SantaMonica

From new to green, in 3 cleanings and 2 LEDs... http://youtu.be/utu2SADmj2g

Yes during cycle is OK.

Yes just rough it up really good with a hole saw or a wood cutting blade, or a steak knife.

Sounds way to little. Pics would help.

Red usually means the light is too weak.

White is best because it reflects more light to the growth.

Craft stores, model airplane stores, and maybe sewing stores.

Big harvests! (note: FW does not grow as thick) http://youtu.be/2GGXoAcmA7E

Advanced Aquarist Feature Article for December 2013: Coral Feeding: An Overview http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2013/12/aafeature The picture in the article shows that in the 1000 litre test tank: 98% of the food particles go to the skimmer when there are 2 coral colonies 71% of the food particles go to the skimmer when there are 40 coral colonies 92% of the food particles go to the skimmer when there are 2 coral colonies, when skimming is cut in half 55% of the food particles go to the skimmer when there are 40 coral colonies, when skimming is cut in half "This trade-off between food availability and water quality can be circumvented by using plankton-saving filtration systems, which include [...] algal turf scrubbers" "Corals are able to feed on a wide range of particulate organic matter, which includes live organisms and their residues and excrements (detritus)." "...bacteria [...] can be a major source of nitrogen." "...when dry fish feeds or phytoplankton cultures are added to an aquarium, a part of this quickly ends up in the collection cup of the skimmer. "...mechanical filters (which can include biofilters and sand filters) result in a significant waste of food." "Detritus is a collective term for organic particles that arise from faeces, leftover food and decaying organisms. Detrital matter is common on coral reefs and in the aquarium, and slowly settles on the bottom as sediment. This sediment contains bacteria, protozoa, microscopic invertebrates, microalgae and organic material. These sedimentary sources can all serve as coral nutrients when suspended, especially for species growing in turbid waters. Experiments have revealed that many scleractinian corals can ingest and assimilate detritus which is trapped in coral mucus. Although stony corals may ingest detritus when it is available, several gorgonians have been found to primarily feed on suspended detritus." "Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is an important food source for many corals. [...] scleractinian corals take up dissolved glucose from the water. More ecologically relevant, corals can also absorb amino acids and urea from the seawater"

Phosphate flow out of rocks Many people, when they get their scrubber running for the first time, get worried when more (not less) algae starts to grow on their rocks. It seems really strange, especially when nitrate and phosphate have gone lower than before. What is happening is that phosphate is coming out of the rocks. Remember, phosphate is invisible, so you can only see the effects of it, and it always "flows" from higher concentrations to lower concentrations (just like heat does). Example: If your room is warm, and you put a cold object on the floor, heat from the air in the room will "flow" into the object until the object and the air are the same temperature. Example 2: If you put a hot object on the floor, heat will "flow" out of the object and go into the air in the room, again, until the air and the object are the same temperature. Now suppose you open your windows (in the winter). The warm air in your room will go out the windows, and it will get colder in the room. The object on the floor is now warmer than the air, so heat will flow out of the object and into the air, and then out the window. Think of phosphate as the heat, and your rocks as the object, and your windows as the scrubber. As the scrubber pulls phosphate out of the water, the phosphate level in the water drops. Now, since the phosphate level in the water is lower than the phosphate level in the rocks, phosphate flows from the rocks into the water, and then from the water into the scrubber. This continues until the phosphate levels in the rocks and water are level again. And remember, you can't see this invisible flow. This flow causes an interesting thing happens. As the phosphate comes out of the rocks, it then becomes available to feed algae as soon as the phosphate reaches the surface of the rocks where there is light. So, since the surface of the rocks is rough and has light, it starts growing MORE algae there (not less) as the phosphate comes out of the rocks. This is a pretty amazing thing to see for the first time, because if you did not know what was happening you would probably think that the algae in the scrubber was leaking out and attaching to your rocks. Here are the signs of phosphate coming out of the rocks: 1. The rocks are older, and have slowly developed algae problems in the past year. 2. The scrubber is new, maybe only a few months old, and has recently started to grow well. 3. Nitrate and phosphate measurements in the water are low, usually the lowest they have been in a long time. 4. Green hair algae (not brown) on the rocks has increased in certain spots, usually on corners and protrusions at the top. 5. The glass has not needed cleaning as much. Since skimmers, filter socks, etc don't remove any nitrate and phosphate, and waterchanges and macro's in a fuge don't remove much, most people have never seen the effects of large amounts of phosphate coming out of the rocks quickly. But sure enough, it does. How long does it continue? For 2 months to a year, depending on how much phosphate is in the rocks, how strong your scrubber is, and how many other phosphate-removing filters you have (GFO, carbon dosing, etc). But one day you will see patches of white rock that were covered in green hair the day before; this is a sure sign that the algae are losing their phosphate supply from the rocks and can no longer hold on. Now it's just a matter of days before the rocks are clear.

