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IM Nuvo 24g budget build


mdaprasad

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I would like to document the process such that it will help me and others as well

 

My first African Cichlid tank (picture attached) and now on to my first and last reef tank.

 

So far I was able to gather the following

 

1. Stand (http://www.petco.com/product/101394/Aquatic-Fundamentals-303845-Gallon-Upright-Aquarium-Stand.aspx) for around $67.00 including taxes

 

2. IM Nuvo 24 gal tank for mid $300 after 20% discount

 

3. TaoTronics® TT-AL09 165w Dimmable Led Aquarium Lights (http://www.amazon.com/TaoTronics%C2%AE-TT-AL09-Dimmable-Aquarium-Seaweed/dp/B0092LXQRM) for around $140

 

4. 30 Lbs of Live rock at local LFS for $3.99 (Yet to collect, I think I can find better deal on Craigs List but will leave this one for now).

 

5. 20 Lbs of Live sand (Caribasea).

 

I need some help from the good people of this forum about

 

1. Light - is above light good enough? and hanging options - I cannot hang it from ceiling so must do some DIY light mount or any good suggestion to avoid this DIY hassle.

 

2. Live rock - I think 30 Lbs is alot, what do you think?

 

3. I see I need two spin streams but I also see few nano tanks have Hydor Koralia Nano 425, do I need to have both or can I have one spin stream and one Hydor Koralia Nano 425?

 

4. Do I need a skimmer?

 

5. I see lot of people having Cobalt Aquatics Neo-Therm 100 watt but I plan to have Marineland 100watt, anything I need to think about this?

 

6. I am planning to get InTank baskets (http://shop.mediabaskets.com/Innovative-Marine-Nuvo-24-Package-Deal-IM24BUNDLE.htm) If anyone have any coupon codes etc please DM me.

 

7. How many fish? I think maximum 4 or 5, I like tangs but I guess that's a no no for this tank I am I right?

 

8. I plan to start fish first but slowly move to corals is that the good way?

 

9. I plan to mix water and salt in tank, I think that should be fine, I am I right here?

 

10. Do I need media reactors or can I get away without one.

 

11. Does anyone use special Nitrate removers if yes, please let me know which do you use.

 

I know lots of questions, thanks for reading...any help is really appreciated.

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1. Light - is above light good enough? and hanging options - I cannot hang it from ceiling so must do some DIY light mount or any good suggestion to avoid this DIY hassle.

 

I'm not particularly well versed in the lighting to say with any confidence if this is good enough or not. But, as for hanging two options that you can do is bend some conduit pipe to make a hanger that mounts onto your stand (I know I saw a really nice thread somewhere that walked through how to do this, but I can't find it now) or you could get some hanging plant basket brackets to mount onto your wall and hang the light from those.

2. Live rock - I think 30 Lbs is alot, what do you think?

 

Depends on how dense it is and the type of scape you want (eg do you want a lot of open space to have an acan garden?).

 

3. I see I need two spin streams but I also see few nano tanks have Hydor Koralia Nano 425, do I need to have both or can I have one spin stream and one Hydor Koralia Nano 425?

 

I don't think the spin streams are needed per se. I think you could go without if you have a Koralia.

 

4. Do I need a skimmer?

 

For a tank this size, it would be recommended unless you have a super light bioload and do tons of water changes.

 

5. I see lot of people having Cobalt Aquatics Neo-Therm 100 watt but I plan to have Marineland 100watt, anything I need to think about this?

 

I don't have any experience with that brand. I guess search the forums for reviews and maybe read reviews on Amazon to see how accurate and reliable that heater is.

 

6. I am planning to get InTank baskets (http://shop.mediabaskets.com/Innovative-Marine-Nuvo-24-Package-Deal-IM24BUNDLE.htm) If anyone have any coupon codes etc please DM me.

 

No coupon code, but I have a spare fuge basket for the 24 I could sell you.

 

7. How many fish? I think maximum 4 or 5, I like tangs but I guess that's a no no for this tank I am I right?

 

Depends a little on the fish -- fully grown size and where it likes to hang out (bottom dweller vs percher vs swimmer). 4-5 is probably a good rough idea though. And you are right, this is too small a tank for a tang.

 

8. I plan to start fish first but slowly move to corals is that the good way?

 

Yup.

