How do I build a fragging tank?

Avianman

Avianman

Member
Not sure if this should go in the equipment section or the fragging section, so I thought I would post here first - mods, feel free to move if necessary! :confused:

Okay - So I want to start fragging Ricordia because both my wife and I absolutely love them, and it appears they are forgiving. I want to set up a tank just for this purpose....something fairly small and minimal... like maybe 10 gallon?

I have a 46 gallon and a 12 gallon reef, but I have never ventured into anything like this!

If I set up, say, a 20 gallon (long) or a ten gallon tank, what would you recommend? Should I put sand? What type of filter? A small skimmer? What kind of lighting?

This will be in the basement, so it doesnt have to look pretty. I considered just bringing my 12 gallon home and using that, but Im afraid it doesnt have enough surface area.

Anyway, I appreciate your assistance in the matter! If this is posted somewhere else, kindly redirect me (without being a search nazi!)

B
 
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Swanheezy

Member
alot of people just use milk creat like plastic mesh to set them on, with no sand just power head and lighting, i would go with t5's with that small of a tank (20L)
 
Jeremy0322

Jeremy0322

Active Member
I have never personally ran a frag tank but looking at what most people I can recommend a few things.

First, your tank should be shallow, it allows for better light penetration and you dont need the vertical space if it wont be a display tank.

Second, you wont want sand or rock in the tank more than likely. Skim the tank really well and you wont have any issues more than likely. You will want to use eggcrate depending on where the lights are above the tank and what kind they are, but in a shallow tank you can probably get by without even that, just frag disks on the bottom and call it a day.

The biggest need for frag tanks is the lighting and the water quality. You will want a lighting setup that doesnt look the prettiest but offered the wavelength necessary for fast growth rates. The water quality will also need to be kept up with, which would be an advantage of going with a tank larger than a 10 gallon as they can be hard to keep water quality levels correct. You will also need a few powerheads, flow is pretty important in a frag tank.

Like I said before though, some of this could be wrong, your best bet is to look around for some frag tank builds and see what others are doing.
 
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thereefersspot

Member
next week i will start setting up my frag tank, ill try to take pictures of it, the you out. Its 48inch long, and 12 inch high, i will have 2 250w metal halides one it,sump, skimmer, total water volume ~70g, if you hve any questions, pm me
 
PIMPALA

PIMPALA

Well-Known Member
if there are no fish, no sand, no LR... just frags... and you do regular water changes, why on earth would you need a skimmer?
 
Avianman

Avianman

Member
PIMPALA said:
if there are no fish, no sand, no LR... just frags... and you do regular water changes, why on earth would you need a skimmer?
Click to expand...

Im just guessing, but since frags are coral, would they not represent a substantial bio-load, especially if they are being fed regularly?
 
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thereefersspot

Member
101_6601.JPG
heres some pics of my frag tank
101_6602.JPG


the tank is 12 x 24 x 48 inch, it has two 175w metal halides, four 65 pc actinics, a 20 gal sump, proteinskimmer, two 1300gph powerheads, if you want more pics let me know
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Coral are basically ZERO on the bio-load but if you're feeding the tank to PUSH their growth then there is indeed SOME degree of bio-load. Not much unless you're really OVER feeding the tank and UNDER skimming it.

Shallow and long tends to be more acceptable for a frag tank. No sense in paying the extra $$$ for light penertration if it's not a display tank.

I personally will never EVER use Egg-Crate again in a tank. If you get the RIGHT stuff it's not big deal but if you get the WRONG stuff you have a nasty Hair Algae outbreak on your hands. From now on I use ACRYLIC frag stands only. Acrylic or NOTHING!!!

Good luck and Happy Fragging!!!
 
Triggerjay

Triggerjay

Well-Known Member
Hey al, I never thought about using acrylic for frag stands. Great idea. I have used egg crate in the past with the same hair algae results you describe. I need to quit lurking around here, or take the plunge again.. still have not decided.. lol

Jason
 
catran

catran

Well-Known Member
They sell "stackable" which means 4 frag racks that fit into a 5 gallon bucket for you to transport for $55.00. I was thinking about starting a frag tank myself and using these since they break down into tiers. There's around 120 holes on these 4 racks. The Blue Glow also has long racks (4 tiers) but they are kind of expensive. They also have 2 Tiered long racks for about $25.00. Or, you can use standard Eshopps racks, but they are magnetic and more expensive for the amount of frag holes compared to the Blue Glow. Big Al is right. I have messed around with egg crate for racks several times, seems like it sucks up detritus and algae. Annnd.... it's very aggrevating to work with!! Egg-Crate really SUX!
Here's the link:
the blue glow
 
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