Chipmunk's 10g Office Tank

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Hi everyone! Before we get started, the latest FTS of this tank can always be found here.

Okay, now that we have that out of the way, down to business! I used to be pretty active on this site, but life has been a roller coaster ride to say the least. There has been good, bad, and everything in between. Yet, as much as my life changes, there's still one thing I keep coming back to: saltwater aquariums. So, after landing a full-time work from home job late last year, I decided what better way is there to spruce up my home office than another tank? And so, here I am :)

I've kept two 29 gallon tanks previously and never had the discipline to take care of them properly, and thus never had much longevity or success in the hobby. I think my problem is I always tried to go too high tech or use equipment that was too sophisticated in order to make things easier. My last aquarium, for instance, got so overrun with GHA that I just gave up and took it down. I tried to solve my algae problems with a mini-sump/fuge that contained cheato, but the cold hard truth of the matter was that I wasn't doing enough water changes and I wasn't keeping up with cleaning the sand and rocks. Simply changing the water more frequently would have literally solved all my problems, but I kept insisting that I needed newer or different methods of filtration. Now that I'm a bit older (though not much wiser!) and have some more time on my hands, I think it's time for me to try again.

The theme of this tank is going to be simplicity. I was considering adding a sump with an overflow box, if for no other reason than to keep the equipment out of the display. While I may have to resort to this if I have nutrient problems in the future, for now I'm going without. Literally the only things in the tank will be the ATO float switch, live rock, powerhead, thermometer and heater. With basically no filtration besides the live rock, I'm relying on weekly water changes to export nutrients and keep the chemistry on balance. Here are the current specs and my planned maintenance schedule:

Tank: Standard 10g

Equipment and Specs:
  • AI Sol Blue LED light with AI controller (custom enclosure pending so I can remove optics)
  • 150W ViaAqua Ti heater (large for a 10g, I know. DIY external temperature control device pending)
  • Koralia Nano 425 (425gph flow, 42.5x turnover)
  • DIY ATO powered by peristaltic dosing pump ($11.50 total cost, I can do a tutorial if anyone is interested)
  • Unknown quantity of dry rock from friend's old tank (didn't even weigh it, just made a pleasing aquscape and left it at that)
  • No sand (bare bottom)
  • Generic digital thermometer
  • Tropic Marin Pro Reef salt

Current water chemistry: 78*F, 1.026SG/35ppt, CA: 425ppm, Alk: 8 dKh)

Planned maintenance schedule
  • Weekly 25% water change: Begin mixing water on Saturday, change on Sunday
  • Testing newly mixed saltwater before adding, testing tank parameters the day after the water change, and testing once later in the week as well (Thurs/Fri?)

Planned livestock
  • 1x Picasso clown (was going to go for two, but without a sump I'm not sure how well I'd be able to keep up with two)
  • Softies, LPS and SPS (working my way from easiest to hardest, in that order.. never kept SPS before!)

And now, the pictures. The tank was set up last week and had its first water change Sunday.


IMG_20160131_143403.jpg


IMG_20160131_143410.jpg


Decided to go all in and hang the light from the ceiling! I think it looks good, though I'm not a fan of how I had to run the power and controller cords to the light...

IMG_20160131_143439.jpg


Clean and simple (at least IMO!) aquascape.

IMG_20160131_143450.jpg


An overhead shot of my float switch for my DIY ATO and the Koralia.

IMG_20160131_143459.jpg



Any questions, please let me know! Looking forward to getting back in the hobby, and looking forward to being back at RS :)
 

nanoreefing4fun

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
Welcome back to the game & RS Patrick - Great start, your new tank and setup really looks Nice - Cheers for start a tank thread & sharing so we can follow along ! :nessie:
 

PSU4ME

JoePa lives on!!!
Staff member
PREMIUM
Welcome back! New tank plans look great and if/when I get a tank going again I'll be doing it simple as well and may be looking at some specific type of live stock. I'll be following along and it'll be nice to have you back co tribute nh to the community again!
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Thanks, everyone. It's certainly good to be back!

Love your rock work!

Thanks, I liked the sort of sloping angle. I love all the tanks that have the beautifully aquascaped shelves and rock features, but I just don't have the time or patience for that!

Welcome back! New tank plans look great and if/when I get a tank going again I'll be doing it simple as well and may be looking at some specific type of live stock. I'll be following along and it'll be nice to have you back co tribute nh to the community again!

Good to be back :) I think simple and unsophisticated are going to be great assets to this setup. I simplified everything I could, from putting a float switch on my RO/DI container to shut it off after it's full, to getting Tropic Marin Pro to minimize the need for dosing, to substantial weekly water changes to eliminate the need for advanced filtration (I hope...).
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
After testing for the last 2 weeks or so, I noticed that my ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates were all holding steady (1ppm, 0ppm, and 0ppm respectively). Since I started my tank with dry rock, I can only assume that the cycle isn't going anywhere because of the dry rock. As much as it pains me, I drove to the closest LFS to me (over an hour away) and picked up some rock rubble. The rock at the LFS is usually pretty mediocre, but I was surprised this time around. I actually got some quality pieces. Some of them have great coloration (coralline) and some even have mini-feather dusters.

