HPballer76's 24g Aquapod

[HPballer76]

Well everyone i came across a great deal on a 24 gallon aquapod so i figured why not? This thread will document everything i do with it. This is going to be a low budget build with just the basics since my 72 is taking all my money..


I'm planing to replace the bulbs in it first thing. It has 2 32w pc bulbs. the stock layout is 1 bulb has half 6700k daylight and 10k. The other is half 420nm actinic and half 460nm actinic. Should i replace them with the same stock color range or should i do something different? The led moonlights don't work so eventually i will replace those with something but that can wait.

It has a 29g biocube pump running the return and an extra powerhead. I don't know what kind or how many gph it is. It has 20 pounds of sand which i am planning to rinse good and reuse. There are some bristle worms that can be seen in the front of the sand. Will rinsing get rid of them? It has about 25lbs of live rock which I would like to keep alive but I don't want the bristle worms so what should I do?

It also comes with a jbj nano cube stand.

How should i lay out the back panels? Right now all it has is the sponge filter in the first chamber, a bag of carbon in the second (was thinking of changing this to chemi-pure) and then the return pump in the last chamber. I want this tank to be as low maintenance as possible since i do go out of town often. I want it to be easy for my roommates to look after for a few days.

I think thats it for now. More thoughts later and pics as soon as i pick it up which will be this weekend.

 

[HPballer76]

anyone have thoughts on stocking? i was really hopping i could have a snowflake eel in here but from researching it seems that won't work. so i was thinking maybe a dwarf lion or an angler. is there anything else that could live with either of those? i've got the normal peaceful fish in my 72 so looking for something unique for this.

i would also like to keep some of the easier corals. what would i be able to keep with the pc lights?

 

[carey]

You could always do a designer clown tank.

I would get 1 10k bulbs and 1 actinc bulb if it were me.

 

[HPballer76]

thats a possibility. if i find some i like that aren't really pricey. so far i haven't seen any clowns i would be willing to pay the prices people want for them. plus i've already got a b&w and regular clown pair in the 72. i could always move them to the 24 and have room for another fish or two in the 72.

right now though i'm leaning towards some kind of dwarf lion. simply because i feel like i should put something in this that i can't keep in the 72. is there anything that could live with him in this size tank? thats the only thing i'm not sure about. i don't know if i want to limit myself to one fish.

i also went to the lfs yesterday and snagged a pair of bulbs. they are 28 watts each. they didn't have any 32w bulbs. 1 is an actinic the other is a 50/50 10k and actinic. hopefully that won't be to much blue. i might make a trip to another lfs to see what bulbs they have and if they have better options i can always return these.

 

[HPballer76]

just picked up the tank tonight. going to get the sand rinsed and start filling it with water tomorrow.

 

[HPballer76]

the rock that came with the tank. it is currently being held in my 15 gallon qt.

today i made some progress. took all the sand out and rinsed it till i got clear water. (took forever) and put it back in the tank.

then i changed the bulbs. the ones in it didn't look to old but i would rather change them now than have algae issues because of old bulbs.

old

new

 

[HPballer76]

then i filled the tank.

with just the 50/50 bulb on

with just the actinic. not sure why it looks so blue in the pic. it is much more purple in person.

and with both bulbs on.

overall im pretty happy i went with the 50/50 and actinic versus the 10k and actinic.

i still have no idea what i want to put in it. any ideas people? i'm still tossing around the idea of an angler or dwarf lion. or just going with normal nano fish.

 

[carey]

I like the idea of nano fish. You could fit a whole bunch in there. lol I plan on my new 60g tank being all fish under 2 inches. And lots of inverts too.

 

[HPballer76]

how many do you think i could fit in there? what about some nano fish with a flame angel as a center piece fish?

 

[carey]

I think you should choose between an angel and maybe 2 other small-ish fish OR maybe up to 6 tiny fish and inverts. If you stuck with fish the size of clown gobies you could fit a good amount in there. There are several fish that come to mind that are only about an inch or so big. Check out the nano section on Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums for ideas.

If you go with an angel it will be a "different" type of tank than what i would have in mind for a nano tank

 

[carey]

On second thought, I don't think an angel will be good in a 24g tank. LOL I was thinking this was a 29g cube. Angels need a 30g preferably larger to be happy.

 

[HPballer76]

darn i was really leaning towards the flame angel and then a small gobie or two.

 

[carey]

You can still get some cool fish. Don't be discouraged.

 

[HPballer76]

stopped by the lfs today. here are some fish that caught my eye


royal gramma
chalk bass
six line wrasse
longnose hawk

then theres still the option of a clown. they had some that were yellow and white that were pretty cool. or maybe a yellow strip maroon clown.

would any of those work or am i still looking at fish that are to big? lol

 

[carey]

i think any of those would be fine in a 24g. The chalk bass is really neat, might be getting one for my 60g.

 

[HPballer76]

do you think i would be able to do more than one of them together or would i need to pick one of them and then the rest be nanos?

 

[HPballer76]

i think the longnose hawk may be off the list. it says they eat shrimp and i want to have some shrimp in this tank.

right now i'm leaning towards a royal gramma, a six line wrasse, and maybe a small neon goby. do you think that is do able or is the gramma and six line to much?

 

[carey]

I think those 3 would be good together. My gramma was peaceful and quite pretty. I have a 6 line in my 90g. he is pretty active but was a bit aggressive when I first put him in, but he is way more mellow now. The 6 line might be a good fit cause they are jumpers and the nano's have a hood so it would work out.

 

[HPballer76]

awesome i think thats what i will do then! the gramma will go in first then the goby and finally the six line. hopefully that will keep him from being to aggressive.

 

[HPballer76]

added the live rock back into the tank today. that is 20lbs. i think i am going to add about 10 more lbs of base rock.