bigger scrubber to begin with?

[reefy86]

is it possible to make a scrubber that can easily adjust from 1 cube per day to 5? reason i ask is because my tank has only 2 clowns, 2 engineer gobies, a file fish, 3 peppermint shrimps and just crabs ect. my tank is 8ft so i want to add alot more fish but right now i want to get my nitrites and phosphates down before i do which is why i want a scrubber but if i make it for 5 cubes then its not going to grow algae as ill only be feeding 1 cube. so is it possible to just get a big screen and just adjust the lights?

cheers

[SantaMonica]

Welcome from UK

The way to do it is to make 2 or 3 separate sections of the scrubber, and start with just one. This way after you add the others, you can harvest one at a time and still have others fully grown and filtering.

[reefy86]

thanks, i already made that idea but was told id get flow issues when it gets to the last one.

7240

[SantaMonica]

No not if there is enough total flow. When growth fills in the slot, the pressure builds up and water flows farther down the pipe, even if you clean the first screen.

Besides, you could feed it from both sides through the frame, and add valves on the ends of the screens.

And of course you'll need roughed up screen, and not the smooth plastic sheet that your pic has.

[reefy86]

thank you. just 2 last question's. my return pump is only running at 20% so would it be ok to connect the return pump to the scrubber? and last one is whats the best light recommended? an all in one light such as flood lights or just make my own using cree reds and blue.

cheers

[SantaMonica]

Returns are often used. Just T it off.

Best light for cheap is a 30 watt LED grow floodlight from China, one for each side of each screen. Keep them dry or they will short out.

For wet areas or tight installations, our GEM5 lights might work:
http://www.santa-monica.cc/product.asp?itemid=84

[reefy86]

your obviously the expert but just going to ask anyways but wont 30w each side be abit too much? that means if i have 3 nets that will be 180 watts

[reefy86]

also is it best to get more reds then blue, such as there is flood lights that have 9 reds and 4 blue. sorry for all the questions.

[SantaMonica]

Depends on the screen size. The picture looked like a big screen.

All reds are fine; some blue is ok. If you buy a grow light, it can be red or red+blue=pink.

[reefy86]

those flood lights measure at 115 x 85mm according to amazans website and according to your new sizing guide for each cube of food i would need 2 sided 3x4 inch screen with 12 or 24w depending if i go 9 or 18 hours. what size sheet would i need for one sided per cube? if i make this design i can add 2 more lights 2 make 2 sided so having a total of 4 cubes of food per day if i use 4 lights and i can start of using 1 light to use just 1 cube ect.

7241

[reefy86]

so ive designed the screens to 4x6 inch as you mentioned 3x4 single sided is 1/2 a cube so mine is 1 cube per side now. so in total when all lights are on i can run upto 6 cubes. because i only have a small amount of fish at the moment i will only be running 1 side of a screen and then when i add more ill either turn on the second light to light up the back side of the screen or just use the second screen so i can leave one screen growing while cleaning the other ect. so eventually i will have 6 lights with 3 double sided screens. will this be ok? also do i need to have a bottom on the acrylic case up can i just have it open and let the water stream down into sump>

cheers again

7242

[SantaMonica]

The 12 or 24w is for CFL.

Just make a two-screen model like your picture. Each one 2 cubes. Each one 4x6 with 10 or 15 LED watts on each side. These are very cheap small lights and will be a good start (although they are not really waterproof)...

http://www.satisled.com/110v240v-10w-9pcs-led-plant-grow-light-hydroponic-lamp-6-red-3-blue-ip65-waterresistant-metal-alloy-housing-durable-energysaving-for-indoor-flower-plants-growth-vegetable-greenhouse_p2464.html

Just saw your 3-screen. That's is ok too, and a bit better because when you clean one screen you'll have two more still growing.

The bottom should probably be covered, otherwise you will be cleaning growth out of your sump a lot, and the light will be to bright to look at.

[reefy86]

thank you santamonica :) just one last question, are those flood lights real 10w? and would it be better if i get the 30w ones and connect them to a dimmer so i dont have to worry if my lights aint bright enough.

also that light you posted is us based and im in the uk so would this light be ok as it has 9 reds and 1 blue.

https://www.newfrog.com/p/ac-85v-265v-10w-aluminum-led-plant-grow-light-hydroponic-grow-flood-light-108224.html?currency=GBP&gclid=CjwKCAjw8IXMBRB8EiwAg9fgMFTo9yDZjZBHdpJZMo4d v2UYkuoPyLdhiCAgwc2KJYJN0fB1GHYJMBoCV8YQAvD_BwE

cheers

[reefy86]

im a pain in the ass to keep asking all these questions but i really can not be bothered to keep buying new parts because i didnt do it right in the first place :)

[SantaMonica]

Those lights are never the rated amount; it's probably 7 watts. Yes you can get bigger and dim, if it physically fits the screen.

[reefy86]

cant seem to find red dimmable one's just warm and cool whites or rgb

[SantaMonica]

They are hard to find, maybe alibaba.com has them

[reefy86]

right if i just go and buy these lights they are 20w 4x red 660nm and 1x blue so they probably run around 15w right? they are not dimmable so would i run into any problems if i have these on each 4x6 screen? and how far from the screen would you recommend. im ready to order the parts as soon as i know im safe with the lights.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10W-20W-30W-50W-Blue-445nm-Red-660nm-Hydroponic-Plant-Flood-LED-Grow-Light-Lamp-/252445418482?var=&hash=item3ac6eb63f2

[SantaMonica]

That's about as big as you can put on a 4x6, and would need to be about 8cm away or more. The 10w could be put closer.

Maybe get one of each to try, then get more of the one that works best.