I also picked up a few certih snails, which are in quarantine (not the 1ppm ammonia tank, don't worry). Since I'm going snail-only on the CUC, I also replaced the splash guard on my DIY ATO with something that's actually snail-proof.

Once the cycle is over I'm planning on getting two Picasso clowns. The ORAs on LiveAquaria are expensive, but I trust their customer service, so I think I'll eventually get them from there.

New FTS. Not much has changed. Good for historical purposes though :)

IMG_20160209_134647.jpg
 

Andy

Active Member
Are you running a skimmer? Tank looks great. Love the lights and scape. I like the simple look it seems modern stylish! It looks like you cud do with something to agitate the watwr surface to mix the protein sheen from your water surface. The water changes in that tank will be a 10 minute once a week job so it looks like your gna have a nice tank to look at with limited maintenance. I'll follow this thread
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Are you running a skimmer? Tank looks great. Love the lights and scape. I like the simple look it seems modern stylish! It looks like you cud do with something to agitate the watwr surface to mix the protein sheen from your water surface. The water changes in that tank will be a 10 minute once a week job so it looks like your gna have a nice tank to look at with limited maintenance. I'll follow this thread

Thanks a lot for the compliments Andy. That's what I was going for, bare bottom, no frills and simple. No, no skimmer currently. I'm going to try to run without a skimmer if possible. You're absolutely right, a 25% water change should take no time at all (2.5g in my case). This should hopefully eliminate the need for dosing, at least for now, and hopefully will keep the nutrients down.

As far as the surface sheen, my plan is to manually skim that off once a week during my water changes. The point at which the Koralia is pointing is clear, and I think there's some good gas exchange going on there.. but there's no denying it, there's a good bit of film on the rest of the surface.

My plan is to see how far I can get with just water changes. I'm sure that as I start getting more corals, I'll need to start dosing a two-part (maybe I can get into kalkwasser if things are stable enough later on). But, I'm hoping that this is all I'll need to do for my tank. The only issue I foresee is nutrient export. I'm planning on a very heavy bioload (most people wouldn't recommend one clownfish in a 10g, let alone two), and without skimming and without a fuge or sump, I'm curious to see if I'm able to control nutrients with just water changes. If not, I'll be forced to get an overflow box and sump the thing. That would add complexity to the system, but it would really open up my options in terms of skimming or having a huge ball of chaeto in the sump.

Thanks again for following along :)
 

Andy

Active Member
A pair of clowns will be fine in that size tank others may disagree but as long as the husbandry is ok you shud be fine. As for the surface protein. I have done what your planning in with some good success. A tip is to get some kitchen roll and get a sheet and lay it flat on the water surface for a second or two but literally no more than that. Do this once a day and it will remove a substantial amount of that skim. If your going for easy maintenance just bear in mind rocks touching the side glass always equates to a bit more of a pain cleaning the sides. I like to have my rock in a way that it touches nothing but the bed of the aquarium so I can get my scraper round with ease. Get a couple of lps in there iv kept hammers/ torches/acans/ frogspawn in a 10 gallon before and it will look great under your lighting. Good luck. Keep posting pics so I can tag along
 

Andy

Active Member
Also aquavitro salinity is a salt mix that I use and Iv never dosed. It's pricey but with your tank ur talking £30 and it will last you over 6 months I imagine and keeps your perms all withing levels.
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Thanks a lot for the input Andy. By kitchen roll do you mean paper towels (that's what we call them stateside :))? If so that's a brilliant idea. I'll definitely have to do that if I go without surface skimming long term. As for the rocks touching the glass, I'm totally with you there. Before I added the rock rubble I bought Sunday, there was nothing touching the glass and my magfloat had 100% mobility. Now, there's a few tight spaces, but as the main rock colonizes of the next few months, I'll slowly remove the unsightly rubble.

Thanks for the salt recommendation as well, but I think I'm set for a while. I currently have Tropic Marin Pro Reef, the 200 gallon bucket (750L) for which I paid $90 USD (~£62). It was a lot of money, but some rough calculations suggest that it should last me 70 weeks, or over a year. TMPR is one of the more pricey salts out there, but it's proven worth it already. Newly mixed, alkalinity is 8 dKh and Ca is 425 ppm (pH varies based on how well I've aerated it, but it's still within normal ranges). Overall a good buy, and definitely makes sens in a nano where the water changes will be the main method of filtration/supplementation.
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Yesterday I received the only two fish I plan on having in the tank, 2x ORA tank-bred True Perculas from LiveAquaria. I was originally planning on getting a pair of Picasso, but after reviewing the options and prices, $70+ for just a run-of-the-mill Picasso, with only slightly larger bars than a standard True Percula, was not worth it to me.. at around $20/each, I felt the True Perculas are a much better value in my case.

