Foreword
Hello everyone! I have been following the forum quietly for a while now, and this is my first post. I have kept aquariums for most of my life, gradually moving from simple setups to more advanced planted tanks. You can see about 2–3 years of that journey below.
Over time, I developed a peculiar interest in understanding lighting for planted tanks – even writing an article on BarrReport a few years ago. My most recent tank was in 2020, but due to other commitments and life events, I have been without a tank since then. Now, I am excited to return to the hobby with a new project focused on creating an organized, high-tech tank that conceals as much equipment as possible while leaving room for experimentation.
In this journal, I will be sharing my plans and progress along the way.
Disclaimer
This tank will not be an exercise in efficiency. Many of the choices and approaches I take in this journal may not make much sense, financially, practically, or in terms of time and effort. And you’d be absolutely right to think so! But that is not the kind of feedback I am after here.
This project is more of a holistic journey for me. I am excited to get back into planted tanks, but I am also using this opportunity to experiment with ideas I have not explored before, and especially to improve my woodworking, plumbing, and electrical work skills.
I am also well aware that none of this guarantees that the tank will do well, let alone that it will measure up to some of the incredible tanks shared here. But that is part of the fun and the challenge that I am embracing.
Tank
UNS 60U 60x36x36 cm, optiwhite glass.
Cabinet
DIY build – 60 × 36 × 80 cm, likely from MDF or particle board. Neither is ideal when it comes to moisture (especially the latter), but where I come from, this is what 95% of people use. It is also what I have always used in the past.
With proper edge sealing and a bit of care, it should hold up just fine. The idea is to organize tubing, piping, and cables as neatly as possible. I am planning to add adjustable heavy-duty feet, a drawer for the filter, and another drawer to hide all the electrical outlets and the control center for operating electronics.
Filtration
Not much to say here. I will go with either a Fluval 207, Aquael Ultramax 1000 or Oase Biomaster 250. A flow rate around 700–800 L/h should be sufficient even with extra tubing and plumbing.
In my previous setup, I had issues with air buildup near the pump intake, which I want to avoid this time. I've read that the Biomaster sometimes struggles with this too, and Ultramax seems quite chonky. I was leaning heavily into Fluval 207, but the fixed vertical outlets are a major bummer.
Lighting
Yes, I know. With how good and affordable RGB LED fixtures are these days, it makes zero sense to DIY your own. But this is where my personal obsession kicks in.
I lead a research group in photochemistry, and I am fascinated by light. I have experimented with different lighting setups in the past, and I feel there is still a lot left to explore, especially in terms of spectrum and plant physiology.
The industry focuses almost extensively on the low hanging fruit – 460/525/630 nm trio of LEDs. It is proven and makes a lot of sense from financial point of view. But back in the T5 era, many tubes emitted across a broader spectrum, including wavelengths better suited for transcriptional regulation via cryptochromes and phytochromes. Some recent cool papers explored this, albeit mostly on terrestrial plants.
Hello everyone! I have been following the forum quietly for a while now, and this is my first post. I have kept aquariums for most of my life, gradually moving from simple setups to more advanced planted tanks. You can see about 2–3 years of that journey below.
Over time, I developed a peculiar interest in understanding lighting for planted tanks – even writing an article on BarrReport a few years ago. My most recent tank was in 2020, but due to other commitments and life events, I have been without a tank since then. Now, I am excited to return to the hobby with a new project focused on creating an organized, high-tech tank that conceals as much equipment as possible while leaving room for experimentation.
In this journal, I will be sharing my plans and progress along the way.
Disclaimer
This tank will not be an exercise in efficiency. Many of the choices and approaches I take in this journal may not make much sense, financially, practically, or in terms of time and effort. And you’d be absolutely right to think so! But that is not the kind of feedback I am after here.
This project is more of a holistic journey for me. I am excited to get back into planted tanks, but I am also using this opportunity to experiment with ideas I have not explored before, and especially to improve my woodworking, plumbing, and electrical work skills.
I am also well aware that none of this guarantees that the tank will do well, let alone that it will measure up to some of the incredible tanks shared here. But that is part of the fun and the challenge that I am embracing.
Tank
UNS 60U 60x36x36 cm, optiwhite glass.
Cabinet
DIY build – 60 × 36 × 80 cm, likely from MDF or particle board. Neither is ideal when it comes to moisture (especially the latter), but where I come from, this is what 95% of people use. It is also what I have always used in the past.
With proper edge sealing and a bit of care, it should hold up just fine. The idea is to organize tubing, piping, and cables as neatly as possible. I am planning to add adjustable heavy-duty feet, a drawer for the filter, and another drawer to hide all the electrical outlets and the control center for operating electronics.
Filtration
Not much to say here. I will go with either a Fluval 207, Aquael Ultramax 1000 or Oase Biomaster 250. A flow rate around 700–800 L/h should be sufficient even with extra tubing and plumbing.
In my previous setup, I had issues with air buildup near the pump intake, which I want to avoid this time. I've read that the Biomaster sometimes struggles with this too, and Ultramax seems quite chonky. I was leaning heavily into Fluval 207, but the fixed vertical outlets are a major bummer.
