New Ray tank arrived today

[Just Toby]

I have used a D-D (Deltec) top up, it was about £140 - I had a tank built to house cold water from the mains with a ball cock and an overflow to waste in case it sticks open, the sump also overflows to waste so I have some saftey built in. My dosing pump is also a lift but I will heed the warning and decant it in to maybe 2weeks to 4 weeks supply.

There are 3 dd top ups to chose from - solenoid activating, low voltage pump (supplied) or 240volt mains to operate your own pump (I have spares)

I will post up pics of the coldwater tank soon - it fits next to my sump.

 

[T1KARMANN]

I'm looking at an auto top up for my new big tank when its built,where you getting yours from toby and are they expensive?




Steve

no need for all the flash stuff just get a HMA filter £60 put a big overflow/drain in the sump

my sump is 24 inch deep and the overflow is at 18inch

i used a 50mm drain so no chance of that getting blocked

connect the mains water direct to the HMA which has a air line type hose and a flow adjuster coming off turn the water mains on full then adjust with the flow thing

run the air line to in front of a pump return then it will push the new water all around the tank

i have about 150 gal per day going into mine and the Ph has now sorted its self out and stays around 7.2 if i feel like doing a big water change i just turn the HMA full speed over night

keep it simple is the key the more things you have the more that can go wrong

 

[spwd]

no need for all the flash stuff just get a HMA filter £60 put a big overflow/drain in the sump

my sump is 24 inch deep and the overflow is at 18inch

i used a 50mm drain so no chance of that getting blocked

connect the mains water direct to the HMA which has a air line type hose and a flow adjuster coming off turn the water mains on full then adjust with the flow thing

run the air line to in front of a pump return then it will push the new water all around the tank

i have about 150 gal per day going into mine and the Ph has now sorted its self out and stays around 7.2 if i feel like doing a big water change i just turn the HMA full speed over night

keep it simple is the key the more things you have the more that can go wrong

Cool,that sounds like a good idea,thanks richard.



Steve

 

[Just Toby]

Cool,that sounds like a good idea,thanks richard.



Steve

My sump has this facility in it (44mm drain plumbed to waste at high point)along with the cold feed but I feel this does not allow the filter to build up a working culture big enough to support the Rays without it - the de-nitrifying bacteria work against the bio load that is present, the drip is taking the load away.

If the HMA were to stop based on needing replacement then you could get an ammonia spike plus you are at the mercy of the water supply 100% of the time. My water is VERY cold all year round and what I have spent with the fancy gear I would spend in heating the water. My route allows the water to come up to room temp over 2 days first.

Having said all this it is mere preference and I had been thinking about constant drip for a long, long time and only PREFER the automated route for my own preference....at the end of the day we are doing a similar thing with a different route.

There are enough "constant drippers" on here to shoot me down in flames but I would be interested in others thoughts about my ramblings on bio load.

I think both routes are a brilliant way to keep high load fish and I suspect that many captive ray deaths could be saved with a similar route.

 

[T1KARMANN]

you should not get any amonia spikes

the way the system works is nitrite and amonia are turned into nitrate and the only way to remove that is with a nitrate reactor of water changes

i cant see how you would get a amonia spike just but adding new water

the water is also running in so slow it wont have any impact on the temp and in this weather it will keep the temp more stable and the tank wont over heat

im not sure what your tank is running at now but mines at 84 and not heaters are coming on i would say yours is in the low 90s and you may even need to add cold water to cool it

you dont put the drip into the sump as that would be pointless as it would just fill the sump up then overflow back out

this is how i have mine set up simple

 

[Just Toby]

the way the system works is nitrite and amonia are turned into nitrate and the only way to remove that is with a nitrate reactor of water changes

i cant see how you would get a amonia spike just but adding new water

I think you mis-understood me.

Do not worry, I am quite familiar with the nitrogen cycle.

My point was, IF the HMA drip fails then your sump might not be able to hanlde the bio load which is normally washed away with the water changes - lets say your water authority decides to or accidentally adds massive amounts of Chlroamine or other to your water when your HMA is exhausted. Your sump may not be able to handle the bio load (Looking back there are a lot of IFs and Buts and I realise that the system is probably fine)

Ammonia is not added by adding water - unless Chloramine is present as your tank would produce Ammonia in the removal process. (This is if the HMA was not effectively removing the Chloramine which it would in normal operation I assume)

BTW: Nitrate is effectively removed by ion exchange resin, I have found nothing to compare to this in effectiveness.

I can add fresh water drip to the tank or the sump, my point was that my sump can remove the excess to waste by overflow drilled in to the sump - you are right, if you add fresh to the sump and remove by overflow then you are just diluting the sump, which WOULD actually benefit the water by dillution as you would not remove the exact water that you have added BUT it would be better to add to the tank and remove from another place.

In summary, both systems are simple and they work, have your own choice.

You system looks really nice BTW.

 

[T1KARMANN]

to safe guard the HMA i change the cartridges every 4 months rather than longer they will last for 6-8 months but best be safe rather than sorry

its what works for you at the end of the day and what you feel happy with

 

[Just Toby]

to safe guard the HMA i change the cartridges every 4 months rather than longer they will last for 6-8 months but best be safe rather than sorry

its what works for you at the end of the day and what you feel happy with

Got it, totally makes sense and I would rather that my initial comment stated, "both good systems, whatever works for you...go with it."

I think that your approach to keeping on top of the HMA is essential.

I notice that you run the same UVs as me and I have been guilty in the past of allowing mine to run 12 months without a buld / tube change..I would need to make sure that I did not run the HMA in the same way but my carbon filter on the fresh water is the same.

What flow rate can the HMA run at of full as it would be good if it could keep pace with my top up.?

 

[T1KARMANN]

Got it, totally makes sense and I would rather that my initial comment stated, "both good systems, whatever works for you...go with it."

I think that your approach to keeping on top of the HMA is essential.

I notice that you run the same UVs as me and I have been guilty in the past of allowing mine to run 12 months without a buld / tube change..I would need to make sure that I did not run the HMA in the same way but my carbon filter on the fresh water is the same.

What flow rate can the HMA run at of full as it would be good if it could keep pace with my top up.?

with the UVs if you buy the arcadia tubes they last for 1 year anyway which doesnt hurt so much when i need to change mine

they last 1 year but i have them spaced 6 months apart

 

[Just Toby]

with the UVs if you buy the arcadia tubes they last for 1 year anyway which doesnt hurt so much when i need to change mine

they last 1 year but i have them spaced 6 months apart

That is good to know, I do use the arcadia ones.