DIY Acrylic Refugium, Plenum, and LR Rubble Tower

[Leroy]

This is the start of an DIY acrylic refugium with more details to follow as I go along. It may appear rough, it's not a display tank, so nothing fussy, nothing super fancy, just hold water, a Euroreef skimmer and perform it's job.
The dimensions for the fuge are 36"Lx15Hx17W. Approx 39 gal, and a 40 breeder does not fit under my stand where the fuge will be located, too wide, I tried.
I've laid out the sheet of acrylic to cut the sides, ends and the bottom. I've measured my first layout for a cut and clamped a straight edge as a guide as I will for the rest of the cuts. I've measured the distance from the edge of my saw to the blade of 4". The blade on the saw is a fine tooth blade, reversed to cut the acrylic.

I've rough assembled the refugium to see how well the cuts came out. I did roughly smooth out my edges with a file and de-burred the edges. So far all connecting acrylic sides, ends and bottom meets well. I will briefly hit the edges with heat (propane or heat gun) to further the smoothness of the edges then peel back some of plastic protective covering and seal the refugium with Weld on 16.

Main baffles consisting of 1/4" clear acrylic. The top edge of each baffle has 1/4" wide slots 3" long spaced approximately 1" apart OC. These slots create the top of the overflow between the chambers while creating a barrier screen to potential critters or other items to be contained with-in the refugium area. An additional strip of 1/4" acrylic 1/2" wide can be boded along the top edge of the baffle to reinforce the slotted tops if desired. I don't have a router so the table saw will have to do.

Corners are clamped with corners vise clamps and two web bands are secured. An acrylic adhesive, Weld On 3. For extra bonding strength I'll apply a bead of Weld On 16.

Moving along.

I've set the skimmer in place to get an idea as to how large the LR Rubble Tower should be. I found I could work with a 4"x4"X15.5" for the LR Rubble Tower.

I drilled 1/4 holes at random, 2" up from the bottom with no fuss where the water from the overflow will exit out from the bottom with absolutely no bubble.

Next was to secure the bottom acrylic and once it's sealed I'll double seal bead the fuge with Weld On 16. Works super strong bonding all attaching acrylic.

The Plenum Build
Building the plenum consisted of egg crate cut to size to fit in the middle of the refugium. Craft mesh which can be found at Walmart arts and crafts dept is also cut to the same size as the eggcrate. Black fiberglass screen from HD can also be used. Do not use the metal screen!! Silicone (GE Silicone II) mesh/screen to the eggcrate to hold in place. 1/2" PVC cut 3" length or longer if you want with holes drilled for extra water circulation. The PVC was zip tied to be held in place from moving around. I'll place 2 to 3 inches crushed coral on the plenum followed by 2 to 3 inches of live sand
Here's more information about building a plenum and its advantages.
Reef Plenum: Part 1

The Refugium is built and I'm waiting for all the adhesives to fully cure before I fill it with water and check for leaks. The last item to be glued are 2 braces from front to back and glued to the top of the baffle barriers. So I'll have to cross my fingers and knock on wood that it doesn't leak. It shouldn't. The Eroreef skimmer fits perfect. In fact I built the fuge to accommodate the skimmer and as long as I could, 3ft with room for storage in the stand and an attached fan to keep the water cool. A 3 ft T5 lighting will be used for the fuge and auto top off will be added to the refugium.

Next will be to mesh mod the needle wheel in the Sedra pump.

Rubble Tower

Skimmer with Gate Valve to be mod later

Test and check for leaks

Seems to be holding water.

Check the fit for the T5 lighting for frags in the refugium.

Good to go and soon installed under my 90 gallon.

 

[junglebase]

That is beautiful work.. you could have widened the skimmer area (it seems like a very tight fit in there...but it is awesome....

 

[kimoyo]

Nice! I likes.

 

[Leroy]

That is beautiful work.. you could have widened the skimmer area (it seems like a very tight fit in there...but it is awesome....

Thank you, I enjoyed building the fuge. The refugium has been installed and in the skimmer area there's plenty of room to turn the skimmer 360 degrees for any maintenance needed. There was extra room for a couple of Copepod Condos for pods that were built for the critters to live in, rent free.

 

[House of Laughter]

Leroy, did you snake a piece of Co2 resistant tubing under the plenum? i have heard that if you use the hose to siphon out the gunk from underneath once a year the plenum can go for year (I heard 10, but think that's a bit much.

