How do I make the change?

[Evil McToast]

So, I just started cooking my rock last night and the sand was a disaster. I am going to remove it but i'd really prefer the convenience of a BB. I don't want the rocks on the glass so what can I put on the bottom. I've heard starboard. Can I get that at Lowes or HD. Although, I'd like to hear some other ideas on how to keep the rocks off the bottom as well. And do they sell black starboard? I don't really like the contrast of a black background and a white bottom.

[Fly Guy]

You can get hdpe in white or black. You can get starboard in more color choices. Starboard is going to cost you 3 tiomes or more than hdpe, the only difference is that stargboard has more UV resistance as it is made to be in direct sunlight nad not fade. HDPE is plenty sufficient IMO. Personally i recommend not only using starboard to protect your floor, but to lift your rocks off of that so you get complete flow and no place for detritus to accumulate. You can do this with either pvc lifts or what i think is a better way for both appearance and function with clear acrylic rods(the rods do not impoede water movement as much as pvc lifts)
Here is how i did it and its real simple. It does take a thick piece of hdpe to do it(3/4"). The holes the rods sit in do not go all the way through, about 1/8 of an inch shy to prevent stress points on the bottom as well as prevent crap from getting in there although i made them fit pretty tight so nothing really can get in there anyway.......
hdpe is like cutting butter(in comparison to acrylic anyway), so the only hard thing about drilling is that you dont take too much off, and i did plow all the way through in a few places as i couldnt get the thing under my drill press and had to use a hand drill.

[Little Luey]

I got a couple of cutting boards at Target, $15 a piece. They were big enough for my 55gal.

[Evil McToast]

will losing my SSB cause any potential problems? BTW, I love the idea of those pegs. Did you seal them in with anything. Wow, come to think of it, I really like that idea. Can I get the hdpe at a HD?

[Fly Guy]

Originally Posted by Evil McToast

will losing my SSB cause any potential problems? BTW, I love the idea of those pegs. Did you seal them in with anything. Wow, come to think of it, I really like that idea. Can I get the hdpe at a HD?

On the contrary, losing the shallow sand bed will eliminate potential problems, not create them. Just make sure you have adequate flow to get the detritus suspended so you can suck it out with your skimmer and at least weekly siphon out what is missed.

the rods are not sealed. They fit tight in the holes and just like all of my other invisible rock lifts can be easily removed although removing them isnt practical in a BB tank as the holes would collect crap.

i got my hdpe from portplastics in portland through phone order. It was $68 after shipping. You cant see it but i had to cut it length wise in half to fit it past my eurobracing as well.

[Evil McToast]

Are those rods solid plastic or hollow capped PVC? Also, I have a glass aquarium. So, does this mean I should make The plastic 1" shorter on every side?

So, removing the sandbed would cause less problems....won't I be losing some fitration?

[Fly Guy]

Originally Posted by Evil McToast

Are those rods solid plastic or hollow capped PVC? Also, I have a glass aquarium. So, does this mean I should make The plastic 1" shorter on every side?

So, removing the sandbed would cause less problems....won't I be losing some fitration?

I cant speak as far as the shorter thing. Ive had two barebottom glass tanks and i didnt use floor covering/protection on either of them. Any more than 1/4 or 1/3 inch gap seems extreme to me, but listen to someone else on that topic.

here are the rods http://www.mcmaster.com/ item 8531K21

i cut them to length and then take a table grinder to shape the teeth.

You wont be losing flitration so much as you will be losing a detritus trap. Which is why you have to skim and siphon on a regular basis what would have collected in your sand. A shallow sandbed has no real denitrification value, it just simply traps it.

[Evil McToast]

Thanks for the great info and link. Just for comparison, how does a pvc rack work/look?

[Evil McToast]

I just read SeanT's "how to go BB". It said, you will need a powerful skimmer and high flow. He also recommended ozone and a UV sterilizer. Let me know if my system will work with that being said.

29G w/ 10G sump
CSS for up to 65G
45# LR
2 Power sweeps 240GPH (I think)
no ozone and no UV sterilizer

[Fly Guy]

I dont personally see any benefit to using a skimmer myself. we are swishing and changing the water often enough that nothing can get back into it...thats just my opinion and i have been more than pleased with my rock cooking results. The only equipment i use is two containers to swish back and forth from so i dont have to swish and put back into the same container, a bunch of buckets and a pump for good flow. I did find that a great way to keep the water aerated was to attach a fitting to the outlet of the pump and drill a hole in it so a airline could snugly fit inside......makes a great venturi......i was using a pretty big pump though...if you are just using powerheads they may already have venturis on them.....

the mag 9.5 i use keeps my water between 80 and 85 (MAYBE a little hotter on warm days) so i didnt need a heater. I however wasnt worried about saving all the life i could.....i just wanted clean rock.

On the batch im cooking right now i might throw a heater in it after i swish today..its been cold at night and im pretty sure it dropped near 70 last night......

[Little Luey]

I made this rack with eggcrate and PVC

[Evil McToast]

Originally Posted by Little Luey

I made this rack with eggcrate and PVC

What formation is the pvc in under the egg crate. I was thinking of making a lattice (for the rocks to sit on) out of PVC that sits about 2" off the bottom with PVC leggings.

[Evil McToast]

Originally Posted by Fly Guy

I dont personally see any benefit to using a skimmer myself. we are swishing and changing the water often enough that nothing can get back into it...thats just my opinion and i have been more than pleased with my rock cooking results. The only equipment i use is two containers to swish back and forth from so i dont have to swish and put back into the same container, a bunch of buckets and a pump for good flow. I did find that a great way to keep the water aerated was to attach a fitting to the outlet of the pump and drill a hole in it so a airline could snugly fit inside......makes a great venturi......i was using a pretty big pump though...if you are just using powerheads they may already have venturis on them.....

the mag 9.5 i use keeps my water between 80 and 85 (MAYBE a little hotter on warm days) so i didnt need a heater. I however wasnt worried about saving all the life i could.....i just wanted clean rock.

On the batch im cooking right now i might throw a heater in it after i swish today..its been cold at night and im pretty sure it dropped near 70 last night......

Sorry if I made you misunderstand, I meant on the display. The rocks are being cooked w/o a skimmer with a PH pointed at the surface.

[Evil McToast]

no more comments on the rock racks?

[Little Luey]

Sorry, I have not been logged in until now. All I did on the legs was 1/2 long PVC pieces, I went that short because I had made some frames with 3/4" PVC and tought they were taking away from the tank, they were too high and I did not see the benefit of making them that high. So I have the 1/2" long legs and on top of that the egg crate. No need to glue anything.