Fluval Spec 2g - Compatible Lighting/Pump and some questions

[EvilFish]

Hello,

 

I want to transform my Fluval Spec 2 gallon to something beautiful, like a Pico Reef.

 

Before to start, I have some questions:

 

1. I know that Mini-Jet 404 or 606 are compatible. But how about Hydor Centrifugal Pump 100gph (Pico 400)? Or there is any other compatible pumps?

 

2. What about lighting? There is something with 20000k spectrum?

Can I use this light?

Innovative Marine SkkyeLight LED Clamp Lights 14k 8W - 100$

Fluval Nano Marine And Reef High Performance LED Fixture - 14 Watts 15,000K - 130$ (not good rating on Amazon)

Wave Point Technology Micro Sun Led Clamp Light - 6" 3-watt Day & Blue Light 8x Super Blue and 4x 10000k Daylight (43$, 3W too weak?) Found also 6" 8W version.

Wave Point Technology Micro Sun Led Clamp Light - 12" 6-watt Day & Blue Light (63$, size is too big)

JBJ Flipper 10.8 LED Light Series (89$, 8.5" X 7.5" too big?)

 

3. Do I absolutely need a RO water? If I don't have RO system, what is my options?

 

4. How much sand I need to add? 1 inch? 1.5? Fiji Pink sand is a good choice? 2lb of live rock is OK? or more?

 

5. There is any benefits to add crushed corals in the sump area? Or live rocks? And Chaetomorpha algae?

 

6. Do I need some kind of mechanical filtration? Any benefits of use Seachem SeaGel?

 

7. Instant Ocean Sea Salt is a good brand? Fluval SEA Hydrometer or Oceanic BioCube Mini Hydrometer?

 

8. 25W heater is OK? Hydor Theo Heater 25W.

 

9. There is no Nano Skimmer compatible with Fluval 2g?

 

10. Can I move the stock pump to the sump section?

 

11. I want to replace the lid to something cleaner (glass) and without hole on the middle. Any advise?

 

12. How often do I need to change the water? 25% every week?

 

Thanks

[EvilFish]

Found a interesting lighting: http://www.zetlight.com/index.php/products?id=23

ZN1020 very interesting, but only 3W. 200 Lumens.

 

Brrr, no, the price is close to 100$ on aliexpress X_X

Another one: Innovative Marine 4 Watt 14000K - 70$ or better to add 30$ and take 8W version?

 

This one isn't overkill for 2g? SolarFlare 115 15W: http://www.deepblueprofessional.com/solarflare.html

[Mariaface]

Hello,

 

I want to transform my Fluval Spec 2 gallon to something beautiful, like a Pico Reef.

 

Before to start, I have some questions:

 

1. I know that Mini-Jet 404 or 606 are compatible. But how about Hydor Centrifugal Pump 100gph (Pico 400)? Or there is any other compatible pumps?

 

2. What about lighting? There is something with 20000k spectrum?

Can I use this light?

Innovative Marine SkkyeLight LED Clamp Lights 14k 8W - 100$

Fluval Nano Marine And Reef High Performance LED Fixture - 14 Watts 15,000K - 130$ (not good rating on Amazon)

Wave Point Technology Micro Sun Led Clamp Light - 6" 3-watt Day & Blue Light 8x Super Blue and 4x 10000k Daylight (43$, 3W too weak?) Found also 6" 8W version.

Wave Point Technology Micro Sun Led Clamp Light - 12" 6-watt Day & Blue Light (63$, size is too big)

JBJ Flipper 10.8 LED Light Series (89$, 8.5" X 7.5" too big?)

 

3. Do I absolutely need a RO water? If I don't have RO system, what is my options?

 

4. How much sand I need to add? 1 inch? 1.5? Fiji Pink sand is a good choice? 2lb of live rock is OK? or more?

 

5. There is any benefits to add crushed corals in the sump area? Or live rocks? And Chaetomorpha algae?

 

6. Do I need some kind of mechanical filtration? Any benefits of use Seachem SeaGel?

 

7. Instant Ocean Sea Salt is a good brand? Fluval SEA Hydrometer or Oceanic BioCube Mini Hydrometer?

 

8. 25W heater is OK? Hydor Theo Heater 25W.

