SolaTubes for reef tanks

[Surfcaster]

It sounds like sloar tubes are best used to suppliment the artificial light, there by using less electicity and giving our creatures at least some natural light. I especially think the moonlight the tubes bring into the tank is very benefitial to coral spawning. So there is a practical use for the tubes.

[mfranklin]

I got to this thread through another thread I started so I am bringing it back to life.

SAT do you have any more updates or pics?

[SAT]

Originally posted by mfranklin
SAT do you have any more updates or pics?

Still have a ways to go. Finishing the rest of the house has taken priority over the aquarium. The tank has water in it, but only to prove the plumbing and encourage any settling to occur before I fill it for real. We'll move in January. I doubt I'll have any coral in it before spring.

[scot]

SAT

How does the intensity of the light look with water in the tank?

[SAT]

Originally posted by scot
How does the intensity of the light look with water in the tank?

Scot, it looks rather dim right now, but that's not surprising considering the mitigating factors: It's right at the winter solstice, the sun is actually below the tips of the trees (which mercifully don't have any leaves), the low-angle sunlight has to do a lot of bouncing in the tubes, the tubes currently have a light coating of construction dust, and the water isn't clear enough to see the length of the tank!

Ask again in a couple of months.

[scot]

SAT,

Your not making my decision any eaiser, but thanks for being honest. I plan on supplementing with 1 20K 400w in the center and 2 140w VHO actinics. I may have to trade the 400w for two 250watters. My goal is to try and keep the power bill down but still have lots of light.
I still think there's lots of benifits to the tubes even if the intensity's not up to par (lol). The natural light, constantly changing intensity plus the natural moon light and cycles. I'm going to buy a tube to experiment with after the holidays.

Please keep us posted
Thanks
Scot

[SAT]

Scot,

I won't comment on how many Watts your system needs, but I basically agree with the sentiment. At best, I figure my setup will deliver adequate light during the Summer and half of what I need during the Winter.

[andrejka]

SAT,

Any progress? You should be getting enough light now
Seriously, I hope you didn't give up the idea. Bought any corals yet?

[skylsdale]

Is ANYONE ever going to post pics??!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SAT]

...keeping me waaaaaaaaaaaaaiting... Wow, this thread has a life of its own!

My tank is still cycling. The nitrites have been hovering at 1ppm for about 3 weeks and I'm really getting tired of it! Once they clear I'll add the next batch of live rock. We'll see about the primary inhabitants, like corals, after that cycle completes. Then we'll see about some pretty pictures of corals in sunlight. I'm trying to do this right, so don't hold your breath.

I measured the noon-time light intensity last week, a few days before the equinox... it was about 5-10% of full outdoor sunlight at the sand bed and about 20% at the canopy. I was pleased to see nice glitter lines on the bottom of the tank. I figure that's enough light for deep water species, but will need supplements for anything else. Maybe once I clean the dust out of the tubes everything will look better (it's an ugly task and I've been procrastinating ever since the weather improved).

The good news is I managed to control the air leakage from the RCSD. When that sucker fires, everything in the tank waves back & forth.

[andrejka]

Thank you for the update, Stuart!

I won't let this thread die until we see some pics...

[H20ENG]

Glad to hear of the progress! We want to see your RCSD, too!
Chris

[buff1]

I looked into this solar tube idea about 3 years ago and couldn't find any decent info. I'm thrilled to see the idea actually being tested. I had a couple of thoughts. First, if you had a south facing pitched roof and the dome was tilted to match the slope of the roof, I would think the amount of light entering the tube would increase greatly. Second, I would think you would benefit by bringing the bottom of the tube as close to the waters surface as possible while still allowing access.

I also followed a thread about fiber optics over on reefs.org. I think there is a lot of potential there, but it would almost certainly need a sun tracking collector on the roof, which adds a lot to complexity and cost. Still, the potential is very exciting! I love this stuff, let's keep this thread going!

Also, a word of caution about going cheap on the solar tube. I had a solar tube installed in my pantry when our house was built. It was only a 10" and we got it at home depot. I think the reflectivity is much lower than the high end ones mentioned here because it is quite unimpressive. It lights the room enough during the day that you can find what you need, but I would estimate that for most of the day (ie: the sun not directly overhead) it is about the equivalent of a 25 watt bulb. This is not a light meter measurement, just my best estimate.

[SAT]

buff1,


To Reef Central

Good points. I think you are right that angling it would be more efficient. The manufacturers' instructions generally say to point the tube straight up. Some models don't allow bends, so this could be an issue for them. You may also find the dome seal will allow leakage if it's not vertical (my domes are sealed with brush-style weather stripping).

I also agree the tubes should come as close to the water level as practical. The light doesn't normally come straight down the tube, so the more distance the less light you get.

[SAT]

OK, time for some pictures. I took these this morning around 10:15AM, about 2-3 hours before peak sunlight. The total tank size is 96x24x30H (nominally 300G), but if you take out the hidden areas & sand bed, it really more like 78x24x24H (about 200G). It's lit by three 21" skylights and 320W VHO (URI, one actinic one 50/50). When the sun is out, the VHO contribution isn't obvious to the eye.

I'm using a Canon A60 balanced for sunlight, with no flash. I use Photoshop to adjust the contrast levels and reduce the saturation (the camera is overly color sensitive to my eye).

Here's the center section of the tank (the remainder is mostly open and doesn't photograph well).

[SAT]

Here's an Oculina robusta frag that broke off the main colony during shipping. I epoxied it to a hunk of dead millipora about 8" below the water line. That was less than two weeks ago. To my eye it seems to be starting to grow over the epoxy.

[SAT]

Here's some Briareum and Ricordea that I got from Reeftopia last week. The Briareum hasn't fully opened yet. Note the color of the Ricordea, which I think comes out pretty well in the sunlight.

[SAT]

Here's some Cladocora. The small center & upper left colonies came in on the first chunk of live rock in February and somehow survived the cycling. The larger colony on the right came in about 2 weeks ago. The small center colony appears to have grown and developed some color -- green polyp centers -- since introduction.

[SAT]

And here's some Halimeda, which has started growing nicely in the last week or so, now that the micro algae is under control and the calcium levels are up.

[Jimbo327]

How about a picture of the tubes? And a whole tank shot with tubes in the picture to see the light intensity? Much appreciated!

Jim

[SAT]

Here's one taken close to noon for comparison.

[SAT]

And here's one with the panels open. All you can see is the bottom of the tubes and the 2 VHO strips right below them.

[photobarry]

That looks nice and bright!

-Barry

[H20ENG]

SAT,
Thanks for the update! You've just made a lot of curious reefers happy!
How is the RCSD working out?
Chris

[SAT]

Originally posted by H20ENG
SAT,
Thanks for the update! You've just made a lot of curious reefers happy!
How is the RCSD working out?
Chris

You're welcome.

The RCSD is working pretty well. It fires about once a minute, creating a 1" wave that travels the length of the tank and then bounces back and forth for about 10 seconds. The effect appears quite natural. It is rather noisy though... I have it pretty well muffled but even so it isn't for everyone.