Hooloovoo's 20g Nano

[Hooloovoo]

Hello everybody. I'm just getting back into the hobby after being away from it for over ten years. Trying to catch up on all the new info. I pulled my old 20g Acrylic nano reef tank down out of the attic when I recently moved house, and got the itch to start over again. Here is what I have right now:

• Tank: Used 20 Gallon Acrylic, 24"x12"x16"
• Protein Skimmer: Used AquaC Remora Nano w/ Surface Pre-filter box and Cobalt Aquatics MJ1200 Pump
  
• Lighting: AI Prime HD
• Substrate: 60 lbs. CaribSea Arag-Alive Fiji Pink
• Rock: 15 lbs. Base rock/5 lbs. Cultured live rock
• Circulation: 2x Hydor Koralia Circulation and Wave Pump, 240 gph
• ATO: AutoAqua Smart Micro
• Livestock: none so far (still cycling)

My LFS tells me that DSB's are passé, but I still like the way they look, and I think I can cope with the detritus build up with the right sand sifting crew. I guess I'll find out. I'm very interested in advice and suggestions from those who are more up-to-date on the state of the art. I haven't entirely decided yet what to put in the tank once it is cycled. Here are some pics (sorry for the quality):



View attachment 359382

 

[Babydaull]

looks like a great start! keep us updated!

 

[Hooloovoo]

So I have made some alterations since my last post. I added the overflow box onto my AquaC Remora skimmer, added a second Hydor Koralia powerhead, and purchased an Eshopps Nano Sump/Refugium that still needs to be installed. The skimmer is annoyingly noisy, and I want to relocate it to the sump as soon as I can (will probably require a different skimmer). I can't add the sump until I receive my overflow, which is on back order. In the meantime, I went ahead and added an initial cleanup crew. This may have been a mistake though. The Nassarius are thriving, but there still isn't any algae to speak of for the Ceriths or Nerites to eat. Ceriths seem to be doing okay, but the Nerites barely move, and I keep finding them upside down. I am feeding a pinch of flake food daily (which the Nassarius seem to love) to try to add some nutrients into the tank for the bacteria to feed on, but my Ammonia/Nitrites/Nitrates have still barely registered in all this time. I assume this is a good thing, but still feel a bit wary about never having seen the "spike" that you typically expect.

At this point I have no measurable nitrogen products, no visible algae (the only thing covering my tank walls are pods), and temperature is a rock steady 78 F. I couldn't be happier with my Autoaqua Smart Micro ATO. I would be adding a fish or two by now except that I want to wait until my overflow arrives because I will need to empty the tank to drill the bulkhead for it. So that's it for my update on the nano. Slow and steady she goes.

 

[Hooloovoo]

Went by my LFS this past weekend and found they had the overflow that I have had on back order from Marine Depot since Oct. 24th. Decided to pick it up and cancel my order from Marine Depot so I could finally start plumbing my Eshopps nano sump. I drained the tank into a Brute trash can and tossed in my rock with a heater and powerhead. I was then able to drill the back for the Eshopps Eclipse M overflow with no trouble. The overflow is rated for 800 GPH, which is a huge overkill for my little 20 G tank, but I have a good quality gate valve to regulate the flow to match the Sicce Syncra 0.5 pump I picked up for the return. I actually already had an old Mag 3 pump that still works, and I considered using it. I was worried it would be too powerful though. In the end, it didn't matter because it wouldn't quite fit down into the pump chamber, and I didn't want to fool with plumbing it to run from outside the chamber. Space is already really tight.

While I was in the middle of all this, my Red Sea Reefer 525 XL got delivered to the house. Now I have two big projects to tackle this weekend. I have definitely jumped back into this hobby right into the deep end. Hopefully I don't bite off more than I can chew and make any costly mistakes.

 

[noob916]

Will you convert the 20gallon into a QT?

 

[Hooloovoo]

My thought is to setup two containers to use for TTM, and use the 20 G as my observation tank after QT.

