Starting up my JBJ 12g Nano Cube again

[fishman805]

Well here we go for the second time with my JBJ 12 gal. Nano Cube in SW mini reef....

I bought the tank originally to have as a mini reef but either I did not set it up or got too anxious with it or for whatever reason, I tore it all down and then set it up as a nano FW planted tank ... WELLLL..... I got bored with that and decided that I would move all the plants and fish to a "new" home and bought a 37gal. glass tank.... WELLLLL..... the 37gal looked like a really good canidate for another reef tank ( LOL ) and I decided that the HOB fuge that I just recently bought for my 150gal. ( large model with light ) would really work better on it rather than the 150 ( which is having the sump converted to a fuge ) reef tank that is already running....

I already have a 29gal FW planted tank so I thought "well I'll just put the FW stuff from the nano tank to the 29gal". And so it was that I have two more reef tanks to setup and play with.....

I've learned a bit more about reefkeeping and so today I started the nano cube back up.... Filtration is the standard JBJ setup with the following "mod's".... I've converted the standard intake to an "overflow" by cutting teeth into the top and cutting off the flow through the grid with plastic.... I'm using the sponge in the first chamber on top of the bio-balls... now before you hit me with questions like " why do that ? " let me just say that they are totally submerged so I feel they will be no problem if maintained correctly and cleaned out with the foam filter.... Next chamber is filled with LR rubble from rocks that where in my 150gal that I could afford to lose.... The third and final chamber has a maxjet 600 running and I've installed the stock pump in the tank for additional water movement/flow.... I've put "back" the sand that I'd originally had in the tank the first go around and was surprised to see and smell that the sand was in great shape and had no odor to it at all.... It was live sand to start with and had been sealed up in a plastic bag once removed


Water has just been added and all is running ... I'm going to let it run this way for a week or so before adding anything to it including LR which I will be purchasing from Liveaquaria.com ( 40 lbs. of Premo Figi rock on sale for $89 if the sale is still on..) I'm not going to make the same mistake I made before and I'll aquascape it better so that I can clean the glass all the way around and have a gap behind the rock and the back wall to prevent any dead space....

Pictures will be comming so that anyone interested can watch the "re-birth" of this nano cube.....

 

[steelhealr]

WTG...some thoughts....

--you could take the stock pump out of your 'tank' and put it in chamber 1
--er...I don't want to be the 'bioball police', but, I wouldn't put them in and I'd ditch the sponge after you are done cycling. You'd be better off getting that stuff out and adding media inserts like ChemiPure, SeaGel and/or Purigen
--surface skimmer mod sounds good.

Look forward to your pix. SH

 

[fishman805]

WTG...some thoughts....

--you could take the stock pump out of your 'tank' and put it in chamber 1
--er...I don't want to be the 'bioball police', but, I wouldn't put them in and I'd ditch the sponge after you are done cycling. You'd be better off getting that stuff out and adding media inserts like ChemiPure, SeaGel and/or Purigen
--surface skimmer mod sounds good.

Look forward to your pix. SH

But chamber 1 is the input side with the overflow mod... How'd that work..?? And also having the sponge filter in chamber one saves me from having dutritus collecting on the LR rubble.... How would you have the stock pump running in chamber one..??

Just curious....

 

[steelhealr]

It's a leap of faith in that people don't believe that their tank can remain clean without a sponge. Here is my 24G setup;

1) In chamber one, the stock pump is in the bottom, I ran an over-the-wall 'bulkheadless' outflow, since it was too late to dremel one. On top of that, I have my media (ChemiPure, SeaGel, Purigen)
2) in the middle chamber, I have the temp and pH probes and LR rubble, submersible fuge light and chaeto
3) Chamber 3 has a Maxijet 1200 and heater.

Flow enters chamber 1 and is pulled two ways, thru the media for chemical filtration and thru chamber two. The pump in chamber 1 kicks out the chemically filtered water back into the tank. Water enters chamber 2 where LR gets a shot at biologic filtration and nutrient export (chaeto), then enters chamber three where it is heated and kicked out.

