Ace's ATS Build

[Ace25]

I am excited about the LED aspect as well. This is why I love the hobby so much... so many questions and I like to do things myself to find the answers, even if the answers are already known.

This time, in regards to LEDs on an ATS, the answer is not known, which is even more exciting for me. Uncharted territory in a subject I feel I have enough knowledge and ability to run experiments to find an answer, although like most things, I may find an answer with 3w LEDs but there will be other correct answers with other types of LEDs like 1w, 5w, 10w. I am only focusing on 3w LEDs right now. I want to learn what types of LEDs work best for algae. I know what corals like, but algae is a whole new area for me in regards to what it prefers in lighting. Does adding blue LEDs help, if so, how much blue should be used? Are Reds helpful, 2 lines of thinking.. plants do use reds, but algae grows at depths in the ocean where reds do not reach, so is it important to add red LEDs if the algae is used to not using the red spectrum as much as terrestrial plants? I think some red is needed, hense the warm white LEDs, but right now I am thinking you don't need to have additional red LEDs to supplement the whites. Those are questions I want to find the answers to. Distance from screen, amount of LEDs, power required, and ideal spectrum to be more specific.

 

[cjtabares]

After reading of your success I will be setting one of these up on the tank I am planning, a heavily feed LPS tank.

Thanks for all the info Ace. Looking forward to what you can do with the LEDs. My DT will be using an LED fixture.

 

[Sploke]

...plants do use reds, but algae grows at depths in the ocean where reds do not reach, so is it important to add red LEDs if the algae is used to not using the red spectrum as much as terrestrial plants? I think some red is needed, hense the warm white LEDs, but right now I am thinking you don't need to have additional red LEDs to supplement the whites...

This is true, but the algae we are aiming to grow on the scrubber screen, turf algae, typically grows best in tidal margins, areas of very shallow water and in some cases, no water at all at low tide, so adaptation to a lack of various bands in the light spectrum would not have been necessary...so I would think anyway.

edit: Or one could make the argument that the particular alga in question were incapable of adapting to growing in habitats where the full light spectrum was not present, and that is why they grow where they do.

 

[Amphiprion]

I know the more ideal algae species for our turf scrubbers (brown turf) grow extraordinarily well under lower Kelvin lamps. Not only are these algae hardier overall compared to greens, but they are physically tougher overall. I had to use razorblades to remove mine and it still grew back very quickly.

 

[Ace25]

Here is my current thoughts on my new sump.. very quick and dirty MS Paint picture, nothing is drawn to scale. There will be 2 boxes, one on each side, for the LEDs, I only drew one box in to give you the idea.. it was getting messy drawing everything in.

My current thoughts now is to do one side all warm white, and the other side put in 2 blues with 4 warm whites, just to see if blues help out. If they do that side should grow more than the other side of the screen.

 

[DoctaQ]

i did a mini ats with a single ssc p7 for a while, it was a screen sitting on top of a hob, i got lots of good algae at first, then i kinda got lazy, now i took it off completeley.
i bet that a bunch of cool whites would do best since the additional par will account for a possibly poorer spectrum.
if you have the means to experiment then add a couple of reds on the other side.
i think chinese drivers are the way to go here since you dont need dimming.
dealextreme.com

 

[Ace25]

A few pics of the build so far.. more to come tomorrow and installation this weekend. Screen is 12"x10-1/2" for the ATS with 6 LEDs per side, 50/50 mix of Cree Neutral and Warm whites.

 

[Amphiprion]

Wow, very nice setup there. When I set up another tank that needs the power of a scrubber, I think I'm going to go somewhere along the same route you've taken, honestly. It is much cleaner and neater looking. How easy is screen removal overall?

 

[Ace25]

The screen will be really easy, I will be using the velcro method again because it has worked perfect on my other ATS. Just reach under the brace to pop the lid up and remove, then pull the velcro strips and the screen will drop right out, plenty of room to maneuver. The slot is loose, cut with a table saw and smoothed with a dremel so the single layer screen fits perfectly and slips right out. The 1-1/2" ATS pipe has a 3/4" reducer, which has a good size lip to hold back some water, and I will have a valve on the back side that I can close in case the lip isn't enough to provide sufficient flow over the screen (which I think it will). If all works as planned I can keep the valve open and it will be my emergency overflow in case the screen/slot gets clogged some how. The LED boxes will have their own lids with fans on them. The LEDs will be 3 per 10" piece of channel aluminum (2"x1") and only run at 750mA so they should stay nice and cool. They will be facing down at about a 45 degree angle... I will have to post pics of that to explain what I mean. Hard to describe but when you see it running you will understand.

I installed 3 baffles on the first chamber, a 3rd glass baffle like the first one, except on the first I have glass but in front if it I have ABS and I cut teeth in it to catch any strands of algae/cheato that may try and make it out. I will have 2 Koralia Evo 750's on the first baffle both facing back towards the left side wall in order to keep everything stirred up in the chamber, plus I plan have having some chaeto under the screen. For the second baffle, again glass with ABS in front of it with a 3/4" bulkhead at the top. All baffles I used this really nasty professional black silicone. It says "Geocel 3300 Construction Polyurethane sealant" on it and was super thick and stained my hands (lesson learned, should have wore gloves). Guillo1 got some extra tubes of it from his aquarium mfg when he had to glue a piece of glass behind his false wall because it was bowing. I am still scrubbing off black from my hands almost a week later. Also as you can see the tank is painted black almost all the way around, as well as the bottom. All this is to contain the light within the 1st chamber, which pretty much looks like a Santa Monica 100 scrubber now.

 

[Ace25]

Few pics with the LEDs installed..

LEDs OFF

LEDs on / Camera Auto Adjusted for brightness

LEDs on / No Auto Adjustment on brightness (how it really looks in person, BRIGHT!)