New Tank!

[zajla212]

Hello!

I am thinking about starting a reef nano tank. I've never had a tank before, but I really want to see if I can maintain it. I would like to ask you if this could be a good build:

 

20 gallon tank

Koralia Evolution 750 gph pump

Current USA Orbit Marine LED light

AquaEuro Nano Protein Skimmer 2 (do I even need it?)

what is a good water test kit to have?

 

I would like to keep a couple of clown fish, some soft and easy to keep corals, and some cleaners (shrimp, snails...)

 

I don't want anything too complicated, no sump... Maybe I can upgrade later.

 

Thanks!

 

[Sancho]

Welcome to your new addiction . Your list sounds great for what you want to keep. Are you planning on getting an AIO tank? Skimmer is debatable but never a bad idea to have one. Test kits go with the API for your basic test. Everything else I use the Red Sea or Salifert. They can get expensive. The API is affordable and will give you an idea when your tank is done with the cycle. Take your time do your research. The tanks on this forum that look amazing took a lot of time and patience e. I have a 90 that is still empty after a year cause I want to do it right.

[VW_TDI_02]

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of API test kits. When you start doing corals and need to measure calcium, alk, and mag then I would definitely avoid API and get the Red Sea Foundations kit. Doing that from the start would have saved me $30... Also, look at getting a reef controller. I got a Reef Keeper Lite for $75 shipped and it saves you a lot of money on power strips and timers in the long run. That Koralia might be a bit too much too. Look at getting a Jebao RW-4. You get amazing control and can be had for $50 on Amazon. That light should be perfectly fine for what you want to do. You can keep some LPS corals towards the top of the tank without any issues. Great control and slim design with that light.

[zajla212]

Thank you for answers.

I think ReefKeeper is out of my budget. (I'm still a student XD), but I was thinking about getting a heat controller with my heater. And the lights have their own controller that comes with it. I know a ReefKeeper would be better in a long run, but right now I have to make do with what I have available.

The Jebao RW-4 sounds great. I just hope I can find it here.

I'm from Europe (Slovenia) and I guess if I order some things from Amazon or other sites, will I have a problem with outlet plugs? Will an adapter that converts US to EU plug do the job for me, or will it mess with the electricity stuff (I don't know much about)? It's hard for me to find good products here, because reef keeping is just not so common. So I have to get some products from different places.

[VW_TDI_02]

Thank you for answers.

I think ReefKeeper is out of my budget. (I'm still a student XD), but I was thinking about getting a heat controller with my heater. And the lights have their own controller that comes with it. I know a ReefKeeper would be better in a long run, but right now I have to make do with what I have available.

The Jebao RW-4 sounds great. I just hope I can find it here.

I'm from Europe (Slovenia) and I guess if I order some things from Amazon or other sites, will I have a problem with outlet plugs? Will an adapter that converts US to EU plug do the job for me, or will it mess with the electricity stuff (I don't know much about)? It's hard for me to find good products here, because reef keeping is just not so common. So I have to get some products from different places.

Since you're in Europe then you can't use pretty much anything from the US without a transformer. Our outlets are 110V and yours are 220V. I'm also not really sure of what kind of web sites you can order from. :/

[amphipod]

In all truth you can escape without lots of equipment if you choose wisely, what is the temperature of your house?

[zajla212]

Sorry for taking so long...

 

Since you're in Europe then you can't use pretty much anything from the US without a transformer. Our outlets are 110V and yours are 220V. I'm also not really sure of what kind of web sites you can order from. :/

 

I have done some research and found some similar stuff in local stores, so I guess I won't need transformers.

 

In all truth you can escape without lots of equipment if you choose wisely, what is the temperature of your house?

 

The temperature in my room, where the aquarium would be, is usually around 70-73 degrees. the differences between summer and winter are pretty big so I could use AC on hot days. what equipment could i go without?

 

Also i want to start my tank with dry rock + live sand. Do I need to clean or cure dry rock when I get it, or can I start cycling right away?

[amphipod]

Protein skimmers are one thing, if you use the right filters and have good water changes and well picked species and algae, it ends up loosing its value. Heaters for some people are unnecessary if the rooms are a constant proper temperature. There are others, but those are the main wastes.

Also live rock has all the awesome hitchhikers and variety

[zajla212]

I won't be using a protein skimmer, but I would probably have a hard time maintaining constant temperature without a heater. Maybe I'll even try to see if I can keep the temperature with freshwater for a week or so without anything in it. Will a pump heat water by a lot?

i'm not sure about live rock, because I don't want some weird worms destroy my first tank, and make me lose interest in the hobby XD I don't mind cycling for a bit longer. Will I have to put fish food in to start the cycle or is live sand good enough? I rather take things slowly but surely

[amphipod]

Pump won't heat too much, you'll probably need a heater because of fluctuating temperature. Literally its probably something like 99% or more of worms existing in the oceans are reef safe. To cycle you still will have to put food in.

