Stephen Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Here is my cascade pico reef, it comprised of a 2 gallon tank that overflows a rock wall(not built yet) and runs into the aio 4 g tank below. The bottom tank is divided into two section; the rear section will house a maxijet 1200 to pump the water back up to the small tank , it will also house refugium chamber with chaeto and chamber for filter media.. Might also put a maxijet 400 the bottom tank for more flow.. Just not sure yet. The top tank sits an an aluminum bracket that rest on the bottom tank. Whats neat about this bracket is that it allows me to slide the top tank over to service the rear chamber of the bottom tank without turning off the pumps and disrupting the equipment. I need a heater too, almost picked one up at petsmart, but was unsure on how many watts to get? My light will be a diy led setup with 12, 3watt leds. 3 RB, 3 B, 3 NW and 3 Violets. I’ll be using two dimmable drivers, not sure which ones yet. Also, undecided on how I will be mounting/hanging fixture. Livestock is currently undecided, but it will be a bare bottom tank. I’ll update again when I make some more progress. Thanks for looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 That sounds like a very interesting tank! Did you make them yourself? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Capt. Obvious Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Fits that space perfectly and is a great concept, are you worried about evaporation at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 Yeah, I built it. I had my acrylic cut at Regal plastics. Evaporation is a concern, but I think I'll wait till I get it setup before I decide if I need an ATO or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victoly Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 So we've got a dropoff and a cascade. When you fit them together, you get, SUPER PICO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Capt. Obvious Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 combining these two awesome tanks may lead to less than awesome results...case in point: 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victoly Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 How dare you speak badly of the keytar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerrickH Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Cool idea but I see flow being a problem in the lower tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted January 17, 2013 Author Share Posted January 17, 2013 Yeah, it really does depend on the flow from the waterfall, I need to try and get it plumbed up sometime this weekend. Then I can test it to see what kind of flow I am dealing with and see if I'll need the powerhead in the bottom tank or not. Having a lot of micro bubbles from the waterfall are also a concern. I'm thinking if I put some LR right at the base of the waterline of the fall will help eliminate bubbles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Capt. Obvious Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Out of curiosity, how loud is the cascade of water from the top to the bottom? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+brian.srock Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 I really like the tank and this would look nice on my desk at work. I do wonder about random water running down the sides of the tank though since the opening is the whole length of the top piece. Also if you happen to get a snail on the lip or side he could also redirect water. Is that any issue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted January 17, 2013 Author Share Posted January 17, 2013 I haven't tested it out yet. So I can't say how loud it will be. It shouldnt be too loud though, I hope.. . it really depends on the placement of the rocks And how water is directed off the fall. I have been collectin LR rubble and hope to have water by next weekend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
esacjack Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 baller status! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 Small update: I had time to work on the Rock wall for the waterfall. What do y'all think? I'm pretty pleased with the way it turned out. Though, I might need to make some adjustments to the rocks that control the falls based on how much flow I decide to have. I hope more parts arrive in the mail soon! I'd really like to have the tank up and running.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesL Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 This is awesome. I would like to see if hermits will climb from the bottom to the top via the cascade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted February 12, 2013 Author Share Posted February 12, 2013 Small update: tank is water tested, painted and ready for plumbing. I have to remake the bracket that holds one tank on top of the other though.. I originally used gorilla glue, but as you can see it came apart pretty easily.. Any ideas on an adhesive? Had to dremel out a 1/2" plastic bushing to use as a nut for the 90 degree air fitting/bulkhead. Also had to make a gasket. Here's part of return plumbing to the top tank Full tank shot before plumbing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Capt. Obvious Posted February 13, 2013 Share Posted February 13, 2013 I have Weldon 16...it won't come apart with Weldon Edit: oh wait...is it metal? Weld it or rivet it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gig 'em @ NDstructible Posted February 13, 2013 Share Posted February 13, 2013 That's a really cool idea! I've always wanted a nano with a waterfall coming off rock like you would see in a tide pool with waves and low tide. Are you worried about watering trickling to the sides of the waterfall and down the sides of the tank? It may not happen, but a 1 inch acrylic edge on the sides of the waterfall would keep any wondering water from escaping. Just my $.02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted February 21, 2013 Author Share Posted February 21, 2013 Finally got a heater and finished up the plumbing on my tank. Using a Mj 600 for the waterfall and Mj 606 for circulation on the bottom. In the sump there are two partitions. Media bag with carbon in the small and chaeto in the other. Everything looks great so far except the run off for the waterfall splashes on the sides a bit. Anyway, it needs more work. What y'all think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Dustin Blevins Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 Looks good! I like what gig'em said with the 1 inch acrylic edge on the side to prevent the run off. Or maybe even just build out on the sides a bit so water can not flow that direction. I really like your tank idea, it looks awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted February 22, 2013 Author Share Posted February 22, 2013 Thanks. I have few ideas that I am addressing right now 1) The MJ 600 isn't producing enough flow. Right now the water just trickles over the fall.. So I'm thinking a mj1200 would work a lot better. 2) Is to build the rockwork from the backside of the water fall up to the lip of the tank and to also build the rock work in the bottom tank to match up with the fall. I will be filling in the sides of the fall to cover up the gap between the rockwork and tank. This way it will look like one large rock structure separating the two tanks by an increased elevation and waterfall. If I don't like the way it turns out then I'm going to scrap the rock wall and add a lip to the waterfall to create a simple modern look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(Bio)³ Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 This is fun to watch come together! I wonder what your evap rate will be? Your obviously getting great gas exchange and some cooling effect from the waterfall I would think. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Gott Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 Keep the rock wall!!! It's awesome. I don think having some "lips" on either side of it are a necessity though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted April 8, 2013 Author Share Posted April 8, 2013 Ok, so needless to say I haven't had much time to work much on my lil pico reef. I am still having a problem with the waterfall and haven't had time to cut the acrylic I need to fix my problem.. Also, haven't found a pump that is the right size and is strong enough to handle the 1' of head. Thinking I might have to go to a Mj 1200. After being tired of looking at my empty, dirtyyy tank I decided to just setup the bottom for now since its good to go. I will add the top whenever I can. I had specifically bought some pukani rock off BRS for this tank. However, I was dissatisfied with the look of the piece and changed them out with some pieces I had in my sump. What do y'all think of the aquascaping? I am going to run both tanks barebottom with hopes to keep this system very clean and low nute. It's been up for 3 weeks now.. I've been doing 50% water changes biweekly and have been dealing with some ammonia spikes.. Not sure why though.. Livestock is currently one blue mushroom, one loose head of candycane, some yellow button polyps and a small Gorgian frag. Some snails and one blue leg hermit. I forgot there is also a piece of gsp in there. For lighting i did a diy led buils comprised of 6 royal blues and 3 cool whites powered by a single driver(dimming). The housing is made out of some aluminum angle scraps I had laying around. It's mount to a 1x2" right now and looks ugly as funk. I'd like to add a fish or invert.. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 14, 2013 Share Posted April 14, 2013 Looking good! Glad to see it getting stocked. I hope you can get the waterfall going, that was a really neat design. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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