easier with the bigger systems. The enduring the "bad things happening" and learning from them, is what separates the experts from the newbies. Every year your reef gets older, the more complex it will become...just like you.

 

[Gregcoyote]

New video of fish eating my home brew food. Check out the full grown engineers, they are serious pigs.

 

[Dary421]

New video of fish eating my home brew food. Check out the full grown engineers, they are serious pigs.

Why go to Hawaii when you got the whole reef in your living room ??? Nice work!!!!

 

[Gregcoyote]

Not the same thing...but I watch the tank more than the tv.

 

[Flreefer]

Unbelievable tank Greg...just gorgeous!!
I've been fortunate enough to dive three times in Hawaii as well, and your tank is every bit as beautiful as anything I saw there.
I'm 8 years into the hobby, and seeing your tank in action, makes me feel like a newbie...Kudos!!

 

[Gregcoyote]

We do what we can. There have been years when circumstances didn't allow me to maintain the system as well as I should. But it has held in there. I have seen some spectacular tanks in my time...mine is okay. You always want to do better. But thanks for all the kind words. I think a lot of new folks over think the situation. If you follow some basic rules, anyone can build a reef now a days.

 

[Flreefer]

I feel like I'm experiencing some of those years right now...I'm able to maintain, but barely.. I can't afford to do the upgrades that I feel are necessary at this point ( larger skimmer, Vortechs, LED's, GFO reactor, etc. etc.)
But, like you said, we do what we can...
Best of luck with your continued success!

 

[gregphoenix]

beautiful reef !!!!, any pictures or more details on your turf scrubber would be great. I'm planning a DIY for a 375 gl/ lightly stocked fish, moderate feeding. thanks for sharing

 

[Gregcoyote]

I wouldn't think you would need a scrubber for that system. It tends to be a reef thing, although I have heard of them being used in tanks with dense populations.
It was made a few decades ago by a acrylic tank manufacturer to our specs. It uses a 1.5 gallon dump bucket that dumps every 10 seconds for almost 20 years. The same Iwaki pumps are still running on their original impellers (oh don't let this curse me...). They have hot tub style pre-filters, so I think that is why they have lasted so long.

The water is kept 2" deep over a plastic mat material the algae grows on. There is 360 watts of mixed LEDs covering a 2' x 3' area. It grows algae in dense clumps that I remove and flush. This whole thing then sits on top of a 75 gallon sump. There is another 60 gallon sump in addition, but that is another story. This all sits in the basement about 20' from the display tank upstairs.

 

[gregphoenix]

thanks for getting back to me. 20 years WOW! must have been good specs. I think i'm going to try a build. I love diy projects. thanks again!

 

[Smitty]

Any chance you can upload photos of your turf scrubber? I'm looking into doing this myself and I'm looking for ideas.

Thanks!

 

[Gregcoyote]

The way it sits it's hard to get a feel for it, but I will try. It isn't pretty, 20 years of use, but still pumping. Just keep your design simple. You want it to be easy to clean, other than that all you are doing is building a very shallow aquarium with intense lighting.

 

[Gregcoyote]

I have about 200 of these and they are going to be one of the shrooms I will grow in the new frag tank. Our LPS sells them as fast as I can produce them. I love the electric blue speckles in them.

 

[crister13]

I would love to see the scrubber as well. Btw your tank is absolutely unbelievable.

 

[Gregcoyote]

I'll shoot a video this weekend.

 

[Gregcoyote]

Here it is...my dirty fish room. But I have some cool stuff that has lasted.

I made one glaring error, I said the chiller keeps the tank within 5 degrees, I meant .5 degrees.