George's 28G Nano Cube Build

[George9]

Brace yourself salties!! This is my first try at saltwater, so I will probably be asking a lot of questions here.

I have a JBJ nano cube 28 CF Quad. Set it up about five days ago. I'm day 5 into a shrimp cycle . Ammo is reading 2-4 ppm, nitrites are .25 and nitrates are already at 5

I have about 20 lbs of rock, 17-18 lbs of it is dry. I also have 35 lbs of sand .

I wanna make this a reef eventually, but for now I'd like to stick with some fish and live rock. I plan on:
1 occ. clown
1 royal gramma
1 purple fire fish
1 sixline wrasse
In this order

Here is what the tank looks like right now, I'm open to any suggestions and advice on anything. This is where I will be posting all of my questions/problems

Thanks guys!!





I dunno why the camera seems to shrink the rock, lol it actually looks fuller in person for some reason

 

[Terrance]

I always recommend every tank to have an ATO. Its really going to help, even without corals.

 

[obscurereef]

Welcome to the salty side! You'll want to get the ammonia up to 4-5 ppm. Also I recommend you switch the order of the gramma and firefish b/c firefish are very docile and easily scared by even peaceful fish just swimming nearby. Sixline wrasses are known to be pesky...nipping at fish and eating inverts so just warning you. Everything is looking good so far.

 

[George9]

Thanks guys

I was thinking about an ATO, I'll probably get one eventually, but for now, I'm gonna hold off on it.

Hmm, maybe a sixline isn't such a good idea. Would it be better if he was added when he's small?

 

[Gboy66]

Thanks guys

I was thinking about an ATO, I'll probably get one eventually, but for now, I'm gonna hold off on it.

Hmm, maybe a sixline isn't such a good idea. Would it be better if he was added when he's small?

Following buddy!

Could be..but i hear they are royal pains eventually. Look into the possum wrasse...i've always liked those

 

[George9]

Following buddy!

Could be..but i hear they are royal pains eventually. Look into the possum wrasse...i've always liked those

Those guys are cool!! I saw them on live aquaria a few weeks ago.

Is it still okay to add him last, possums are a lot more timid then sixlines

 

[FragsNFins]

I once had a 30g nano and made the mistake of adding my six line to soon. Pesky little bugger's they are...


Quick question? What's your flow rate looking like? I had trouble with getting a decent turn over rate in my old NanoCube

Good luck! And have patience... Biggest mistake new comers to the hobby make. Only thing rushing a SW take will give you is a broke bank account

Followed!

 

[George9]

I once had a 30g nano and made the mistake of adding my six line to soon. Pesky little bugger's they are...

Quick question? What's your flow rate looking like? I had trouble with getting a decent turn over rate in my old NanoCube

Good luck! And have patience... Biggest mistake new comers to the hobby make. Only thing rushing a SW take will give you is a broke bank account

Followed!

The flow rate isn't horrible, but its not great. I think the two pumps are rated for like 200+ gph. I m definitely going to need a power head I get corals eventually. Problem is, there's no hole in the hood for a cord to come out, so I dunno how that's gonna work

 

[FragsNFins]

I used a drimmel to make a small hole then used sealant to install a rubber grommet. It worked... Just took up to much space in the tank for me.... So us upgraded to a 40g breeder... I love it! Wide, longer then my previous, and a smidgen taller

The last forum I was in, a friend of mine and myself posted a DIY upgrade to the nano cube. It was a sweet idea. We ripped out all the bio balls from the rear, cut out the center support and moved it over some to fit a small HOB skimmer. Then took out the existing pump and up graded to a small rio (not sure which one, I forget) then added that pump to the bottom of the second chamber and dumped as much LR rubble as we could fit, leaving enough space to route the new exit line into the tank.

Eventually we removed the hood due to not enough air exchange... The PH would never regulate or stay low...taking off the hood and pointing the exit line more towards the top fixed that problem.

I love me nano tanks... I struggle with anything larger then 40 gallons... Lol to much work!