 

9. There is no Nano Skimmer compatible with Fluval 2g?

 

10. Can I move the stock pump to the sump section?

 

11. I want to replace the lid to something cleaner (glass) and without hole on the middle. Any advise?

 

12. How often do I need to change the water? 25% every week?

 

Thanks

 

 

Hi! Let me try to go through these. I'll answer whatever I actually have knowledge on, since I've never owned a Fluval Spec.

 

2: I don't think any of those lights will be able to grow more than maybe mushrooms and other low-light corals. If you're willing to spend $100, check out a combination of PAR30 bulb and gooseneck clamp (I'm looking into this for a future 2.5gal, but that's way in the future). I think coralcompulsion has nice ones, and if you ever have any questions/concerns you can post them on this website and they'll be able to respond quickly! You may want to get the 18K version and a way to time the light schedule.

 

3: Yes, unless your Total Dissolved Solids are super low right out of the tap (I think some people on well water have this luxury). You want as close to 0 TDS as possible. There are compact RO/DI solutions on amazon that'll run maybe $70, but I think the one I found has proprietary cartridge replacements and it'd cost more than the unit just to replace the filters every 6-12 months. Check out bulk reef supply or another reliable store for a good kit. If you don't think the price is worth it (and it might not be, with your tank size), then going to a local fish store and getting RO/DI water should be fine. Some even sell premixed water, but you won't have control over the salt brand that they use.

 

4: The amount of sand depends on how much filtration you want from it. If you like the look, you can even go bare bottom with enough filtration. About an inch would be fine, 1.5 if you like. If you plan on keeping anything that burrows into the sand, you do need to compensate for that. As far as live rock, 2-3 lbs would be fine. Keep in mind that the more rock and sand you have, the less water volume. What's more important is that you get something porous, so that there's more surface area for bacteria to colonize in. Make sure that your rock is completely cycled before you add any live organisms! Try to add pure ammonia (no surfactants! a lot of products have surfactants, so I'd suggest maybe Dr Tims ammonium chloride). For cycling, API test kits should be fine. You want to make sure you have an ammonia spike, then a nitrite spike, and then a nitrate spike. There are bacterial additives that'll help speed up the cycle, but you need to be 100% sure it's done before you start stocking (even clean up crew!). You'll be sure you're cycled when you can add enough ammonia to test at 2-3ppm and come back in 12-24 hours with 0ppm. Nothing above 0 is acceptable, ammonia is really toxic.

 

5, 6: Adding crushed coral or live rock will likely turn into a nitrate factory (detritus will get trapped, bacteria will break it down, etc). Try not to add those. Chaetomorpha algae is good as long as you have a food and light source for it (food would be anything decomposing in the tank, such as food). If you're going to keep chaeto, I suggest an opposing light cycle (light it up when the main tank lights are not on, so that your CO2 and pH levels stay more stable). As far as mechanical filtration goes, it depends. A lot of the time, the baskets/trays included in tanks aren't quite good enough. One of the members of the forum started up inTank, a place to upgrade the filtration of your aquarium. He sells better media baskets for Fluval Specs, as well as filter floss (to catch detritus) and chemical filtration media (to adsorb dissolved organics and all that yucky stuff). There are other upgrades available, you may want to check it out. He'll be in the sponsors forum, and you can check the reviews for yourself!

 

7: Instant Ocean is fine! When you add corals, you may want to progress to Reef Crystals. Which brings me to the rest of the testing equipment. Hydrometers aren't reliable. You'll want a refractometer and calibration fluid (someone linked a $25 one on Amazon, I think). Digital is more expensive, but also even more reliable than a regular refractometer. Every time you test salinity, calibrate the refractometer with the fluid first. When you get corals, you'll notice that alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium might drop. This can be offset with frequent water changes, especially in a smaller tank like yours, so long as they're happening once a week and regularly. To test those things, you don't want API test kits, you'll want something like Salifert or Red Sea Pro or Elos so that you'll get accurate, reliable measurements.

