Medym's Pico Build

[Medym]

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[salvini55]

Good thing Lowes is right down the street eh

[Medym]

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[A6tiger]

hey can you post pics of the modded aquaclear i am thinking of doing the same but can decide on the design to use

[Medym]

hey can you post pics of the modded aquaclear i am thinking of doing the same but can decide on the design to use

I did the exact build as listed on nano-reefs here:
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=180570&st=40&p=2004830&#entry2004830

The pictures there are a lot better than what I can take.  I have some chaeto, now all ready to go too.  Hopefully it will fill up most of the refuge area I have set aside for it.  I will be using the spare compartment to hold the heater.

Tomorrow or Tuesday I am going to try to pickup some glass for the tank.   It will be 12x10x8 (4 gals).

For lighting I am looking at two options the PAR38 LED light from RapidLED or a DIY fixture with 4x blue 2x cool white 3W LEDs.  Any suggestions or comments on the lighting would be most welcome as I am diving into unknown waters with this.

[salvini55]

I dont have experience with them but I think the Par38 is a great bulb from what Ive seen. It should be the perfect option for you.

[Medym]

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[Rybren]

I believe that GerryO has been using the PAR38 bulbs on one of his builds.  Maybe he'll chime in with his experience.

I built a 3x3W 6500k white and 3x3W Royal blue fixture for my pico. I find that it's a tad too white and the 6500K wash out the RB, leaving no Pop in the colours.

[Medym]

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[gerryo]

I use the PAR bulb on my Pico as a supplement, at the present time.  This one has 5 bulbs at 3 watts each.  Supplementing the T5HO.

When Rapid have the new bulbs in stock I will be ordering the new par bulb which has 4 RB and 3 white.  I will use this along with the 5 bulb and replace the T5HO. 

This Pico will then have 5 white and 7 blue at 3 watts each, and this should be quite sufficient for this little 5.5g.

I don't understand the need for dimmers on such a tiny tank.  To me, just getting enough simple light into here is my goal.  I will be leaving the lenses in both of these units as the spread is too much for a little tank.

[Rybren]

I used cheapie knock-off LEDs (5 for $8 incl shipping) and Deal Extreme drivers.  The heatsink and fan were fom an old PC that I had in the basement.  Total cost was about $30.

I had bought the parts to play around with, but it looked so good that I just had to use it on my pico (I had been using a blue 13W CFL bulb)

[Medym]

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[Medym]

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[Rybren]

Be sure to check the Forward voltage and current requirements on the white and Royal Blue LEDs.  They are likely different and may cause issues if running on the same driver.

[JetJumper]

depends if they are XP-G or XP-E or etc....

[Medym]

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[JetJumper]

you will be fine with that setup.

[Medym]

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[Medym]

Exciting mail this week; OVAS Membership and my LEDs!  I also got a heatsink tossed in (6x6)!  I will have to play around with how it may work with this size and how I can spread it for my tank.  Glass is also going to be in tonight.  Going to be a busy weekend!  Pics to follow.

[Medym]

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