good nano sps

[dextereef]

Can anyone weigh in on some sps that would do well in a 25g nano?

[Sk8n Reefer]

Can anyone weigh in on some sps that would do well in a 25g nano?

Any SPS will do well in any size tank- it has more to do with what lighting/ feeding you are planning to use and your water parameters and flow. Some of the branching type might "outgrow" the tank and you might have to frag them sooner. The Montipora varieties tend to be more forgiving from my experience. Tell us a little more about your set up and plans for the tank with equipment etc.

[Chris!]

Yeah like Sk8n said, way more to it that really matters then the actual size of the tank. If you are capable of keeping SPS alive they would all do well and it would come down to personal preference as to what you like. Montipora, is definitely a bit more forgiving then many acropora but also tends to grow faster which to some can be less desirable, especially in a nano. There are many nice milleporas that are quite nice and fairly hardy as well.

[dextereef]

whoops, I shouldve listed out my build thoughts...I know better but it was an insomnia internet session. I am just after info on species that might do better in smaller LED lit tanks versus the T5 setup I have on my 120. This tank will serve several purposes none being a true show tank but I do want it to look presentable.

 

Purpose: Aesthetically pleasing Frag/Grow out tank.

 

Setup: 25g Landen low iron tank. Possibly plumbed into my 120 gallon or might go standalone with its own sump.

 

Lighting: Might go nanobox led or might go with reefledlights .com setup as I have a $200 giftcard I won at a local swap.

 

skimmer: might go bubblemagus curve 5 (overkill) or tunze 9001 if I have standalone sump

[CCLAXX]

I would think most species would work well, Like the others said the size of this tank isn't a huge but lighting, filtration, etc... are the more critical areas.

 

Why not do T5's just as your 120? I plan on having the same tank or a custom picO. I plan on a 4x24 ATI and getting a nano box retrofit done.

[Chris!]

whoops, I shouldve listed out my build thoughts...I know better but it was an insomnia internet session. I am just after info on species that might do better in smaller LED lit tanks versus the T5 setup I have on my 120. This tank will serve several purposes none being a true show tank but I do want it to look presentable.

 

Purpose: Aesthetically pleasing Frag/Grow out tank.

 

Setup: 25g Landen low iron tank. Possibly plumbed into my 120 gallon or might go standalone with its own sump.

 

Lighting: Might go nanobox led or might go with reefledlights .com setup as I have a $200 giftcard I won at a local swap.

 

skimmer: might go bubblemagus curve 5 (overkill) or tunze 9001 if I have standalone sump

 

I know some will say it can't be done, but any sps will grow and color under the proper led set up. I believe both of those are customizeable, I would suggest no reflectors and a wider heatsink over a narrow one.

 

For filtration if your talking about putting a BM curve 5 on the 120 w/ this plumbed in I would go up to atleast the 7... atleast.

[Reefkid88]

If I can grow SPS in my 2 gallon,a 25 will be fine lol. Just keep good param's and you'll be alright. All my SPS are encrusting and doing fine and I have:

 

Red Planet,Joe the Coral,Lime in the Sky,a few mille's,a bunch of Monti's,rainbow Granulosa,birdsnest,Sunset Mille'sTricolor ect ect.

[TommyBrooo]

Nice topic! Any advice on some beginner sps for a nano. Thinking about stocking some in my nano as well.

[jservedio]

I know some will say it can't be done, but any sps will grow and color under the proper led set up. I believe both of those are customizeable, I would suggest no reflectors and a wider heatsink over a narrow one.

 

For filtration if your talking about putting a BM curve 5 on the 120 w/ this plumbed in I would go up to atleast the 7... atleast.

 

Yep, LED will certainly grow and color up acros just as well as a MH or T5 and there are plenty of people who are doing it. To add to what chris said, I think the BM5 is a bad choice for both the 25 standalone and the 120. The BM5 will won't keep foam going into the cup on a 25g so you are better off with the 3.5+ if you don't plub together and it is just too small for a 120+25.

 

BTW, the best acro tank I ever saw in person actually ran LEDS - a single G1 Radion with the TIR upgrade and a couple UV stunners that did nothing.

[dextereef]

Yep, LED will certainly grow and color up acros just as well as a MH or T5 and there are plenty of people who are doing it. To add to what chris said, I think the BM5 is a bad choice for both the 25 standalone and the 120. The BM5 will won't keep foam going into the cup on a 25g so you are better off with the 3.5+ if you don't plub together and it is just too small for a 120+25.

