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[Len]

smontanus's official thread:
Use this thread to document updates to your Nano Reef Buildoff project.
Please note: this thread is reserved for the entitled registered member only. Open discussion about ideas or specific entries should be posted in the Nano Reefs forum or the General Reef Discussion forum.

[smontanus]

The idea for my nano actually started in 2003. I live in a small apartment and do not have room for a large aquarium, plus I liked the challenges a nano provided. I spent several months researching, designing, and visualizing my ideas. The design has gone thru several revisions and modifications. The design is based on the following parameters:

10g acrylic tank
DIY Stand and Hood w/ dual cooling fans
DIY 150W HQI Metal Halide Lighting/Reflector
DIY 3g acrylic sump
DIY HIBO overflow
DIY Nano Skimmer
1/2" PVC plumbing
DIY GFCI Electrical w/ hard wired digital timers

I will document the design and construction in detail in future posts.
The goal of this setup was to learn concepts and skills that could be applied to a much larger tank when space and finance permit. So the ideal outcome would be a nano tank that incorporates many aspects of larger tanks, even some that may not be necessary, in a small self contained unit.

This tank will be used to house a variety of animals, mostly corals, that are still being researched.
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[smontanus]

The initial designs for the components were drawn using turbocad, these drawing were then imported into Maya 3D and rendered. This proved to be a back and forth process as designs were altered in CAD then rendered in 3D to help visualize how everything would come together. This process also provided a great deal of accuracy that could then be translated into the construction. The biggest advantage of this approach was being able to see the design prior to actually building anything. Below are some of the 3D renders used to visualize the system.

[smontanus]

After settling on intial designs I then had to work on deciding what equipment and materials to use. For the stand I used 2x4s for the frame, and maple and oak for the shell. This may have been overkill, and in the case of the 2x4s limited space for the sump underneath. On the positive side I have no concerns about the stand collapsing. The oak and maple were expensive but look great when finished. With that decided I moved on to the plumbing. I didn't want to use flexible hose primarily because I wanted something more accurate, and flexible vinyl hose is a pain sometimes. 1/2" PVC worked well and allowed for valves to accurately control flow thru the system. For my primary pump I chose the Dolphin DP385 because it was the smallest external pump I could find that fit my design parameters. I built the attached excel spreadsheet to help in the design of the plumbing. It helped in calculating the dynamic head of the system which helped when choosing the pump. I chose acrylic for the tank, sump, and overflow because it is easier to work with and readily available. Drilling small glass tanks is nearly impossible from what I've learned. Additional equipment chosen:

1 Ebo Jager 85W Heater
3 Eheim 80gph submersible pumps for circulation and skimmer
1 150W HQI MH lighting 20,000K on electronic ballast
2 Leviton In-Wall digital timers

This was the only equipment purchased, aside from testing and monitoring equipment, everything else was built from scratch. I'll post a cost listing when I have time to go thru all the receipts.

[smontanus]

Construction began in February starting with the stand. I decided to build the stand frame first, the plumbing and sump next, followed by the shell for the stand. This allowed me to make adjustments for the plumbing if needed and enclose everything in a nice looking package. The stand from was easy and went together quick. It incorporates a built in set of 4 outlets downstream from a GFCI socket which gives all outlets ground fault protection and makes plugging in equipment easy. Essentially the stand plugs into the wall socket, everything else plugs into the stand. I thought this was an original idea, but have since seen others who have done the same thing. Installing the outlets was a pain due to the confined space. I now realize that I will have to unwire some of the outlets to wire in the digital timers, thats a job I don't wan't to do.

[smontanus]

Hi all. It just dawned on me that I should introduce myself. I'm not new to the aquarium hobby, I'm 37 and I've had freshwater and saltwater tanks since I was 13. My last tank was a 55g saltwater FWLR but that was 10 years ago. That tank was running in Kotzebue Alaska, 20 miles north of the arctic circle. I think that was the furthest north tropical marine tank in operation at the time. So this tank is my first reef and my first tank in 10 years. Its great to be back in the hobby, I don't know why I ever left. I live in Alaska so equipment and materials can sometimes be a pain, thats also why a lot of my stuff is DIY.

I have serious doubts that this setup will be up and running by the deadline, but what the heck I'm having a blast working on it and I'm learning a heck of a lot.

[smontanus]

Next on the list was the sump. This was constructed of 1/8" acrylic, I think it should have been 1/4", so we'll see how it holds up. The sump is 2.5g and was limited by available space in the stand. This was my first acrylic project, so it was a bit messy but works fine. It was cut on a table saw and assembled using a DIY solvent made of MEK and acrylic shavings. Weld-On is the preferred solvent but nearly impossible to get here. The solvent worked great but my technique needs work. The design is a scaled down version of larger sump designs.