Phosphate flow out of rocks Many people, when they get their scrubber running for the first time, get worried when more (not less) algae starts to grow on their rocks. It seems really strange, especially when nitrate and phosphate have gone lower than before. What is happening is that phosphate is coming out of the rocks. Remember, phosphate is invisible, so you can only see the effects of it, and it always "flows" from higher concentrations to lower concentrations (just like heat does). Example: If your room is warm, and you put a cold object on the floor, heat from the air in the room will "flow" into the object until the object and the air are the same temperature. Example 2: If you put a hot object on the floor, heat will "flow" out of the object and go into the air in the room, again, until the air and the object are the same temperature. Now suppose you open your windows (in the winter). The warm air in your room will go out the windows, and it will get colder in the room. The object on the floor is now warmer than the air, so heat will flow out of the object and into the air, and then out the window. Think of phosphate as the heat, and your rocks as the object, and your windows as the scrubber. As the scrubber pulls phosphate out of the water, the phosphate level in the water drops. Now, since the phosphate level in the water is lower than the phosphate level in the rocks, phosphate flows from the rocks into the water, and then from the water into the scrubber. This continues until the phosphate levels in the rocks and water are level again. And remember, you can't see this invisible flow. This flow causes an interesting thing happens. As the phosphate comes out of the rocks, it then becomes available to feed algae as soon as the phosphate reaches the surface of the rocks where there is light. So, since the surface of the rocks is rough and has light, it starts growing MORE algae there (not less) as the phosphate comes out of the rocks. This is a pretty amazing thing to see for the first time, because if you did not know what was happening you would probably think that the algae in the scrubber was leaking out and attaching to your rocks. Here are the signs of phosphate coming out of the rocks: 1. The rocks are older, and have slowly developed algae problems in the past year. 2. The scrubber is new, maybe only a few months old, and has recently started to grow well. 3. Nitrate and phosphate measurements in the water are low, usually the lowest they have been in a long time. 4. Green hair algae (not brown) on the rocks has increased in certain spots, usually on corners and protrusions at the top. 5. The glass has not needed cleaning as much. Since skimmers, filter socks, etc don't remove any nitrate and phosphate, and waterchanges and macro's in a fuge don't remove much, most people have never seen the effects of large amounts of phosphate coming out of the rocks quickly. But sure enough, it does. How long does it continue? For 2 months to a year, depending on how much phosphate is in the rocks, how strong your scrubber is, and how many other phosphate-removing filters you have (GFO, carbon dosing, etc). But one day you will see patches of white rock that were covered in green hair the day before; this is a sure sign that the algae are losing their phosphate supply from the rocks and can no longer hold on. Now it's just a matter of days before the rocks are clear.

Phosphate flow out of rocks Many people, when they get their scrubber running for the first time, get worried when more (not less) algae starts to grow on their rocks. It seems really strange, especially when nitrate and phosphate have gone lower than before. What is happening is that phosphate is coming out of the rocks. Remember, phosphate is invisible, so you can only see the effects of it, and it always "flows" from higher concentrations to lower concentrations (just like heat does). Example: If your room is warm, and you put a cold object on the floor, heat from the air in the room will "flow" into the object until the object and the air are the same temperature. Example 2: If you put a hot object on the floor, heat will "flow" out of the object and go into the air in the room, again, until the air and the object are the same temperature. Now suppose you open your windows (in the winter). The warm air in your room will go out the windows, and it will get colder in the room. The object on the floor is now warmer than the air, so heat will flow out of the object and into the air, and then out the window. Think of phosphate as the heat, and your rocks as the object, and your windows as the scrubber. As the scrubber pulls phosphate out of the water, the phosphate level in the water drops. Now, since the phosphate level in the water is lower than the phosphate level in the rocks, phosphate flows from the rocks into the water, and then from the water into the scrubber. This continues until the phosphate levels in the rocks and water are level again. And remember, you can't see this invisible flow. This flow causes an interesting thing happens. As the phosphate comes out of the rocks, it then becomes available to feed algae as soon as the phosphate reaches the surface of the rocks where there is light. So, since the surface of the rocks is rough and has light, it starts growing MORE algae there (not less) as the phosphate comes out of the rocks. This is a pretty amazing thing to see for the first time, because if you did not know what was happening you would probably think that the algae in the scrubber was leaking out and attaching to your rocks. Here are the signs of phosphate coming out of the rocks: 1. The rocks are older, and have slowly developed algae problems in the past year. 2. The scrubber is new, maybe only a few months old, and has recently started to grow well. 3. Nitrate and phosphate measurements in the water are low, usually the lowest they have been in a long time. 4. Green hair algae (not brown) on the rocks has increased in certain spots, usually on corners and protrusions at the top. 5. The glass has not needed cleaning as much. Since skimmers, filter socks, etc don't remove any nitrate and phosphate, and waterchanges and macro's in a fuge don't remove much, most people have never seen the effects of large amounts of phosphate coming out of the rocks quickly. But sure enough, it does. How long does it continue? For 2 months to a year, depending on how much phosphate is in the rocks, how strong your scrubber is, and how many other phosphate-removing filters you have (GFO, carbon dosing, etc). But one day you will see patches of white rock that were covered in green hair the day before; this is a sure sign that the algae are losing their phosphate supply from the rocks and can no longer hold on. Now it's just a matter of days before the rocks are clear.