 

[George9]

I used a drimmel to make a small hole then used sealant to install a rubber grommet. It worked... Just took up to much space in the tank for me.... So us upgraded to a 40g breeder... I love it! Wide, longer then my previous, and a smidgen taller

The last forum I was in, a friend of mine and myself posted a DIY upgrade to the nano cube. It was a sweet idea. We ripped out all the bio balls from the rear, cut out the center support and moved it over some to fit a small HOB skimmer. Then took out the existing pump and up graded to a small rio (not sure which one, I forget) then added that pump to the bottom of the second chamber and dumped as much LR rubble as we could fit, leaving enough space to route the new exit line into the tank.

Eventually we removed the hood due to not enough air exchange... The PH would never regulate or stay low...taking off the hood and pointing the exit line more towards the top fixed that problem.

I love me nano tanks... I struggle with anything larger then 40 gallons... Lol to much work!

Man, you did lots of upgrades! I wish I would've thought to replace the pumps when the tank wasn't filled, but a powerhead will do. I'll probably end up getting a koralia nano 425, they don't seem too big. I'm going to find a way to make it work without drilling, but if not I guess I'll have to drill a hole.

My skimmer is arriving tomorrow

 

[FragsNFins]

Sweet! What type of skimmer you choose?

I have a in sump Aqua C EV120 I am trying to trade for a decent HOB skimmer for my 40g. I want to get rid of the the sump sitting on the floor...

 

[George9]

Sweet! What type of skimmer you choose?

I have a in sump Aqua C EV120 I am trying to trade for a decent HOB skimmer for my 40g. I want to get rid of the the sump sitting on the floor...

I chose an aqua euro nano skimmer. It should fit in the compartment perfectly and it was a good price

 

[bud29]

Nice! Good luck on the SW side of things, George

 

[Gboy66]

Nice! Good luck on the SW side of things, George

And i expect you'll cross over any day now Bud

 

[George9]

Nice! Good luck on the SW side of things, George

Thanks Bud!!

And i expect you'll cross over any day now Bud

Hahah yeah!!

 

[bud29]

And i expect you'll cross over any day now Bud

Give me the funds and I'll gladly start a SW tank

My budget really doesn't allow for SW at the moment.....but when I get the money, you'll see me here

 

[George9]

I got the skimmer running. Man, it's a tight fit!! It's making white bubbles now, and I emptied the cup because it was partially full of what looked like regular water, but felt slimy. I know it has to break in, but is that normal for the first day?

 

[Gboy66]

Give me the funds and I'll gladly start a SW tank

My budget really doesn't allow for SW at the moment.....but when I get the money, you'll see me here

Ah god...money..the ultimate road block lol

I got the skimmer running. Man, it's a tight fit!! It's making white bubbles now, and I emptied the cup because it was partially full of what looked like regular water, but felt slimy. I know it has to break in, but is that normal for the first day?

Thats normal. Could take awhile to break in though. Plus, you dont want to have the thing running while your cycling the tank. Could slow down/stop the cycle as it pulls out all the bad stuff.

 

[George9]

Ah god...money..the ultimate road block lol

Thats normal. Could take awhile to break in though. Plus, you dont want to have the thing running while your cycling the tank. Could slow down/stop the cycle as it pulls out all the bad stuff.

Okay good, I unplugged it for now.

The ammo has continued to climb, it's like 4-8 ppm now and hasn't been dropping. Should I pull the shrimp out?

 

[Swimfaster]

28 gallon friend

Hey! I have the same tank, size and brand. I started about 2weeks ago and I finally have the filtration down and the live rock and live sand. My first problems with the tank was that I had a hard time getting the filters to not be so loud turns out that there wasn't enough water in them, I had to turn off the tank and fill the back up, Then turn it on. It's a lot better. Anyway I would suggest to get a protein skimmer for the filtration and for the nitrate levels I would just tell you to wait for the tank to cycle first. It will go down because there isn't anything living in your tank,right?. If it is still high, then go to a fish store nearby and look for a nitrate " killer", I'm sure they have some chemicals to help you out. Hope I will hear from you, it's so cool that we are tank buddies!