[smontanus]

One design requirement that I haven't mentioned was the goal to keep the tank area as clear of equipment as possible. I struggled for a while trying to find a solution for the overflow that wouldn't take any space from the tank. I stumbled across the HIBO idea on reefcentral.com, its worked out perfect. The overflow is an open top acrylic box solvent welded to the back of the tank. I routed a slot in the upper back part of the tank with a dremel to allow water to flow into the tank. A stockman style standpipe in the overflow drains thru a bulkhead in the bottom. The HIBO was contructed using the same materials and technique as the sump. It turns out that the overflow is the only area, outside of the tank, with enough room for the heater, so thats where its goin.

[smontanus]

I drilled the acrylic tank using a dremel for the overflow slot, and a standard hole saw for the return bulkhead. Pretty easy really, waaaaaay easier than glass.

[smontanus]

The plumbing consists of 1/2" PVC with ball valves on overflow and return lines and the line from the pump to the sump. Unions connect the plumbing below each valve except the pump to sump line. This line really should have one, but there was absolutely no room for this. After constructing the plumbing I went back and modified it by installing a check valve on the return line. This should help in the evnt of a power outage.

[smontanus]

After filling it up...the moment of truth...plug it in and...yeah! Sort of. Lots of little problems, most were solved once I learned how to tune the flow. One small leak in the overflow but none in the sump. Thats a surprise.

[smontanus]

Finished the shell for the stand. Its constructed of 1x4 maple rails and red oak 1/8" plywood. I'm pretty pleased with the outcome. The oak panels slide out for easy access, and there's a door on the front for access to the sump area.

[smontanus]

The hood is contructed of maple for the sides and red oak plywood for the top. There is a hinged door on the top for easy access to the lighting and tank. The hood was designed to mate with the rest of the stand and tank. This serves to hide the plumbing and electrical. I drilled a grid of 1/8" holes on either side of the hood for fan vents, and then a grid of 1/2" holes on top for additional venting. There are 2 4" fans installed in the hood. Right now my biggest concern is heat generated by the MH lighting.

[smontanus]

The lighting is 150W MH on an HQI socket. This is powered by and ARO electronic ballast wired underneath the stand. The reflector is custom made from sheet aluminum. I've gone with a 20,000K bulb, but I'm a little concerned this may be too blue. I might go with a 14,000K, but I'll wait til its running before making that decision. I also built a shelf into the stand above the sump this also serves as the mounting point for the sump light, which is a 15" aquarium flourecent.

[smontanus]

I constructed a cannon plug from PVC fittings and a 12 pin connector from radio shack. The plug is sealed with silicon and allows the electrical for the hood to be completely disconnected. This allows removal of the hood.

[smontanus]

I found plans for a small nano skimmer on another website forum. This skimmer could be adapted to fit in-sump, HOB, or free-standing. I modified the plans to be free standing external and plumbed into chambers 1 and 2 of the sump. The skimmer is constructed from 1/8" acrylic and CPVC for the plumbing and injector. You can find a great deal of info on it at the original thread http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread.php?s=40545618bc2c21f536770d6a6fabfe6f&threadid=30941&perpage=20&pagenumber=1
Thanks to everyone on that thread for the great info, especially the designer "UndertheRadar" Attached in a zip file are my detailed CAD files in jpg format.

[smontanus]

Here are the pictures of my progress on the skimmer. Its turned out well. I tested it on some tidal pool real seawater from my beach and it works great. I still have a few things to do on it, mounting system for the collection cup and a removable top to seal the skimmer.

[smontanus]

I've completed a lot in the last 5 weeks, still feel like there's a mountain left to do so I thought I'd list the remaining to do list to help me organize my thoughts.

TO DO:
Finish and install skimmer
Stain and seal stand and hood
Order and install low-E glass pane in hood to shield UV from MH lighting
Order and install digital timers

That should really be it. I'm debating on a moonlight system, the wiring is pre-installed in the hood and stand. I've got plan that should work, but I'll only do this if time permits. I think I should be able to have it up and running by mid-April. I will post an entire cost estimate when I've completed purchasing everything.

[smontanus]

I'm planning on using Leviton in-wall digital timers to control the lighting. There will be two mounted on either side of the stand to control lighting. They can be hard wired to the outlets in the back and should provide a clean professional look. The boxes to hold the timers are already installed in the stand just need to wire them.

[smontanus]

Got the stand stained. Just gotta get the polyeurathane and thats done. So I decided to run a lighting test to see how much heat built up in the hood. After an hour it didn't seem bad at all, but I'm not fully convinced, tomorrow I'll put a digital thermometer in the hood and test the lights for several hours. I'm hoping the pane of low-e glass between the hood and tank will block most of the heat but I have no reason to believe this is true. The skimmers done and installed now too.