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giga84
10-08-2012, 08:11 PM
I am new to upflow algae scrubber so hope my design is ok

tank measurements:
breath : 4 inches
length : 24 inches
height : 12 inches
total capacity : 5 gallons

Mesh size : 8*3 inches

LED : link (http://www.haqos.com/productn.asp?ArticleID=425)

Apads 40 Marine Version ( 10,000K x 32 + Blue x 4 + Red x 4)

Pictures:

http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a545/giga84/IMG_0636_zps9974e87c.jpg
http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a545/giga84/IMG_0635_zps99604f1b.jpg
http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a545/giga84/IMG_0634_zps1aa0177a.jpg
http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a545/giga84/IMG_0633_zpsbaaef1ec.jpg
http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a545/giga84/IMG_0632_zps8d91ded1.jpg

Questions :

1. Is airflow necessary or will the water movement in the pump be enough?
2. How many hours should i keep the led light running?

SantaMonica
10-08-2012, 08:27 PM
Welcome.

Nice reflector. And the screen is roughed up very well :)

You don't need the water pump. So that will save some space and hassle.

But you do need air bubbles. They will do your water movement.

The LED, unfortunately, is probably not going to work. 10k does not work. And it only has 4 low-power reds. I know the problem, however... you wanted to buy a ready-made LED, and this was all they had. You'll need to instead get a plant-grow LED from a hydroponics store.

Get a new LED (probably 5 to 10 watts), and air pump, remove the water pump, and start the LED at 8 hours and work your way up to 18 hours.

giga84
10-09-2012, 12:33 AM
Thanks for the quick reply. I will get the new LED's made and will upload the photo. I don't understand the submersible water pump part. Will air flow alone be enough for the water circulation Won't the heavy saltwater settle down because of in sufficient flow? don't marine fish require chaotic water flow? that's why i taught a submersible pump was needed. Also today i tried by silting the air hose like you have done but am unable to get the bubble to rub against the mesh in a uniform flow since my mesh is tilting backwards at least by a 15 degree angle. Again thanks for taking your time off helping a newbie to the marine hobby.

kotlec
10-09-2012, 03:22 AM
You can use your pump for water circulation, but it will suck air bubbles from UAS if you leave where it is and spread around all tank.

Floyd R Turbo
10-09-2012, 05:10 AM
You could also host your pics on a site that doesn't constantly advertise porn please! Every pic I clicked on brought up a porn ad! Really?

giga84
10-09-2012, 08:33 AM
sorry will do it next time the ads didn't show with firefox adblock plus enabled

SantaMonica
10-09-2012, 09:05 AM
Your screen should not be tilting back. Also, since it is narrow, only a few cuts in the tubing should be enough bubbles.

giga84
10-09-2012, 09:13 AM
I was thinking since the problem is the bubbles being sucked out of the uas why not place the submersible pump at the bottom of the tank and mount the mesh on the outlet such that the air bubbles produced by the submersible pump goes through the mesh and to the surface of the water. Is the size of the air bubbles an issue here?

SantaMonica
10-09-2012, 10:25 AM
What bubbles? Do you have an air pump?

ruddybop
10-09-2012, 01:04 PM
I tried to look at those pics and my avg popped up and blocked a threat..... That is a bad place to host your pics.... And yes Floyd I got Porn also popping up.....

giga84
10-10-2012, 04:55 AM
Picture links fixed sorry for the inconvenience caused
sorry Floyd R Turbo, ruddybop and kerry

Since airflow is the problem will this work

http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a545/giga84/Idea_zpsc4634ff5.jpg

RkyRickstr
10-10-2012, 06:32 AM
The bubbles wont hit the lenth of the screen.. why not just get an airstone?

kotlec
10-10-2012, 07:38 AM
Please help me understand this. From what I see in 1st picture now is that pump sucks water from scrubber, then mix with air and spray in to the DT area. What benefit ?

SantaMonica
10-10-2012, 09:11 AM
Yes why not just use an airstone. Or better... sliced hose.

kerry
10-10-2012, 06:45 PM
Thats the same thing I do with my HOB UAS (converted millennium 3000). The pump pushes water and air into the bottom of both chambers and really has a lot of flow and tons of agitation to the algae hair as it flows up and out into the tank.

kotlec
10-10-2012, 10:42 PM
Just look at first and second picture. Doesnt the pump suck from scrubber rather that push in to it ???? Then you have bubles in DT and not in scrubber. At least all my pumps works that way.

giga84
10-17-2012, 07:56 AM
Well I went with santa monica advice added an airstone to the bottom of the mesh and changed the led to a 10 watt red led man is that bright. Also kerry are you saying that the submersible pump will do a better job than the airstone. If so i can remove the noisy air pump. Will try to post pictures soon. Also I have put some fish dry food so that it can decompose and give some nutrients for the algae to grow.

giga84
12-08-2012, 07:31 AM
Thanks guys for your suggestions especially santamonica Now i have a 2 month old marine tank (picture is below). I followed your advice and used an air-stone for the upflow and got a 10 watt red led and just hung the mesh with a paper clip :) and it has been doing well for the past two months. Can i grow corals in my system?
http://imageshack.us/a/img248/1924/img1179b.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/248/img1179b.jpg/)

kerry
12-08-2012, 08:35 AM
Thats looking real good.

SantaMonica
12-08-2012, 08:58 AM
Sure, start with some zoo's and mushrooms.

giga84
12-10-2012, 02:15 AM
do i require a chiller the room temp here ranges from 20 - 28 degree Celsius and the highest being 38 degree. Only green star polyp is available now can it do without a chiller at these temps. also the light is a 20 watt (half white/acetinic blue) LED.

SantaMonica
12-10-2012, 10:15 AM
30 celsius is the highest it should get. But a fan on the surface might do the job.