Cali Kid Corals

Canceled- Automation discussion and Reef Nutrition 8/28/2021

Will you attend?


  • Total voters
    15

JVU

President
BOD
[Edited 8/19]

Ok so since those available for the new date (8/28) are not planning to make the feeder fridge, our plan is to change this event to another idea @Scott Sweet had- He has set up a bunch of automations on his system (canopy, feeding, water changes, top off, testing, trace elements, etc), including some he DIY’d himself, the feeder fridge being an example. He has volunteered to demo and discuss the various solutions he came up with, practical components, alternatives he considered, etc. Others could discuss their approaches. This will still give folks a chance to see his feeder fridge in detail to help decide if they want to make one for themselves before committing to the cost.

We are still planning to have Chad from Reef Nutrition give us a talk and do a Q/A about the benefits of this kind of feeding, which is perhaps more appropriately positioned in the decision part of the process anyway.

I’m going to change the poll to an RSVP for this event, so please mark your availability for this new date and event topic, even if you replied to the previous poll.

When: Saturday, 8/28/2021 starting at 10:30a
Where: Scott’s home in Campbell (will send address to those who RSVP’d in the poll)

10:30a-12p:
Gathering and show & tell of Scott’s system with discussion of automation
12p-1p: Lunch, planning pizza and drinks (let us know if you have specific food restrictions)
12:30p-1:30p: Reef Nutrition talk, Q&A, discussion

Please RSVP in the poll in this thread if you haven’t yet. We will use the poll for planning, food order, and whom to send the address to. Last day to sign up is the day before (Friday 8/27).

We plan to have the demo and discussion of Scott’s tank inside (next to his tank), with lunch, the Reef Nutrition talk, and socializing otherwise outdoors. Scott requests attendees be vaccinated and wear a mask when indoors.

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Reef Nutrition products are optimized for this kind of feeding system; Chad will discuss this with us and answer any questions we have.

Scott won’t be walking us through the process of building the feeder fridge anymore, but he will be showing it off in detail. He has a parts list with recommendations, and additional details. GHL has generously offered a 15% discount on their dosing pump to support this project and the club!

Scott’s build threads:

Scott’s build thread and discussion about his feeding fridge:


For supporting members. Please RSVP in the poll above, which was restarted for the new date/topic.
 
Last edited:
I will put together the parts list....the cost for everything other than the doser...~$220. If you choose the GHL doser, assume another $425 as you need the Standalone doser. The RedSea doser will fit and a little less expensive, but I don't know if they will be available to buy by the time we have the workshop.

One thing great about the GHL Doser is it works with their magnetic stirrer so if you choose to dose something that needs to be mixed, you can stir before dosing.
 
Total Price is ~$240-$280 depending on what parts you want to buy...Frig price has gone up a lot since I built mine ($130 vs. $190)

Parts List (for you to buy) for the Auto Feeder:
  • Refrigerator - Danby 1.7Cu Ft. Frig - Price has gone up quite a bit on this refrigerator since I made mine. This refrigerator (no freezer) has the small shelf at the top and most of the new ones don't appear to have this 2nd shelf.
  • Injector - Injector
  • 2 SxT Unions - White, Home Depot. If you want to go with gray, get schedule 80 unions...Gray Unions I used gray unions and black pipe to make it look nicer :).
  • 4' of 1/2" PVC - White just get at Home Depot. Black Pipe - Black Pipe (BRS is out of black pipe now...may have some down the road.)
  • 1/2" TxT Gate valve - water flow adjustment
  • 1/2" TxT Ball valve - shutoff
  • 4 - 1/2" male adapters for the valves
  • 1/4" acrylic tubing based on the number of bottles you want to hook up. Each one needs about 8-12".

I will provide the following as a kit for $20.
  • Clear PVC glue (This is not high pressure so I use clear to keep it pretty)
  • Silicone
  • Teflon tape
  • 3/16" Silicone Tubing
  • 3/16" Fittings
  • Zip Ties
If you have questions, let me know.
 
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All, the survey at the top has the headcount I am tracking. I would like to have a final number by July 1 or so. I need to order the other components and need to know how much stuff to buy and allow for shipping to get it to me. Some of this stuff has to be ordered online...

Thanks,
 
I wonder what the feasibility of using a cheaper dosing pump is for this purpose? I have a couple bubble magus ones sitting around...
It may work just fine. I am not familiar with the way it can be programmed. You really need a wireless method of programming because you may not be able to touch anything on the pumps while they are in the refrigerator. Taking them in and out is cumbersome because of all the tubing going through the wire shelf.

The height of the top shelf is 4" and the depth is 10"..the width is 14". If the dosing pump will fit, by all means. I have 2 pumps side by side (length wise) and it just fits.

As I mentioned, the one advantage of the GHL is the fully integrated magnetic mixer...but if you are using only Reef Nutrition products, you don't use the mixer. But products like MarineSnow, Acropower and RedSea Reef Energy AB+ and such require the contents to be mixed before dosing.

Someone from the club stopped by this weekend and we talked about other refrigerator models. The thing unique about this refrigerator is that it has 2 shelves and no freezer. Most of the other more recent models only have the one shelf and it is lower in the refrigerator. It gives you more height for the dosing pumps, but it cuts into the room for the bottled food in the refrigerator.

If your dosing pump will fit, by all means it should work just fine.
 
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