I am going to join you nano reefers, got a tank!

[geo]

here it is, its about 9 gallons or so. 18 x 12 x 12. I guess its a flat back hex. I added a couple of fittings to the back for closed loop circulation. I think I will use a mag 3. Not sure what to do for lighting just yet, thinking of putting together a 175 watt MH pendant.

http://members.aol.com/geomweb/myhomepage/nano%20pic%201.jpg?mtbrand=AOL_US

[mr9iron]

Nice looking empty tank. I cant wait to see what it looks like with corals in it. Have you got a stock list? Let us in on your plans.:D

[geo]

Well its a start :)
I am actually have a few chucks of shroom rock and a couple of softies in my 90 that need to go so I thought that would be a nice excuse to set up a nano. I need to get the lighting figured out. The darn thing actually takes up to much room on my desk, I need to rearrange a few things

[oohnoo]

It's actually a 11 gal. Here's the formula for figuring gallons.
Length X Width X Height Divided by 231

[nanoguy]

Geo...did you make that yourself? Pretty cool looking tank! What do you plan on using to light that puppy up? Here's a couple of pics of my 10 gallon nano (before I sold it) with some AHsupply lights...2x36watts. I took them off when I sold the tank and I'm not using them anymore. If you need them maybe we can make a trade for something (Ballast, 4 bulbs/2 actinics and 2 daylight)? Let me know if you are interested.<br>
<img src="http://home.pacbell.net/deejay27/tankopen.jpg" border="0"><br>
<img src="http://home.pacbell.net/deejay27/tank1.jpg" border="0">

[geo]

I figured 11.5 x 11.5 x 17.5 (inside dimensions) and took away for the corners removed and came up with about 9.5 . I am going to try a dolphin dp 270 for the circulation loop. I haven't figured out ho to add a skimmer to it, probably will not. I may add a little canister type filter to the loop so I can run some carbon or floss every once in a while. Pretty sure I am going to use 175 watt 10 K MH in a pendant type fixture. Cant wait to get it running, I am going to fill er up this weekend.
Nanoguy, I did fabricate the tank. did the PC's in the canopy heat up your aquarium? I have thought about going that way with my lights as well, but I have the halide and would have to build a canopy to match this tank to use the PC's. Send me an email about those lights....

[nanoguy]

You have mail...

[gas4544]

Geo,
Nice lookin' tank! You gonna set up a mini calcium reactor for it?

[geo]

:p
Actually now thinking about a small canister filter. It would hook up to the fitting for the circulation loop and I could run some carbon in it as well. I could also keep the back closer to the end of my desk and have the filter on the floor

[dsb1829]

Originally posted by geo
I did fabricate the tank.

Very nice. You have really become an acrylics guru:D . I was wondering who made it and then to see the answer a bit farther down. It is a great tank for a nano.

I did notice on the Oceanic that I have the 32w of PC does heat up the tank. I had to run a small 1.5" fan over the return water from my hang on filter. This kept it stable and has worked since. I now keep it downstairs on a tile counter and haven't had to use the fan since.

[geo]

Thanks Doug.
I built a little hood for the 32 watt pc's from nanoguy (thanks). The hood does seem to get warm. I looked for a fan to fit the hood at radio shack and the only 120 V fans were too big. I may try a 175 watt pendant type fixture. I really like the tank. I added the sand and rock and waiting for things to settle down a bit now, and also trying to figure out my lights.

[dsb1829]

I have a 1.5" computer cooling fan that runs off 6-12v. If interested I could pop it in the mail to you. I use one during the summer on my 7g tank. Pointed at the return water from my HO filter it gives about an 8 degree drop in temperature. It is the same size fan that playfair had on the Bonsia reef retro hood. LMK

[geo]

thanks Doug, I am not much of an electrician. What do you have to do to run a 12 volt fan on 120? The smallesrt 120 v fan i saw was 3". I am going to stick with these PC bulbs. I will post another picture soon.

[dsb1829]

Hey Geo,

All you have to do is get an ac/dc adapter at radio shack. They sell these in different voltages and current settings. You can run most of these small dc fans on a 12v-500mA adapter. Simply cut the coaxial plug off the adapter and wire the two leads to those on the fan. Since it is dc the polarity does matter. If it doesn't fire right up reverse the leads. LMK if it sounds like something you want to play with.

