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My newest L4 ATS

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by tom39, Nov 11, 2017.

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  1. Just picked up a used L4 (at least I think it is an L4) yesterday. It was very dirty but I have managed to clean it up fairly well and hope to have it ready to be installed by the end of the weekend. My plan was to install it on my 150g cube but I am thinking that it may be a bit to much for that size of tank. What do you all think?
     
  2. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    Should be fine - post a pic, I'll tell you what unit it is. Or send me a message and tell me who you got it from & I'll look it up
     
  3. Here is a pic after I cleaned it up. It turns out that this scrubber came from the same guy that originally owned the L2 that I picked up a while back. Having that information actually solves the mystery why my L2 had extra valves and such that came with it.
    I will pm you the seller's forum screen name if you wanted to update your database of where your ATS are at.
    Thank you,
    Tom G [​IMG][​IMG]

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  4. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    yup that's a Rev 3 L4
     
  5. Bud,

    I finally got around to installing my L4 but soon realized that pump I am trying to use to feed my skimmer and the L4 simply does not have enough flow. Before I go and buy a new pump, I was wondering what your recommendation would be for flow on the L4.

    Thank you,
    Tom


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  6. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    You want a pump that is capable of around 400 GPH after head loss. The head loss is A) the vertical distance from the top of the water to the slot pipe (not from the pump to the slot pipe, only the vertical rise above the surface) plus 24" for the slot pipe and fittings. Then you look at the head loss chart and find a pump that can deliver roughly 400 GPH at that head loss.

    You don't need that initially, in fact you want to start only with enough flow to coat as much of the screen as possible without getting to the point where the flow "arcs" across and the flow is heavy on the far end (opposite the pump). You can increase over time if you need to (you may not need to) so with that in mind you could find a pump that gets you between 300-400 GPH at your head loss level, and you will probably be OK with that for quite a while.
     
  7. I certainly appreciate your help and thank you for getting back to me so quickly.


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  8. Well life got in the way and I never got around to setting up my L4 until a few days ago. When I did, I ended up using a Rio1400 as a feed pump running without restriction. I tuned it with the 1.5" output valve and only have about 3-4 drips coming out of the emergency overflow. Needless to say that it runs near silent.
    When I purchased the scrubber, the former owner sold it with some acrylic mounting rails. They didn't work for me so I opted to make my own mounting rails out of aluminum c-channel and angle. I cut it to size and riveted it together.
    I am still working on wire management but for the moment it is staying dry and I have put it off until the weekend. [​IMG][​IMG]

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    Last edited: Apr 9, 2018
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  9. Made my first harvest today. My guess is about 3-4 oz. [​IMG][​IMG][​IMG]


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  10. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    Very nice! Be careful how aggressively you harvest though, it looks like you probably scraped most of the growth off completely. Next time, I would just do a rub with your fingertips while rinsing and leave in place whatever doesn't come loose. You're not in any danger of root dying when the growth is short

    By the way that is probably one of the most perfectly even carpet of algae growth I've seen!! Great pic
     
  11. Thanks! I was super excited when I seen that amount of growth in such a short period if time. My last scrubber was a DIY version and it did well but in all the years that I had it online, I never got this type of growth or results. Especially not in only 9 days from the very start!

    Additionally, I must give kudos, as they are certainly warranted and deserved. So, my hats off to you Sir, for the evolution and manufacture of one amazing piece of equipment.

    My sincerest thanks,
    Tom G

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    Last edited: Apr 20, 2018
  12. Yet another beautiful bounty of lucious algae.[​IMG][​IMG]

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  13. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    Very nice! How many hours/day are you running the lights?

    What are your tank conditions? I.e. bioload, feeding, nutrient level, etc

    Is it doing the job as-is or are you wanting to get more algae growth / nutrient reduction out of it? I may have a recommendation for you on the duration/intensity.
     
  14. I am running it on a cycle of 3hrs on and 5hrs off. I feed 2 cubes was day along with 1/3 sheet nori and 2 algae wafers. I have 3 tangs, 1 blenny, 1 cardinal and 1 clown in a 150g system volume.

    My numbers are fairly clean except for Nitrates which are around 15ppm. I usually shoot for keeping 5-10ppm but have neglected quite a few water changes and been leaving my filter socks a bit longer than I should.

    I am open to any suggestions for better performance.

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    Last edited: May 28, 2018
  15. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    So a total of 9 hrs/day? I would increase that to 12 and maybe make it one solid photoperiod.

    How often are you harvesting?

    Just to be clear, are you intending to keep the levels at 5-10 intentionally? Some people do that, so if you're trying to maintain a measurable level of nitrate, that could affect my suggestion above
     
  16. Currently I harvest about every 10-14 days depending on what my life and work schedule will allow.

    As for my Nitrate levels, I aim for 5-10ppm with my Nitrates because, historically I found it very difficult for me to realistically maintain anything consistently below that. I would like to run lower Nitrates, as that would allow for longer periods between water changes but I have never been able to achieve that degree of success.

    However, seeing the results I have gotten from the L4, 0ppm or an ultra low nutrient system may be possible.

    I will try the 12hr in 12hr off and see how it goes. I will try and harvest next Sunday and I will post my results.

    Thank you for your help and advice,
    Tom G

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  17. Turbo

    Turbo Does not really look like Johnny Carson Staff Member Site Owner Multiple Units! Customer

    Yup, up the hours and see what the results are. You might allow it to grow longer also, your algae mat is not overly thick so there's not a lot of light blocking happening.

    You could also do a partial harvest with the next cleaning - just remove 50% of the algae. Use a scraper and make an "X" pattern on one side, "#" on the other
     
  18. I will give that a try.

    Thanks again,
    Tom G

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  19. I harvested the screen this evening with 13 days of growth. Screen is maturing nicely and the roots appear to have a firm hold on the screen.
    I do have one issue though. I didn't get a pic of box but I am getting a lot of growth at the bottom of the glass and on the false bottom. Because the surface is smooth, the algae is shed easly and those particles of algae are pumped into the display. To try and fix this i was thinking that I might use window tint to shade the very bottom of the box and try and reduce the amount of growth in the false bottom. Anyone else have this issue and if so how did you address it?[​IMG][​IMG]

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  20. lovefish77

    lovefish77 Member Trusted Member

    what size plastic rings are using to attach the screen to the 3/4" pvc pipe please? trying to find the right size rings instead of zip ties
     

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