Jump to content
inTank Media Baskets

How Did You Discover Nano Reef Keeping?


Christopher Marks

Recommended Posts

Christopher Marks

How did you discover nano reef keeping, and how did you get started? Was it Nano-Reef.com, a friend, or a local fish store? What was hard about getting started? What would you have done differently?

Link to comment

I first discovered nano reefing by seeing the tank of another aquarist on a different forum. I was blown away by the colors and diversity and felt that FW was not going to 'hold me' over time. What pushed me over the edge was seeing a setup JBJ NC 12G, obviously well placed near the register of a large lfs near me. I had to stare at the tank to determine if that fluorescent green was real or plastic (was an open brain and REAL).

 

I got started by reading for weeks here and decided on going with the NC but a 24 gallon since I thought it would hold a larger volume and be more stable. Purchased mine over Ebay after reading here, Paletta's book, Kurtz's book and fortunately, someone here picked me up as a lost wondering soul and became my guru. Credit goes to him..Trekbear and a single early helpful post by Slaeyer.

 

The hardest part about getting started was NOT getting started. That is, acquiring the information necessary prior to setup and having to stare at the big, colorful box containing an acquarium sitting on my living room floor with a reef picture on the side. After that, I think that learning to make 'interventions/decisions/ on your own with a tank science that seemed alien was very difficult. A bout with cyanobacteria was the greatest challenge. Most frustrating was seeing the photos of tanks by Tighaboy, Mikeguerrero, etc while I had a 'pile of rocks' in mine.

 

I"m sad to say that the main thing I would have done differently now is.....that...I would not have purchased a JBJ Nano Cube. My tank has a latent hairline crack which has me in limbo. The idea and design were brilliant, but, I think the engineering was lacking. In retrospect, I would have chosen an Oceanic 30G which probably stretches the true definition of a nano tank. It would have provided more room for livestock and more flexibility with design. However, the main 'flaw' that I was unaware of with the NC, that is, that it came with stock lighting, provided me with the best challenge.....to setup a tank under those conditions and also to provide help to others in setting up theirs. Am I really a reef tank owner now??? SH

 

nano106.jpg

  • Like 2
Link to comment

My uncle got me into the hobby.After seing his 3 Reefs at his house ans his Pico at work I just knew I wanted one.

We started talking and that was really it, he got me my first setup for my birthday a 2.5 Gall,Filter,LR,LS,the works and he pretty much set me up from there and I just loved the Hobby instantl Plus I like stuff like this.

Link to comment

I was always told marine tanks under 30 gallons are a "no no", then NR.com stumbled into my life and the rest is history.

 

IMO, the hardest part of beginning this hobby was getting a grip on my water parameters, and knowing the right equipment to buy.

Edited by BelowH2O
Link to comment

I was keeping a nano for years and didn't even know it. I had a 30g FOWDC (fish only w/ dead coral) and a 10g hex FOWDC. Had such problems w/ the 30g that we changed it to FW. This was back in the days of using UG filters though.

 

Decided to re-do the 10g several years ago and this time did it w/ sand, LR and better lights. Doing a nano & didn't even know it! Then earlier this year (March) the 10g started leaking at the bottom and we decided to replace it w/ a 24g NanoCube. The Cube is in our living room and after I got it set up I was doing a search for Nano Cube and came across Nanoreef.com. That's when I found out I had been nanoing for years!

 

Now we have a nice Cube and have learned a lot from all the good posts on NR. Plus we have a 2.5 MB that is looking good too.

 

The hard part about getting started was having patience!

Link to comment

Been keeping cichlids for a while in a 4ft tank, didnt want to ditch em, and had a spare 50litre tank, so wanted to try my hand at marine.

 

Everyone (lfs) told me a 50 litre tank was too small to try marine fish, but I knew that I could do it, so I googled for a few hours, came across your site and thought "I wanna give this a go"

 

Your site gave me the knowledge and confidence to start out!

 

So I did. :)

Link to comment
neanderthalman

One of my roommates started up a 10g nano about two years ago. I watched him get it set up and running, read these forums for a few months, then gave my semi-retarded goldfish to my nephew and converted my tank to SW. I hate goldfish now.

 

The only thing I would change about my tank is the size. I like my tank, but I just have very little room for livestock. I'd feel wrong dumping a fish, even a small perching goby, into my tank.

Link to comment

I have always loved aquatic life, and finally figured about a year ago that I was going to be in the same place long enough to look into an aquarium. I knew I wanted saltwater, and so I just started googling. I was amazed by "mini-reef" sites I found, even though those were hundreds of gallons. At some point either I or my girlfriend stumbled on nano-reef, which had so much information in terms of posts, links, and basic terminology that I was able to research enough to know what not to do. I live in New York City, so I didn't really have the option of a large tank; I bought a JBJ 12 DX in late October of 2004, and have been through all of the trials a first-year aquarists has to weather. My system is still up, my livestock is still healthy, and my corals are growing. I'm hooked.

