Info Request: 12G Glass Nano-Tanks

[revfred]

I've been looking at these 12G glass nano-tanks, complete with filter and lighting. When I asked my LFS re: heating recs, they said, "You get plenty of heat if you leave the lights on*thumbsdow Well that was simply "brilliant".

Does anyone have any experience with these tanks, and if so, what kind of heating arrangement works. These tanks are pretty well sealed as far as I can see.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[denimous]

I have been doing some research on the 12gallon nano-tanks. I think your lfs guy is right, when you leave the lights on, it does heat up the water. this is why the deluxe ones (with two powercompact bulbs) have built in fans. but if you don't think thats enough, i know i read about some heaters for the smaller tanks (2 - 10 gallons) which might work great for your 12 gallon.

 

[dss2004]

Yeah but what about when the lights are off for the other 12-14 hours of the day. I would just get a small heater and place it inside the tank, if possible, or find a way to hook it up inside. I would think that a tank that says it is fully integrated would have a heater inside.

 

[revfred]

Thanks guys for the info. Looked again at the ones with 2 fans ... they are 24G as opposed to 12G. Yep, heat control is the issue when the lights are off. I like to keep the tanks at an even 80F.

I agree a "fully integrated" tank should contain a heater. Puzzles me why they don't include one. I did go down to the LFS, and it appears there is a small opening where a heater cord can be threaded through. Of course it would have to be a submersible since there is no place to hang the heater.

Appreciate the replies.

 

[SomethingFishy]

I have seen and used small 25w or 50w heaters for my daughters 7 gallon tank. One of them was fully submersable and worked fine for over a year then it took a dive and failed to keep an accurate and stable temp.

The problem I had was finding such small heaters (25w) with any regularity.

Good luck in your quest. BTW . . . what kind fo fish are going into the tank? If you did not want to deal with the temp issue you could try Whiteclouds. Just a thought.

 

[revfred]

Thanks SF. Yes, I noticed that it is difficult to find good 25W. heaters. I can use a 50W since the cube I'm looking at is 12G. I want to set up a planted tank with Endler's Livebearers. They really are quite pretty fish. After looking again at the cube, I am having second thoughts. IMO it's not as distortion free as regular tanks . .. moreover the background looks far removed from the front. It gives the appearance of front to back depth but seems distorted.

 

[denimous]

hey revfred...
i just picked up one of the 12 gallon nano cubes...
i found a 50 watt marina heater that is plain black and sleek enough to be pretty easily hidden inside...i know that their thermometer is not as accurate as the "tropica" ones, but they are definately less of an eyesore.
i think i like the distortion on odd shaped tanks, it can act like a magnifier...good for planted tanks. the tank im tearing down is a 46 gallon bowfront, and i really got used to the curve. but i can see how its an acquired taste.
if you want to find out more about the tank...im going to be trying it out the next few weeks.

jeans

 

[revfred]

Thanks Den ... Please keep me posted ... they are a nice compact unit ... and if you have good luck with it, I'd like to know. It is true, the plants do look magnified. The LFS had one well planted. What are you going to keep in it?

 

[denimous]

i am keeping a few pygmy cories, several rasboras, a rosy barb, and a few rummynose tetras.

it may sound like a lot, they are admittedly more fish than i planned on keeping. i am going from a 46 gal to the 12 gal, and could not sell the rummynose and rosy barb before moving houses (leaving on wednesday). i figure that the pygmy cories will not add much to the bioload. with such a small tank, i plan on weekly water changes anyway.

i want it to be heavily planted...ive always wanted to try a "show" tank quality aquascape. i have a piece of driftwood with lots of java moss growing on it already. i have all the plants from my 46 gallon to put in my 12 gallon...unfortunately i will have to do a LOT of pruning first!

what are you going to put in the tank? any ideas or suggestions are welcome =D.

(btw...the tank and stand fit in the trunk of my sedan, when its set up it has a really small footprint! http://aquariumplants.com seem to have the lowest prices)

 

[revfred]

I'm going to try my hand at an Endler's Live Bearer's (ELB) tank, heavily planted. I may regret it because they breed prolifically. But they are small and colorful. Oto cat, paleatus cories (they stay small) and maybe a couple of cherry shrimp. Yes, thanks for the link ...they are the lowest prices around. I wasn't going to buy it from my LFS, and was looking for an on-line source ... thank you. The moss covered driftwood sounds like a nice touch and will trim a piece from the other tanks. Haven't decided on plants as yet, but certainly small. I will use Flourish Excel as a carbon source, but thought about a Hagen CO2 set-up as well. But Excel sounds easier.

 

[denimous]

i have used the hagen CO2 set-up. its surprisingly very simple. i just fill up the cannister with sugar, dump in the yeast packet, and fill it with warm water. in my tank the shortest it lasted was a month, and the longest it lasted was 3 months. you may have to mess around with where you lock the bubble tube, the position on the diffuser makes a difference in the bubble rate. my ottos LOVE to sit in the diffuser...its funny to watch.

how does flourish excel work? i keep hearing about it, i never heard of it being a CO2 replacement.

 

[revfred]

Here is the reply I got from Seachem re: Excel

Running CO2 and dosing Excel are not of issue at all. If anything
they will compliment one another. As far as dosing I would simply
follow the instructions on the label
http://www.seachem.com/products/product_pages/FlourishExcel.html to
start with. Over time you may increase the dosing as necessary and as
you gain more experience with the product in your particular system.


I want to use Excel for a black brush algae prob in one of the tanks. I believe Lotus said it was effective. Thought I would use it as a source of carbon in the cube. I run a Hagen unit on a 20G, long and love it. Have never used Excel although I use Seachem ferts exclusively.