# MistKing Reservoirs



## Mavpa (Jan 5, 2015)

I know with some of the creative minds on here, there's had to have been some brilliant ways to make these appear more appealing than a simple bucket. Anyone have anything their exceptionally proud of or something they saw?

Right now, I'm working with a black sterilite box up on a little riser over the pump that's just stashed inside the stand, but honestly, I hate climbing in there to refill it.


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## Coqui (Jan 17, 2013)

I myself, hate filling up any container or aquarium with water. For me it's not about crawling into the stand which is also a pain but the transportation of the water. When I had my reef tank it was located on the second floor of my home and my R.O. Unit was on the 1st floor in the garage, what a pain and mess it was to do water changes. I solved that problem by putting a strong pump in the R.O. Water storage container with a hose that pumped water to my reef tank. I now use the same set up to pump water to my mistking reservoir. I use a 5 gallon bin under the Viv in the stand. There is a 1/2 inch hole in the top of the container where I pump the water in. No more crawling into the stand and no more spills. 
Ps. I also plug the pump to a remote control outlet that I purchased from HD. In order to avoid any mishaps.


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## jturner (Nov 26, 2014)

Never used this for a mist king but my auto top off reservoir for my reef tank is stored in a basket to make it look nicer. I can take some pictures later if you want.


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## Smotz (Jul 20, 2015)

Wow. It's nice to see a lot of fellow reefers on the dendroboard!

Don't have a misting system setup (yet) but I did when I had chameleons and I would use a 5 gallon spring water jug that I would re-fill with RO every three weeks or so. Yes, I would have to lug the jug about 40 feet but it was the same floor.
I toyed with the idea of running a line in to the toilet's tank for it's water source.

I have a display tank on the second floor and plumbed that to my RODI mixing station with an ATO and strong external pump.


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## radiata (Jul 24, 2010)

I have two cheap 5 gallon tanks on the lowest level of my baker's rack. One is drilled and holds the distilled water for the Mist King. It has a glass cover to minimize evaporation. The other isn't drilled, and collects the excess water from my vivs, which all have 1/2" bulkhead overflows. The excess water becomes water for my house plants.


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## Chung (Mar 1, 2015)

ummm, let' see

krylon fusion spray paint on the outside? (non toxic after it cures).
vinyl wallpaper
contact paper
decoupage

that's all I've got, good luck


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## ZookeeperDoug (Jun 5, 2011)

I use a black' "very useful boxes". Black to minimize algae growth. Mine hold about 6 gallons and will last 1-2 weeks depending on my misting schedule and frequency.


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## Wusserton (Feb 21, 2014)

I just posted this for possible use after a reservoir, if it works you could add water directly to your water feature and let your drainage bulkhead do all the work for you.

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/251273-pentek-water-filter.html#post2456753


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## Wusserton (Feb 21, 2014)

ZookeeperDoug said:


> I use a black' "very useful boxes". Black to minimize algae growth. Mine hold about 6 gallons and will last 1-2 weeks depending on my misting schedule and frequency.


 thats a good Idea that never occured to me, I think I will at least get a solid colored 5 gallon bucket, the food grade one I got is semi opaque white of the standard variety lol


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## chris00144 (Oct 17, 2012)

same simple set up for 3 years never failed


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## chin_monster (Mar 12, 2006)

here's what I've been using for a while. Container n lid from the restaurant supply store.


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## chin_monster (Mar 12, 2006)

trying again


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## mwallrath (Mar 8, 2013)

I have my reservoir (aka bucket) directly plumbed to my RO unit with an auto shut off float valve. It stays topped off and other than the occasional visual inspection I never have to access it.


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## Encyclia (Aug 23, 2013)

Great suggestions in this thread! The only thing I would add is, whatever you use, cover it really well. You don't want flies and other debris in that water because it will eventually make it down to the end and clog your nozzles. The other thing is that I found buckets at Lowe's that said "food grade" on them. They were not much more expensive, so it might be good to keep an eye out for something food grade rather than the more-common "Homer" bucket (which I use for just about everything else). I have no idea if it makes a difference, but since the cost difference was minimal, I figured why not? I know BPA and other things have been an issue in the past and I figure the FDA has to have it's eye on things labeled "food grade." Maybe I am just being naive  The reason I pay more attention to the reservoir than my water change buckets is that the water just sits in there for a really long time, so if there was anything to leach into the water, that could easily happen over the longer period of time. Just something to consider, I guess.

Mark


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## ukewarrior (Aug 29, 2015)

As a bee keeper I do know about food grade buckets.

The key difference in regular buckets and food grade is that food grade buckets (and lids!) have to be made from virgin plastic. No recycled products allowed.
So... The reference to the buckets from Lowes is correct.
They sell a white bucket and lid that is rated as food grade.
It's a very good price and generally stocked at your local Lowes store. 
I also drill them for a drain gate that I install at the bottom of the bucket.
So, I also know the plastic and wall thickness can withstand this type of modification. 
I use them for Honey Storage.


Encyclia said:


> Great suggestions in this thread! The only thing I would add is, whatever you use, cover it really well. You don't want flies and other debris in that water because it will eventually make it down to the end and clog your nozzles. The other thing is that I found buckets at Lowe's that said "food grade" on them. They were not much more expensive, so it might be good to keep an eye out for something food grade rather than the more-common "Homer" bucket (which I use for just about everything else). I have no idea if it makes a difference, but since the cost difference was minimal, I figured why not? I know BPA and other things have been an issue in the past and I figure the FDA has to have it's eye on things labeled "food grade." Maybe I am just being naive  The reason I pay more attention to the reservoir than my water change buckets is that the water just sits in there for a really long time, so if there was anything to leach into the water, that could easily happen over the longer period of time. Just something to consider, I guess.
> 
> Mark


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## vraev (Feb 6, 2012)

This is what I use for my tank. I needed a compact profile to fit in the stand. However, the plastic is too soft. So it actually makes it a challenge to properly drill. It also had a lot of leaking. I basically had to fill it with silicone to seal it...as u can see

Mistking bulkhead patchup by Varun, on Flickr


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