nano tanks... whats your opinion on this one?

[mr funktastic]

wow u love putting links dont u lol. if i put 200 more gph of flow in the tank with the 125 already given off by the filter wont that be a little bit excessive? thats like 33 time turnover of the water. i mean i know u need more flow ina salt tank but that is nuts. i like the 2 different types of fire fish on that list. i think that live aquaria would kill me for shipping so it would be cheaper to buy all my liverock at the lfs. big als ships all there product directly from there florida farms and there salt tanks are always in amazing condition. i will take some pics next time i am there. they also have different types of live rock so maybe i can mix to give a different look. what about substrate? i have heard that aragonit is the most common one to use because all the crap falls between the cc. i can also buy live sand from my lfs if need be. can i through one of my established filters from my freshwater tank onto the salt tank to instant cycle it or is it different for salt? by the way tecwzrd u are the man lol u have answered my posts almost faster than i enter them

 

[mr funktastic]

bump
anyone?

 

[tecwzrd]

It’s been 15 years since I’ve had a small tank. Hopefully more nano tank owners will chime in.

IME the small hob that I used only created a slight flow due to it cascading out of the hob over a much wider swath like a waterfall then what you would get from a ph.

33X sounds like a TON of flow but it really depends more on how much of that flow is concentrated. IE: On my 55 gal I use two Seio Super Flow M620 pumps on each side of the tank which does 620 gph but the flow is smooth and not concentrated. I also have a Mag 9.5 for my sump return doing 800 gph and a Magnum 350 producing 350 gph for a total of almost 2400 gph or 44 time turn over. I don’t count the skimmer since it’s in the sump.

I use two spray bars on each end of the tank for my sump return so I have a brisk but not overwhelming current within my tank. If the flow is mild from the hob I would still use two ph to help aerate and create slightly more turbulent water within the tank. If you do not have enough flow then the lr will not process waste as efficiently.

Aragonite sand is what I would use and avoid cc. I would buy the cheapest aragonite sand you can fine in the color you want and avoid any bagged sand that claims to be “live” which usually cost more and will not help speed up your cycle.

Only buy live sand from your lfs from tanks that do not contain fish since copper contamination is highly likely. The lr added to the tank will help seed dead sand so buying ls is probably a waste.

FW bacteria are similar but not the same as SW and your tank will need to cycle to create it.

 

[mr funktastic]

ok so araganite sand and 2 powerheads at about 100 gph each. plus what i have like filter heater and tank. my next question was going to be whether i should use some kind of defuser on the powerheads. like a hard tube with a few holes drilled in it to spread the water across the whole top of the tank. like u said a spraybar. and also would i need all live rock? i was thinking about buying some regular rock like really holy rock of somekind, maybe lava rock to give the tank a bit of colour. i was thinking by the time the dead tank cycled the live rock would have seeded the dead rock. i was gonna do a 60/40 split of 60% live rock 40% dead rock. can u get aragonite sand in black? with the biowheel on the filter it disturbs the water alot which should be good and i have heard that the biowheel is really good for removing nitrates. will i be looking at any dosing if i add some easy corals like mushrooms? i hate dosing with a passion but do it all the time in my planted tanks, things like potassium, nitrate, all the trace elements like iron and stuff. i think i am almost ready to get going on this. is it true that the tank will reak real bad for a few days? i have heard this but am not sure if it is true. thanks again.

 

[tecwzrd]

Considering the small size if money isn’t tight I’d go with 100% lr. You can use a combination of base/lr which will work biologically the same but not be as pretty.

Yes they make black aragonite sand which can be quite striking.

I wouldn’t worry about diffusing the ph flow. Just point them at each other or bounce them off of the same spot on the glass and you will create plenty of random water movement.

Bio-Wheels are great at converting nh3 to no3 but do nothing to convert no3 to nitrogen. Your lr/ls will help limitedly but mostly you want to do pwc often enough to keep your no3 below 10 ppm. Unlike a planted tank you want to avoid no3/po4 which will cause unwanted algae in a SW tank.

You shouldn’t have to add any trace elements if you do 15-20% pwc each week. The only thing you might want to add if warranted is ca to keep it in the 400 ppm range.

Your tank smelling bad will depend on how you cycle it. I’ve never experienced a bad smell for shrimp cycling but lr does kick a bit but nothing overwhelming once in the water.

 

[mr funktastic]

well algea usually only occurs when u bottom out your nitrates in freshwater. a real pain in the but becasue my plants use up soo much of the nitrate. i will have to look for that black aragonite sand next time i am at my lfs. it will cost me about 120 for all live rock from my lfs and then probably around another 30 for the sand. powerheads around 15 each. then lights will be about 30 plus bulbs. is there a cheap alternative to saltwater bulbs? i will need t-8s but i think they only make the acetinic bulbs for aquarium use so no finding them at home depot lol. ok so my last big question(i think lol) is do i really need to use ro/di water? or will tap be ok? i only say this becasue it will be a pain in the but to keep on getting the jug refilled and i dont have the money for a ro/di unit right now.

 

[Melissamustang]

ro/di water is the best way for superior water quality. These types of filters remove nitrate, phosphate and other chemical elements found in tap water that can lead to algae blooms and other problems. If you have a high level of contaminants in your tap water, a high performance RO unit for maximum filtration is recommended.

 

[tecwzrd]

There aren’t many substitutes for quality SW lighting unlike your planted tanks. Most of the other types of bulbs sold will promote algae growth.

Agree that ro/di is superior quality water that is nutrient free like the environment our fish come from. That being said a lot of it depends on the quality of your tap. If your tap tests for 0 nh3/no2/no3/po4 then you could use it if you had too with a dechlorinator like Prime.

Considering the small tank I wouldn’t risk it personally and just buy ro or distilled from your lfs or grocery store. Keep in mind that the water you buy could also have traces of no3/po4 which I would also test for before adding to the tank to make sure the stores/bottle companies are changing their filters.

 

[rfc]

Would these nanotanks make a good QT ? I figures its has everything needed for the perfect quarantine/medication tank

Regards

RFC

 

[tecwzrd]

At $89+ and 12 gal that’s kind of high IMO for a QT tank. You can do it much cheaper getting a 20 gal long and a basic filter. See Help Setup Quarantine Tank