My New 10G Build (Lots Of Pics!)

[todd2000]

Im going to be starting a 10G nano in the next few weeks. It is going to me mostly Zoas, Mushrooms, and possibly some LPS. Im trying to keep this set-up as simple as possible. It will consist of a 10G AGA Tank, PC Light Fixture, Small Refugium, and a powerhead or two.

The equipment will be

10G AGA Aquarium
40W Current-USA Satellite PC Light (enough for what I want to keep)
50W Marineland Visa-Therm Stealth heater
Aqua-Clear 110, modded into a Refugium
1 or 2 Powerheads (depends on the flow from the Fuge)

Livestock:
10-12Lbs Fiji Live Rock from Premium Aquatics
10Lbs Carib-Sea Arag-Alive Live Sand
1 Ocellaris Clown
1 ??????? Fish (not sure yet)
1 Cleaner Shrimp
2 Sexy Shrimp
Crabs/Snails
Misc Corals (Zoas, Rics, LPS)


So far last week I painted the back of the tank with 2 coats of Rust-Oleum Oil Based Semi-Gloss Enamel.

Here is the tank before:

After:

Here is the paint I used if anybody is interested it works very well:

I used a little roller I got at Lowes for $1.48 (get one for each coat):

I had an old wrought iron stand in the basement, that I sanded and painted, that I will use for a while. I might get a better stand in a few months, but this will do for now:

The light arrived yesterday, here are some pics of the tank, and light:

I think it looks pretty bright for a 40W, we shall see once there is some water in the tank.

Coming tomorrow from Foster's Smith:

50W Visa-Therm Stealth Heater
Aqua-Clear 110
50Lbs Reef Crystals salt mix

I think thats it for now more to come.

 

[coral acquisition]

kul tank. im starting one out too. gonna keep mostly mostly Zoas, Mushrooms and hammer or frogspawn. they say i can just do waterchange and a good skimmer. thats gonna be a minimalist tank. no hob filter/fuge. maybe you can try that too since it doesnt seem like you have a filter yet.

 

[danoreef]

nice. keep us updated

 

[John99]

I think you should have gone with a refractometer instead of a hydrometer but i don't think it matters

 

[todd2000]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9139167#post9139167 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by euphoricgear
kul tank. im starting one out too. gonna keep mostly mostly Zoas, Mushrooms and hammer or frogspawn. they say i can just do waterchange and a good skimmer. thats gonna be a minimalist tank. no hob filter/fuge. maybe you can try that too since it doesnt seem like you have a filter yet.

Cool good luck with your tank. As for the filter it will be here today, I will post some pics of the process of making it into a refugium. Im not going to use a skimmer, so I figured any extra filtration is a good thing. I would say a skimmer makes it less of a minimalist tank.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9139371#post9139371 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by danoreef
nice. keep us updated

Will Do, more updates to come this afternoon/tonight

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9139550#post9139550 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by John99
I think you should have gone with a refractometer instead of a hydrometer but i don't think it matters

Well I already had the hydrometer, and im also on a budget. I think I might take a water sample to my LFS and have them test it with a refractometer (if they have one), and see how close it is to my Hydrometer so I know. I remember reading a thread a while ago where someone did that and it turns out the Instant Ocean hydrometer was almost the same at the Refractometer

 

[BiggySmalls]

i am lookin 4ward for update pics of ur tank

 

[todd2000]

Ok the filter arrived today, and I finished most of the mods. Here are some pics.

Filter before:

You can get 8x10 Sheets of acrylic that I used for the baffle at Lowe's, the cutter should be right next to them as well. They are cheap I think the sheets were like $1.50, and the cutter was $2.99. Anyway what I did was measure the inside dimentions as best as I could (the inside of the AquaClear is tapered on one side, so it not a perfect square). I cut out a piece of Cardboard and trimmed it down until it was the perfect size to fit into the filter, and used that as a template for my baffle.