No visible detritus in my tank...anything that is remains suspended for removal with water changes or , if you chose this route, skimming.

No sponges, bioballs, or beads:
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y55/steelhealr/nano76.jpg

On the other hand, there is NO RIGHT OR WRONG...just what WORKS FOR YOU!!. If you find that you build up nitrates in your tank, then you might want to change the plan. If it works for you, then go with the sponge/ball stuff. SH

 

[fishman805]

Alright so let me see if I got this... You are basically shooting water from the stock pump into chamber two which has the rubble and such.. But the force of the pump in chamber one is also putting water back out into the tank from the top of chamber one..?? And most of the stock pump flow is still going into chamber two correct..??

I'd love to work it that way too if I could get you to post a pic of your filtration setup..... And I had also thought of upgrading the output pump to a maxjet 800 rather than the 600 in there now...

Oh and your tank looks fantastic by the way....


Bob:thumbsup:

 

[steelhealr]

Here ya go...here is my thread on a bulkheadless outflow if you don't want to dremel:

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=56215&highlight=No+bulkhead+no+problem

The stock pump in chamber one is pulling water down from the intake thru the filtration media and into the tank. The pump in chamber three is constantly pulling (for my 24) 295 gph into chamber 3, hence, the thought that it 'shoots detritus' back into the tank doesn't really happen.

If you have patience, here is a link to my 24G startup (similar to a 12G).....just warning..it has almost 50 pages and 50K hits. SH

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=54602

 

[romeo22]

hey steel...do you think that this mod would work in my 12 gallon, i have a maxi 1200 in chamber three, and only some sponges with carbon underneath in chamber one. i am thinking i will pick up all of the filter media that you use, and set it up similarly to yours. i could use the stock pump, or pick up a weaker maxi jet as well.

 

[romeo22]

also, what should/could i put in the middle chamber...i am afraid to put LR rubble..is it ok to do now that my tank is cycled..will it put it through another cycle?

 

[steelhealr]

Romeo....rule of thumb thinking is that 10X flow is OK, 15X better, 20X or greater is best...if you are going to keep corals. My nano is at about 20X. A similar ratio for the 12G would be a turnover rate of 240g per hour, right? The Maxijet 1200 is already at 295GPH. You COULD pickup a weaker one and put it in the bottom of chamber one or try the stock pump in there and see what happens to the back chambers, heat, etc.

Initially I put both pumps in chamber 3, however, unless you drill the walls between chambers more, the draw by these two pumps was more than the chamber walls would allow and the water level dropped in the back. Hence, moving the pump to chamber 1.

You don't have to be afraid about putting LR rubble in chamber 2. Buy 2-3 lbs of ANY cured LR at your lfs, bring it home and bang it into golfball size pieces with a hammer. Rinse off the debris in SW and you can just drop it in back there without worrying about cycling issues. Just make sure that the LR wasn't a shipment they got in THAT day..lol. Use cheap stuff for the LR (?Tonga) since you are only adding surface area for biologic filtration, not looking for life. SH

 

[romeo22]

awesome, so maybe i'll skip the extra power, and pick up the filter media, and the rubble tomorrow...

so chamber one would be the ChemiPure, SeaGel, Purigen (all in separate bags?) and maybe one sponge?

chamber two LR Rubble

chamber three heater and maxijet 1200

sound good?

 

[fras]

awesome, so maybe i'll skip the extra power, and pick up the filter media, and the rubble tomorrow...

so chamber one would be the ChemiPure, SeaGel, Purigen (all in separate bags?) and maybe one sponge?

chamber two LR Rubble

chamber three heater and maxijet 1200

sound good?

I've been taking notice as I'm planning to do something similar with my tank, this all seems like a great idea.

My tank is a mirabello 30 which has a seperate (small) area similar to the nano cubes. As standard the area houses a couple of different sponges, heater and a pump. It's nice because the water is forced through 4 seperate chambers so I can use different media in each.