LMK what you know about this method - curious.

House

 

[loismustdie]

That's Home Depot acrylic. It gets very brittle when water logged. I don't want to be a "doomsday", after all, I have used HD acrylic for small projects, but at a minimum, I would consider a eurobraced top. It's way too easy for you to cut some 1 inch strips and line the top.
Jim, I spoke to Leroy at GARF about the tubing under the plenum. I was going to drill holes on the bottom of a 90 a few years ago just for that purpose. According to Leroy, it was a waste of time and he experienced more negatives than positives. He didn't get much further into it. I know a lot of people aren't big GARF fans but aside from GARF and maybe Bob Goemans, I really can't think of anyone else who advises the use of plenums anymore.
Use a filter sock in your live rock tower rather than live rock. Read other threads on this site to find out why.

 

[BHDMC]

Nice sump!

 

[NDY]

Nice ,That's a great job

 

[inline6]

How thick is that acrylic? Aren't you afraid of it bowing? Maybe a Eurobrace should be employed here.

Looks really nice tho.

 

[Leroy]

That's Home Depot acrylic. It gets very brittle when water logged. I don't want to be a "doomsday", after all, I have used HD acrylic for small projects, but at a minimum, I would consider a eurobraced top. It's way too easy for you to cut some 1 inch strips and line the top.

This is my second refugium built this way. The first one built held up without a flaw and was replaced with this one for more room for a larger skimmer and frags to be propagated. I?m curious to see a report stating the brittle consistency of the acrylic submerged in water that is supplied to Home Depot. Bring on the facts.

Jim, I spoke to Leroy at GARF about the tubing under the plenum. I was going to drill holes on the bottom of a 90 a few years ago just for that purpose. According to Leroy, it was a waste of time and he experienced more negatives than positives. He didn't get much further into it. I know a lot of people aren't big GARF fans but aside from GARF and maybe Bob Goemans, I really can't think of anyone else who advises the use of plenums anymore.

A plenum is similar in nature to that of a deep sand bed but the design and creation is somewhat different.
So I guess the question is - what is a plenum?
Well a plenum is a space which is located under the substrate which separates the substrate from the bottom of the aquarium. This space is full of both water and organic waste as the water is diffused into it. A plenum system is also sometimes referred to as the Jaubert system. It is often referred to as this because it was discovered by a man called Dr Jean Jaubert.
The basic structure of a plenum is a deep layer of substrate which is suspended above the bottom of the aquarium. As the water slowly moves through the sand the nitrifying bacteria in the upper level use the oxygen in the water and convert the ammonia to nitrite and then to nitrate. This nitrate is then transported in the water down into the plenum. The nitrate is then slowly broken down into nitrogen gas by the denitrifying bacteria which live in the very low oxygen levels of the sand bed.
The reason the water moves slowly through the sand is due to the anaerobic action being performed in the lower levels. The anaerobic actions produces heat which heats up the water in the plenum area. This heated water moves up through the substrate which therefore displaces the cooler water causing the water to move through the substrate at a very slow rate. A slow rate of water movement is important in a plenum as it assists in the prevention of a dangerous build up of hydrogen sulphide.
The upper levels in the sand will become home to various organisms which can either be introduced via the aquarist or are organisms which have relocated from their home in the live rock. These are important, as they are in a deep sand bed, to keep the upper levels of substrate turned over and clean from detritus and waste.

Use a filter sock in your live rock tower rather than live rock. Read other threads on this site to find out why.

I personally am not a big fan of filter socks, it?s just the way I feel about them that left un-maintained would result in the same as a sponge filter to hold detritus producing nitrate. That's only how I see them. Filters nice, polishes the water.
I searched for threads relating to live rock towers and did not find what I was looking for. Maybe with your assistance you could show me some responses that possibly state the live rock is not a productive filtering media supporting life and copepod growth.
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The most indescribable cruelty to a dog where the animals most sense of smell is 10x?s greater to humans and the pain far greater. It would be as if a spike was driven thu your b_lls.
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If I found a tank like that on my living room floor, I would hit my dog on the nose with a newspaper.
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[loismustdie]

This is my second refugium built this way. The first one built held up without a flaw and was replaced with this one for more room for a larger skimmer and frags to be propagated. I’m curious to see a report stating the brittle consistency of the acrylic submerged in water that is supplied to Home Depot. Bring on the facts.

