My DIY auto dose plankton reactor... W/pic

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Just before the reef tour, I finished setting up a self dosing plankton reactor(set up on a timer). I put phytoplankton in the light reactor and rotifers in the plankton reactor the following Monday after the tour and everything is running beautifully. It includes 2 2-liter bottles(1-right side up, 1- upside down), a light source for the light reactor, 2 timers(one needs to be able to do 1 minute increments), a reservoir for sterile sea water, and a pump to get the water from the sterile reservoir to the light reactor. You'll also need an air pump and airhose for both reactors and enough airhose for the length needed to cover all airline tubing needed as well as feeding water to the light reactor from the sterile reservoir, 12" of 1/2" white pvc pipe, and some aquarium silicone. It's really very simple... water is fed from the sterile vessel to the light reactor where the phytoplankton is cultured, there is an overflowjust below the cone of the top of the 2 liter that flows into the plankton reactor. With the plankton reactor placed upside down and having the 1/2" pvc pipe lodged in the throat up to about 2
" from the bottom of the bottle(sealed with aquarium silicon) and then firmly screwed(like a cap) in a piece if wood upside down directly over the display so that it overflows back into the display when overfilled. I have my pump calibrated to pump about 1 cup of sterile sea water from the vessel every 12 hours to the light reactor which overflows to the plankton reactor , and then to the display. To aid with climbing salinity levels, once a week, I syphon about 2 gallons of tank water from the sump and boil it, them return it back to the sterile sea water vessel. So so good... the only change I've made, is rather than just rotifers, I have added GSL Brine shrimp naupli to the plankton reactor as well(and hope to maybe culture an ever replacing culture of natural foods to the aquarium. So far so good.... the green water stays very dark green, the plankton reactor goes from pretty green to almost clear every 12 hours and evrything in the tank looks ok for now, too. 

Edited by reptoreef - October 31 2007 at 8:34am