4 X 8" scrubber probably needs 8 three-watt LEDs.

Thanks, I found that the easier it is to harvest, the more it gets done

More harvests from the floating surface scrubber: http://youtu.be/miWb4R8ajXw

Summary of 3D printing links: Endless things to print: http://www.thingiverse.com/ General forum for all printers: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/3dprintertipstricksreviews Massive forum for lots of printer kits and DIY: http://forums.reprap.org/ Current lowest-cost assembled printer to print aquarium-safe ABS plastic: http://www.kicktraq.com/projects/pirate3d/the-buccaneer-the-3d-printer-that-everyone-can-use/ Current most popular U.S. based assembled printer: http://makerbot.com/ Low cost Chinese clone of Makerbot: http://www.ff3dp.com/ Another low cost Chinese clone of Makerbot: http://www.wanhao3dprinter.com/

3D printing your aquarium parts For those of you serious DIY folks, you may be interested in how you can make your own plastic aquarium parts by printing them on a 3D printer. Just this year, costs for the 3D printers have dropped to under $500 USD for a pre-built one, and under $200 USD for a kit. 3D printing of your plastic parts works well when: 1. You are good with computers. 2. You like trying new designs or colors. 3. The part is small, or can be put together with small parts. 4. The part does not require great strength. 3. There is no easier/cheaper way to get the parts. Some aquarium parts, such as simple boxes or tubes, are not suited to 3D printing because they can be more easily made with simple plastic or acrylic shapes. But some parts are so complex that there is no other way to make them except to print them on a 3D printer. I'll be using 3D printers to make the next version of algae scrubbers because of the built-in air tubing, magnet compartments, holes, and bubble pathways that make it impossible for the part to be made (in one piece) any other way. Some things I've learned that pertain especially to 3D-printed aquarium parts: 1. Only use ABS plastic, not PLA or PVA. The ABS plastic is the same type of plastic used in kid's LEGO toys and is very strong. PLA or PVA plastic, however, will slowly dissolve when underwater or when subjected to high temps. 2. Only use FDM (also called FF) printers. These are the types of printers which use coils of plastic filament. These are also the cheapest printers. Other types of printers such as SLA (liquid) use a photo-cured plastic that will get brittle under aquarium lights, and "powder-printers" make parts which are not water tight. 3. The 3D printed parts will not be "glossy smooth". They will instead be more like carbon fiber, with a texture (or lines) running in one direction through the whole part. I'm too new at 3D printing to be able to recommend a particular printer, but I'm sure each reef or aquarium club has someone who has a 3D printer, and this is usually a great place to start. Happy printing!

More info on the 3D-printed scrubber are posted at the Kickstarter link http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1079197168/1221025490?token=347e500b

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXRhc07mXJo

They fill the "middle" area with a place for algae to attach, thus allowing algae to fill all the compartment They also are narrow, so their "illumination ratio" is very good (they don't block much light).

SantaMonica HOG Kickstarter! Come tell us what you think... http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1079197168/1221025490?token=347e500b

Better to use steak knife, or wood saw blade. And push down hard. Google "LED grow light" and find small round ones like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-2-2W-3W-4-5W-E27-Red-Blue-38-60-80LEDS-Hydroponic-LED-Plant-Grow-Light-Home-/200866862694?pt=US_Light_Bulbs&var=&hash=item2ec4991666 There is no other equipment, I believe.

No don't use red lenses. Just use the white.

2700 or 3000k