Here is the baffle siliconed in place:

I tried to find a filter cartridge at the LFS that would fit in the filter, but none were the right size, so im just going to cut down the sponge that came with the filter and put that in the first chamber.

Then I took the media basket, and used the bottom as a screen in front of the filter to keep the macro from spilling into the tank, I had to cut a little notch in it to fit it over the baffle:

And just for laughs, here is a pic of possibly the worst silicone job you have ever seen LOL

Hey this is the first time I've used silicone, and there isn't exactally much room to work inside the filter. As long as it's water tight I don't care what it looks like.

I took the stock impeller, and shaved off (actually melted) 3 of the blades. What I did was heat a paper clip up, and just melted off the blades, and used the hot clip to smooth out the impeller where the blade came off. I forgot to take a before pic, but here is the after:

Hopefully this should cut the flow down enough. If not I'll have to figure something out.

More to come......

 

[Tb Fivel]

very interested to see how your setup turns out. i had to throw together a 10gal to avoid losing all my corals in a nasty crash in my 55gal. its kind of "bare bones" right now and im thinking of just sticking with the 10 for a while instead of jumping back into the 55.

Good Luck!

 

[todd2000]

Thanks for the interest guys. Noting much to tell, I cut a hole out of the cover for the filter, and siliconed some plexi-glass over it, so fuge light can shine through better. Be careful the top is brittle, I cracked it in 2 places while trying to cut it. I also cut a little notch in the top for the power cord from the heater.

All the junk on the filter is mostly dust/cat hair. I have to rinse it off .

 

[quy_nquyen]

nice work on the DIY. cant wait to see it with water

 

[todd2000]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9150884#post9150884 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by quy_nquyen
nice work on the DIY. cant wait to see it with water

That makes 2 of us. LOL. The silicone says allow 48hrs before using in the aquarium. 24 Hrs left. I will fill everything up and test it all out tomorrow night, and post some updates.

P.S. Does anybody have any ideas for a second fish? I would like something that stays out and visible most of the time.

 

[danoreef]

nice work can't wait until finished product. I am enjoying the work in progress though. heres to you :beer:

 

[EWC88]

keep up the good work man!

 

[todd2000]

Thanks for the encouragement guys . I filled it all up and set up the fuge today. I will post pics tomorrow, right now its time for bed. Goodnight

 

[todd2000]

Ok I filled the tank up yesterday, and added the sand today. Here is a pic:

Still a bit cloudy, but getting better.

Here is a pic of the fuge in place:

Right now im going to use an old strip light from a 10G to light the fuge, it's a bit big but it will do until I get a new light.

My Live Rock should arrive tomorrow. I will defiantly post some pics when I get it all set up.

 

[jpa0741]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9178361#post9178361 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by todd2000
Ok I filled the tank up yesterday, and added the sand today. Here is a pic:

Still a bit cloudy, but getting better.

Here is a pic of the fuge in place:

Right now im going to use an old strip light from a 10G to light the fuge, it's a bit big but it will do until I get a new light.

My Live Rock should arrive tomorrow. I will defiantly post some pics when I get it all set up.

What kind of heater is that and how long is it?

 

[todd2000]

Ok I got my 11Lbs of LR from Marine Depot Live this morning. Im glad I paid extra for Overnight shipping, since they just put the rock in a styrofoam lined box, with no wet paper or anything to keep it moist. And even though I specifically requested 3 TIMES on the order form to use a heat-pack, they didn't. The rock didn't seem that cold though so I assume it will be fine.

Here are some pics:

The aquascaping looks ok. There's not much you can do in a 10G especially with 3 smaller pieces, and one medium-large piece. Any suggestions?

 

[todd2000]

Some close-ups. This rock has some nice color, I see some pink, red, and green corraline. It is un-cured too so I should get some nice life from it I hope.

Thats it for now I think......

 

[todd2000]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9181504#post9181504 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jpa0741
What kind of heater is that and how long is it?

It's a 50W Marineland Visa-Therm Stealth heater, it's 8" long.

 

[kase]

sweet...she coming along nicely.