Lighting
Yes, I know. With how good and affordable RGB LED fixtures are these days, it makes zero sense to DIY your own. But this is where my personal obsession kicks in.
I lead a research group in photochemistry, and I am fascinated by light. I have experimented with different lighting setups in the past, and I feel there is still a lot left to explore, especially in terms of spectrum and plant physiology.
The industry focuses almost extensively on the low hanging fruit – 460/525/630 nm trio of LEDs. It is proven and makes a lot of sense from financial point of view. But back in the T5 era, many tubes emitted across a broader spectrum, including wavelengths better suited for transcriptional regulation via cryptochromes and phytochromes. Some recent cool papers explored this, albeit mostly on terrestrial plants.
- Many of the T5 tubes used to emit 660 nm (a deeper shade of red), that is better absorbed by chlorophyll a and phytochrome. We know that in terrestrial plants 660 vs 630 nm induces morphological changes – more compact, bushier growth.
- The intensity of red vs blue light might also be important – it can the plant how deep it is since red light penetrates worse into water due to absorption coefficient of water and light scattering.
- Most of the T5 also had emission bands at 400 and 420 nm. Violet/blue that we can barely see, yet it strongly activates cryptochromes (something a typical 470 nm LED does not do well) – which thought to be responsible for carotenoid/anthocyanine production via HY5 pathway.
- Due to their technology, T5 tubes used to emit traces of UV light (e.g. UVA at 365 nm but also shorter wavelengths). We know that UV light is a stressor that can trigger production of pigments and flavor/fragrant compounds. This is starting to see use in controlled food production industry too.
Besides the scientific curiosity, there is an aesthetic angle too. I prefer my tanks on the dimmer side, avoiding the overly bright "glow" look. Using wavelengths that our eyes are less sensitive to (like 420 or 660 nm) might help maintain lower visual brightness without compromising PAR.
Planned setup: 6 independently controlled PWM channels – 660, 630, 520, 460, 400+420, and 365 nm high-power LEDs. Total power: ~70 W.
CO2
Nothing fancy: a small 500 g bottle and regulator. My last tank (320 L) used a 2 kg bottle every 3 months, so I expect this one to last at least as long, if not longer.
I’m going to use a Yugang reactor . This was not really a thing the last time I had a tank, but I love it already. Hoping it eliminates the microbubble haze I used to hate. I should need about 122 cm² of surface area (60×36/17.7). I’m planning a ~40 cm long PVC tube (OD 40 mm, ID 35 mm), which should land me around 140 cm². CO₂ will be injected via a G1/4" stainless steel check valve into the top inlet of the reactor.
Fertilization
As a chemist, I have always enjoyed experimenting with DIY ferts, and I plan to continue that tradition. I will use four dosing pumps connected inline to the filtration return line via G1/4” check valves. I found some low cracking pressure check valves, so the pumps should manage – let’s see. Salt precipitation is also a concern, but I plan to use more dilute stock solutions to help prevent this. That should also improve dosing accuracy.
Control Center
This is one of the parts I am most excited about. I plan to build the control system around a Raspberry Pi, which gives me a great excuse to learn more about the ecosystem and work on my coding skills.
I will likely start with a RoboTank or ReefPi implementation and then customize from there.
I hopped into Blender and created some quick renders of the setup that I have in mind (and to help with piping planning):
Planned setup: 6 independently controlled PWM channels – 660, 630, 520, 460, 400+420, and 365 nm high-power LEDs. Total power: ~70 W.
CO2
Nothing fancy: a small 500 g bottle and regulator. My last tank (320 L) used a 2 kg bottle every 3 months, so I expect this one to last at least as long, if not longer.
I’m going to use a Yugang reactor . This was not really a thing the last time I had a tank, but I love it already. Hoping it eliminates the microbubble haze I used to hate. I should need about 122 cm² of surface area (60×36/17.7). I’m planning a ~40 cm long PVC tube (OD 40 mm, ID 35 mm), which should land me around 140 cm². CO₂ will be injected via a G1/4" stainless steel check valve into the top inlet of the reactor.
Fertilization
As a chemist, I have always enjoyed experimenting with DIY ferts, and I plan to continue that tradition. I will use four dosing pumps connected inline to the filtration return line via G1/4” check valves. I found some low cracking pressure check valves, so the pumps should manage – let’s see. Salt precipitation is also a concern, but I plan to use more dilute stock solutions to help prevent this. That should also improve dosing accuracy.
Control Center
This is one of the parts I am most excited about. I plan to build the control system around a Raspberry Pi, which gives me a great excuse to learn more about the ecosystem and work on my coding skills.
I will likely start with a RoboTank or ReefPi implementation and then customize from there.
I hopped into Blender and created some quick renders of the setup that I have in mind (and to help with piping planning):
Looking forward to your thoughts, ideas and comments!
Peter
Last edited:
). In any case, the estimated budget for this light is $200-250 excluding the controller.