 

9. I plan to mix water and salt in tank, I think that should be fine, I am I right here?

 

You will want to do it in a separate bucket so that you can get the specific gravity and temperature right before you dump it in your tank. Adding RODI and salt directly to the tank will shock/kill the inhabitants.

 

10. Do I need media reactors or can I get away without one.

 

Optional. Depends on your bioload and feeding habits.

 

11. Does anyone use special Nitrate removers if yes, please let me know which do you use.

 

I run Chemi-Pure Elite and Purigen in my tank currently, though I may switch to Chemi-Pure Blue after I start to hear feedback on it.

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Thanks alot Mirya, I appreciate your answers...do you have same tank? If yes, how do you like it?

 

That's exactly what I thought of light, I am planning to put a artificial palm tree behind the tank on a stand and get something like this from HomeDepot (http://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton-Bay-64-in-Single-Forged-Hook-844525HB/202295654?N=5yc1vZbx5w) and insert into the pot. hopefully that looks good.

 

 

Unfortunately I already ordered two spin streams so I have to stick with these and see, later I can add Korali.

 

Skimmer, I want to skip it but if it reduces the maintenance then I need to consider it. Either I have to consider inTank baskets or skimmer hard choice to make so any suggestions?

 

It's a new tank so I guess I can mix water and salt in the tank directly then add live sand and live rock later

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defender.TX

Hi! Welcome to the forums. I actually have this exact tank right now, so I can answer some of your questions:

 

1. Light - is above light good enough? and hanging options - I cannot hang it from ceiling so must do some DIY light mount or any good suggestion to avoid this DIY hassle.

 

This depends a lot. How serious do you want to be about growing and maintaining healthy coral? I have an Innovative Marine Dimmable Dualstrip light that came with the tank and it has a similar blend of cool white/blue LEDs, so while I don't have personal experience with the light you've chosen I can speak about similar quality lights. If you want coral I would absolutely under no circumstances buy that light. If you cannot spend more money than that on a light that will adequately light a 3 foot tank with full spectrum lighting then you should choose a different tank size so that you can afford a quality light for the size of the tank.

 

To clarify, this study [advancedaquarist.com] has shown that a cool white/blue LED ratio actually performs the absolute worst in terms of coral photosynthesis rates. In fact, even an all red LED array will grow and maintain healthier corals than cool white and blue alone. You absolutely need a full spectrum light solution. If you cannot afford a full spectrum LED solution, I would strongly suggest stepping back to T5's.

 

2. Live rock - I think 30 Lbs is alot, what do you think?

 

Thirty pounds of rock is way too much rock for this tank. I think that when it was all said and done I used less than 15. You can check out my build and see that my tank looks full of rock with ~12 pounds of rock.

 

3. I see I need two spin streams but I also see few nano tanks have Hydor Koralia Nano 425, do I need to have both or can I have one spin stream and one Hydor Koralia Nano 425?

 

You don't need both. The stock return pump on the Nuvo 24 is actually very strong. The SpinStreams provide randomized flow patterns but not more flow. The Koralia Nano 425 (which I also am using) just provides a cross current in the tank. The nice thing about having the SpinStreams is that they create a ton of randomized flow when they hit the current created by the powerhead. I would either go with the SpinStreams or the powerhead to start, either will be fine for now.

 

4. Do I need a skimmer?

 

I would suggest that you get a skimmer. I ran my tank for about 9 months with no skimmer and my sandbed just got darker and darker, indicating that my weekly 5 gallon water changes were not exporting enough nutrients to keep the sandbed from sucking them up. Since I've installed the skimmer my sandbed has slowly started reversing and releasing some of the trapped nutrients. It's $99 that you will not regret.

 

5. I see lot of people having Cobalt Aquatics Neo-Therm 100 watt but I plan to have Marineland 100watt, anything I need to think about this?

 

The number one cause of reef tank crashes are failed heaters. When heaters that utilize a bimetal contact fail, they fail in the "on" position and cook your reef. The tank might be 90F before you realize what's going on and by then everything in your tank will be dead or dying. The Cobalt NeoTherm utilizes a digital thermostat to control the heating element. It will only fail in the "off" position - which means that if it fails your tank will live just fine until you can replace it.

