Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise?

Pinkmolly21 · 12-23-2007, 08:51 PM

We set up our Nano Cube a couple of weeks ago

the equipment:
24g nano cube
100w titanium finnex heater
hydor koralia nano pump

We added about 21 lbs of fully cured live rock and I guess 20-25 pounds of sand/crushed coral.

This was our first aquascape:

and it didn't take long until the brown algae started growing:

Yesterday we moved the rocks around a little bit and added a cuc...

we are gonna hide those cords at some point...
(FYI we= me and my boyfriend)

we got:

6 scarlet hermit crabs
12 blueleg hermit crabs
1 green hermit crab
3 turbo snails and 3 mexican turbo snails
and one emerald crab

I think that the snails are mostly way too big but we will see how it goes.

I guess the emerald crab is kind of shy...

and this guy was just too cute for us not to get him (and green is my favourite color)

I found a few scavengers in the life rock... couple tiny little feather dusters and a baby starfish...

Pinkmolly21 · 12-23-2007, 08:57 PM

Today I saw another scavenger. Some kind of bug was floating around for a little while and I'm pretty sure that there are babies too (little white balls with tiny black spot). Is there anything else it could be? I will keep trying to get a pic (the little sucker is just too fast for me).
I hope that whatever it is, I can consider it free fish food

And my boyfriend noticed some tubelike things that poop out hair like things... they are not feather dusters (unless they lost their "feathers") they are little white tubes that hide when something comes closer... and ever so often I see them spit'poop out those long thin (hairlike) things...

any advise? I hope we did everything right so far since this is our first reef tank.

dobejazz · 12-23-2007, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pinkmolly21

Today I saw another scavenger. Some kind of bug was floating around for a little while and I'm pretty sure that there are babies too (little white balls with tiny black spot). Is there anything else it could be? I will keep trying to get a pic (the little sucker is just too fast for me).
I hope that whatever it is, I can consider it free fish food

And my boyfriend noticed some tubelike things that poop out hair like things... they are not feather dusters (unless they lost their "feathers") they are little white tubes that hide when something comes closer... and ever so often I see them spit'poop out those long thin (hairlike) things...

any advise? I hope we did everything right so far since this is our first reef tank.

the hairlike things could be vermitid snails or spagetti worms possibly

Pinkmolly21 · 12-23-2007, 10:07 PM

I googled both... it doesn't look like either of them...
maybe I can get a pic and post it at some point...

thank you though dobejazz...

BigAl07 · 12-23-2007, 10:34 PM

The tank is looking GREAT! I am a HUGE fan of "Cubes" as I have a 12g on my desk at work and have a 6g ordered for my wife's desk at her work.

I like the rock-work. It's simple and effective. I think you'll like the Koralia pump in there too.

Have you already removed the media in the rear chambers? Also note there are usually THREE sponges stashed back there that should either be removed totally or washed/replaced every few days.

What are your current water test results?

Good luck and Happy Reefing

Pinkmolly21 · 12-24-2007, 12:09 AM

took two of the sponges out and the ceramic rings and bioballs...

so all that's left is one sponge, the active carbon and we added some life rock rubble... The heater is back there also...

We've been rinsing the sponge every few days...
Do you think we should leave it in there or would filter floss be better?

ph: 8.1
ammonia: 0
Calcium: 340 ppm
KH: 12dKH or 214.8 ppm
Phosphate: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 10 ppm
salinity: 1.025

lcstorc · 12-24-2007, 07:08 AM

Welcome to RS!
You have the nice beginnings of a cube there.
Personally I would remove the sponge and use filter floss. It is just easier to swap out the floss than to clean the sponge.
I do thing you are heavy on the CUC for that size tank. Be sure to keep an eye on them. If the crabs are hungry they will eat anything including the snails.
What are your plans for the tank? We would love to hear them.
Just remember to go slow. You can't rush a reef tank specially one of that sizw. You will need to check your water parameters frequently and do a lot of small water changes. With the proper maintenance they can be wonderful tanks.

