AndyL's 5.5

[JDigital]

Originally Posted by AndyL

What's killing me is I started this thread yesterday with my full plan laid out - to avoid questions/disputes after the contest started... Nobody said a thing - 2nd paragraph of the first post says "rebuild with 1/4" glass adding 3" in length". Today this becomes a problem... This is where the frustration lies.

So, where does the compromise lie - I can tear this down as detailed in my last post still retain all the glass but add some new sides, 1 end and bottom. Other option I see is to laminate all the glass, still extending the length still retaining all glass in factory location - just adding 1/8" laminated over top.

I didn't get a chance to read your thread after the my initial post (made after a quick look at the sketch-up illustrations). I didn't see anything about your plans until I caught up on some threads today.

Compromise is thus: You have to use the stock tank (modified if needed). You can't use/replace 1/4" glass in the display. It becomes a CUSTOM tank, built for the specific needs of the surge. I don't know what this 1/8" laminate is... Will it work for you?

[AndyL]

Laminating glass = basically sandwiching another pane of glass over an existing pane. Basically gluing another layer of glass over the original.

Though my question becomes what happens if I break a piece - glass as thin as these tanks are made of; is special order... The 10's are 3mm easy peasy - but 2mm is not easy to come by.

[sphelps]

I'd say remove the one side and extend the tank for your overflow needs, or drill the tank and make some kind of internal or external overflow. If the tank breaks from the surge you're obviously using too much surge, there's no way corals will like that much water movement, not to mention the sand and rock structure.

You're making this more complicated than it needs to be, you're using a sump so you don't need an AIO, all you need is an overflow and there are plenty of ways to do that within the rules.

[AndyL]

I'm going to dissagree on too much surge, I've got a pretty good idea how much surge I'm needing (based on testing & referencing other tanks). It's not so much the glass I'm worried about, it's the limited section of silicone adhesion... If the 2.5g blew a seam with a 1g surge, I have little faith in those same dimensional seams holding on a 5.5 even with a minimal surge. Thus the reason for the reinforcing.

There are many ways I could approach building this, however as far as the tank, I'm going to run with what I know to work (I'm testing/tuning enough other theories with this tank). Overall design was done like this for two reasons, the full width overflow is sized to handle the surge of water (calculated flow) baffle system is to keep the water level at a minimum height, herbie overflow is used for noise control - may actually add a third bulkhead (base + surge + emergency). To me this is simplest/easiest/quietest way...

[sphelps]

If you're worried about the seams reinforce them by siliconing some plastic, wood or aluminum corner covers on them.

A Herbie will not be quiet with a surge, especially 1 gallon on such a small tank. A Herbie works on the bases of steady state flow.

I'm just going to come out with this, seriously a surge on a 5.5?? What possible benefit could you get from that? Noise and air bubbles, sounds kind of silly to me when you could use a maxijet on a timer and get the same random flow without the complications. Call me crazy but I usually try and avoid things that are unnecessary and cause problems and complications, but maybe that's just me.

[AndyL]

I'm well aware of how a herbie works; been using them on quite a number of sytems since '04.

Seriously, you don't see it? Powerheads = heat this will be a problem in 5.5's; using wavemaker type timing devices are generally less than reliable and of all the ones I've seen (short of the tunze wave boxes; and that eco(name escapes me) neither appropriate for a nano) they don't manage to produce proper wave action.

Here's one of the tanks which gave me the idea years and years ago to try this out... The video links don't work anymore, but the pictures are still there...

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/inde...dpost&p=770299

[Der_Iron_Chef]

AndyL....I give you props for thinking outside the box (or the stock AGA, in this case). I would love to see a surge device on a 5.5G, and I hope you can still make it work! Could you reinforce the seams with small strips of glass siliconed at the corners? I know that's probably not the clean look you're going for. You sound pretty handy, though.

Anyway, I hope you keep the idea, if only for my own selfish curiosity

[AndyL]

Originally Posted by AndyL

Here's one of the tanks which gave me the idea years and years ago to try this out... The video links don't work anymore, but the pictures are still there...

Found a video - doesn't show the nice surge action this tank had though... Get a bit of the feel of it here and there though...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLPob7yUKO0