 

6. I am planning to get InTank baskets (http://shop.mediabaskets.com/Innovative-Marine-Nuvo-24-Package-Deal-IM24BUNDLE.htm) If anyone have any coupon codes etc please DM me.

 

The coupon code WETWATER almost always works. With that said, everything I've ever ordered from InTank has been absolutely perfect so you can feel good about paying full price too if it doesn't.

 

7. How many fish? I think maximum 4 or 5, I like tangs but I guess that's a no no for this tank I am I right?

 

In a tank this size you will be limited to nano fish only. This means absolutely no tangs. Some great starter fish would be Chromis, Ocellaris Clowns, and Gobies.

 

8. I plan to start fish first but slowly move to corals is that the good way?

 

That's how I did it but you do not have to do it this way. Plenty of people have coral only tanks with absolutely no fish at all.

 

9. I plan to mix water and salt in tank, I think that should be fine, I am I right here?

 

No. Never, ever, ever mix water and salt in the tank unless it's bare bottom with no rock in the tank. Since most people add the rock, sand, and then water, you need to mix it in a bucket. Also, you absolutely cannot (under no circumstances!) mix salt in the tank once there is rock and livestock. Since mixing salt to make water is a constant occurrence in this hobby, I suggest grabbing a 5 gallon bucket, a cheap MJ powerhead, and a heater to use as a mixing station. As a plus, if you buy some tubing, you can use the MJ powerhead to pump the water into the tank during the water change also.

 

10. Do I need media reactors or can I get away without one.

 

You can get away without one. Basically, a media reactor just provides you a way to run some type of filter media like GFO, carbon, or biopellets. There is nothing magical about them. If you use InTank media baskets with ChemiPure Blue or some other media in a nylon bag it's literally the exact same thing. People like media reactors because you can buy the media in bulk so it can be cheaper in the long run (especially for larger tanks).

 

11. Does anyone use special Nitrate removers if yes, please let me know which do you use.

 

I use ChemiPure Blue and Seachem Purigen. Both have a synthetic oxidizer that "removes" nitrates. Be very careful and understand what's happening here. They are not removing the nitrates from the tank, they are removing them from the water column. If you don't keep up with changing out your filter media they will become saturated and start to leach nutrients back into the water.

 

I hope that helps. I can't impress enough upon you how absolutely critically important a good, quality light fixture is for your reef tank. I've been doing everything just about perfect for a year now and my coral growth has been abysmal because my light is sub-par. If you can't pop for a great light from the start you should just wait to get into the hobby until you can afford it. It will save you a lot of pain.

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You are getting really good feedback here...listen to these guys.

 

I have a IM 16 build in progress as well...take a peek (link in sig).

 

Spins streams are good...randomized flow will be appreciated by your corals and should reduce low flow dead spots where detritus accumulates.

 

GET THE BEST LIGHT YOU CAN AFFORD. The Nanobox Duo is a little spendy but a popular unit. Dave is a great guy to work with and a sponsor here.

 

Good luck!

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@defender.TX Thanks for your valuable suggestions and I know you have the same tank because when I googled nuvo 24g yours was one of the build.

 

Regarding the light that TaTronics light was very well reviewed on Amazon and it is used even for SPS corals so thought might solve my purpose. I will also look into other lights such as Nanobox Duo as suggested by @evanski.

 

Thanks once again for all the help.

 

I will post some pictures soon, I assembled stand, and placed tank looks good.

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defender.TX

@defender.TX Thanks for your valuable suggestions and I know you have the same tank because when I googled nuvo 24g yours was one of the build.

 

Regarding the light that TaTronics light was very well reviewed on Amazon and it is used even for SPS corals so thought might solve my purpose. I will also look into other lights such as Nanobox Duo as suggested by @evanski.

 

Thanks once again for all the help.

 

I will post some pictures soon, I assembled stand, and placed tank looks good.

 

No problem. The NanoBox Duo is a little pricey but very worth it. You'll need the 24" version on your tank. Like I said, if you cannot afford a full spectrum LED solution you will have much better results stepping down to a quality T5 fixture like the ATI SunPower 4x24". It will be way more than enough light for you tank and offer superior spectrum than a cheap cool white/blue LED array.

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Thanks alot Mirya, I appreciate your answers...do you have same tank? If yes, how do you like it?

