What doesn't exist for reefing yet but you really, really wish it did?

[ScubaSteve]

Exactly as it say on the box:

What doesn't exist for reefing yet but you really, really wish it did?


Why do I ask?
I'm right at the end of my PhD in Engineering and so I will be working less and less with super high tech stuff on a daily basis... and I'm going to be getting antsy as all heck! While I have a few development projects on the go (super high resolution 3D printer, bike accessories, a few consumer electronic devices, etc), I am looking for cool ideas to work on as I burn through projects pretty quick.

It could be something everyone would want or something very specific to you, doesn't matter. If it catches my fancy or there is enough demand for it here on CanReef, I'll invent it and built it.

I have a full machine shop and prototyping lab at home, so I can build everything from car parts to electronics to nano materials. Don't worry if something can or can't be done - provided it exists within the laws of physics, I can find a way to make it happen. But please, no intentionally stupid ideas! (i.e. no "Boaty McBoatface" or equivalent)

Bring forth your wishes, my salty friends!

Oh, and I'm happy to say I'm back here on CanReef after a long absence! :biggrin:

[vanreefer]

I robot for the glass

[Coasting]

I robot for the glass
But that exists already....

[WarDog]

Programmable nanites that can target algaes and unwanted pests.

[toytech]

I cant think of anything but can you be my new dad , and can I live in your garage , I don't eat much . Seriously , do you need a 30 year old son?

[AquaAddict]

A truly DEAD SILENT pump.

I have never come across one no matter what they advertise. Right now I have an Aqua Clear 110 that started out somewhat quiet but now it is grinding away and I can't seem to do anything to quiet it down.

AquaAddict

[FWC]

A reef safe effective cure for ich and velvet.

Something to DECIMATE bubble algae.

[ScubaSteve]

A truly DEAD SILENT pump.

I have never come across one no matter what they advertise. Right now I have an Aqua Clear 110 that started out somewhat quiet but now it is grinding away and I can't seem to do anything to quiet it down.

AquaAddict

It surprises the hell out of me they still haven't figured this out!

A reef safe effective cure for ich and velvet.

Something to DECIMATE bubble algae.

Ooooh... Chemistry and biology! This is where I'm a viking. Very interested in this one.

[ScubaSteve]

I cant think of anything but can you be my new dad , and can I live in your garage , I don't eat much . Seriously , do you need a 30 year old son?

Hahahaha. I think you missed the part where I just finished aPhD. I'm too poor to own a garage :razz:

[kooky]

I think if we had a probe/monitor that constantly shows the Calcium/Alkalinity/phosphate levels in your aquarium at all times without doing individual test, like a temperature or PH probe which are currently available, that would help the hobby immensely.

[brotherd]

A rare earth magnet no more than a 1/4 inch thick sealed with a super hard plastic that can be used like a magfloat to remove coraline in very tight spots.

[gobytron]

Something that would allow safely moving a full tank.

[msjboy]

A nano tank 5 -10 gallons display (eg zero reef coral)with a underneath sump, refill, dump water area...water dumbos 70% or so into a 5 gallon bucket so it is humanly possible to lift up and dump. Mixed new water refills at a switch. Water change is a real pain and with the world only going smaller condos, no one can buy 150 gallon tanks and fit it all in a hectic lifestyle.

Ps... you know xreefer iminsky runs tinkerine.com

[shiftline]

I think if we had a probe/monitor that constantly shows the Calcium/Alkalinity/phosphate levels in your aquarium at all times without doing individual test, like a temperature or PH probe which are currently available, that would help the hobby immensely.



I second that

[Wheelman76]

I think if we had a probe/monitor that constantly shows the Calcium/Alkalinity/phosphate levels in your aquarium at all times without doing individual test, like a temperature or PH probe which are currently available, that would help the hobby immensely.



There is something like that out there already , hopefully they release it soon.

https://reefbuilders.com/2015/07/27/mindstream-aquarium-monitor-live-kickstarter/

[e46er]

There is something like that out there already , hopefully they release it soon.

https://reefbuilders.com/2015/07/27/mindstream-aquarium-monitor-live-kickstarter/

I think he ment probes which last more than a month.

I think the idea is cool but at 7-900 up front and 500 a year for discs @ the discounted pricing which im sure are both in USD. It's not a realistic purchase for a lot of people where a $50-70 probe that lasts any length of time I'd buy them for sure.

[whatcaneyedo]

An auto feeder that dispenses frozen food. I've seen a few interesting DIY jobs involving mini fridges but nothing even remotely compact.

Plasma lighting in the 14K spectrum.

I'll put my hand up too for the Alkalinity monitor.

[ScubaSteve]

I think he ment probes which last more than a month.

I think the idea is cool but at 7-900 up front and 500 a year for discs @ the discounted pricing which im sure are both in USD. It's not a realistic purchase for a lot of people where a $50-70 probe that lasts any length of time I'd buy them for sure.

