My Tank and L3 Algae Scrubber Journey

8 days in and the screen has a nice even brown coating over it. I am running 9 hours at night when the main tank display tank lights are off.

 

I didn't remove them, but I am not using them either, should they be removed. I figured they weren't hurting anything so I left them on.

 

Will do

 

I have removed the cooling fans I have a question, that's why the post. I don't really have a alga problem in my tank as some do in the forum, at least not a big one. My reason for getting the Algae Scrubber for my system was for nutrient export in my tank with the ultimate goal of having a predominately SPS coral tank. I have a Marine Beta in my tank, he is my favorite fish and I really don't want to have to remove him from my system. There is a down side to having this fish, he just won't eat pellet food, Mysis Shrimp is all that he will eat. He is a slow eater, which means I have to feed all Mysis Shrimp to the tank, to ensure that he gets something to eat, even thought the rest of the fish in my tank will eat pellet food. I am feeding two cubes per day, one in the morning and one in the evening. I use a Hanna Checker to test my Phosphate level in the tank regularly, my Phosphate levels stay at around 0.20 I know I have a new Algae Scrubber and am only 12 days into running it on my system, so it is no where close to doing what I want it to be ultimately doing in my system as far as exporting nutrient from my tank. This being said I really don't know what the capabilities of the Algae Scrubber will be on my system in the long term. I know that a 0.20 Phosphate level in my tank is just not low enough to promote good SPS coral growth, would most likely end up killing them. It has been suggested in my local forum, the only way to get the Phosphates levels down in my tank to acceptable levels for SPS corals, is to remove the Marine Beta which would allow me to go to feeding just pellet food. Before I make this radical move and remove my favorite fish in my tank, which I really don't want to do, With all the Algae Scrubber experts here that know what the capabilities of these units are, here's the question Will my fully seasoned Algae Scrubber 4 or 5 months from now be able to make a dent in the 0.20 Phosphate level in my tank or should I plan on removing the Beta from my tank. I know asking this question is asking a lot, but ya'll know Algae Scrubbers and their capacities, if ya'll don't know, no one does.

 

Thanks for the reply Bud, puts my mind at ease, my Beta stays I will try and get a pic up Sunday on what my screen looks like.

 

Here is 21 days of growth, all I have done is brush off the top of the screen where the water comes out onto the screen. I have done this every seventh day, so I have done it twice and will do it again today. Any advice for me? I am running the lights about 9 hours a night.

 

I feed two cubs per day and the Phosphates in my tank stay pretty high, even with running a third of a bag of PO4X4 in the reactor, around the 0.20 number on the Hanna Checker, am sure that number would be higher but I do a 30g water change every two weeks so that helps. I haven't checked the Nitrate number didn't really want to know what it is, am sure its high also. Bud, should I scrape the screen, or leave it alone and just keep cleaning the top of the screen? If you think I should scrape the screen, how often should I do this?

 

I am fixing to put another hose on the Scrubber, will be alot better, thats my project Sunday. The scrubber screen is getting a good even water flow across the whole screen, am making sure of that.

 

The hose on the Scrubber right now, the one in the pic, the one with the kink in it is 3/4" ID (inside diameter). I got the hose from Lowe's, they only sell two kinds of hose, Home Depot also only sells the same two kinds of hose. The other hose they sell, Lowe's & Home Depot, is a clear acrylic tubing, it has a fiber webbing molded into the tubing, that's the hose I would rather use, its bendable to a point, it also won't kink, the down side to that hose is, its 3/4" OD (outside Diameter) so the ID on that hose, not sure what it is, but its smaller than 3/4" It needs to be 3/4" ID to fit onto my Manifold system. I have looked everywhere, all the plumbing stores in my town and the next town over, I have looked online, I can't find a hose anywhere that is 3/4" ID that is stronger than what I am using, stronger, meaning, it won't kink like the hose I now have on the reactor. I was thinking of buying the other hose that Lowe's sell's, the one with the fiber molded into it, it is also a very thick hose that's why it won't kink that easy, the one that is 3/4" OD. I was thinking of using a drill bit to waller out the inside of both ends of the hose with a drill bit to try to get it to 3/4" ID. I don't like that idea, don't know if it would restrict the water flow coming into the Scrubber so much that I wouldn't get good water flow over the Scrubber screen. I just can't seem to find a third choice in tubing, take my word on this, I have looked The tubing I am using, the one with the kink, the one that I don't like, its bending because the tubing isn't very strong or thick, soaking this tubing in hot water isn't going to help this tubing not kink, its just not strong tubing. Now on the plus side of this tubing, I know it has a kink, I know that kink is restricting some water flow into the scrubber. What I have done is put a bigger pump onto my Manifold system, even with the kink its pushing more water into the Scrubber than the Scrubber can handle. I had to close the control valve that comes off my Manifold that feeds the Scrubber to only 3/4 of the way open. So, although I don't like and can't stand the kink in the hose, the Scrubber is getting enough water flow. Your point about the tork that the kink is putting on the Scrubber screen, and not letting it hang straight, I found that out and I have dealt with that issue, take my word on this, the screen is hanging straight inside of the Scrubber. Am I happy with the way the hose looks with that kink in it, naw, not even close, don't like it one bit. Do I think the Scrubber's functionally is being compromised, I don't think so. I am getting a good even flow of water across the length of the Scrubber screen, you can see in the pic, I am getting a pretty even growth pattern on the screen. If I hadn't, have gotten that even growth pattern, I knew my system wasn't going to work the way it is set up now. Don't get me wrong here I am not trying to push the idea on you that I am happy with the way my Scrubber is sit up with this tubing issue, or that I am not looking for a better way to do it way to do this. I just can't seem to come up with a better idea, well that's not entirely true. I do have a better idea, that I can go to, if the Scrubber looks to not be working as it should be. What I can do, is to get a feed pump for just the Scrubber, place it under the Scrubber in the sump tank and bring the hose off of the pump straight up into the Scrubber, no way for the hose to kink, if there are no bends in it. I just didn't want to put another pump into the sump tank and add more heat to the water. Bottom line though is, I paid alot for the Scrubber, and want it to work, I will do what ever it takes to make it work, I need it in my system. If it looks like its not going to work the way it is now, I will do whatever it takes to get it set up so that it will work. If at some point I post pics that makes you say,it just isn't working right and you need to deal with this, I will

 

I will put the hose in some boiling water consider it done. Will let you know how it turns out.

 

I took the scrubber apart today gave it a good cleaning, under the false bottom. I put the lip piece on the back of the shelf that the Scrubber sits on, that will keep the shelf from sliding into the sump if something were to happen. I had the front piece done already but had to wait till I cleaned the Scrubber to put the back piece on. Now, about the hose kink I know that's what you want to hear about Bud lol I heated the hose in some hot water, and it did help, but not enough, hose would still kink, some, the hose just isn't strong enough to take that bend I have in it coming off my Manifold. I still need to come up with a better plan, I put about 7 hose clamps on the hose and tightened them up just enough to keep the kink out. Does it work, yes, does it look like, well you get the idea. I think the answer is going to be, put the Scrubber on a pump by itself and feed the Scrubber thru a 90 fitting into the Scrubber. I also shortened the back up over flow pipe, like you told me to do about two inches. Between getting rid of the kink and shorting that pipe, it has allowed me to increase the water flow into the Scrubber, a lot. Gave the screen a rinse, scrubbed the slot, and got it all back together, and working fine.