Starting a nano.....my 'journal' of sorts...

JNevaril

JNevaril

Large Fish
#1
Jul 10, 2005
369
1
0
42
Lincoln, Nebraska
#1
Okay, I've been officially bitten by the 'salt bug', and am now gathering the bits and pieces for a salt tank.... I'm not all sure what exactly I'm aiming for yet, but I guess I'll figure that out as I go.

I still have a long long way to go, gotta get the brackish tank moved into it's new stand, get the NEW tank over to my house, etc. etc..., but, to follow the other's footsteps of building their salt tanks, i guess i'll just list the equip i've got....and a running total of costs...


15 gal tank--Free (thanks mom)
Filtration system (don't know if i'm going to need it) --Free (thanks mom)
Glass top/lighting stuff --free (Thanks mom)
Lighting (50/50 compact actinic lights....) $26
Heater --free (thanks mom)




so far....lol, that's what i've got...aside from hydrometer, salt, dechlor (but i think i'm going to use RO water, so dechlor is kind of irrelevant), test kits, etc. Gotta go get sand and rock once I move the other tanks around onto their new stands....so, I'm looking to probably spend at least 30 bucks on the live sand, and another 60-80 on rock, if the LFS gets a good batch in, and my mom doesn't buy it all. ;)
 

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cinlnk

cinlnk

Large Fish
#3
Sep 10, 2005
805
1
18
118
Who said anything about living? I merely EXIST!!!
#3
Camaro,
I wished I would of thought of that .... Would have saved me alot of money in the long run.
Hey Jenn,
If I remember right, there was a bag of LS (10 lbs) for 20.00? Not sure if that is right tho.....Dont buy the real fine grain sand tho, it creates alot of "dead spots", and be a REAL PAIN when you try to clean your tank.
Mom :D
 

JNevaril

JNevaril

Large Fish
#4
Jul 10, 2005
369
1
0
42
Lincoln, Nebraska
#4
yeah, that's what i was thinking.

i did some reading, and the LR will make dead sand live, I, however, like the way the live sand looked, as far as grain size and color....so maybe i can find a bag of sand that looks similar. Didn't that bag of argonite look really similar to your stuff you have in your tank, and it was like, super cheap? I don't remembmer.

If I get out of class early tonight (yeah right), I'm just going to go over to petco or wherever and buy that bag of argonite....i think it was pretty decently priced.
 

JNevaril

JNevaril

Large Fish
#5
Jul 10, 2005
369
1
0
42
Lincoln, Nebraska
#5
Well, off to buy a bag of sand, and hopefully start moving tanks by thursday morning. Picking up some R/O Water tomorrow after work, and begin aging it, adding salt.

Going to build some sort of contraption in my Garage to age the water...

I'm thinking 5 gallon jugs (like the ones on the water dispensers) and some airpumps. I've got like, five laying around my house. Gotta pick up some marine salt too.

So far, off to a good start, waiting on getting tanks moved before any real 'work' can begin.



I guess that i am now faced with a few questions that someone with more experience can answer...

1. How important is a HOB filter? I am going to have LR in there, unsure of the necesity of a skimmer still, but with a clean up crew and sufficient LR (12-15 lbs), How important is it to have a running HOB filter? I understand that it is probably a good idea to have it running as 'insurance', and to remove meds...and it provides more surface agitation, but do I really need it to FILTER the water?

2. Lighting. My tank is a 15 gal tall. Here is what I have for lights: I have 2 Coralife Mini-Compact flourescent 50/50 bulbs (50% 10,000k daylight and 50% Actinic 03 blue). I am worried b/c they are only listed as 10 watts. My tank is pretty deep, and eventually, I want to have some coral life in there, and I do not know if the light will be intense enough to reach to the bottom. Should I invest in another light strip?

3. Powerheads. I plan on getting 2, placement would be in the back corners, pointed towards the center and down. I am concerned about dead-spots in the back and in the front corners....but i don't want my tank to be one full of powerheads. How would I avoid these deadspots? I think, though, that the tank may be just the right size to avoid any dead areas, so maybe this question is irrelevant.

4. Corals. I know I'm a very very long way from having these, but if they are present on the LR i get, is there anything I need to do to ensure they are going to be okay? I'm still in the process of reading a book (Conscientious Marine Aquarist by R. Fenner), and haven't really read much on them yet. Do I need to feed them if they appear? Do they eat? What exactly are they? Plant or animal? I've never really thought of this....hmmmm.

Okay...enough questions for now.
 

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Lorna

Lorna

Elite Fish
#6
Mar 3, 2005
3,082
4
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NE Indiana
#6
You can buy plaine aragonite sand Carib Sea or Aragamax not the live stuff, just the plain sand it is cheaper than the live stuff. It should do the trick and get a cup or so from your mom and add it to yours it will then become live in no time.

A 15g doesn't need a skimmer or hob filter, just be dilligent on your water changes and you will be fine. Watch your parameters carefully as swings in quality are more pronounced in smaller tanks than large ones. The live rock and sand will provide you with sufficient biological filtration. I use an old aquaclear 70 on my 10g that I modified to fit and I like LImi have converted it to a mini hob refugium. It also adds water movement along with a powerhead.

