Jump to content
Pod Your Reef

IM Nuvo 8


HVani

Recommended Posts

Been a lot of IM reviews lately and I thought I would throw in mine as well. I've never done a product review so bear with me

 

 

I've had AIO tanks in the past and this one is right up there with one of the best I have had. The tank is a joy to have.

 

Good things:

 

Compared to other AIOs I have had, I was pretty surprised to see the pump was actually a pretty powerful one. It's also adjustable which is nice. I like that I don't have to have any additional power heads in the tank which takes up valuable space in the display.

 

The back compartments are roomy, which is nice and the pump is very quiet. With everything running I can barely hear a hum and I'm not even sure if it's coming from this tank or my freshwater tank in the same room.

 

The tank looks amazing! I love that it comes in white, which matches great with my room. The little stand is also a nice touch and the light matches as well. I feel like the design is well thought out and makes an attractive display for a desk or small table.

 

I would say lighting is good enough. I think it would easily support softies or lower light LPS. This package is truly plug and play.

 

 

Not so good things

 

The filter baskets suck. They bob around in the slot and the media they come with is pretty useless. Props to IM including a media basket but it is really cheap feeling and doesn't work well.

 

The glass top is also annoying. I wish it had been a screen top like IM offers on some of it's larger tanks. The top end up getting covered in water and salt which reduces the light that gets to the tank. Plus the "feeding" hole in the middle is big enough for small fish to jump through, so what's the point of a lid?

 

The colors combo of the light leaves something to be desired. While it will grow coral, it needs more blue to make them pop more. As it is the colors of corals look very dull and the tank over all looks washed out.

 

 

 

Overall I'm in love with this tank and would highly recommend it. It's not perfect but it works well straight of the box. I have replaced the media basket with one from intank. I will be replacing the light and soon I will be making a screen top. Then it will be perfect! :)

 

Here's a picture of the tank running stock right after I set it up.

 

nuvo8_zpscd6db112.jpg

 

And here is a more recent shot. Still running stock lighting, the colors are pretty accurate

 

nuvoagust2_zps9e070fe7.jpg

 

 

Link to comment

Nice review of the Nuvo. I owned a 16, 24, and now a Fusion 30 so I agree with your positive and negative points.

 

Adding supplemental LED's like a stunner strip or another lighting option will certainly make corals pop. The stock lighting is nice but does not bring out the fluorescence of the corals. I do like that the blue actinic and white LED's are on separate circuits to have some control.

 

The mesh top on the fusion also diffuses light and has a 1 inch thick frame around it which also blocks light around the edges. There is still room around the edges for small fish to jump out. IM states this is to allow wires from pumps and equipment to pass. I suppose if a fish wants to jump out, it will find a way. I do like the weight of the mesh top as its easy to remove.

Link to comment

I've had mine about 6 months (got it used) and agree with your thoughts as well. The upgrades I did were..

 

1. In-tank basket (I used them on all my AIOs )

 

2. AI Nano light - It wasn't that the included light was bad (used it for 6 months with good results) - but I wanted the ramp-up, lunar lighting and variable output. For a while I was using two of the stock lights mounted next to each other. The nice thing about that setup is that I can sell them for what i have in them.

 

I'm not a fan of the glass top. Came close to breaking it at least twice. I also noticed that if I increased the return pump very much, the clips would start to draw water up and over the end. I'm currently running a Rio 800 which works out well.

 

Given my experience, I'd make the same decision to buy this model again. Getting it used for half price of new definitely helps too.

 

If you want to check out the details, my sig has a link to the build thread.

Link to comment

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recommended Discussions

×
×
  • Create New...