Help me put together a 24g Aquapod SPS tank

[clownfool]

I need some input on how I should set up my new SPS tank and how to maintain it and have thriving SPS in it.

O.K. I got a 24g Aquapod nano tank
I really like this tank and plan on having it setup for years.
I have done some research on keeping SPS, and I feel comfortable about my knowledge of what I need, but anyone can help me out if I'm doing something wrong.
So I have my setup and will be starting this tank in the next week or two.
I have a 150w HQI MH, I think that will work.
The 24g aquapod is 19.75" wide, I have a CPR AquaFuge PS Small w/ Protein Skimmer. 19.25"L x 4"W x 15"T

I plan on going Barebottom in the display, because if I put 4in of sand in there, there won't be much water and it will look really small.
The refugium/protein skimmer HOB is going to have about 12pounds of sand in the refugium about 4" deep. The refugium holds an extra 3.5g of water.
I'm not sure what kind of sand I need for the refugium (can anybody tell me what kind of sand to use?).
I always here about southdown sand, I think that is what I'll use w/some live sand from somebodys refugium.
In the next week or two I will be buying some small live rock for the nano, to start the cycling. That rock should do fine as a biological filter and provide denitrification. Is that right?
I'm going to add another pump in the back to increase the flow and to make more flow. The tank came with a Hydor wavemaker. I am considering drilling another hole on the right and installing another Hydor wavemaker with that extra pump. Do you think that will be enough water movement?
The chamber in the back houses a big huge sponge, which I will be removing from that chamber. I also have a JBJ auto topoff.
So I have pretty much everything I need to support the SPS right?
I only plan on having one fish(fairy wrasse) maybe two.
1.Live Rock
2.Protein Skimmer
3.150W Metal Halide
4.Water flow
5.And a two-part dosing of calcium and ALK
6.Refugium plants and sand

How often should I do a water change and what % ?

What else will I need to do to make this work good besides all the water testing kits?
I will be posting pics as this project goes on.
_________________

[Charlie97L]

first off, don't dose anything until your tests show that you need it. this is a VERY common mistake, and has given many people fits on this board.

i think until you get a heavy coral load, which will take months in a new system, regular water changes should keep your params stable.

there is such a thing as too much calcium and alkalinity. if the coral isn't using it up, don't dose it.

i've never seen a CPR fuge run on a nanocube before. do you know anyone who has done this? i would worry about the weight distorting and possibly cracking the tank. those are made to be all in one units. i'd post on N-R.com and ask about it.

is this your first tank? since you're asking about cycling, i'm going to assume so. i'd recommend stocking lps/softies for the first few months. for a few reasons. 1, it will let you get used to the maintenance you need to do. 2, it will allow the tank to stabalize, every new tank has swings, and sps hate unstable conditions, nanos especially can swing around initially, with their smaller water volume. 3, it will allow you to get a feel for coral husbandry before you get into the hardest ones.

sps are very difficult to keep, long term. a lot of people make it look easy, and short term, yeah, they are tolerant. however, having just moved to an sps tank from my 58 softie/lps, it's tons more work. if your water gets the slightest bit out of whack, the sps lose their color rapidly. this is from personal experience.

this is not to discourage you, just to give you a heads up. it's very rewarding to have a successful sps tank. i'm on the way towards that.

other than the fuge question, i think you're good on equipment. i'd use at least mj1200s on the hydror flos, be aware they decrease output by a lot.

if this is your first saltwater, though, i wouldn't jump right into that. let me know if you have questions!

[billyr98]

lots of great info from Charlie there... Also with a 15" tall tank, you might consider a 250w MH but I am not totally positive on this.. But SPS does like the High Light and High flow!!!

[BrothaWolf]

I rigged a CPR fuge on my bio 29 with no problems Just make sure you put something under it to support the weight and you will be fine

[lcstorc]

ditto to Charlie and Billy. SPS are one of the hardest things to keep particularly in a nano. Keep a close eye on water paramaters. Lots of light and lots of flow if you want to make it work.
Also you are likely to need frequent water changes with a high quality salt in the nano. Personally I like TM Pro Reef.

[Chiefmcfuz]

That skimmer is worthless I would look into getting a remora protien skimmer and getting rid of the fuge. JMO

[DaveK]

I think that unless you have a lot of experience with SPS corals, trying to do this in a nano reef is going to be a waist of time, money and effort. SPS corals are among the more difficult to keep. Strangely enough, if you are successful, you have another problem. The corals can easily outgrow the tank.

If you want to try anyway, set the tank up, let it get well established, with easier to keep items, and then try a frag or two. This is not an area to rush things.

As mentioned the CPR fuge/skimmer is about worthless. I've had several very bad experiences with CPR equipment, including a fuge, and would be hard pressed to ever use anything made by them.

Most of the other equipment you have is fine. Still it's going to take a lot of care and some luck to pull this off.

[Jasonf08]

Hey everyone here has a good opinion. But i have a biocube 29 with all sps & 1 lps & 1 gsp, & let me tell you my tank is doing awesome. The bigest problem as everyone else has said is get your tank rock solid stable. If its not stable then they wont live. If you keep up on your maintenance your tank will cycle down to all 0 on the ammonia, nitrite, & nitrate. I have seen major growth rate variation when you keep messing with the tank water quality, even with the calcium / alkalinity. The best thing to do is get the water stable. True at first calcium / alkalinity is easy to keep up because of some good quality salt out there, but you must be able to keep it stable when it starts taking in alot of calcium.

GOOD luck & keep us all posted & it should work out for you.

[JFK_Jr]

You would be undertaking a difficult endeavor trying to maintain an SPS tank of that size. You would need to let the tank mature for several months before adding anything, and then I would start really, really slow with some of the hardier SPS... Montis, Milleporas... etc. Definitely go with aqua-cultured frags instead of wild SPS for a better chance of success.

Many people think that because they have a tank stuffed full of SPS corals that are doing OK... means they are successful keeping SPS. True success with SPS can only be measured by long term thriving of the corals and noticeable growth.

[Ganomish]

I really agree with the rest. Go slow.
Seriously think about starting with softies. If nothing else, they will keep you entertained while your tank stabilizes. Plus you can sell them off as you convert to SPSs slowly after 6-12 months. Don't even try any SPSs until your softies and LPS are thriving, and that probably won't be for a while. And I don't mean you bought a 10 head CandyCane and it didn't die, I mean your mushrooms and Zoas are doubling every couple of months. Buy small, let 'em grow and sell the frags when you want to replace them. Start your SPSs small also.
I also really wonder if you can stabilize that small of a tank for SPSs with any fish at all.
Good Luck
Ganomish