Here's the best pic I've got so far of them:

DSCF1069.jpg


They arrived okay and only seemed slightly stressed after the acclimation process. I did have a few bones with the order, however. Firstly, the shipment didn't arrive until 16:25 EST. UPS tracking information said the shipment would be delivered by 10:30 EST (Next Day Air). I guess not a huge deal, as the clowns seem to be doing okay. But, if I had known that UPS wouldn't honor their delivery time and they would be sloshing around in their own filth on the truck for an additional 8 hours, I would have had them dropped off at a local store and picked them up myself earlier in the day. Second, LiveAquaria said the size "small" clowns are between 3/4" and 1 1/4". The fish I received are at least an inch and a half, perhaps more. Not the end of the world, but the larger these fish are, the greater the chance one (or both) has already changed to female (at least the way I understand it). Additionally, I was hoping to get one clown that was at least a bit larger than the other, but they're both almost the exact same size. One is perhaps 5% larger than the other, but that's it. This one's not LiveAquaria's fault at all, as there's no guarantee on size.. I was just kind of hoping. As long as one of them hasn't transitioned to female, I think they can establish who is the dominant without killing each other.

Overall, not a terrible experience. Just a few minor quibbles. On the plus side, the one clown has a very wide center white bar, and the white bar on its tail extends pretty far up the body (read: could be considered semi-Picasso). She should look very pretty once her black colors develop between the bars. And they're from ORA, which I understand produces very healthy tank bred fishes.

I'll post more pics once I can get a few good ones and once they're fully adjusted to their home. Since I got them so late in the day yesterday, I didn't have a chance to have the tank lights on yet.
 

StirCrayzy

Well-Known Member
Here's a tip when shipping UPS, or FedEx, I do this anytime I ship livestock if temps or timing is critical.

Have your shipment held at the distribution center. It's usually a semi climate controlled pickup room, plus they are available for you as soon as the customer office is open. My regular delivery guy doesn't get around til 6-7 pm, and the truck is cold. so I would rather drive 15 minutes to pickup on my lunch break, or at my convenience. Sometimes you can do this at Post office too, but I remember it's not as simple as the others.

Cheers on the new tank, and simplicity, but man that thermometer is an eyesore, what about a probe on the back wall?
Curious about the ATO redundancies , post some pics/description !
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Thanks Josh. My plan was actually to do just that, but when I saw the tracking info the night before the delivery, it said the package would be delivered by 10:30AM. UPS is pretty good with their delivery estimates in my area, and since Next Day Air is supposed to be delivered by 10:30, I didn't think there was any reason to question that. Turns out there was. I'll definitely do that in the future.

Don't worry, the thermometer is gone! I got one of the cheap generic digital ones off EBay, works pretty well. I put it in the bottom left corner. After I clean up all the salt creep from my mess acclimating the fish last night, I'll try to get an up to date FTS.

As for the ATO, no, no redundancy yet. I'll need to build another float switch into the circuit though, since I'm going to be traveling for business for 5 days in a few weeks and the tank will unfortunately be unsupervised at that time. I work from home now and the ATO uses a peristaltic pump, so the flow rate is very slow (around 0.5 gal/hour). I have it on a timer to only run for about 15 minutes every few hours, so if something does go wrong, I'll be able to catch it in time. Like I said, I'll need to correct that before going away for work though. I can't have it stick open while I'm gone. I'll post up some pics of the ATO design a little bit later on. I actually have a PWM motor control circuit in the mail so I can fully adjust the speed of the top off, essentially turning it into a dosing pump. So I may wait until I get that before posting more info.
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Thanks Glenn, they're really great fish and seem to be settling in quite well! They haven't eaten yet, but I think they're beginning to establish who is the dominant. This morning I noticed the semi-Picasso clown doing the "submission" shake to the other. I would estimate that he's a little bit bigger than the other, but I noticed he did it a few times, so they may have already decided who's the boss!

I got a few more pics yesterday:

DSCF1071.jpg


DSCF1083.jpg
 

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Thanks Glenn, they really are great little fish. Aside from the not eating, haha.

I picked up some San Francisco Bay mysis and they wanted nothing to do with that either. Picked it up in their mouth and spit it back out. To be fair to them, I think they're probably still getting used to the tank. They didn't get into the tank until Tuesday evening at around 4:00PM, yesterday was their first day in the new home, and today was only the second. I'm sure they'll come around in a few days. I've just been spoiled by my previous clowns.. they all ate the first day.

Hey Glenn... is Doni (Woodstock) still in the hobby? I know she sold the Snowcasso brand, but I haven't heard much besides that. I was devastated when I found out that she wasn't breeding clowns anymore and that I wouldn't be able to get another pair. I got two Snowcassos from her a few years back and they were outstanding fish. They were worth three times the price, easily. Some of the healthiest fish I had ever seen.
 
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