Pinkmolly21 · 12-24-2007, 12:10 PM

I think I will remove the snails... they're just way too big. Last night they must have climbed on the surface skimmer and it fell down.

Which snails should I get?

Two of the blueleg hermits turned out to be just empty shells. Oh well...

Our plans... I don't know... My BF definitely wants a firefish. And I'm planing on getting a tiny clown and a yellow clown goby... and a cleaner shrimp of course...

When it comes to coral, we want to go as easy as possible. A few shrooms and a bubble coral maybe...ricordea... some zoos...

What else would you suggest?

Since this is our first reef tank, we are planning on just getting one thing at a time.. that way we can get used to each corral/fish before we add something new... But I admit, we went a little crazy with the cuc.

Cal Native · 12-24-2007, 01:28 PM

Congratulations! One word of advice, don't get any fish that will in time get to big for your nano. This will save you headaches trying to catch it. (speaking from experience) Will you need a chiller for those warm summer months to keep your temp. stable? I would also get a protein skimmer.

les · 12-24-2007, 01:57 PM

Is a protein absolutly neccassary for small Nano's ? I'm setting up a bio 29, very new to the reef. I am learning more and more every day, thanks everyone. thankfully my lfs seems to be right on.

lcstorc · 12-24-2007, 02:11 PM

1st on the stocking list, I think that is pretty realistic. Keep in mind the clown will grow and possibly get pretty large. I have a maroon clown that is about 4 inches long. I think maroons are the biggest but my Clarki is pretty big too.
The only thing on the coral is remember that bubble coral stings. You may not want one in such a small environment.

Now to the skimmer question. Is is absolutely necessary? No. Is it a wonderful thing that will help immensely? yes
Particularly with small tanks you do not have much room for error due to the small amount of water. Basically this means you will need to watch it closely and do a lot of water changes. A good skimmer is a great tool to help keep your parameters where they need to be.

CATALYST · 12-24-2007, 02:21 PM

You can get away without a skimmer if you use a poly filter. I did for awhile but got tired of cleaning it. It worked good though. You may want to add more fine sand on top of your cc. Enough to make it about 3". You can feed your snails some nori too if they are running out of algae to eat.

Pinkmolly21 · 12-24-2007, 09:48 PM

I was thinking about getting a percula... those get up to 3 inches I believe...
I didn't know that bubble coral sting...
How about hammer coral? Are those pretty easy to keep?

About the protein skimmer... I was thinking about getting one that fits inside the middle chamber in the back... besides the sapphire one, is there another one that would fit? And if I had a protein skimmer in there, would the water level have to be lower than it is now?

Another question... We use premixed water from our lfs and I know that I am supposed to top of with freshwater... So where do I buy that? I heard that some people buy distilled water... is that right?

And please keep in mind that I'm completely new to this hobby....

Pinkmolly21 · 12-24-2007, 09:50 PM

Oh.... and couldn't I just build my own protein skimmer? Does anybody know somebody who did that?

dobejazz · 12-24-2007, 11:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pinkmolly21

I was thinking about getting a percula... those get up to 3 inches I believe...
I didn't know that bubble coral sting...
How about hammer coral? Are those pretty easy to keep?

About the protein skimmer... I was thinking about getting one that fits inside the middle chamber in the back... besides the sapphire one, is there another one that would fit? And if I had a protein skimmer in there, would the water level have to be lower than it is now?

Another question... We use premixed water from our lfs and I know that I am supposed to top of with freshwater... So where do I buy that? I heard that some people buy distilled water... is that right?

And please keep in mind that I'm completely new to this hobby....

Distilled water is fine for topping off.