 

8: 25W should be fine for that tank size, so long as you're not running the tank in the arctic or anything. Make sure you get a glass thermometer, at least at first, in order to get a reliable temperature reading and set your heater. Then try for a digital thermometer that won't take up space in the tank (sometimes the digital thermometers are offset by one or two or even three degrees, and you don't want to take its word as gospel).

 

9: You really don't need a skimmer in a tank that small. Like at all. Water changes (trust me, after sand and rock and equipment you'll have at most 1.5gal to play with) should be plenty. Try not to change too much water at once if you're not sure that temperature, salinity, alk, calcium, and magnesium are all the same as the tank water. Temp and salinity absolutely do have to match, though. A 10-30% water change a week should be fine; I'd suggest getting a turkey baster so that you can blow water onto the rocks and divert the detritus into the filtration chambers, then change out the filter floss when you do the water change.

 

10: Why would you want to do that? The stock pump is in the sump section so that it can pump water into the tank from there, and the sump section has an overflow so that it can accept water in.

 

11: Search the forums for lid solutions. If you're only adding corals, and not fish that are likely to jump, you may not need a lid (and your light will be stronger for it). No matter what, though, you need to make up for evaporation somehow. I suggest an ATO, because topping off by hand becomes a pain really quickly. I just found out that BRS sells an optical one for $150, and that's basically a steal. Do it, it's so worth it. The regular ones use float switches that may get stuck from calcium deposits or anything at all wedging itself inside, and that can lead to pumps getting stuck on and emptying an entire RO/DI reservoir into your tank. Which, with such a tiny tank, you really don't want happening.

 

12: I answered that before, but you'll find that 25% a week will be really easy to do in such a small tank. Go for it! Anywhere from 10-30% should be fine as long as your freshly mixed water matches your tank water.

 

 

Hopefully that's in-depth enough, and generally correct (anyone, correct me if I'm wrong!). It's been a week, so I hope you haven't gone ahead and bought any of those lights or anything.

 

Ah! A lot of people find that getting an aquarium controller on a pico is a lifesaver, so you may want to look into it!

 

EDIT: Oh! I can't forget! Whenever you have questions or concerns, do post them on the website. I'm not sure how your post went so long without a response, even if just to point you in the direction of the beginner forums. There are so many pinned threads throughout the forums that'll walk you through pretty much anything from water changes to custom LED setups, and everyone's super helpful! Good luck! And check out our member tank forum, where you can follow people's builds and post your own thread so you can log your progress!

[EvilFish]

WOW! Thanks!!!

 

I decided to go with 28G tank: http://www.cadlights.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=41&products_id=249

With skimmer and Razor 60W LED.

 

Your post was really useful! Can I ask you something else?

 

1. Do you know anything about Hydor Flo Rotating Water Deflector?

2. How much flow for 28G? The pump is already 500GPH. Do I need a powerhead like Tunze Turbelle nanostream 6015 (425GPH)?

3. Auto Top-off kit 2.5 or 5G?

4. Red Sea Seawater Refractometer is OK?

5. How much WC with a good skimmer? 10% weekly, bi-weekly?

6. 100W heater is OK?

7. Do I need Smart Wave Pump Controller?

8. Any use of media reactor?

9. Any use of Chemi-Pure Blue, Purigen, Sea Gel?

10. Macro alges needs a special color spectrum? Or I can run just that: http://shop.mediabaskets.com/Underwater-Light-Cover-JT-WTGV.htm

 

Thanks!

[Mariaface]

Any time! I'm glad you went with a larger tank, it'll be a lot easier to maintain! And those lights are reportedly awesome!

 

1. Hmm. I know that it's good for making sure no part of your tank gets direct, too-harsh flow (it affects growth patterns).

 

2. You'll want 18-36x turnover, and that return pump is just under that range. Plus, it'll slow down over time due to calcification and whatnot until you clean it up again. A powerhead would be great, but remember that you're not limited to one or two kinds. Jebao has come out with the RW-# (the number being for different models, which push around different amounts of water) line that will do variable currents and can be linked with others, comes with a controller, blah blah. Vortechs are also great, Koralias are nice, etc etc. If you want to give the tank a more clean look and don't want powerheads in there, consider upgrading the return pump with something like a sycce syncra silent. Keep in mind that the faster you push water out, the faster it has to travel through the filtration. There are upper limits.