There are commercial probes for exactly this and they last quite a while... but they ain't cheap ($250+) and seawater can cause them issues. I used to have 5 or 6 of them in my lab (we specialized in electrochemistry) and tried them at home a few times with relative success. I believe Pinpoint Monitoring actually makes a somewhat affordable unit and, if I remember correctly, was reviewed by Randy Holmes-Farley in one of the reefing magazines.

The kicker with these units though is that to get accurate measurements they sometimes need to be paired with a pH probe. The potential (i.e. voltage) of an electrode shifts 0.059V per decade (meaning one pH unit, such as if the pH shifts from 7 to 8). Doesn't sound like much but once that error gets factored in, your measurement could swing wildly with pH shifts throughout the day, talk additions, etc.

So, it can be done but it hit always going to be cheap.

[Dearth]

second the frozen food feeder

an adjustable sump system where you can increase or decrease size of the chambers with sliders so you can add or remove equipment and make space accordingly

[Animal-Chin]

A fitration system that takes in your dirty tank water and spits out water as clean as the day you made it. The filter would remove all bad items but leave the salt and all trace elements. A true sea water purification system that is easy to use.

It would remove all algae, nitrate, phosphate, pests (ich) and just return water that only had the good stuff left in it.

[Myka]

There is something like that out there already , hopefully they release it soon.

https://reefbuilders.com/2015/07/27/mindstream-aquarium-monitor-live-kickstarter/

Yeah it's like never coming out....

But yeah, if you could live monitor or even hourly monitor cal and alk even just those two would be immensely helpful.

[ScubaSteve]

An auto feeder that dispenses frozen food. I've seen a few interesting DIY jobs involving mini fridges but nothing even remotely compact.

Plasma lighting in the 14K spectrum.

I'll put my hand up too for the Alkalinity monitor.

Ya, I've pondered trying my hand at a frozen feeder as well and have some ideas that'd make it really compact. The trick is the cooling system. If you're OK with big, then standard refrigeration works (but there is somewhat of a lower limit in how small you can make it for a reasonable price). Thermoelectric is also a possibility but can be finicky. There is one other way of doing it that gets rid of the refrigeration all together but I'd have to look into the cost. If it's affordable, it'd be very simple to implement.

There are commercial probes for exactly this and they last quite a while... but they ain't cheap ($250+) and seawater can cause them issues. I used to have 5 or 6 of them in my lab (we specialized in electrochemistry) and tried them at home a few times with relative success. I believe Pinpoint Monitoring actually makes a somewhat affordable unit and, if I remember correctly, was reviewed by Randy Holmes-Farley in one of the reefing magazines.

The kicker with these units though is that to get accurate measurements they sometimes need to be paired with a pH probe. The potential (i.e. voltage) of an electrode shifts 0.059V per decade (meaning one pH unit, such as if the pH shifts from 7 to 8). Doesn't sound like much but once that error gets factored in, your measurement could swing wildly with pH shifts throughout the day, talk additions, etc.

So, it can be done but it hit always going to be cheap.

Because Calk/Alk probes seem to be pretty popular I've been thinking this over quite a bit today. I experimented making some ion-selective solid state probes a few years back that were very cheap to make. I think I can adopt this to work with calcium without too much issue and, if I'm lucky, I might even be able to do the same with all as well.

A fitration system that takes in your dirty tank water and spits out water as clean as the day you made it. The filter would remove all bad items but leave the salt and all trace elements. A true sea water purification system that is easy to use.

It would remove all algae, nitrate, phosphate, pests (ich) and just return water that only had the good stuff left in it.

And that, good sir, is a tall order :razz: Technically possible but very, very, very.... very cost prohibitive :lol:

[ScubaSteve]

A rare earth magnet no more than a 1/4 inch thick sealed with a super hard plastic that can be used like a magfloat to remove coraline in very tight spots.

This can be done pretty quick and easy. The only limiting factor is how fast I could get an injection mold made. If there is enough demand for this that I could pay back the cost of the mold in a reasonable amount of time I'd consider doing this.

[Myka]

Because Calk/Alk probes seem to be pretty popular I've been thinking this over quite a bit today. I experimented making some ion-selective solid state probes a few years back that were very cheap to make. I think I can adopt this to work with calcium without too much issue and, if I'm lucky, I might even be able to do the same with all as well.

Alk is the tricky one, but you should know that. ;)

Mindstream claims to have it figured out, but they are lacking funding badly since a serious failure in their Kickstarter program.

[ScubaSteve]

Alk is the tricky one, but you should know that. ;)

Mindstream claims to have it figured out, but they are lacking funding badly since a serious failure in their Kickstarter program.

They're doing theirs through spectral analysis of a reactant test... never made sense to me to do it that way. Too complicated. Too many things to go wrong. No wonder they are struggling!

I was doing some reading tonight and it seems it should be fairly straight forward to make a carbonate selective electrode (provided I can synthesize a molecular tweezer :lol:). In fact, I think I could put pH, Calc, Alk and Nitrate all on the same electrode.

[Etaloche]

They're doing theirs through spectral analysis of a reactant test... never made sense to me to do it that way. Too complicated. Too many things to go wrong. No wonder they are struggling!