[zajla212]

when cycling do i have to put food in only at the beginning or should i be adding it until the cycle completes? i still think i'll go with dry rock, because my budget doesn't allow me to get LR. what is the "best" way to cure it? soaking, rinsing, cooking...?

[VW_TDI_02]

when cycling do i have to put food in only at the beginning or should i be adding it until the cycle completes? i still think i'll go with dry rock, because my budget doesn't allow me to get LR. what is the "best" way to cure it? soaking, rinsing, cooking...?

Heated water, circulation, and time.

[Tamberav]

Research your light carefully and what you want to keep vs the depth of your tank. You don't want to be 6 months in having an urge to get your clowns an anemone and have spent $$ on a light that can't support it.

 

i would skip the skimmer as you can always add one later. Without an AIO/Sump, skimmers can pose their own frustrations (needing constant water level, micro-bubbles, not staying dialed in, ect).

[zajla212]

Heated water, circulation, and time.

 

ok. thanks. how long? i mean, how do i know when it's done?

 

Research your light carefully and what you want to keep vs the depth of your tank. You don't want to be 6 months in having an urge to get your clowns an anemone and have spent $$ on a light that can't support it.

 

i would skip the skimmer as you can always add one later. Without an AIO/Sump, skimmers can pose their own frustrations (needing constant water level, micro-bubbles, not staying dialed in, ect).

 

i was thinking that maybe it would be a good idea to first just have a fowlr tank with light that comes with it and get better lighting later when i can afford it. i don't want to buy something that's "good enough for the money" but not really XD and of course only reef-safe fish. and yes, skimmer will come with a sump. one day...

also i started considering a 55 gallon instead of 20. the more i think about it the bigger i want it to be. but that's really the most i could get right now.

 

thanks for the answers

[Tamberav]

 

ok. thanks. how long? i mean, how do i know when it's done?

 

 

i was thinking that maybe it would be a good idea to first just have a fowlr tank with light that comes with it and get better lighting later when i can afford it. i don't want to buy something that's "good enough for the money" but not really XD and of course only reef-safe fish. and yes, skimmer will come with a sump. one day...

also i started considering a 55 gallon instead of 20. the more i think about it the bigger i want it to be. but that's really the most i could get right now.

 

thanks for the answers

 

Be sure to check out the 40 Breeders if you have them. The 55g's are very narrow which makes them difficult to aquascape. They also are deeper so providing reef lighting and having to arranging corals/cleaning can be a pain. 55g can still work, just think about the footprint and height (not just gallons) when you go tank shopping to decide what is pleasing/will work for you.

[zajla212]

So I bought a 55 gallon long tank and about 50 pounds of dry rock. I scrubbed some stuff off and have been cooking it for a few days now. If I understand correctly my biggest concern when curing the rock should be phosphates...? Everybody says that phosphate test kits are not accurate enough to tell you exactly when the rock is cured. So now what? Do phosphates harm fish directly? Could I just put rock in the tank and start cycling it with no lights? Would that prevent algae from growing? Since it will be a fowl first and I don't need a lot of light. Just guessing...

[VW_TDI_02]

So I bought a 55 gallon long tank and about 50 pounds of dry rock. I scrubbed some stuff off and have been cooking it for a few days now. If I understand correctly my biggest concern when curing the rock should be phosphates...? Everybody says that phosphate test kits are not accurate enough to tell you exactly when the rock is cured. So now what? Do phosphates harm fish directly? Could I just put rock in the tank and start cycling it with no lights? Would that prevent algae from growing? Since it will be a fowl first and I don't need a lot of light. Just guessing...

It isn't that they are inaccurate. The big issue is with the scale that they test. Take the API test kit for example. If you look at the card, the colors are for 0, .25. .5, 1, 2, 5, and 10 and that scale is just too big for what we need and that's why nobody likes the API test kit. Phosphates don't harm the fist directly but the big thing is that they contribute to algae growth. You can start cycling the rock but as you said, do it without the lights on in order to prevent algae. Toss in a heater, power heads, and some sort of ammonia source (if there isn't enough on your rock) and you're good to go. The longer you go, the better. Just make sure to do a water change before adding fish. No reason not to do a 100% water change since you won't have any livestock in there.

[zajla212]

Thanks. What about the temperature and salinity? The same as it will be when I have livestock in?

[VW_TDI_02]

If I recall correctly, while cycling/curing increasing the temperature to around 85 or so will speed up the bacterial growth but obviously you have to turn it back down before putting the fish in. Salinity I would just keep the same. The big thing is the warm temperature and a lot of flow.

[zajla212]

ok, i got everything set up and it's now slowly cooking. i'll just cure it for now and start cycling when i get the test kits.

[zajla212]

I will also have to drill the tank. What size bulkheads would you recommend? For around 600 gph I was thinking 25mm (1") for drain, 20mm for return and a 2150 lph (560 gph) pump. I will add a sump later, but would like to drill the tank before getting fish.