 

3. What do you mean? Are you talking about a specific one? Or the volume of the reservoir? I'd say as a reservoir big as you can get, but staying within certain constraints. For example, on the off chance that the ATO pump gets stuck in the ON position because of some malfunction, you want your tank to be able to hold the entire reservoir instead of flooding.

 

4. Yehp! Pretty much any refractometer will be good if you keep it calibrated.

 

5. The skimmer will make it so you can go longer between water changes, but your schedule is up to you and what you're keeping in the aquarium. Shoot for 10% per week, but if you miss a week you can get away with a 20% water change the second week. Keep in mind that your total water volume will be less, so you're talking about a 2.5gal water change or a 5gal water change. Should be easy enough; paint mixing buckets are generally 5 gallons. What you can do is get one for dumping old water into, and one for mixing water in. With a sharpie, fill the mixing bucket one gallon at a time and mark on the outside (hopefully it's translucent) where each new gallon sits. You'll have an easy reference. Some people suggest that once a year or so, you do a really large water change to avoid running out of some trace elements. This would be on the order of 75-100%, but you'll need to be very sure that every single parameter matches.

 

6. If the room that the aquarium is in is generally 70F or so, 100W should be fine. Look into getting a back-up heater in case anything happens to yours.

 

7. Depends on the powerhead(s) you get.

 

8. If you find that filter media in the basket and a skimmer isn't enough (generally this only happens if you've got SPS and feed heavily), a media reactor might be a good idea. It's tempting to fill the whole thing with media, but try to only fill as much as your tank needs. Even then, certain things (like GFO or phosguard) should only be added at a fraction of the recommended amount so that you don't rob the system of nutrients).

 

9. Chemi-Pure is basically a really good carbon filtration. Chemi-Pure Elite adds a phosphate remover to that. And Chemi-Pure blue adds both a phosphate remover and purigen. Seagel is carbon and phosphate-remover. I'd suggest either going with Chemi-Pure Elite/Blue (it does a lot more than just filter, as you may have read in the description), or getting your own media bags and different kinds of filtration media. Carbon and phosphate-removers tend to expire at different times, so to replace the media you have to waste whatever's still active.

 

10. You linked the cover to the light, but that light would be good for growing macros. Are you planning on keeping a refugium in the back?

[Cameron6796]

There are not many better explanations than this ^^^

[EvilFish]

Thanks!

 

 

Are you planning on keeping a refugium in the back?

 

Yes. With Macro algae. But I don't know, if the stock lighting will be enough or I need something additional?

 

How about Dry Rock? I want to avoid the horrible pests. So, I want to start with Dry rock and a small piece of live for bacteria and coralline. 40lb for 34g is OK? 38lb of Dry and 2lb of well inspected (how?) live rock?

 

I thinks I'll go with 34G CAD Lights (it's made from super-clear glass) tank and Maxspec Razor 120W light.

 

How about this fish stock for 34G? Not too much?

2x Ocellaris Clownfish
2x Firefish Goby
4x Bleu or Green Chromis
1x Kauderns Cardinal

 

Thanks you again!

[EvilFish]

Any time! I'm glad you went with a larger tank, it'll be a lot easier to maintain! And those lights are reportedly awesome!

 

1. Hmm. I know that it's good for making sure no part of your tank gets direct, too-harsh flow (it affects growth patterns).

 

2. You'll want 18-36x turnover, and that return pump is just under that range. Plus, it'll slow down over time due to calcification and whatnot until you clean it up again. A powerhead would be great, but remember that you're not limited to one or two kinds. Jebao has come out with the RW-# (the number being for different models, which push around different amounts of water) line that will do variable currents and can be linked with others, comes with a controller, blah blah. Vortechs are also great, Koralias are nice, etc etc. If you want to give the tank a more clean look and don't want powerheads in there, consider upgrading the return pump with something like a sycce syncra silent. Keep in mind that the faster you push water out, the faster it has to travel through the filtration. There are upper limits.