I was doing some reading tonight and it seems it should be fairly straight forward to make a carbonate selective electrode (provided I can synthesize a molecular tweezer :lol:). In fact, I think I could put pH, Calc, Alk and Nitrate all on the same electrode.

http://www.spawnfirst.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/shut_up_and_take_my_money_by_lolikips-d34yx16-320x205.png

[ScubaSteve]

What kind of precision would people want for calc/alk measurements? Most test kits only give you 5% precision (i.e. 400 ppm ± 20 ppm), Elos is a bit better around 2.5%. Is that good enough? Is there a need or want to go better than that?

[Etaloche]

What kind of precision would people want for calc/alk measurements? Most test kits only give you 5% precision (i.e. 400 ppm ± 20 ppm), Elos is a bit better around 2.5%. Is that good enough? Is there a need or want to go better than that?

I'm sure most people would want as much accuracy as possible unless it significantly increased price. If that's the case 2.5% should more than suffice for most hobbyist.

[ponokareefer]

100% effective aiptasia remover.

[WarDog]

100% effective aiptasia remover.

I've had 100% success rate with Peppermint Shrimp.

[ScubaSteve]

100% effective aiptasia remover.

For some reason, when I read that sentence I picture a mushroom cloud.

I think I have unresolved tension with aptasia...

[ponokareefer]

For some reason, when I read that sentence I picture a mushroom cloud.

I think I have unresolved tension with aptasia...

Me too. Sometimes peppermint shrimp work for people but sometimes they don't.

[Myka]

They're doing theirs through spectral analysis of a reactant test... never made sense to me to do it that way. Too complicated. Too many things to go wrong. No wonder they are struggling!

I was doing some reading tonight and it seems it should be fairly straight forward to make a carbonate selective electrode (provided I can synthesize a molecular tweezer :lol:). In fact, I think I could put pH, Calc, Alk and Nitrate all on the same electrode.
You can do it!!! If you could design something usable, accurate, and marketable you could do quite well for yourself.
What kind of precision would people want for calc/alk measurements? Most test kits only give you 5% precision (i.e. 400 ppm ± 20 ppm), Elos is a bit better around 2.5%. Is that good enough? Is there a need or want to go better than that?
5% accuracy is fine -that's what we're all used to anyway. More accuracy is better of course. I don't think you could market something with less accuracy than test kits.

[DiscusZ]

I've had 100% success rate with Peppermint Shrimp.

Same here :)

[Ram3500]

I've had 100% success rate with Peppermint Shrimp.

I have spent at least 200$ on peppermint shrimp in the last year with zero luck. And I am going through a bottle of aiptasia x every two weeks. My last hope is a copperband butterfly . I am hoping Jl has stock soon. I have hundreds of them in my reef this pest taking over my tank :(

[spit.fire]

I have spent at least 200$ on peppermint shrimp in the last year with zero luck. And I am going through a bottle of aiptasia x every two weeks. My last hope is a copperband butterfly . I am hoping Jl has stock soon. I have hundreds of them in my reef this pest taking over my tank :(

There's 2 kinds of peppermint shrimp, only one kind eats aiptasia

[ReefGrrl]

They're doing theirs through spectral analysis of a reactant test... never made sense to me to do it that way. Too complicated. Too many things to go wrong. No wonder they are struggling!

I was doing some reading tonight and it seems it should be fairly straight forward to make a carbonate selective electrode (provided I can synthesize a molecular tweezer :lol:). In fact, I think I could put pH, Calc, Alk and Nitrate all on the same electrode.

Yes please!! I had no idea how critical testing and monitoring is, until I started keeping a mixed reef. And the main drawback to testing is what a PITA it is using test kits. And if one has the 649 lotto funds waiting in one's bank account to buy fiddly probes and all the associated paraphernalia, there is still the ongoing expense of probes and such. And the required furniture to store it all.

I'm diabetic and blood glucose monitors have come a very long way since the very first, paperback-sized one I had 35 years ago. Now they read the blood drop itself, where back then it was spectral analysis of the reactant strip. Of course they are also much smaller now but that would be a lesser consideration for me personally when it came to a saltwater parameter measurement device.

The glucose monitor I have now is an accuchek compact, which uses a pre-loaded barrel of 17 tests - the "test strips" basically function like flat pipettes that draw the blood into a transparent chamber for the optical reader to scan. I've often wondered if this principle could be applied to testing saltwater parameters of various types. The "test strips" cost about $1 each at retail, however they don't have any chemical or electronic function, purely mechanical - and of course they are the way the meter companies make their money because the meters are free to diabetics.

I'd pay good money for something that measures salt water, which for me would be up to $200 if ongoing expenses for stuff like calibration were very low or non-existent. If there were significant ongoing expenses, my limit would be maybe $150 because of the time a single device would save.

This has been a big hmmmmmm...... in my mind for a while now. I picture something that would read an entire spectrum and output levels of each parameter, perhaps to an app of some type.

Well, we are blue-skying, right? :biggrin:

Sorry for the long post - I don't know if this is any help. :neutral: