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Set-up plans for 16 gal and a few questions


Jean-Loup

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Dear all,

 

I have kept freshwater tanks for a few years, and am interested to start on a nano reef (I am in Melbourne, Australia). I quite like the look of the IM Nuvo 16, so I think I will purchase that one in a few weeks, once I have finish the reading, thinking and planning. I have been reading lots of thread, and a couple of books on nano reef (the one from Thiel and another from Brightwell). I still have some questions to which I couldn't really find the answer, especially about filtration.

 

In terms of aims, I will like to start it as a FOWLR (a pair of juvenile oceollaris after about a month once the tank has cycled, maybe a 6 line wrasse later on), but possibly upgrade with a few corals down the road (zoanthids to start with).

 

A first list of questions, maybe not in the most logical order:

1. The Nuvo come with 2 media baskets, containing mechanical sponges, activated carbon and phosphate sponge. I have read different setups, with usually people having filter floss on the top, and then on the 2 lower levels either chemipure, purigen, activated carbon, phosguard, or chaeto (is chaeto's main role to provide nutrients for corals, or does it also filtrate some water compounds?). Which one of those are essential, and can you have one media basket with one combination and the second media basket with a different combination of filtration substrates? Should the GFO reactor substitute for the 2 second media basket, or does it go into the 3rd compartment (I have read Nuvo 16 has 4 chambers)?

 

2. I am planning to add about 20 lbs of rock and probably about the same of aragonite (not necesarily live) sand to fill about an inch of the bottom. With the rock, is it best to purchase 20 lbs of LR, or I have also seen some people arguing to get a couple of pounds of LR, and the rest of dry rock, supposedly minimizing potential hitchhikers. I assume the later option will make for a slower cycle.

 

3. CUC: Should I add snails and hermits all together once the tank cycled, or a couple at a time? I have come across different types of hermits: scarlet reef, blue legs, red legs. Are they all as good at the job? Can you mix different types in the same tank? Same with snails: astrae, cerith; both as good at the job, can you mix species? Finally, shrimp: is the best peppermint or is there other good ones (scarlet cleaner)? How many would you keep of each (hermits, snails, shrimp) given that the fishes at first will only be the pair of small oceollaris? I was thinking 2 hermits, 4-5 snails and 1 shrimp, but references seem hard given it has to be adequate for the bioload.

 

I think I will upgrade to a skimmer later down the road, and will carefully keep up with weekly water changes until then. I have access to Milli-Q water, and from what I have read, it should meet the quality criteria for water change.

 

I will probably let it to that for now. I really want to sort out the filtration to start setting up the tank, and probably will sort out lights, fishes and CUC while it's cycling. I am hoping the two 8W SkyyeLight LED that the Nuvo 16 comes from would be fine to start with the 2 oceollaris and maybe the zoanthids (?). If I get the coral fever that some of you caught (I understand that's a risk of this hobby! I am probably susceptible given how much I like snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef), I may decide to upgrade the lights down the road.

 

If you have any tips or advices, these are all welcome as well. I have been trying to read as much as possible, but at times it can become confusing.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Cheers,

 

Jean-Loup

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Good to see a reefer from down under. It looks like you have a decent plan. In response to your questions:

 

1. You may want to look into getting the inTank media baskets, as the ones that come with the tank are not of great quality. The sponges that come with the tank as well are not the best. Usually they get clogged very quickly and water will be spilling over and around the basket. Many people with these tanks have the media baskets and run from top to bottom: filter floss, seachem purigen, chemipure elite. Some run carbon or some type if GFO in the bottom 2 areas. I personally have the reactor and recommend it highly, since it utilizes the media much more effectively. I use the media baskets but with just filter floss and minimal amounts of media. Chaeto is a type of macro algae(there are other commonly used types) that will take up nutrients and out compete other forms of nuisance algae. It will also aid in pod culture if you use it in the refugium chamber. Keep in mind you will need an additional light over the back chamber to grow the macro.

 

2. IMO 20 lbs of rock is probably too much for this tank depending on how porous it is. I would say that around 10-14 lbs will provide a decent looking display that is not overwhelmed with rock. Go with what looks good to you by eye. If you want to, you can throw some rubble in the back chamber with the chaeto. If you go with live rock, try to inspect it as closely as possible if you have the option. I went with live rock and enjoyed seeing the various hitchhikers, the majority of which are beneficial. If something pops up during the cycle you can usually remove or deal with it then, especially since you are starting with just fish. This is just my opinion, others will disagree.