 

3. What do you mean? Are you talking about a specific one? Or the volume of the reservoir? I'd say as a reservoir big as you can get, but staying within certain constraints. For example, on the off chance that the ATO pump gets stuck in the ON position because of some malfunction, you want your tank to be able to hold the entire reservoir instead of flooding.

 

4. Yehp! Pretty much any refractometer will be good if you keep it calibrated.

 

5. The skimmer will make it so you can go longer between water changes, but your schedule is up to you and what you're keeping in the aquarium. Shoot for 10% per week, but if you miss a week you can get away with a 20% water change the second week. Keep in mind that your total water volume will be less, so you're talking about a 2.5gal water change or a 5gal water change. Should be easy enough; paint mixing buckets are generally 5 gallons. What you can do is get one for dumping old water into, and one for mixing water in. With a sharpie, fill the mixing bucket one gallon at a time and mark on the outside (hopefully it's translucent) where each new gallon sits. You'll have an easy reference. Some people suggest that once a year or so, you do a really large water change to avoid running out of some trace elements. This would be on the order of 75-100%, but you'll need to be very sure that every single parameter matches.

 

6. If the room that the aquarium is in is generally 70F or so, 100W should be fine. Look into getting a back-up heater in case anything happens to yours.

 

7. Depends on the powerhead(s) you get.

 

8. If you find that filter media in the basket and a skimmer isn't enough (generally this only happens if you've got SPS and feed heavily), a media reactor might be a good idea. It's tempting to fill the whole thing with media, but try to only fill as much as your tank needs. Even then, certain things (like GFO or phosguard) should only be added at a fraction of the recommended amount so that you don't rob the system of nutrients).

 

9. Chemi-Pure is basically a really good carbon filtration. Chemi-Pure Elite adds a phosphate remover to that. And Chemi-Pure blue adds both a phosphate remover and purigen. Seagel is carbon and phosphate-remover. I'd suggest either going with Chemi-Pure Elite/Blue (it does a lot more than just filter, as you may have read in the description), or getting your own media bags and different kinds of filtration media. Carbon and phosphate-removers tend to expire at different times, so to replace the media you have to waste whatever's still active.

 

10. You linked the cover to the light, but that light would be good for growing macros. Are you planning on keeping a refugium in the back?

 

What do you think about this system?

http://www.cadlights.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=47&products_id=265

 

Thanks

[Mariaface]

What do you think about this system?

http://www.cadlights.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=47&products_id=265

 

Thanks

 

Love it and wish I'd gone with them for my setup (albeit a smaller tank for lack of space). CAD Lights aquariums are always awesome! Make sure you invest in a good light that will provide the coverage you want (would a Nano Box Duo have enough spread? Hopefully. Look at Reefbreeders' Value and Superlux lights, too), and you'll be more or less set. Maybe a Jebao circulation pump, if you find that the stock return pump isn't quite enough?

[EvilFish]

Thanks

 

Love it and wish I'd gone with them for my setup (albeit a smaller tank for lack of space). CAD Lights aquariums are always awesome! Make sure you invest in a good light that will provide the coverage you want (would a Nano Box Duo have enough spread? Hopefully. Look at Reefbreeders' Value and Superlux lights, too), and you'll be more or less set. Maybe a Jebao circulation pump, if you find that the stock return pump isn't quite enough?

 

For the light I think about Maxspec Razor 120W.

 

They promise that their pump is very silent.

 

If the is no place in the stand for 2.5g Auto Top-Off system, what is the better solution?

 

How risky is Refugium under the tank? Any chances that it'll leak?

 

Thanks

[Mariaface]

Thanks

 

 

For the light I think about Maxspec Razor 120W.

 

They promise that their pump is very silent.

 

If the is no place in the stand for 2.5g Auto Top-Off system, what is the better solution?

 

How risky is Refugium under the tank? Any chances that it'll leak?

 

Thanks

 

Good light!

 

In the stand? I'm sure you'll have some space, but if it doesn't fit then you should be able to hide a container in something accessible, like a wicker basket or small ottoman. It can go next to the stand. A lot of places make custom acrylic ATO containers, so you could even figure out the dimensions you're left with under the tank and make it taller. Just make sure the volume your ATO holds can be emptied into the sump all at once without overflowing. You could test that out during your initial leak test with the tank and sump! Maybe fill the tank and sump system to the brim with RO/DI water, then remove some of that and put it into the ATO container, until you've got the tank/sump levels where you want them. Then you'll know how much your ATO can hold.

