questions about nano tanks

rtsurf01

New Member
i have a ninety gallon reef preety bad actually cant keep up with it not enough time on my hands and i was thinkin gettin maybe a 12 gallon nano cube all one set up rahter then try to keep up with all the metal halide and refuge yada yada can anyone me the good and bad attributes to a nano as compared to my ninety with problems and whatnot
 

aquaman3680

Well-Known Member
Well first off it is actually harder to keep a nano. They require more time and effort. The 90 should be pretty easy as it is a larger tank. In small tanks if you mess up it happens faster rather than in a bigger tank changes dont occur as quickly.

Heres a suggestion, post all the problems that you are having with your tank and lets see if we can get to the bottom of so much time you have to spend on your tank.

You should spend more time brushing your teeth in a month than working on the tank.

Matt
 

KMP

Active Member
well, i guess i'll stir the pot a little. nano's are not difficult. you cannot dispute that - yes, less water means things can go out of whack quicker - but they are not more work.

i have had absolutely no problems with my nano that i did not inflict on myself by merely not getting smart enough on a couple issues. that aside, i spend 1 hour a week testing the water, doing a water change (4g) and cleaning the glass. is that harder than a big tank?

i'd be curious to know how many folks that continually state nanos are difficult have ever had a nano. or perhaps, those that have both can give us an honest swag on which is more maintenance.
 
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prow

Well-Known Member
well i have a few tanks and my nano has been by far the easiest. true issues become problems much quicker in a small tank but the same problem is much easier to fix. in a nano it would take no time to replace 100% of the water.
one issue you will might have with a nano is the evaporation. you will have to stay on top of that because in mid summer you can loss 5-10% of your water volume in one day, changing your chemistry and osmotic pressures in the tank. some inverts dont tolerate such changes. IMO i think a nano is just harder to stabilize but once it is stable it becomes much easier to deal with than a larger tank. cleaning is a snap.
 

Gina

Moderator
RS STAFF
Good thread guys!
I've never had a nano but, have always heard that they are harder to keep than a larger reef. It's interesting reading the different responses from the nano keepers. Let's keep this discussion going!
 

KMP

Active Member
in mid summer you can loss 5-10% of your water volume in one day

i have heard this among some other nano keepers. for myself, i have a closed lid and have never had to add water between water changes. from week to week the water level might go down a 1/4".
 

misbehavior

Member
The timing of this thread amazes me. I have been fighting the urge to start a nano tank. I wanted to have one at work but wondered if two days was too long to leave it?
 

Charlie97L

Well-Known Member
you should be fine two days... it's getting the boss's approval that's tough.

i have a 20 gallon custom acrylic sitting in my closet that i SOOO want to start up. i have lights, skimmer, display fuge, return pump, sump... all there... i just need bulkheads, powerheads, and a heater...

but no stand. i visualized this custom jobby and i have to have it now. i have no place to do wood working either, otherwise i'd make it. i doubt it'd take more than 2 days. :-(
 

prow

Well-Known Member
KMP said:
i have heard this among some other nano keepers. for myself, i have a closed lid and have never had to add water between water changes. from week to week the water level might go down a 1/4".
humm no issues with gas exchange? although climate plays a big role, in a weeks time i would think a 10g would easily have evaporated 1 gal of water.
 

Charlie97L

Well-Known Member
climate will make a difference, but it won't be that bad, unless you keep your house wayyy hotter than your tank. i only evaporate about 3-4 gallons a week on my 70 gallon (total vol.) system, and i'm running MH, T5, fans, etc. it really depends, but i don't think i've ever seen a nano with that severe evap.
 

justinmcleod

New Member
I have been keeping a 5 gallon nano for about 4 months now and can say that I do agree that you must pay more attention to your tank parameters - for instance I have noticed that if I slip and don't do a weekly water change my nitrites will rise, so you have to keep an eye on it. But I am a poor graduate student, so I love mine, due to my budget constraints, so I will end on the usual advice that if you don't mind the top-offs and water changes it is good alternative to bigger more expensive tanks.
 

jesse_224

Member
I have had my 10 gal. set up for about 9 months now and havent had any serious problems. This is my first SW tank and it has been pretty simple really. Everything has been stable since I first cycled. My tank evaporates about 1/2 to 3/4 a gal. per week. I have also heard alot about how hard nanos are to keep. I think that really depends on how much you pay attention to your tank. Keep up with the test, top offs, and water changes and things are fine.
 

KMP

Active Member
humm no issues with gas exchange? although climate plays a big role, in a weeks time i would think a 10g would easily have evaporated 1 gal of water.

No, there are fans in the lid, I have closed loop circulation agitating the water surface, and I often leave the feed door open.
 

Charlie97L

Well-Known Member
i think a lot of that misconception may come from the fact that they are small, so they're easier to not pay attention to. it's reverse, you'd think a bigger tank would need much more attentino, but it doesn't really.

i'm glad to see so many nano succuess stories! makes me want to get mine running!
 

phil

New Member
i have a 24 gal nano but i run a 15 gal sump with it a good asm skimmer and a hang on fuge on the sump so it increases the water volume. the only drawback to a nano in my opinion is the smaller the water volume the faster things can go wrong and you are more likely to get temp swings. if you add a sump that will increase this volume and lowers these risks in my opinion. i also believe the amount of time i spend on the nano is not much different than when i had a 55 gal reef tank.
 

sandman3467

Member
Gina said:
Good thread guys!
I've never had a nano but, have always heard that they are harder to keep than a larger reef. It's interesting reading the different responses from the nano keepers. Let's keep this discussion going!


When I originally started out on my own I owned a 20L.Compared to the 180 my cousin and I have in CA at my aunts place.As stated they are as easy as a regular set-up with only one draw back that I saw.Errors come alot faster than with larger set-ups.


Good luck on your new venture.
 

lcstorc

Well-Known Member
Well my nano is not really a nano since it shares water w/my 125g reef. The bigggest drawback I can think of is the risk of overpopulating the tank. With the limitation of 1in of fish per 5g of water in a 25g you would be limited to 5in of fish. That would be really difficult for me. I have a tough enough time restraining myself from adding to my current system. It's a good thing that corals don't count in the equation or I would be in big trouble.
 

daveat

Member
I have a 24 gallon nano cube deluxe- i have had 0 problems with it. it was started with cycled liverock and live sand. i absentmindedly have forgotton to do a water change in the last... ohh... 5 weeks and i tested my water params before doing a 20% and everything (nitrates, nitrites, amm.) were allstill 0 my ph was 8.4 my salinity was 1.026 (i do freshwater topoffs 1/week)

the only problem i have ever had is i have a macro algae that likes to take over the tank. i also have some xenias that are controlling half of the tank. i have been keeping a oc. clown and a blue-green reef chromis since the tank start up. i also have several mushroom colonies and a orange plate coral.

i don't have a skimmer. my tank temp is consistantly high (83-85) but is stable and nobody seems to mind

other than spending 30-45 min once a week to clean glass (and if i remember to do a water change) i don't do any real maint. i have a pepp. shrimp 5 nassarius snails and 2 turbos that keep everthing clean for me

if you have any other questions about nanos feel free to ask. i also just started a 10 ga. that i was going to use as a hospital for my new Flame Angel (came down with ich) but he seems to be shaking it off quite well so i will probably just turn it into another show tank
 

daveat

Member
oh yeah another nice thing is the low cost... i probably only have 1000 wrapped up in this whereas the three other tanks i've set up for a friend have cost well into the tens of thousands (240, 150 and a 120)
 
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