[nanoguy]

George...if I knew you needed one I would have tossed it in when I sent you the lights (have a few laying around). They are not too expensive though. How's the setup coming along?

[geo]

I think its ok with out the fan. It does bring the temp up a couple of degrees. I have some shroom rock out of 90 gallon in it, a coupl of xenia and such. More or less transplanted a small portion of the 90 gallon into this tank. It looks real nice, everyone made the move with out a hitch. I will take a picture of it soon. So how do you wire the 12 volt fan to 120?

[nanoguy]

George...here's a link to what you need http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog%5Fname=CTLG&category%5Fname=CTLG%5F004%5F001%5F001%5F000&product%5Fid=273%2D1779 (you might actually have one from some electrical gadget laying around the house like a cell phone charger plug, etc). I really don't think a 3" fan would be necessary for that particular lighting setup. Why don't you try a couple of small CPU cooling fans. I think that would be perfect...that's what I would do if I were to do it again. If you decide to go that route then just make sure you purchase an adaptor of the same voltage (just browse Radio Shacks site for lower voltage adapters)
All you have to do is cut/splice the wire from the adapter (should have 2 now) and connect them to the 2 wires from the fan. Like DSB said, polarity does matter so if it doesn't fire up then all you have to do is switch the wires (just twist the wires together by hand to test then crimp/tape it up once it works). I hope this helps.

[ReefMole]

geo,

That's one great looking tank! So, are you a pro acrylic fabricator or just a hobbyist? How does one go about learning how to work with acrylic? I'm reasonably 'handy' at DIY projects but am clueless when it comes to working with acrylic. -Thanks

[geo]

Thanks for the link. When I was in radio shack trying to explain what I was doing the boob in there working was showing me thiose 90.00 power converters. :eek1:

[geo]

Originally posted by ReefMole
geo,

That's one great looking tank! So, are you a pro acrylic fabricator or just a hobbyist? How does one go about learning how to work with acrylic? I'm reasonably 'handy' at DIY projects but am clueless when it comes to working with acrylic. -Thanks

LOL, just a hobbyist. Best way to learn (for me anyway) is to jump in there and start building stuff. I had been a misc. steel fabricator (handrail, stairways and such) for the last 14 years of my life. I really helps me with other projects I take on.

[Q-ball]

Hey Geo, I put a 1" cpu fan in my canopy over my 7g & it worked perfectly...here's a pic of the transformer & my canopy with the fan in it:

http://www.reefcentral.com/q-ball/images/fan%20transformer1.jpg http://www.reefcentral.com/q-ball/images/canopy1.jpg

This transformer is really nice cuz by adjusting the voltage, I could change the fan speed which also adjusted how much noise it made. I ended up running it at 7.5v which moved a good amount of air while still keeping it relatively quiet. HTH

Q!!!

[geo]

Thanks for the info! I am going to go back to radio shack and dig around some more.

[nanoguy]

Geo...you might want to try other places for cheaper prices (Target, Kmart, etc)...just go to the electronics department. I find that some of the stuff at RS is way over priced.

[geo]

thatnks for the tip. Taking my wife into target is asking to drop a load of $$$. I cringe every time we enter the store, lol

[bigsteeviestyle]

I understand very little about electricity. If most small fans are 12v-500mA, why would you want to use a different mA rating and what is the effect of that different rating? Fan life? Fan speed? Excess heat? etc.

[nanoguy]

Any updates/pics on the tank Geo?

[geo]

the tank is doing great, I have some shroom rock and a couple of softies from my 90 gallon in it. I will take a picture of it later today when the lights come on. its a cool little tank:)

[dsb1829]

Let's see a pic:D

ttt...

[nanoguy]

Doug...that's a sweet looking 180gal you have. How many VHO actinics are you using to supplement your hallides? I will be setting up a 180 soon so any info you can give would be great. Geo...still waiting on those pics :cool:.

[schemo]

hey george awesome looking tank!!!!! how long did it take for you to make it?

[geo]

Not too long. its actually my second try. I f'ed up the first attempt and turned it into a form for this one. its really coming around nicely.