 

The refugium would probably go into that 30 gallon sump, right? So long as you're keeping everything level and you leak tested in the beginning, you should be fine. And CAD Lights seems to have great warranties, just make sure you test thoroughly initially.

[EvilFish]

Good light!

 

In the stand? I'm sure you'll have some space, but if it doesn't fit then you should be able to hide a container in something accessible, like a wicker basket or small ottoman. It can go next to the stand. A lot of places make custom acrylic ATO containers, so you could even figure out the dimensions you're left with under the tank and make it taller. Just make sure the volume your ATO holds can be emptied into the sump all at once without overflowing. You could test that out during your initial leak test with the tank and sump! Maybe fill the tank and sump system to the brim with RO/DI water, then remove some of that and put it into the ATO container, until you've got the tank/sump levels where you want them. Then you'll know how much your ATO can hold.

 

The refugium would probably go into that 30 gallon sump, right? So long as you're keeping everything level and you leak tested in the beginning, you should be fine. And CAD Lights seems to have great warranties, just make sure you test thoroughly initially.

 

Thanks

 

I'll try to buy the tank in 2 months

 

Can I ask you about sand and powerhead?

 

1 inch of sand it's OK? Fiji Pink won't create a sand storm?

 

Do I need 1 or 2 powerhead for 36x24x12 tank?

 

Jebao RW-4 Wireless Wavemaker - 130-1050 GPH

or

JBJ Ocean Stream 2 x 500 GPH Pump & Wavemaker Kit

or

1 or 2 Tunze Turbelle® nanostream® 6015 (476 GPH)

 

Thanks

[Mariaface]

Hmm. Not sure if I'm the best person to ask about sand/powerheads. If whatever I say doesn't sound up to par, feel free to ask around the forums!

 

I know that you don't want the sand to be too fine unless you're doing it for a sand-sifting goby or a similar kind of fish. Go for 1-2mm (so not oolitic, but not just crushed coral). Something you'll be able to vacuum through when you do a water change, if you're going to keep it at 1in. I'm not sure where Fiji Pink falls as far as good or bad (or even size), but a lot of people have had great experiences with it.

 

I think that of those three, the RW-4 may be your best bet. It'll have plenty of flow, they've got tiny footprints and are meant to be silent, and they've got an 'else' mode that behaves somewhat similarly to an MP10 on reefcrest mode (random flow). Be careful, because when you turn them on they'll be at the highest setting, so fiddle with the controller until you're back at the beginning before you start a waterpark!

[necrio]

Ive been looking into lights most of my time into the hobby. There are so many options with a lot of them crap. Most of the lights produce just enough for softies and charge a silly amount!

 

So, yeah, I too am looking into a pico but my first mission is to find the perfect light for the perfect size tank. I want to do SPS too, which makes it more difficult!

 

 

Can't wait to see your progress.

[Mariaface]

Ive been looking into lights most of my time into the hobby. There are so many options with a lot of them crap. Most of the lights produce just enough for softies and charge a silly amount!

 

So, yeah, I too am looking into a pico but my first mission is to find the perfect light for the perfect size tank. I want to do SPS too, which makes it more difficult!

 

 

Can't wait to see your progress.

 

Off the top of my head (and assuming you're not looking too much into color channel control), I'd say a Reefbreeders or Nano Box fixture. The PAR measurements for Reefbreeders fixtures (especially the ones with optics on them) are pretty amazing; you could probably scorch some SPS. And Dave over at Nano Box does custom work, so you really could have the perfect light in a really sleek, attractive housing! Even PAR38 bulbs would do a great job. Of course, you may want to get the dimensions of the tank first so that you know what kind of coverage you'll need. I love longer, shallower tanks, which means finding lights capable of lighting much more of a surface area. With cubes or tall tanks, a puck (or cluster of them) could be fine, so long as you know you've got enough light penetration.