Link to comment

I always wanted to start my own saltwater tank. I love the idea of creating an ocean in my room. But i couldnt really start one because its pretty expensive. Until I saw my friend's 2 foot tank. I was like wow..

I am still new here havent actually bought a tank yet.. Doing reseach and getting more information..

 

Still wondering what size I want.. Probably will go less than 2 feet probably a small 7 gallon tank to test the waters.

 

Stumble into nano-reef will googling.. I really love this forum and I find that the information here is good, tested and proven.. Will be bugging the pros here alot..

:P

Link to comment
forrestp38829

guy at lfs, through casual conversation, really demystified alot of the issues with me. after that went straight home and started googling. 5months late started first tank. still learning, of course :D

Edited by forrestp38829
Link to comment

I've had FW tanks for a couple decades and I've always thought SW tanks were beautiful. I was telling my wife a couple years back that I'd like to get a saltwater tank and bless her heart she got me a 10G tank a couple years ago so I could set up a saltwater tank. I immediately got online and did a search on google and stumbled across this site. Been a member ever since because of the amazing stuff that I saw here.

 

Go '03! :)

Link to comment

1 word "steelhealr"

 

 

I find it ironic that he was the first to respond to this question as I am sure he has sparked quite a few SW people. I know I saw his famous post at a different forum and read the entire thing in April or May. I, like many others thought a small SW tank was impossible. However after alot of reading and bugging the crap out of him I started my own 6g NC which I bought when the competition started. It's kicking butt now I love it. Unfortunately it has caused FW deglect almost because everyday I see something new in the tank. I have 8-9 FW tanks ranging from 2g to 75g. I am actually starting a pico now. It has been very rewarding over the past 6 months. I have watched my tank bloom, and my wallet empty ;)

Link to comment

Wow.. isn’t it amazing how Google has transformed the way we search for info? I would have made many more mistakes if it weren’t for Google and forum sites like this.

 

I wanted to go from fresh to salt for years. One day I was talking to someone at Petco of all places and she said that 55gal was the minimum. I, of course, didn’t believe her and began a ton of researching and setup my first tank shortly thereafter.

 

I think the advice I would give is know how much this is going to cost to do properly and spend the extra $$ up front to get good equipment. Good equipment will save you money in the long run and make the transition to the hobby far more enjoyable. A nice reef tank is going to inevitably be a shock to your wallet but HEY do you want an expensive new TV or a reef to look at? I choose cheap TV + new reef. :)

Link to comment

I was searching for nano cube because I ordered one on line from premium aquatics after seeing it in aquarium fish magazine. I could not believe what little information was sent on set up and wanted to ask what was up with that. I saw this sight then read Steelhealrs post took days it was in July so pretty big by then. Started set up 07/18/05 going very slow still learning a lot here and lovin it. Thanks

Link to comment
ProFlatlander15

always had FW tanks. got a job, started researching, and visited Nano-Reef.com. the rest is history...now if i could just convince people im not crazy...

Link to comment

How about all of the above? seriously Ive always been surronded by saltwater in some form or another. :lol:

AS for it being hard, not really you just got to research, research, think for a while,research, and then check your wallet. I wouldnt do anything differently if I could.

Edited by bogart
Link to comment

Got into fw after seeing my friends 90g planted. He introduced me to Petfish.net. Then i saw a post in the sw section in the petfish forums and foudn a link to mini-bow.com. After that i foudn a post about nano-reef.com. After seeing some beautiful 10g setups, i knew i had to make the cross over to the salty side. VIVA NANO-REEFING!

Link to comment

started out with a 12g eclipse as a fowlr. figured out that even with the stock lighting i could put some corals in the tank and they would thrive. was told by all lfs that i couldn't do a reef tank smaller than 55g. that irritated me and made me want to prove them wrong.

 

decided to search for some information and came across n-r.com and daveESPI, crakeur, tiny, seamountain, etc. they were always a handful but i learned a lot from them all. mainly, not to ask a question without searching...which, btw, seems to be a point well overlooked by current newbies.

 

as for the originator of nano-reefing, in general, i think i'll have to say that sloreefer started it...right, eric? ;)

Link to comment

Had a friend with a 15 gallon and I wanted one of my own. wish it would not have took so long to find nr as it pushed me into the hobby and got me learning where I kept messing up.

Link to comment

Caught a 3" trigger in a tide pool. Put him in an uncycled 3 gallon tank. Looking for info about him and stumbled on another reef forum after a google.com search. Read a little and put him back in the ocean the next day :P

 

Learned a bit about reefs and started cooking up ways I might be able to have one. Most people suggested getting one 40+ gallons, but I'm in college and having one that big isn't allowed, my LL said hell no. About 10 gallons was supposed to be my max, I got a 20 gallon but I figure after live rock and :cough: fish volume it might go down to about 10 gallons :P

 

I'm just starting off, and I just got my tank less then a week ago, but it's coming along and I have a lot to thank NR and all the great people here for it.

 

Only got one blurry pic of the little guy (remember 3 gallon tank)

Trigger.jpg

 

Ahhh the memories

Edited by Pakrat
Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recommended Discussions

×
×
  • Create New...