 

3. For the CUC I would add only 3-4 snails and maybe 1 or 2 inverts to start and go from there. Wait a few weeks to see how they are handling the algae. All of the CUC you mentioned are reef safe and can be added together without issue. The hermits may kill a snail from time to time, but few and far between. Try to get variety in your CUC so that they will be able to handle different types of algae that may pop up. I highly recommend red-banded trochus snails, and I have read that scarlets are the least aggressive of the hermits. For the shrimp, I wouldn't recommend the peppermint since they are reclusive and from time to time could pick on soft corals and LPS. The cleaner will be fine, or a blood/fire shrimp. I wouldn't do more than one in a tank this size, but you may be able to keep 2.

 

The 8w skkye lights are fine for zoanthids, mushrooms, and many other soft corals. I also kept LPS and montipora caps with them before upgrading the lights. You just need to make sure they are not high light demanding corals and you will be fine.

 

Also another tip, do your research before going to the Fish store. Don't take the employees at their word when it comes to livestock, most of the time they are making it up as they go, and they just don't know.

 

Good Luck!

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Another good read for keeping a reef tank is "The Book of Coral Propagation" by Anthony Calfo. It is not geared towards nano-tanks but has a lot of good information, especially for filtration and keeping corals.

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Thanks CrazyCarl, that helps a lot.

 

What about the IM custom caddy basket? Are there any good, or are they similar to the ones that comes with the Nuvo 16 anyway, and still not as good as the inTank media baskets?

 

When you mention the combination filter floss / purigen / chemipure elite, is there any advantage of having 2 columns with the same arrangements, or is it better to diversify and use the 2nd column to place activated carbon or a GFO reactor?

 

Thanks!

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I use the intank with filter floss/chemi pure/ purigen in both chambers and have seen good results.

 

The media reactor probably works well but my water is crystal clear with just the 2 baskets. As long as you keep up with water changes the 2 baskets should be more than enough.

 

Just make sure you do not over feed your tank and if you do overfeed do it the day before a waterchange

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I am not familiar with the IM custom caddy baskets, I think they are a copy of the inTank baskets, and the original is always better! www.mediabaskets.com

 

I would start with what Jmevox said as many use that combo with success in both columns. I believe chemipure is a mixture of carbon, GFO and a DI resin. So it really has everything in it anyway. I am currently running Phosgaurd (does the same thing as GFO), ESV Carbon and Purigen. Chemipure is kind of expensive but definitely a good product IMO. You can't go wrong with either combo. The reactor probably isn't necessary if you practice good husbandry and maintenance. However when the time comes and you want to try and keep some of the more challenging corals(SPS) that demand near perfect parameters, then you will want it.

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Thanks CrazyCarl. I ordered the tank, planning to order soon the inTank media baskets, and will follow you guys advices of running filter floss / chemipure elite / purigen.

The next step will probably be me posting news about the tank cycling, and I will welcome your help at this stage depending on how it goes. I am planning to take it slowly, as it seems problems happens when people rush through it and add livestock either too much at a time or too early.

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  • 3 weeks later...

All right, here we are, first setup, excited and nervous all at the same time.

It’s still the Nuvo 16.

I have added:

  • 13.3 lbs (6kg) of rinsed coral sand (pretty fine, most grains are 1-2 mm diameter). I was aiming for a 1” (2.5cm) layer. However, after adding it all, it looks closer to 1.5-2” (4-5 cm) in some areas. Is that too much? I am not planning to have digger or burrower inverts or fishes, apart from the CUC. Is there any other advantage to have a deeper sand bed (apart from the real, much deeper, deep sand bed approach)?
  • Live rock: I have decided to put a decent amount, 16.3 lbs (7.4 kg), with 2 big pieces of about 4.8 lbs each and 3 smaller pieces between 2.2 and 2.8 lbs. I figured I can still remove one of the smaller pieces later on if I want less LR. I understand the minimalist landscape approach, but I would like to run ultimately with only LR and skimmer, and only use chemical filtration when really needed to fix an issue. I have read some people are quite successful with a simple system such as LR + skimmer, whereas chemical filtration becomes more important if the tank is almost overstocked and/or with too little LR. Is there some truth in there, or is that a naïve (beginner) belief? Alternatively, I was thinking to break one of the small LR piece and put the rubbles in one of the back chambers. Is that a good option? The guy at the LFS also noticed one small piece was not fully cured; maybe I should remove that one?