It was not meant as an insult. Like I said, I have used HD acrylic for projects in the past, I just added in some safety measures and though I would helpfully point an option out to you.

We do not compromise using low quality extruded acrylic or using inferior plumbing parts just to cut cost. Product quality is of utmost importance to us

-copied from the website of a high end Aquarium filtration manufacturer

All Acrylic used for Aquariums should be Cell-Cast. Do not use Extruded for anything taller than 12" tanks

-copied from a popular DIY aquarium site

Like the entire Precision Marine line, the Bullet XT`s use all CELL CAST acrylic, not lower-grade EXTRUDED acrylic.

-copied from an advertisement for PM skimmers

Cast: Acrylic is made by pouring the liquid acrylic monomer between 2 sheets of highly polished glass sealed with a rubber gasket. This cell includes heat activated hardeners, or catalysts, and as the cells are gradually heated, typically through a series of water baths, produce a single sheet of solid acrylic. What you end up with is an acrylic sheet with little to no stress, and by virtue of the manufacturing process, is stronger due to the higher molecular structure of the sheet.

-copied from the website of a popular acrylic manfacturer, the site goes on to say that due to it's weakness, extruded acrylic it typically only used for signs, design patterns and sometimes glazing (sound familiar, Frank?)

The disadvantages of extruded tanks are that it is more brittle and easy to put a crack in it, especially as it gets a few years old. Extruded acrylics should never be exposed to ozone which will increase its brittle nature.

-copied from a website similar to MR.
I got those off of the first few things I cruised through on an internet search. Here is a thread from not to long ago: http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum...pot-acrylic.html?highlight=Home+Depot+Acrylic
NYPDFrogman knows his acrylic and does great work. Paul would be another who knows his acrylic and I've never seen work as good as his. Between the 3 of us, we only used Cyro. I took their advice when they offered it to me. Sorry you decided to take offense to help. Is that enough fact or are you going to make me search more?

A plenum is similar in nature to that of a deep sand bed but the design and creation is somewhat different.
So I guess the question is - what is a plenum?
Well a plenum is a space which is located under the substrate which separates the substrate from the bottom of the aquarium. This space is full of both water and organic waste as the water is diffused into it. A plenum system is also sometimes referred to as the Jaubert system. It is often referred to as this because it was discovered by a man called Dr Jean Jaubert.
The basic structure of a plenum is a deep layer of substrate which is suspended above the bottom of the aquarium. As the water slowly moves through the sand the nitrifying bacteria in the upper level use the oxygen in the water and convert the ammonia to nitrite and then to nitrate. This nitrate is then transported in the water down into the plenum. The nitrate is then slowly broken down into nitrogen gas by the denitrifying bacteria which live in the very low oxygen levels of the sand bed.
The reason the water moves slowly through the sand is due to the anaerobic action being performed in the lower levels. The anaerobic actions produces heat which heats up the water in the plenum area. This heated water moves up through the substrate which therefore displaces the cooler water causing the water to move through the substrate at a very slow rate. A slow rate of water movement is important in a plenum as it assists in the prevention of a dangerous build up of hydrogen sulphide.
The upper levels in the sand will become home to various organisms which can either be introduced via the aquarist or are organisms which have relocated from their home in the live rock. These are important, as they are in a deep sand bed, to keep the upper levels of substrate turned over and clean from detritus and waste.

Thanks. Haven't read that ... in the last 10 years.
You forgot to post the part where it is advised to have a plenum that is at least 75% of the displays foot print in order for it to be of any use. Bob Goemans, "Live Sand Secrets". (although admittedly, it does appear that you have a plenum in the display)

I personally am not a big fan of filter socks, it’s just the way I feel about them that left un-maintained would result in the same as a sponge filter to hold detritus producing nitrate. That's only how I see them. Filters nice, polishes the water.
I searched for threads relating to live rock towers and did not find what I was looking for. Maybe with your assistance you could show me some responses that possibly state the live rock is not a productive filtering media supporting life and copepod growth.