 

That's exactly what I thought of light, I am planning to put a artificial palm tree behind the tank on a stand and get something like this from HomeDepot (http://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton-Bay-64-in-Single-Forged-Hook-844525HB/202295654?N=5yc1vZbx5w) and insert into the pot. hopefully that looks good.

 

I do have the same tank, but it isn't set up yet. Getting very close though! I have a build thread started for it, it is the Floridian Flower Garden link in my signature.

 

Also, I finally found the post I was referring to that described how to make a conduit pipe hanger. It is near the end of the first post in this thread. You will see lots of other hanging/mounting ideas as well. I don't know if that hook you are looking at will be able to support a light without tipping over. This type of wall mounted plant hanger would work better I think:

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Stand fixed, arranged tank on the stand and waiting for few items to start cycling...

 

Planning to buy water from LFS as my local store only dispenses RO water not RO/DI water...what do you guys think does just RO water will be enough or need RO/DI water?

 

I read some where preferred sequence would be RO/DI, Distilled then RO water.



Also, I looking to other options for light fixture hopefully that will turn out good.

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defender.TX

Planning to buy water from LFS as my local store only dispenses RO water not RO/DI water...what do you guys think does just RO water will be enough or need RO/DI water?

 

I read some where preferred sequence would be RO/DI, Distilled then RO water.

 

RO water is just fine. I don't know why people would say Distilled is preferrable to RO; both will get you to 0 measurable TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) if the RO system is maintained properly and has the correct stages for your city water supply. I would just use the RO water from the LFS.

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RO water is just fine. I don't know why people would say Distilled is preferrable to RO; both will get you to 0 measurable TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) if the RO system is maintained properly and has the correct stages for your city water supply. I would just use the RO water from the LFS.

 

Agree with your theoretical up front statement, but the highlighted portion is why in practice that so many folks (me included) have had problem with LFS RO water.

 

My advice would be to play it safe and get distilled...pretty much no way to screw that up.

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defender.TX

Agree with your theoretical up front statement, but the highlighted portion is why in practice that so many folks (me included) have had problem with LFS RO water.

 

My advice would be to play it safe and get distilled...pretty much no way to screw that up.

 

I guess that's true, it boils down (hah!) to how much you trust your LFS to maintain their RO systems. You could always buy a handheld TDS meter and keep checking just to be sure it's acceptable for you tank. One bonus of that route is that if you do ever get your own RO system you have the TDS meter to keep it in check.

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I guess that's true, it boils down (hah!) to how much you trust your LFS to maintain their RO systems. You could always buy a handheld TDS meter and keep checking just to be sure it's acceptable for you tank. One bonus of that route is that if you do ever get your own RO system you have the TDS meter to keep it in check.

Biols...heh.

 

Yeah, I guess I am a bit jaundiced with regards to LFS. It seems that there are so few real quality places.

 

My suggestion was for a guy just starting out, trying to give no-brainer, hard to screw up advice.

 

Fortunately, I shop a couple of really good places in CA. I am pretty far away (90 miles) though!

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Roshan8768

I think the light you have chosen may work, but a good 4 bulb t5 fixture will be a much better value for that price range... a used TEK fixture maybe a good bet. Another option would be to get something like this http://www.fishneedit.com/3ft4bulbs-with-l34.html and then swap out all the bulbs it comes with ATI/Giessman bulbs



Also if you do not have your rock yet you can mix your initial batch of saltwater in the tank, but from here on out you will have to prepare it in a 5 gallon bucket and add it after the salinity and temperature have been matched

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Thanks for all the replies, so still waiting for my supplies. I have good idea on how to DIY light hanger for TaTronics light. After going thru all the reviews on Amazon, and since I already bought that light, so would like to give it a try, if not I can always go back to T5.

 

Regarding water my local walmart have only RO (chloramines are very very high in our city). I hope LFS uses RO/DI unit to make salt water, they are charging $1/gal of salt water so I am inclined to get salt water from LFS. Later, I am planning to get RO/DI unit which can remove chloramines too for drinking purposes at home so that I use it for both home and my tank.