 

I hope the LR arrangement is steady; I have spent a long time trying to find the best way to put it together, but I found it the hardest part of the 9 hour setup day! I will attached 2 pictures. Are the LR too close to the back? I tried to keep the open space in the front, but I also don't want to impair the flow in the tank by placing the LR too much in the back.

  • One of the LR pieces seemed to have bryopsis on it (? see picture attached, basically a brown small filamentous aspect). I removed as much as I could from it before placing it into the tank, but some was still left-over in crevasses, which I couldn’t remove. Is that going to multiply once the cycle progresses? There is also a gluey dense green algae, which I try to brush off, but there are still some left on the LR. Hopefully those die off during the cycle instead of multiplying.
  • For now, I have the powerheads and heater running at 77F, one custom caddy media basket in which I fitted the top 2 compartments with filter floss, and I have left one of the default IM media baskets that come with the tank (which has filter floss, activated carbon sponge and phosphate sponge). Should I remove the carbon and phosphate sponge from that last basket?

 

Thanks for your advices. I will keep you updated during the cycle, as I am sure I will need some help.

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  • 1 month later...

2 weeks in for the small CUC and everyone is doing great; the trochus is hard at work while the hermit is playing around, and the 2 ceriths helping.

 

I have been thinking livestock. The tank is 5 weeks in, cycled from a few days in.

I am planning to add 2 clowns in 8 weeks from now, once the tank will be 3 months-old (mid-august), and that will probably be it with fishes for a while.

In the meantime, I thought I would try to colour it up a bit with 1 zoanthids and 1 green star polyps (I still have the IM stock light, 2 8W Skye light, but have added the spin stream nozzles).

 

For later, I was thinking to add a Pulsing Xenia once I add the clowns (since Xenia seems to appreciate some dirty water?), and once I get a good hand of it all (so probably in 6 months from now), step it up to Ricordea and Frogspawn (and at this time, think about upgrading the lights).

 

How does that sound to coral experts? Based on the Nuvo 16 stock lights, should I still start the zoa and GSP at the bottom of the tank?

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Start your zoas and star polyp on the sandbed to acclimate them to the light, then move them up to where you want them. With those lights they will only need a few days on the sandbed, then move them up a little for a few more days, etc, till you have them where you want them. A good rule of thumb for zoas is if they are reaching for the light (long necks), move them up a little.

 

If your tank is 5 weeks in, started with live rock, there should be no need to wait 8 more weeks for fish. I would give it another week with the CUC, then put the clowns in. If you wait 8 weeks, and dont feed the beneficial bacteria, it could weaken. Clowns are fairly hardy, so just keep an eye on your parameters for the first week or 2 after adding them and you should be good to go. If you see a spike in ammonia or nitrites, do some extra water changes to combat while the bb catches up. Honestly, from the sounds of it, your tank is nice and ready for fishy friends.

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Sounds like you are taking a pretty conservative approach. I agree with above it should not be a problem if you want to add the clowns now.

 

Be advised that the gsp will be very fast growing if the conditions are right and may eventually become a nuisance and overgrow and smother out other corals. I recommend placing it on the sandbed on its own individual rock so it can not spread uncontrollably.

 

Basically the same goes for Xenia. IME it seems to only grow/spread upward, so if you place it fairly high in the tank it will only overtake the areas above. HTH, and good luck.

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I understand your guys' point. The only reason why I am waiting to add the clowns is because I am leaving 1 week overseas in July, and 2 more weeks early August, so I rather add only a few corals (zoa, GSP) and wait to add the clowns once I get back, instead of having someone over feeding my tank and gets the parameters out of control once I get back.

 

Thanks for the spreading risk advices. I planned to add the GSP on a side small LR, and the xenia on its own small piece so that I can trim it if needed.

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