 

[Hooloovoo]

Finally completed the sump installation on the nano, and got everything put back together. I'm pretty pleased with the results so far, but I need to find a new compact in- sump skimmer. I need to retest water parameters today. Before the tear down, everything but pH was looking great. Alkalinity was at 8.9 dKH, but pH was below 7.8. I suspect that excess CO2 build up was to blame . I hope to see a big improvement after the water change and a good airing out on the patio.

 

[Hooloovoo]

New Eshopps Eclipse M Overflow Added:

To go with the Eshopps Cube Nano Refugium:

Now I need to find a skimmer that will fit in the sump chamber to replace my noisy AquaC Remora HOB skimmer, and a light to fit over the refugium chamber. Suggestions welcome.

 

[Hooloovoo]

 

[Hooloovoo]

I was thinking of adding my first fish this weekend, but decided to do a thorough water check first. I found that my phosphates were up to 0.13 ppm, and my nitrates had increased to 5 ppm. After thinking about it for a moment, it occurred to me that I had removed the HOB skimmer after installing the overflow and sump with the plan to replace it with an in-sump skimmer, but had not gotten around to doing so yet. The intervening period was apparently long enough for these parameters to rise to those levels. Instead of buying a fish, I went out an got a skimmer and a light for the refugium. The refugium light is the Eshopps Curve LED light, which was a good fit for the tight space I have to work with. For the skimmer, I went with the Hydor Slim Skim Nano. Hopefully it will be up to the task. If not, it will probably find a place in my QT.

I did a major water change (> 80%) replacing about 25 gallons with a batch of Red Sea Reef Crystals I had mixed up. I checked my parameters, and everything is looking good again:

• Calcium: 527 ppm
• Alkalinity: 8.5 dKH
• Salinity: 35 ppt
• Temperature: 78.5 F
• pH: 8.1
• Magnesium: 1300 ppm
• Phosphate: < 0.01 ppm
• Nitrate: < 0.2 ppm

Next step will be to source some Chaeto for my refugium to help keep the Nitrates and Phosphates in check. I will also be running my refugium light on a cycle opposite to my DT lights to hopefully help keep my pH from fluctuating too much. If all goes well, I will be picking up a fish or two to put into QT next time I can get over to my LFS.

 

[MrDaniel]

Nice looking tank. One thing I have learned is that corals don't generally grow well on vertical rock faces like the outside of the arch in your most recent photo. That doesn't mean it's not a cool design. I personally like the coral to cover as much of the rockwork as possible. I try to reduce the vertical faces in the tank and mount the rockwork with more gradual slopes. Great work so far!

 

[Hooloovoo]

Thanks MrDaniel. Good tip. I will keep it in mind when I start working on the aquascaping for my main reef tank. I think this 20 G is going to primarily be an observation tank. I might change up the aquascaping if I decide to start adding corals.

 

[Hooloovoo]

Send in the Clowns

Send in the Clowns

Since my last post, I have finally added some livestock.

 

[Hooloovoo]

R.I.P. little BTA

R.I.P. little BTA

Well after having seemingly settled in quite quickly, my green BTA apparently decided to go wandering, and found its way into one of my powerheads. I woke Sunday morning to discover my whole tank was milky colored. Changed as much water as I had on hand, and the tank had cleared up by the next day. No noticeable ill effect on any of the other tank inhabitants thankfully. Planning to do another significant water change tomorrow though.

 

[jmcdaniel0]

dang, I hate when they do that! Good looking tank though!

 

[Hooloovoo]

The tank has experienced its first algae bloom since my last post. The sand has been getting covered in a coat of brown slime algae, and the rocks are starting to grow some fine hair algae. I have been blasting the rock and sand daily with a turkey baster, which seems to be keeping it reasonable at bay. The chaeto down in my sump seems to be withering away instead of growing though.

Strangely, I'm actually a little relieved to see the algae bloom. I know it is a part of the cycle that virtually all tanks go through, but this tank (particularly the rocks) seemed to be staying very sterile looking for a long time. I was starting to wonder if there was something wrong that was preventing algae from taking hold.

Now, in addition to the fine little hair algae, I am starting to see some spots of green, and even a few little spots of pink. I'm hopeful that the algae will eventually transition over to predominately coraline growth.