rack and sump details

[BillT]

Details of the racks and sumps:

Here is the sump of the baby fish rack. What makes this a baby fish rack?
1) Smaller tanks (1 liter)
2) Drains that can keep larval fish in
3) I have modified it to keep the salt level up to a density 1.006 gm/ml. This is a not strong brackish level of saltiness. 1.00 gm/ml is water without salt. I believe this is how a gram is actually defined.
This will:
a) Not kill the fish (at least most Danios I have tested). It may also save the larval fish some metabolic energy that would otherwise be used to retain salts in their bodies.
b) Keeps my salt water rotifers alive when fed to the babies. Rotifers are great food for babies and they can be present all day from a single feeding. It also keeps brine shrimp alive for days and my Walter worms also survive this.

The water levels in the these tanks can be adjusted by rotating the black knob a the front of the tank. This swings an arm holding the mesh tube (with the red cap) up and down. This is where the water exits the tank.

The water system has (as the water flows) coarse filtration, biomedia (in the fine filter bag), fine filtration, heater, and then a UV on top of the rack before the water goes back to the tanks. RO water is added by the float valve to make up for water losses. A timer controlled valve adds water several times a day to provide water exchanges. The conductivity sensor adds salt when the salt level drops, by turning on the peristaltic pump and pumping salt solution out of the salt bucket (used for two water systems) into the sump.
The salt bucket has a float valve so I can open a valve and go do something else without worrying about the bucket overflowing (time saver).



This is the conductivity controller for the baby rack. I get it from a friend for $200. New it would be ~$800. He got a bunch on e-bay that were in automatic film developing machines Ikinda like buggy whips now). It controls salinity to 10.5 mS (or 10,500 ?S), what I measure at 1.06 gm/ml.


This sump is for the two adult racks (3 Liter tanks):


This is one of two linked sumps for my new water system.


This is the other part of the sump for the new water system. It also contains a bucket that I want to use as a filter. The plan is that the dirty water will enter via the flexpipe and swirl around at the bottom, going up until it exits out the top through the black mesh (which is there to retain the media). The dirt is supposed to be retained by sedimenting in the slow moving water and by sticking to the biofilms on the media (biofilms are sticky).
The filter will be cleaned by turning off the water to the filter, stirring up the media to knock the dirt off, and pulling out the stand so the water will drain out of the sump (same path as the overflow standpipe for the sump outside of the filter bucket. The prefpipe will keep the media in the filter.


Large heavy media will be on the bottom. This stuff will remain on the bottom and provide a more stagnant region for debris to drop out of the water.


Above that will be the floating Kaldnes media (this is the proper spelling I found out). This is a floating media used in making "moving beds". People like moving beds because the media self cleans as it is moving around and bumps into each other. It should swirl around in the water above the heavier media. I will have to shorten the flexpipe so the water comes out above the heavy media and can get the kaldnes media moving. Guess we'll have to see how it works.

This is a sensaphone dial out unit. Currently, it monitors power, room temperature, and the conductivity level in the baby rack. It will call me if things go beyond set limits. There is space to hook up another 6 sensors to it. This is programed with Windows software.

[BallAquatics]

WOW  That is some elaborate set-up Bill.  Are you sure you're not a mad scientist rather than a fish keeper   LOL

Thanks again for sharing.  I find it very interesting to see how others have their fish room set-up.

Dennis

[Mugwump]

Dennis, didn't you see Igor working in the background??......LOL....

[BillT]

Dennis, didn't you see Igor working in the background??......LOL....

I need to get one of those Igors.