I know many people think a skimmer is required but my 24g nano cube has been running without one for almost 3 years. With soft corals and a low fish load water changes are plenty

12-23-2007, 08:51 PM	#1 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? We set up our Nano Cube a couple of weeks ago the equipment: 24g nano cube 100w titanium finnex heater hydor koralia nano pump We added about 21 lbs of fully cured live rock and I guess 20-25 pounds of sand/crushed coral. This was our first aquascape: and it didn't take long until the brown algae started growing: Yesterday we moved the rocks around a little bit and added a cuc... we are gonna hide those cords at some point... (FYI we= me and my boyfriend) we got: 6 scarlet hermit crabs 12 blueleg hermit crabs 1 green hermit crab 3 turbo snails and 3 mexican turbo snails and one emerald crab I think that the snails are mostly way too big but we will see how it goes. I guess the emerald crab is kind of shy... and this guy was just too cute for us not to get him (and green is my favourite color) I found a few scavengers in the life rock... couple tiny little feather dusters and a baby starfish... Last edited by Pinkmolly21 : 12-23-2007 at 09:00 PM. Reason: forgot to mention

12-23-2007, 08:57 PM	#2 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? Today I saw another scavenger. Some kind of bug was floating around for a little while and I'm pretty sure that there are babies too (little white balls with tiny black spot). Is there anything else it could be? I will keep trying to get a pic (the little sucker is just too fast for me). I hope that whatever it is, I can consider it free fish food And my boyfriend noticed some tubelike things that poop out hair like things... they are not feather dusters (unless they lost their "feathers") they are little white tubes that hide when something comes closer... and ever so often I see them spit'poop out those long thin (hairlike) things... any advise? I hope we did everything right so far since this is our first reef tank.

12-23-2007, 10:07 PM	#4 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? I googled both... it doesn't look like either of them... maybe I can get a pic and post it at some point... thank you though dobejazz...

12-23-2007, 10:34 PM	#5 (permalink)
BigAl07 Reef Addict (hopeless) Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Waynesville, North Carolina Posts: 10,619 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? The tank is looking GREAT! I am a HUGE fan of "Cubes" as I have a 12g on my desk at work and have a 6g ordered for my wife's desk at her work. I like the rock-work. It's simple and effective. I think you'll like the Koralia pump in there too. Have you already removed the media in the rear chambers? Also note there are usually THREE sponges stashed back there that should either be removed totally or washed/replaced every few days. What are your current water test results? Good luck and Happy Reefing __________________ Allen Allen's testimonial . . ."Let Me help you help YOURSELF" (Click Here) with a SW set up there is one basic fundamental rule that we ALL should follow *When in doubt... wait it out. This means take it slow and let the tank "develop" and don't rush it. Time is your friend Ask me about how to increase your REEF budget without going without FOOD!!* Big Al's 10g Julie's (BigAl's Gal) 6g NanoCube BigAl's Slow 90g Tank Chronicle Allens OFFICE 12g Nano-Reef Reef Balls & Cakes Debt Free & Change your Family Tree!!

12-24-2007, 12:09 AM	#6 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? took two of the sponges out and the ceramic rings and bioballs... so all that's left is one sponge, the active carbon and we added some life rock rubble... The heater is back there also... We've been rinsing the sponge every few days... Do you think we should leave it in there or would filter floss be better? ph: 8.1 ammonia: 0 Calcium: 340 ppm KH: 12dKH or 214.8 ppm Phosphate: 0 ppm Nitrite: 0 ppm Nitrate: 10 ppm salinity: 1.025

12-24-2007, 07:08 AM	#7 (permalink)
lcstorc Sunshine Reefer Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Cocoa Fl Posts: 18,473 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? Welcome to RS! You have the nice beginnings of a cube there. Personally I would remove the sponge and use filter floss. It is just easier to swap out the floss than to clean the sponge. I do thing you are heavy on the CUC for that size tank. Be sure to keep an eye on them. If the crabs are hungry they will eat anything including the snails. What are your plans for the tank? We would love to hear them. Just remember to go slow. You can't rush a reef tank specially one of that sizw. You will need to check your water parameters frequently and do a lot of small water changes. With the proper maintenance they can be wonderful tanks. __________________ Peace LYNN You can't change the past but you can change how you view it. A reef tank is like a racecar. The faster you go the harder you crash. Lynn and Franks saltwater adventure Lynn's 20g clown tank Lynn's 90g of sunshine Every 60 seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back.

