gBOYsc2 Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 Hi guys. After moving 3 times in the past 2 years and settling into a home which should be semi permanent for at least a few years I have decided to I want to get back into the aquahobby. It's been over a year and I have lost touch and forgot a lot of information. I'm hoping I can get a little help here. I am planning to build a tank rack in the basement to house 3 to 6 20 gallon long tanks. Not sure. I think with 6 I could have everything I want. Apisto's, tetras and shrimp in 1. cherry barbs, cories, shrimp, ottos in one. TIGER BARBS!(my favourite) in 1. And that would leave me 3 spare tanks. Maybe 1 for shrimp and 1 or 2 for apisto breeding/pairing. There are so many kinds of fish that I love and you just can't have them all in one 20g tank. A massive tank is out of the question and I would like to have the option for breeding in the event I am ever so lucky to experience it again. Now with all that being said I have a bunch of questions. A couple simple ones to start. 1. Substrate. Where can I get VERY CHEAP substrate and what are my options? I would like a sand or something that is friendly to corydoras. IIRC people use pool filter sand? Any other options? The tanks will all be lightly planted. Just a few small swords and some moss and some wood. Maybe something else. Nothing crazy with co2 or anything. 2. Lighting. I see now in the past couple years there are TONS of LED lights on the market. I am willing to dish out a bit extra for this because I love the near no power consumption. Any options for fairly simple DIY so I can have a large long unit across 2 20 longs?? I'm also willing to make simple use of flourescent lights if I can get away for VERY cheap. Any suggestions? 3. Filtration. What is generally used for a "tank wall" or "tank rack"? Should I just throw a HOB on each of them? Air driven sponge filters like breeder style? Or would it be best to set up some kind of sump/plumbing unit that will filter all tanks at once? I'm not sure I have never done a setup like this. I will be doing lots of homework over the next few weeks. I know this is a lot, I don't expect you guys to do all this homework for me but what I am looking for is any input with experience or suggestions for this project. It would help speed up the process very much. Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Znaika Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 On #1, you can go with play sand available from Home Depot or Rona or the like (very cheap) or you can go for sand blasting sand, which is more coarse and not too expensive either. It is available from sand blasting suppliers - check Edmonton yellow pages. Gravel or sand from Burnco is the cheapest option of all; you can get a ton for ten bucks, but it contains limestone, so if you are concerned about water softness and acidity, probably not a good option. On #2, personally, the added cost of LED lights will never be justified by the savings on electricity bills. Compared to fluorescent, let's say 50W of saving for 10 hours a day equals 0.5 kWh or about 5 cents per day. This is a whopping $1.50 a month or $18 a year. Your LED would pay back may be in a decade, if it had lasted that long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blink Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 You have to keep in mind bulb replacement when factoring cost too. If you replace every 6-12 months as many many hobbyists recommend the led fixture may pay for itself very quickly indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 If you're going for playsand, get Quickcrete or Target brand from Home Depot - it's the cleanest available. You'll still likely need to rinse, tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gBOYsc2 Posted November 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 On #1, you can go with play sand available from Home Depot or Rona or the like (very cheap) or you can go for sand blasting sand, which is more coarse and not too expensive either. It is available from sand blasting suppliers - check Edmonton yellow pages. Gravel or sand from Burnco is the cheapest option of all; you can get a ton for ten bucks, but it contains limestone, so if you are concerned about water softness and acidity, probably not a good option. On #2, personally, the added cost of LED lights will never be justified by the savings on electricity bills. Compared to fluorescent, let's say 50W of saving for 10 hours a day equals 0.5 kWh or about 5 cents per day. This is a whopping $1.50 a month or $18 a year. Your LED would pay back may be in a decade, if it had lasted that long. Good point Znaika, but I never said I wanted it to pay for itself over time. I am simply a fan of LED lighting low power consumption for the aquarium! You have to keep in mind bulb replacement when factoring cost too. If you replace every 6-12 months as many many hobbyists recommend the led fixture may pay for itself very quickly indeed. Exactly! Just another reason I am a big fan on LED's. And I am very willing to DIY if I can get proper lighting by doing it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Znaika Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 Ok, the fluo tube is $5. Ten bucks for a couple a year. What's the burnt LED replacement cost? I mean, if you want LED, then by all means, go for it. Just don't pretend it is an economical option Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gBOYsc2 Posted November 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 Ok, the fluo tube is $5. Ten bucks for a couple a year. What's the burnt LED replacement cost? I mean, if you want LED, then by all means, go for it. Just don't pretend it is an economical option Fourescent bulbs are only 5 dollars? Where and what size? Are they 6500k? and....... I never said anything about it being an economical option. jeez. I don't know what you are getting at...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Znaika Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 If you are not going to grow _very_ demanding plants, you don't need HO 6500K or anything like that. Standard T8 warm white and cold white tubes will be more than adequate. I have four of them on one of my tanks (only two are on 90% of the time) and my plants are flourishing - I trim them every two weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The-Influence Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 Welcome back pal ! Blake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 I'm going to jump in here as I work in the lighting industry. My company sells led strip lighting between 6-12 dollars a foot that comes with high bond tape to attach and is 6300k. Attach it to a power supply (30 dollars) and then connect a plugin and you're good to go. This is all CSA approved with a 5 year guarantee and is here in calgary. Sounds pretty economical to me. In fact, I might have use some of my old samples and try this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gBOYsc2 Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Welcome back pal ! Blake Hey Blake thanks! Glad to see you're still around. Will ya have any moss clippings for sale in the next couple months? I'm going to jump in here as I work in the lighting industry. My company sells led strip lighting between 6-12 dollars a foot that comes with high bond tape to attach and is 6300k. Attach it to a power supply (30 dollars) and then connect a plugin and you're good to go. This is all CSA approved with a 5 year guarantee and is here in calgary. Sounds pretty economical to me. In fact, I might have use some of my old samples and try this. Awesome news. I wonder if they are similar to computer LED strip lights to illuminate the inside of your computer which can be connected to a molex power and maybe powered by one of these? http://www.dazmode.com/store/product/2a_12v_5v_external_dc_power_supply_molex_for_system_testing/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syno321 Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 For filtration google - Hamburg mattenfilter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gBOYsc2 Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 For filtration google - Hamburg mattenfilter Yes I am well aware of the HMF's. I am considering it but after doing some research yesterday I read a fellow had problems doing it in his 20 long. I guess it is hard to get proper water circulation with a HMF in a 20 long but I thought maybe I can just put 1 on each side of the tank. And do them corner style instead of across the whole end of the tank. Now I'm not sure if the short height of the 20 long causes problems with the HMF having a short travel distance for the air to pull the water through the tube? Not 100% sure but I may consider using a different tank size/dimensions I just LOVE 20 longs. It is my favourite small tank. BUt I think I will be going with either HMF or simple breeder style filter. It will be the simplest and most cost effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gBOYsc2 Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Ok after seeings Ron's Simple Shrimp rack and having owned shrimp in the past I am thinking of a bit of a new idea. I want shirmps! 2 20 longs on top lengthwise and 6 10 gallons on the bottom widthwise. This will give me enough variety to keep me busy. Back on the topic of the HMF's. I have never used an airpump in aquarium before. I have no clue what I am going to need here. I am assuming your cheapo 30 dollar LFS model isn't going to cut it? If I am to go 6 10g's and 2 20 long's that would be 10 filters in total across the 8 tanks. Can anyone suggest me an air pump that will be sufficient but not completely overkill? I am assuming I will just have to use a bunch of splitters to run it to all 8 tanks? Would something like this be ideal? http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5943/p16942851.html Or is that overkill? or too weak? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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