 

BTW, the best acro tank I ever saw in person actually ran LEDS - a single G1 Radion with the TIR upgrade and a couple UV stunners that did nothing.

 

Thanks for the insight everyone. Once I figure out what I am going to do I will post a build thread

 

I am already rocking a curve 7 on my 120 so I do know that I have enough capacity to add a 25. I was considering the curve 5 if I gave the 25g its own sump

[Chris!]

To add to what chris said, I think the BM5 is a bad choice for both the 25 standalone and the 120. The BM5 will won't keep foam going into the cup on a 25g so you are better off with the 3.5+

 

The 3.5 would be a fairly solid choice, but I disagree that the BM5 couldn't put foam in the cup consistently.... With a properly set up sump running the skimmer in an ideal depth it should do just fine and allow for a few decent fish w/ regular feedings while keeping the water pristine

[jservedio]

The 3.5 would be a fairly solid choice, but I disagree that the BM5 couldn't put foam in the cup consistently.... With a properly set up sump running the skimmer in an ideal depth it should do just fine and allow for a few decent fish w/ regular feedings while keeping the water pristine

Meh, you are probably right, but it would take forever for it to get there. It took a good 2 years before even the 3.5+ would start putting loads of dark, black, smelly skimmate in teh cup consistently and it still takes 8-14 days to completely fill it even feeding 2x daily and target feeding 2-3x a week. The tank was just too new and sterile to get that nasty skimmate.

 

I don't think it would work any better than the 3.5+ though - you can only skim so much out!

[Chris!]

Meh, you are probably right, but it would take forever for it to get there. It took a good 2 years before even the 3.5+ would start putting loads of dark, black, smelly skimmate in teh cup consistently and it still takes 8-14 days to completely fill it even feeding 2x daily and target feeding 2-3x a week. The tank was just too new and sterile to get that nasty skimmate.

 

I don't think it would work any better than the 3.5+ though - you can only skim so much out!

 

FWIW I am running a BM that is rated for 400g on a system w/ roughly 125g total right now..... the cup holds nearly a gallon itself.... I can fill a 2 liter in 4 days..... The system is a little over a month old and there are only 4 fish in there right now. I lightly clean the neck (quick rinse in the utility tub, every other time I hit it real quick with a baby bottle brush to get anything big that may have stuck and do a little better cleaning) and empty the skimmer every 4 days as I have found that keeps it running optimally for me, but it is dialed in, in the proper amount of water, and skimming like a beast! I don't shoot to "completely fill" the cup nearly as much as I shoot to keep the entire skimmer performing at its peak

 

You are right, you can only skim out so much.... but if your skimmer isn't running at its peak levels you can definitely skim more, and more efficiently.

[jservedio]

FWIW I am running a BM that is rated for 400g on a system w/ roughly 125g total right now..... the cup holds nearly a gallon itself.... I can fill a 2 liter in 4 days..... The system is a little over a month old and there are only 4 fish in there right now. I lightly clean the neck (quick rinse in the utility tub, every other time I hit it real quick with a baby bottle brush to get anything big that may have stuck and do a little better cleaning) and empty the skimmer every 4 days as I have found that keeps it running optimally for me, but it is dialed in, in the proper amount of water, and skimming like a beast! I don't shoot to "completely fill" the cup nearly as much as I shoot to keep the entire skimmer performing at its peak

 

You are right, you can only skim out so much.... but if your skimmer isn't running at its peak levels you can definitely skim more, and more efficiently.

 

For sure. I was really commenting more specifically on the BM5 as opposed to oversized skimmers in general. I really like oversized skimmers and think virtually any tank would be better off with one, it is just that the BM5 specifically isn't a great skimmer for a tank that sized. It has a really wide neck, but isn't much taller than the 3.5+ and still has the pump underneath (and underpowered at that). For a smaller tank, I think a taller skimmer with a more reasonable sized neck would be a much better choice - something like the Reef Octopus that has a side mounted pump.

 

If the OP can fit the BM5, he can fit the Reef Octopus which would be a better skimer for that sized tank :-)

 

However, I still think the BM3.5+, BM5, or the RO is still the worst option when compared to plumbing it to the 125 :-). That would be far and away better and would make keeping SPS so much easier. While stability in a 25g isn't tough with a doser, it's definitely a lot easier with 5x the volume!