My main question though is how effective will the LR rubble be in the second chamber? With good flow in the main tank the water is already being passed by lots of LR. Wouldn't some Chaeto or similar be much more effective? I guess the main difficulty is getting some light in for the chaeto..

 

[Henry22]

They make submersible and clip on lights enough for growing chaeto and stuff but you if got a clip on and have a hood taht bout be hard to do. Im consider keeping my elsipe fiter and instead of pads putting in a few pieces of live rock and the cast off from my 96 watt coralife light is enough. Im not really sure.

 

[Henry22]

Scrap that, theres no way i cna keep the filter and the area for the media if i get the 96w light. Oh well

 

[fishman805]

Well Steel, I did the setup you suggested and took the stock pump and put it in chamber one... Flow to the other chambers has now picked up and the overflow is doing it's job better now... ( thanks for the tip ) .. I also went ahead and took out the maxjet 600 and put in a maxjet 1200 that I had on hand for the return in chamber three.... I've got great flow now going through the chambers and all the LR rubble is fully submerged ....

Thanks again.... I will post pic's later this afternoon of my still "bare" nano cube ( after the dust settles ).....

One thing that I'd like to add.... I noticed that when I was running the two pumps in my cube before this "upgrade", I did not need any extra help from a heater to maintain a proper temp in this tank.... So ( at least for me ) I will not be adding one.....

 

[spf9992001]

Fishman,

I think you should go ahead and get the heater - even if it's only precautionary. You can find a decent 50W titanium unit for under $30. It's better to be safe than sorry.

 

[fishman805]

Fishman,

I think you should go ahead and get the heater - even if it's only precautionary. You can find a decent 50W titanium unit for under $30. It's better to be safe than sorry.

Thanks for the concern but like I said earlier, when the tank was running as a reef the first time, the temp stayed right at 80 degrees 24/7.... But I will keep a watchful eye on it anyway......


On another note, I just placed the order for the LR from Dr's Foster & Smith.... 45lbs of Premium Figi rock for $89.99..... Shipping brought it up to $149 but still a good deal for nice rock ( at least in my neck of the woods ) ... They say I should recieve it on Thursday via FedEx.... The reason for the amount ( 45 lbs ) is because I am also starting up a 37gal. reef tank and what I don't use in the nano will go in the fuge for the 37gal. .... with a little left over ( maybe ) to actually put some "IN" the 37gal. tank itself... ( But that's for another thread..... )



Bob

 

[steelhealr]

Good job you guys...I don't think you'll be disappointed. I keep chaeto in the middle chamber under a 10W submersible halogen light and it seems to be doing well. As for the media....you know..this thing becomes an art after awhile. If your tank is doing well...and you keep whatever inserts you want in there...then...ya stick with it. ChemiPure, Purigen and SeaGel work for me. I make some people laugh because I also add Algone. Was recommended to me by a reefer I bumped into at an lfs and ..well...works for me (reduces nitrates). Others will tell you it's a complete waste of money. Bottom line....WATER CHANGES....are the REAL key. I'll follow everyone's tank pix. SH

 

[fishman805]

It ain't much but here are the pictures of the tank .... Nothing but sand and water.... I did have a slight issue with the maxjet1200 and micro-bubbles but I think I've got it fixed... ( more water in chamber 3....

Enjoy....

 

[steelhealr]

Off and running. Don't forget..in the future (OK, Magfloat police)...when you get your beautiful corals in there...take that #$%^& magfloat out for the pix. LOL. WTG....I remember how much work all that was. Good job. SH

 

[fishman805]

Off and running. Don't forget..in the future (OK, Magfloat police)...when you get your beautiful corals in there...take that #$%^& magfloat out for the pix. LOL. WTG....I remember how much work all that was. Good job. SH

:lol: Yea I forgot to take it out.... I had it in there to scrub off the "dust" from the sides of the glass after the sand had settled..... I'll post some updated pic's after the LR arrives on Thursday......


Bob