Nano Cube Help Needed!

[ashnoel]

Hello!
I have a couple questions about my nano cube. i purchased it, and its inhabitants (3 damsels), already cycled off of craigslist. it has been set up in my house for about 3 weeks.

1) i cant tell if i have a 24 gallon or 28 gallon nano cube. Attached is a picture of the tag on the back of the aquarium. i believe its a 24 gallon but the wattage on it is different than the wattage listed for 24 gallons.

2) i was wondering how the filter system works. i know it goes in through the vent in the water at the top of the aquarium and is supposed to go through the three chambers and come out the other end, the only thing is a lot of the time the water level in the back compartments differs and water doesn't go over the top of the divider- so are there holes it goes through down below? or is my water not high enough? The only thing is that when my water is high enough to go over all the dividers it gets the light cover wet..

3) the fans (i think) on my nano cube get really loud occasionally. it sounds like its going to 'take off' until i open and re-close it or bang on the top.. how do i change this? i checked and there is nothing the fans are hitting..

4) what kind of corals are shown in the pictures?

I have the nano cube standard sponge in the first compartment of the filter, live rock in the second, and the pump in the third.

i also have an additional power head to increase flow around the bottom of the tank.

the person i purchased the tank from custom fit an led light fixture to the tank- i dont know if that changes anything.

thank for the help!

 

[Jacobsal91]

Well ill tell you right off the bat that im not an expert with corals.. But i can help you with the other stuff. First off damsels are ok fish, just know some of them get big and they can get pretty aggresive when well established. Now filtration; the water overflows through the back, and goes through the first chamber, And in order for it to move to the second chamber most filters dont require it to overflow from one chamber to another, there is an opening in tue bottom of almost every filter of this type, so water moved from chamber to chamber regaurdless of it overflowing or not. Just dont let your water get too low of the filter will shoot microbubbles back into the tank which isnt really bad for the corals or anything but its not the beat thing for the filter. Put small pieces of live rock where the sponge is, the sponge holds organic nutrients that are no good for your nano reef and should be removed as soon as possible to avoid problems. I belive that is a 24 gallon but a 4 gallon differance really isnt that big of a differance i wouldnt worry too much about it. And LED lights are a good thing, most dont produce as much heat which keeps
Your water tempurature stable and a bit less of a fire hazard, they also have longer life. And the fan is what keeps the lights cool, just because the leds are a bit cooler than other lights doesnt mean its cool to the touch. It may sound loud but that fan is very
Important in my opinion. As long as its working properly; try not to let the noise bother you. I apologize for typos and i hope this helps you at least a
Little bit

 

[Readingexcalibur]

Mt-50 is a 24 gallon

 

[ashnoel]

thanks for the replies!

i was planning on getting rid of the damsels and getting two ocellaris clownfish and some other fish

i take out the sponge and wash it frequently.

as far as the water going into the filter, does it go through the open vent or does it have to go over the top?


as far as the size-- i thought it was a 24 but the voltage listed is different than the voltage online.

 

[Jacobsal91]

thanks for the replies!

i was planning on getting rid of the damsels and getting two ocellaris clownfish and some other fish

i take out the sponge and wash it frequently.

as far as the water going into the filter, does it go through the open vent or does it have to go over the top?

as far as the size-- i thought it was a 24 but the voltage listed is different than the voltage online.

Good call on rehoming damsels. They are cool fish but arent the best for nano reefs. Taking out sponge and cleaning frequently is ok, but removing it complety and replacing with live rock is better; saves you a bit of work. Protien skimmers arent nessasary but are certainly Recommended for keeping nitrates down. It shouldnt flow over the top just the opening thats on the first chamber, thats the main enterance. As long as water is coming out of the return pump ok then i wouldnt worry about that so much. And im sure you know this already but if your water level goes down via evaporation, top it off with fresh RO water or distilled water. With water changes use salted water.

 

[ashnoel]

okay thanks for the advice on the sponge!
i have been looking into protien skimmers.. nut sure what i need.
and okay i figured it couldnt be a messed up filtration system if the water was still coming out! haha just me being curious/worried.

and yes i do know about the water

does anyone know what the corals are?