There are 3 threads out right now where we discuss the nastiest dirtiest water being within the very top layers of your aquarium making the aquarium overflow one of the best vehicles for the removal of proteins. When your overflow water crashes into a bunch of live rock, your rock will take in many or those proteins along with NO3, PO4, tons of detritus and it eventually releases all of those undesirable things back into the water column. Using filter socks CHANGED EVERY 2 DAYS at most (I don't know where you got un-maintained from) will do very well for you. The rise in PO4 you will experience with LR in that tower will more than likely inhibit heathy pod populations rather than support them. Search those threads for more info.
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum...o-skimmer.html?highlight=gravity+feed+skimmer
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum/general-discussion/34552-filter-sock.html
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum...3-need-expert-advice-nitrates-phosphates.html
Disregard my dislike for fuges that I'm sure you are going to pick up on in the third thread. The live stock you keep doesn't require the most pristine water and I don't see a fuge as a bad thing for you.

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The most indescribable cruelty to a dog where the animals most sense of smell is 10x’s greater to humans and the pain far greater. It would be as if a spike was driven thu your b_lls.
--------------------
If I found a tank like that on my living room floor, I would hit my dog on the nose with a newspaper.
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeeze man. It was a joke. We had a guy on the site who was bragging about his refugium and how he never did a water change because his fuge provided such great water quality. Then when he posted pics, the tank was a disaster. It looked like a dog threw up in it. So I made that little joke. I do not have a dog and for the record I don't ever recall hitting a dog on it's nose.

Oh yeah, Deanos! I came correctly with all the links and quotes. I bet your proud of me. I've learned. Slow, but I learned:turtle:

 

[BrownsvilleREEF]

Where did you get the corner vises that you used to build your refugium?

 

[BrownsvilleREEF]

Where Did You Get The Corner Vises You Used In Building The Sump From? I've Never Seen Them Before.

 

[loismustdie]

Where Did You Get The Corner Vises You Used In Building The Sump From? I've Never Seen Them Before.

home depot. They are in the tool section, where you would find the bar clamps.

 

[JHOV2324]

Maybe u shud have put the rock tower in the middle section....Pods going from the rock tower...past the skimmer, past the fuge and surviving the pump might have to be super pods.....:spin:

 

[kimoyo]

Leroy - I have to agree that cast is your best bet, now thats its done oh well. This is a quote from James at envision acrylics who is probably one of the best acrylic aquarium manufactures in the US.

IMO the main differences between cell cast & extruded comes down to stress tolerance & molecular chain length, AKA molecular weight.
The cell casting process allows for much longer molecular chains (1.5 million units average) therefore a much more stable material, essentially speaking, you simply can't get chain that long through the extrusion process without it breaking down. Extruded material is basically limited to chains 150,000 (Lucite CPX) units or less - usually around 75,000 units.
What this means is that cell cast can handle stresses (physical, thermal, chamical) that would make extruded materials fail.
You can think of it as wood fibers, long wood fibers can handle much greater loads than short wood fibers without failing. Kinda like comparing plywood to chipboard, while this not totally accurate - it provides a *somewhat* decent analogy.

In practical terms, extruded materials are great for point of purchase (POP) displays and the like while cell cast are better for pressure vessels (such as aquaria) and similar things.

Extruded materials generally are cheaper & easier for most to glue because they break down faster & easier (solvent is a chemical stressor). They can be made to a much more consistent thickness do to the extrusion process but are generally limited to 1/2" and under though a coupla companies are extruding up to 1" now. Extruded materials, once stressed, tend to craze much more rapidly when another stressor comes along potentially leading to material failure. Take a piece of flame polished acrylic and rub alcohol on it, it crazes badly - sometimes to the point of complete failure whereas cast might craze some but not nearly so bad.

Cast materials don't tend to melt as badly when cutting, machine nicer (similar to aluminum), have better heat tolerance when forming, and can simply tolerate stress much better than extruded. The thickness of sheet is limited only by commerical factors, the largest cell I know of can make a single sheet 14" thick. But cast is usually more expensive, is "pickier" to glue, and thickness can vary quite a bit (up to about 1/8") even in the same sheet.

All that said, extruded materials will hold water and function fine provided you design it well and use proper thickness. It is not advised (esp) in display tanks as the accidental cleaning with Windex or similar product can get real ugly.

James

Thats the best explanation I've seen online. Personally, I would only use cyro or spartech.

Also, I've seen people do the rubble/rock towers before but I also think its a bad idea.


Chris - Thanks for the compliment, I appreciate it.