6G Nano/Pico Build

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Mitchell0605

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
2,757
Location
Wollongong Australia
Hey Guys,
I'm starting the build very soon and have a few questions that I'd love some advice on.

1) Do I need a HOB filter or any filter at all?
2) Hows the Koralia 900 Nano for flow in this kind of tank? (It does about 900lph or 245gph)
3) How soon can I add my feather dusters and Scolly from my old tank (after the cycle of course) if I'm using RO/DI water and have good test results?

Thanks for the help guys, rewards will be in picture format. ;)
 
I would use a small HOB like an aquaclear 50 som you can run some Cheatomaphora and hide your heater.

Knano is great for disperesed flow, but they take up a lot of realestate

Testing will dictate the answer to your third question.
 
what jnam said, it might be a lot of flow for a small 6g though.

if its after the cycle then i dont see why whenever wouldnt be good
 
You could definitely get by without a HOB filter and just water changes. However, you may wind up struggling with nitrates in the beginning stages of the tanks life, and after detritus starts to build up.

With that in mind, i would strongly suggest a HOB filter, like mentioned above. You could go with the AC50... OR, you could upgrade to the AC70, and mod it and turn it into a fuge to hold your heater and some chaeto, which will definitely bring down both your nitrates and phosphates. Also, the good thing about getting the AC70 instead of the AC50, is the added flow. I know many people with 10G AGA tanks that say there's even too much flow in there tank with the AC70. I'm not sure what your aiming for as far as coral, but if you plan on doing SPS the AC70 would be a good choice. Also, if needed, for added flow you could use a Koralia Nano.

As for how long after you can add coral and your feather dusters, i would say any time after your cycle is complete. The feather duster should be fine just going in there, but i would wait a couple days before you put any of your prized corals in there. Just to see if everything is going alright. Plus, by the time you began adding corals to the tank you would want your Nitrates and Phosphates to be as low as possible. Plan on adding any fish or anything that you will feed the tank for? My only concern is, if you add the feather duster in their alone, it may not have food. In aquariums, they usually feed of of floating particles in the water, and mostly left over food particles floating around. If you have nothing in there to feed, it may starve. They are not photosynthetic.

Also, are you putting any live rock or sand from your main tank into the pico? If you put live rock from your main tank directly into your pico you may be able to skip the cycling process all together. It would be like adding fully cured live rock. You MIGHT see a small cycle though, so if you do go this route, i would wait a couple days and test the water consistently. If everything reads zero after a few days, you should be good to add your corals. I see many people with pre-existing aquariums do this when they start new tanks. Mostly smaller aquariums just like what you are doing.

Here's a link to modding an AC70 into a mini refugium:
Modding an AC70 HOB Filter

 
The ac50 and 70 mods are about the same, for picos the flow can be better managed with the 50 IMO than the 70. For my 3 gallon i use the 50 at less then half the turn over rate and the flow is quite nice, I run my macro and a heater inside with just a slight modification to the lid. I use the stock picotope light as a fuge light. 6 gallons, the 70 might be too much but if it is you can always trim the impeller or get a ac50 impeller for it and maintain the extra volume the 70 can hold
 
There is a link I need to find on an article about a guy who keeps 2g and smaller reef tanks. He does a 90% water change weekly and some of his tanks have been up for years. Anyways you don't need a HOB but it helps. You can hide your heater and what not back there. Also the ac50 on my 4g pico creates enough flow that I don't need to take up space in the main tank with a powerhead.
 
Thanks Kev. I've actually signed up for NR. So I'll be able to get extra help there.

With the rock from the main tank, no. I've got a ridiculous algae problem that won't go away and is part of my reason for doing this. So most of the rock is covered in algae.

I'm half and half on the HOB because my LFS sells cured live rock and its a 15 minute drive home so its still going to be cured.

ATM my products to buy stands at:
Age of Aquariums - Salinity Refractometer ( ATC )
Age of Aquariums - Hydor Koralia Nano 900 - Maybe.
Age of Aquariums - Aquaclear 200 ( 50 ) Hang on Filter - Maybe.

Its either the Koralia or the AquaClear.

With the Nitrates Kev, I've read that they are natural filters of phosphate and nitrate and because of that I intend to get a few. Is that true though?
 
GFO granulated ferric oxide is a natural aborber of phosphates. Cheatmorpha (sp) is a nitrate and phosphate sponger provided it is given the proper environment.
 
What Jnam said.

Chaeto is great at removing excess nutrients. Both Nitrates and Phosphates. It also does not need to be lit 24/7, and has a lower chance of going sexual, if ever. Under good water conditions it will grow pretty fast so you will definitely want to prune it back. Knowing this, it's a pretty good choice for a pico tank since it requires minimal upkeep. Other things like grape caulerpa require constant lighting, and always need to be pruned otherwise they can go sexual and when they do, it turns your water a milky white. So i would stay away from anything other than chaeto unless you want the challenge of keeping up with various types of macroalgae. To be honest though.. if you wanted you could probably go with grape caulerpa as well, as long as you had 24/7 lighting. I had grape caulerpa in my fuge and it was great. Just make sure you have 24/7 lighting if you want to use it. Grape caulerpa is amazing at nutrient export as well.
 
Thanks Kev. I'll see what I can rustle up.

But on to the main event, my stuff has arrived! :D

My new test kits; phosphate, nitrate, nitrite and pH.
IMG_0008.jpg

Refractometer! :D
IMG_0009.jpg

Heater. Bit unhappy about this one, it has no numbers next to the dial to tell you what its set to so I'm considering getting a different one.
Sorry about the pic. Turn the head. :p
IMG_0010.jpg

And the Aquaclear 50 that is probably gonna be modded into a fuge. It came with some activated carbon free! Score. :D
IMG_0011.jpg

So plan is now get some RODI water this weekend, get it setup and running with the rock and go through the good ol' cycle.
 
let me know if you need help on the fuge conversion I did one on my ac50
 
The GSP carpet thing is pretty cool no doubt, and i've seen many people pull it off... But you will most likely need to stay vigilant because it could begin to grow everywhere unless you prune it/frag it back. The only thing is can't grow on is fine sand, like oolite or fiji pink. But i'm pretty sure everything else is fair game for GSP, especially if the water and lighting conditions are just right.

My vote goes for a nice clean white sandbed. :)
 
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