I am in the process of starting a Pico tank but before I do that, I decided to modify my 2.5 MiniBow. My first thought was to make a Pico tank using the available junk I had and with minimal cost since I already had a NanoCube. This project is just for fun as I am running out of mods to do to my NanoCube. And since it aint running yet, I decided to post this here in the DIY Index. Hope you guys/gals like it.
Let me start with the tank itself. Here is how it used to look like...unstable with no proportion...for me that is.
And here it is after I trimmed the base. I believe that it looks better and gives it a stable look....appears bigger too. (my personal preference)
Done with the tank on to the canopy. Heres the stock look. (drilled vent holes on the sides)
First I installed a fan (blowing in)to help lessen the heat released by the light. I had an extra fan laying around and all I did was rounded up the two corners for it to fit inside to keep a clean external look. I have tested it with water and has kept the temps 5 degrees below ambient (78). A 50 watt heater (Hagen Pro Heat) kept it a steady 77 degrees.
I positioned the moonlight (spare Nanocube LED's) next to the feeding lid since thats the only place that seemed suitable. Any 3.5volt power supply or cellphone charger will work as a power source. Its a small tank so the LED's wouldnt need that much juice.
Others have used stronger bulbs but since I didnt want to shell out money. So for this project I used a 10 watt 50/50 PC bulb. The bulb was off center so I did a little cutting here and there and moved it abit. Had I changed the fixture, it would have been squared center. Wrapped as much foil as I could to act as a reflector even on parts that are away from the bulb. But since light reflects on water, it would bounce the light back and back. If you compare the tank pictures above, you will see the difference this has made. This improved the brightness by around and shows more of an even glow. See how much lighter the wood looks. Forgot to install moonlights but I guess you get the picture.
Overall it was fun doing these mods, took me a few hours to complete and zero cost since I already had these materials. The only thing left to do is install a splash guard to protect the electricals. Which I believe would affect the temps once installed. I have also hand crafted a Surface Skimmer for the Hang-On-the Back filters which during a test cleared the surface of my 2.5 in less than 10 minutes. Small, hardly noticeable and if I'm not mistaken, can be used on various sizes of HOB's. One size fits all. But that would be in another post.
Let me start with the tank itself. Here is how it used to look like...unstable with no proportion...for me that is.
And here it is after I trimmed the base. I believe that it looks better and gives it a stable look....appears bigger too. (my personal preference)
Done with the tank on to the canopy. Heres the stock look. (drilled vent holes on the sides)
First I installed a fan (blowing in)to help lessen the heat released by the light. I had an extra fan laying around and all I did was rounded up the two corners for it to fit inside to keep a clean external look. I have tested it with water and has kept the temps 5 degrees below ambient (78). A 50 watt heater (Hagen Pro Heat) kept it a steady 77 degrees.
I positioned the moonlight (spare Nanocube LED's) next to the feeding lid since thats the only place that seemed suitable. Any 3.5volt power supply or cellphone charger will work as a power source. Its a small tank so the LED's wouldnt need that much juice.
Others have used stronger bulbs but since I didnt want to shell out money. So for this project I used a 10 watt 50/50 PC bulb. The bulb was off center so I did a little cutting here and there and moved it abit. Had I changed the fixture, it would have been squared center. Wrapped as much foil as I could to act as a reflector even on parts that are away from the bulb. But since light reflects on water, it would bounce the light back and back. If you compare the tank pictures above, you will see the difference this has made. This improved the brightness by around and shows more of an even glow. See how much lighter the wood looks. Forgot to install moonlights but I guess you get the picture.
Overall it was fun doing these mods, took me a few hours to complete and zero cost since I already had these materials. The only thing left to do is install a splash guard to protect the electricals. Which I believe would affect the temps once installed. I have also hand crafted a Surface Skimmer for the Hang-On-the Back filters which during a test cleared the surface of my 2.5 in less than 10 minutes. Small, hardly noticeable and if I'm not mistaken, can be used on various sizes of HOB's. One size fits all. But that would be in another post.
coming soon!!!! I'm just making sure about it....because I tested it before, I used fresh water....the bouyancy rate is different, hence with saltwater there are a few micro bubles and it takes a bit longer to clear up compared to before. Probably because I dont use any type of filter element in my HOB. But dont worry, you'll be the first to see it. 