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For my 16 Nuvo I housed my DIY LED's in pine and connected it from the back with a few smaller pieces of pine and used dow rod and glued it together. Its solid. Covered the stain in a food grade poly to protect from saltwater. Its bolted to the back of my stand.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Finally was able to finish custom light hanger for this TaoTronics light, not sure I am happy about look...Initially plan was to try with clear acrylic rod but I way underestimated the weight, it weighs around 9lbs. Still might switch to acrylic rod (1 inch dia) later but for now this is made of 1/2 inch electrical conduit bent and cut, thanks to a good person at Home Depot he bent the tube and cut it for free. Total cost would be below $20.

 

Regarding light it self, it is at 50% both whites and blues seems like not much light at the edges so I need to arrange live rocks in the middle and not put any corals around the edges.

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Finally got the tank wet. I do have few questions regarding cycling period

 

Do we run heater and return pump during cycling? In fresh water we do but not sure about salt water.

 

Typically, how long does it take for cycling with live sand and cured live rock? Does products like Insta Ocen Bio-Spira work to fasten the cycling process?

 

http://www.instantocean.com/Products/aquarium-saltwater-care/salt-water-set-up/bio-spira-saltwater-aquarium-bacteria.aspx

 

I still need to get Media baskets along with media and a protein skimmer, I am leaning towards IM nano skimmer any if anyone can share personal experiences with that skimmer would be helpful.

 

Thanks alot for the help

 

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defender.TX

Finally got the tank wet. I do have few questions regarding cycling period

 

Do we run heater and return pump during cycling? In fresh water we do but not sure about salt water.

 

Typically, how long does it take for cycling with live sand and cured live rock? Does products like Insta Ocen Bio-Spira work to fasten the cycling process?

 

http://www.instantocean.com/Products/aquarium-saltwater-care/salt-water-set-up/bio-spira-saltwater-aquarium-bacteria.aspx

 

I still need to get Media baskets along with media and a protein skimmer, I am leaning towards IM nano skimmer any if anyone can share personal experiences with that skimmer would be helpful.

 

Thanks alot for the help

 

Yes, run the heater and the pump. Remember, the rock you put in the tank is "live", which means it should have live beneficial organisms on it. They need water flow and heat to stay alive. The cycle should take about two weeks and occur naturally without BioSpira because you used live rock. What actually happens is that the live rock will have some level of "die-off" and this will help populate the beneficial bacteria and cycle the tank (similar to putting a piece of uncooked shrimp in a freshwater tank).

 

I personally have had a good experience with the IM Classic Skimmate Desktop (not Ghost). To get it to skim dry enough for me I had to remove the top two inches of foam on the outflow pipe. This lowered the water level enough in the skimmer body to get a consistent tea skim. I have heard from StevieT that almost all nano skimmers skim identically: tea skim and black gunk in the pipe. That's about all you can hope for with a skimmer this small and my IM Classic Desktop delivers that. If you aren't going to get the IM Classic Desktop I would go with the CADLights PLS-50 (I believe it fits).

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@defender.TX, Thanks a lot for quick response. I was running heater but was not sure about return pump. I was reading good reviews about Bio-Spira about accelerating the process and cutting down the wait time hence I thought I can add a bottle of Bio-Spira if it helps. I will stick to IM classic desktop skimmer.

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defender.TX

@defender.TX, Thanks a lot for quick response. I was running heater but was not sure about return pump. I was reading good reviews about Bio-Spira about accelerating the process and cutting down the wait time hence I thought I can add a bottle of Bio-Spira if it helps. I will stick to IM classic desktop skimmer.

 

I just don't know if BioSpira will help much at this point. Maybe it will, I don't know. It's primary use is for people who use dry rock and need something to kick start the cycle.

 

Keep in mind that when you start a tank with live rock the cycle is extremely minimal. You're basically starting with a live tank. A live tank should have heat and flow :D . The reason that we wait a few weeks to add the first livestock is to allow the beneficial bacteria time to stabilize before subjecting a fish to potential ammonia/nitrite swings. Other than that the tank is pretty much up and running from the get-go if you use live rock. In fact, with my tank, I never even had any ammonia or nitrite register. Just saw 5ppm Nitrate one day and knew the tank was ready.

 

Go slow! Every time you increase the bioload of the tank the beneficial bacteria that make up your filter need time to adjust. If you add 4 fish at once you will see a slight ammonia/nitrite spike while the bacteria increase to consume the added dissolved organics (waste).

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