12-24-2007, 12:10 PM	#8 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? I think I will remove the snails... they're just way too big. Last night they must have climbed on the surface skimmer and it fell down. Which snails should I get? Two of the blueleg hermits turned out to be just empty shells. Oh well... Our plans... I don't know... My BF definitely wants a firefish. And I'm planing on getting a tiny clown and a yellow clown goby... and a cleaner shrimp of course... When it comes to coral, we want to go as easy as possible. A few shrooms and a bubble coral maybe...ricordea... some zoos... What else would you suggest? Since this is our first reef tank, we are planning on just getting one thing at a time.. that way we can get used to each corral/fish before we add something new... But I admit, we went a little crazy with the cuc.

12-24-2007, 01:28 PM	#9 (permalink)
Cal Native Serpent Star Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Long Beach, CA Posts: 202 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? Congratulations! One word of advice, don't get any fish that will in time get to big for your nano. This will save you headaches trying to catch it. (speaking from experience) Will you need a chiller for those warm summer months to keep your temp. stable? I would also get a protein skimmer.

12-24-2007, 01:57 PM	#10 (permalink)
les Fire Coral Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Connecticut Posts: 64 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? Is a protein absolutly neccassary for small Nano's ? I'm setting up a bio 29, very new to the reef. I am learning more and more every day, thanks everyone. thankfully my lfs seems to be right on.

12-24-2007, 02:11 PM	#11 (permalink)
lcstorc Sunshine Reefer Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Cocoa Fl Posts: 18,473 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? 1st on the stocking list, I think that is pretty realistic. Keep in mind the clown will grow and possibly get pretty large. I have a maroon clown that is about 4 inches long. I think maroons are the biggest but my Clarki is pretty big too. The only thing on the coral is remember that bubble coral stings. You may not want one in such a small environment. Now to the skimmer question. Is is absolutely necessary? No. Is it a wonderful thing that will help immensely? yes Particularly with small tanks you do not have much room for error due to the small amount of water. Basically this means you will need to watch it closely and do a lot of water changes. A good skimmer is a great tool to help keep your parameters where they need to be. __________________ Peace LYNN You can't change the past but you can change how you view it. A reef tank is like a racecar. The faster you go the harder you crash. Lynn and Franks saltwater adventure Lynn's 20g clown tank Lynn's 90g of sunshine Every 60 seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back.

12-24-2007, 02:21 PM	#12 (permalink)
CATALYST Harlequin Tuskfish Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: SoCal Posts: 916 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? You can get away without a skimmer if you use a poly filter. I did for awhile but got tired of cleaning it. It worked good though. You may want to add more fine sand on top of your cc. Enough to make it about 3". You can feed your snails some nori too if they are running out of algae to eat.

12-24-2007, 09:48 PM	#13 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? I was thinking about getting a percula... those get up to 3 inches I believe... I didn't know that bubble coral sting... How about hammer coral? Are those pretty easy to keep? About the protein skimmer... I was thinking about getting one that fits inside the middle chamber in the back... besides the sapphire one, is there another one that would fit? And if I had a protein skimmer in there, would the water level have to be lower than it is now? Another question... We use premixed water from our lfs and I know that I am supposed to top of with freshwater... So where do I buy that? I heard that some people buy distilled water... is that right? And please keep in mind that I'm completely new to this hobby....

12-24-2007, 09:50 PM	#14 (permalink)
Pinkmolly21 Tubeworm Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 36 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Starting my 24G Nano cube... any advise? Oh.... and couldn't I just build my own protein skimmer? Does anybody know somebody who did that?

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