Lighting.....well right now you can probably get by while your tank cycles with what you have. You will want to upgrade your lighting to something more conducive to housing corals. Look at the light that Limi put on her 10g. It runs about $100 and should be fine for soft & lps corals.....might not do for a clam or some sps's.

Corals are animals that live in colonies and some get nutrition through symbiotic algae (sortof) within them, other eat what they filter out of the water with their feeding sweepers and other gain nutrition via light. All are a bit different in their needs and wants and each should be researched before adding to ensure that they are compatible with the other occupants or those you plan to add.

Here are a couple of really good articles.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-11/eb/index.php
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-12/eb/index.php

Any of Eric's other articles are great too.....actually that online magazine has a fountain of knowledge in it.

Have fun!
 

SALTY WATERS

SALTY WATERS

Large Fish
#7
Feb 6, 2005
893
2
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47
Waterloo, ON Canada
#7
1. Not needed on a 15g (though I use one on mine anyway) just be very stricked on water changes, at least 20-25% weekly/byweekly.

2. Definitely need stronger lighting to keep most corals in your tank escpecially since it is a "TALL"... I use the "Coralife 24” Aqualight Power Compact Strip Light w/2 x 65Watt Lamps" and this is sufficiant to house pretty much any corals in my 15g.

3. I use two "Zoo Med Power Sweep 212 Powerhead", I really like these because they have a rotating head on them which creates ever changing water currents in the tank and gives the corals a nice natural swaying motion. The only thing is you need to do regular monthly cleaning on them to make sure they don't get jammed from algae build-up causing the head to stop rotating.

4. Ask this question again once you notice them and we can give you more specific answers as there are many different species with many different needs.


As well I will mention this as I do to many people...go with two smaller heaters on oposite ends of tank instead of one, this is a safty measure incase one goes on the blizt, it also helps to eliminate hot/cold spots in your tank
 

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Limi310

Limi310

Superstar Fish
#8
Nov 30, 2005
1,101
5
0
46
Charlotte, NC
#8
I think the light that Salty recommended would be better then the light I have since your tank is tall.
But just so you can compare here is a link to mine: http://www.hellolights.com/201xcoaqpcho.html I paid $87.00. Lordroad and I think Ram man have the same light too.
I would definitely recommend getting the mounting legs with which ever light you chose.

I think it's nice to have an empty HOB on the back just in case you do need to throw something in there - like carbon. Although not to remove meds......once you have corals and inverts you aren't going to want to add meds directly to the tank. Might be a good idea to have a spare hospital/QT tank.

As far as dead spots - if you get cyano growth you will know you need more flow. Just to give you an idea, I have 1 powerhead pushing 127 gph and one pushing 80gph. On top of that I had a mini-hob (made for 10gal) and didn't seem to have any dead spots. Now that I have the AC70 refugium the flow is even better :D

Good luck and can't wait to see pics when you get it setup *thumbsups
 

JNevaril

JNevaril

Large Fish
#9
Jul 10, 2005
369
1
0
42
Lincoln, Nebraska
#9
OK, I am intrigued by a refugium (sp?) but I am unsure as to it's exact purpose.

Is it filtrtation? Is is a safe haven for little critters? Is it an area to cultivate food? I'm not sure what it is..

I am planning to have the filter box on the back running, just for more water movement...hopefully it's a quiet filter.....

If I could get away with no filter, and just rely on the LR and LS to take care of the bioload, that would be awesome. And quiet. (The tank is going in my bedroom, want it to be as quiet as possible)
 

JNevaril

JNevaril

Large Fish
#10
Jul 10, 2005
369
1
0
42
Lincoln, Nebraska
#10
Been starting to piece together a stock list, even though it's quite a while away....

My options are quite limited, due to the whole 'nano' theme, but here are some ideas running through my head..

Option One
1 False Percula Clown
5-6 Hermits (clean up crew)
2 Astrea Snails (clean up crew) I hope I can find these!
1 Scooter Blenny

Option 2
1 Royal Gramma
1 Green Chromis
5-6 Hermits
1 Cleaner Shrimp
1 Astrea Snail

Option 3
1 False Percula
1 Firefish
1 Peppermint Shrimp
5-6 Hermits
1 Astrea Snail

I am also considering a dwarf angel, but with my tank size, I don't think that any of them would be able to thrive in a 15 gallon system.

Eventually, I do want to have some soft coral growing in there. We'll see if I get lucky and get some hitchikers on the LR.... hopefully some mushrooms or zoo's...... :)
 

Lorna

Lorna

Elite Fish
#11
Mar 3, 2005
3,082
4
0
NE Indiana
#11
I would rethink the chromis as they do better in groups. I have a royal gramma and a citron gobie. I may move the citron to my main tank and replace it with a watchman gobie.......or a ocellaris clown....hmmmm...always moving stuff around. Never ending, that is what makes it interesting
 

JNevaril

JNevaril

Large Fish
#12
Jul 10, 2005
369
1
0
42
Lincoln, Nebraska
#12
WOO HOO!!!! Pictures ALREADY!!!!! although.....my clown seems a bit....funny looking.....lucky fin and all..
damn the dirty glass.........grrr....where's my vinegar? (lol, thanks mom for that tip...)




and of my first fish....

 

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