DIY Raining ATO idea

Discussion in 'I made this!' started by Thatgrimguy, Jun 16, 2011.

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  1. thepanfish

    thepanfish Flying Squid

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    Temp changes, since it would be going into DT instead of mixing in the sump. Excited for this!
     
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  3. Mr. Bill

    Mr. Bill Native Floridian

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    With the drip you're referring to, as opposed to spraying, salt creep should be minimal and restricted to the tank frame, if there's any at all.

    You're exposing your livestock to the same conditions that they survive in the wild. At least your RO/DI top-off water won't be polluted.

    Wanna see pics of this in action! :)
     
  4. Thatgrimguy

    Thatgrimguy Flying Squid

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    I think I can make this work... I may just have to build a bigger lighting surround than I had planned... I may make it more like a Fur down rather than a floating structure.. I think I will get roughly 3 gallon's a day in evaporation (getting about 2 a day now without light).. I'm hoping I can get enough top off to make it a rain for at least 1 minute, but not have radical salinity swings.. I'm working with 210gallon DT and about 20 gallons actually in the sump. (40 gallon total volume)
     
  5. bioreefdude

    bioreefdude Fu Manchu Lion Fish

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    yeah 3g sounds like a winner hole size is gonna be important too as well as number of holes
     
  6. Thatgrimguy

    Thatgrimguy Flying Squid

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    [​IMG]

    I can build a kind of wood fur down directly from the cieling over the tank. The leds mounted in it with the rain, Keeping 12+ inches of free space to see the storm! My carpenter will be here Saturday to talk about what I want to build so I'll start there. I'll keep this thread updated.
     
  7. BoostLED

    BoostLED 3reef Sponsor

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    Get a surround sound with BASSSSS. This is going to be awesome! :)
     
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  9. bama

    bama Humpback Whale

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    Use this for the rainfall and just make sure you calibrate it to rain less than your top-off. Or you could control it by use of two float switches in your sump. Low level turns it on, high level turns it off. Couldn't be too hard.
    Product Details
     
  10. Thatgrimguy

    Thatgrimguy Flying Squid

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    Already got that!! Just need to figure out how to hook it up my home Denon reciever to an I/O breakout box on my apex so that the thunder runs at the same time as the storm.... Timing it all together may be tough... Or I may just have to make the rain storm on demand and separate from the ATO (then I would have to run saltwater and it would bring a whole new set of potential problems... mostly saltcreep)
     
  11. Thatgrimguy

    Thatgrimguy Flying Squid

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    I think that item makes more of a fine mist than a rain.. I really want the raining sound.

    The two float switches is what I was thinking too.. Makes the most sense for a system like this. And then have a timer for a back up cut off. So I don't over fill even if the top switch fails.
     
  12. kornaco40B

    kornaco40B Spaghetti Worm

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    IMO, if you want a worthwhile raining experience with the water "raining" sound from your tank--you're gonna have to go with salty water. (A closed-loop system that rains down) I'm thinking the the top-off water won't provide enough volume for your rain before it shuts off....

    Plus, the larger, and more realistic raining effect you go for, the more volume you're gonna need...

    This is just off the top of my head.

    You'd probably benefit to run some tests before you come up with a final design either way... Just to get a better grasp on flow rates, volumes, etc...

    As for a salty rain, I was picturing those low cost, yellow gardening sprinklers with the built-in valve...(the one's that attach to a standard garden hose) They could allow for easy flow adjustment, and since they screw on, removal for cleaning wouldn't be a huge pain.

    With the salty rain, you could go for minutes or even hours of light raining. I'm thinking ATO rain would probably, at best, only last a few seconds...:-/

    It's an awesome and challenging idea...good luck, sir!
     
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