uNANOmus Bliss - Biocube 8

[uNANOmus]

After stumbling onto nano-reef.com nearly two and a half years ago, I can finally start my own tank thread.

 

I intend for this thread to serve as a log for my tank so it's easy for me to keep track of the tank's progress, or lack thereof. The thread will also be a convenient way for me to share my tank with my family and friends. Furthermore, I'd like for the thread to be a tool for me to keep track of the money I'm spending. I think it will be nice for me and others to see how expensive this hobby really is, even for a small tank.

 

Of course, feedback from the nano-reef community is welcome.

 

With that being said, let's get this thing started:

 

I ordered my tank and the majority of dry goods that I thought I might need during the first few months from thatpetplace.com.

I'll hit the highlights:

Biocube 8 Gallon Aquarium

VisiTherm Stealth 50W Heater

Sybon Refractometer

Minijet 606 Powerhead

Instant Ocean Salt (50 gallons worth)

Hydor FLO

ChemiPure Elite

Digital Thermometer

Filter Floss

Marine Lab Test Kit

total price (after shipping): 325.28

 

I was very happy with the price and quality of the goods that I received. Everything was packed well and shipped out fast. My order arrived at my door on February 21st.

 

I filled the tank up and checked for leaks... everything checked out well. I will say that the fans were a little louder than I expected based on other people's descriptions (some people have said that their fans are nearly silent. Also, the back chambers are a little tight even for my hands which aren't huge. Otherwise, I was very happy with the tank. It seems to be very solidly built and the design is pretty sleek and clean.

 

Next I wanted to build a stand for the tank. I didn't care for the commercially available stands made for the Biocube but and the stand built by nano-reef user "cichlidtx" (see his thread here : http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=184469) really impressed me. Unfortunately, I'm not much of a carpenter and have very limited tools. Fortunately, my girlfriend's dad is a very good carpenter and has lots of wood working tools. I showed him cichlidtx's stand and we went and bought some poplar boards and came up with this:

 

We, I should say he, put a curve on the front of the stand. I think this really makes the tank and stand blend together nicely.

 

The inside includes two adjustable shelves and openings for electrical input and output. This makes for a minimum of visible electric cords and a nice clean look. The shelves give me almost enough storage space for all my equipment (everything except my water buckets).

 

I am very happy with the stand and feel fortunate for the help that I had in building it.

Total Stand Price: $154.43

 

During stand building down-time I had time to work on mods:

I haven't done anything innovative. I should thank all those who posted on the

The Biocube Resource Guide

for giving me all of my ideas for modifications.

 

First of all, I removed all of my bioballs from chamber two as most other Biocube owners have done. I also cut the flow gap between chambers one and two to increase flow. I replaced the stock pump with a MiniJet 606 and put a VisiTherm Stealth 50W heater in chamber one. I replaced the "drip tray" from chamber two with a custom made (from the top of a pipette tip box) tray with much more potential for flow.

 

I really like the refugium that many Biocube owners have modded into their tanks so I have attempted to make a refugium in chamber two. I scraped off the paint behind the middle chamber with a razor blade and attached some velcro to affix my light to.

 

I bought a nine watt compact fluorescent puck light from lowes and found a tupperware container in my cabinet that fit it quite nicely. I painted the container black and coated the interior with aluminum foil.

Fuge cost: $17.08 (including chaeto)

 

This is what it looks like on the back of the tank:

 

After we finished the stand and I finished my tank modifications I was ready to order some live rock. The nano-reef.com community seemed to be very impressed by

Sea Life Inc. I liked the fact that Sea Life Inc.'s rock was aquacultured instead of harvested from natural reefs and I was very impressed by the amount of life on the rocks that people had posted pictures of. Fortunately, a friend of mine is also starting a tank (hopefully he'll have a thread up soon) and we were able to place a live rock order together and split shipping. I ordered ten pounds of rock and ended up paying $65.25. The rock arrived on April 1st.

 

I can't say enough about this rock. It is covered in coralline algae, sponges, and macro algae. Thus far I have seen a brittle star, several snails, dozens of feather duster worms (two of which are pretty large), several bristle worms, and even a small nudibranch.

 

Yellow Sponge:

 

Orange Encrusting Sponge:

 

Yellow Encrusting Sponge:

 

Feather Duster:

 

Another Feather Duster:

 

Some Kind of (Nerite?) Snail:

 

My Black and Yellow Nudibranch (directly in the center):

 

Left Side of Tank:

 

Right Side of Tank:

 

Top Down:

 

My First Front of Tank Shot;

 

Ken, the owner and operator of Sea Life Inc. was very easy to work with and I would buy again from him without hesitation. At just over $6.50 per pound I don't think I could have found a better deal on rock. I'm frantically trying to keep as many creatures alive with a soft cycle. I have been doing ~30% water changes two to three times daily. I have added chaeto to the refugium in the hopes that it will aid in uptake of ammonia and nitrate. It seems to be helping. Today is day five and ammonia is at 0 ppm. Nitrite is at 0.1 ppm and nitrate is at 0 ppm.

 

I think I'll end this post here. I hope to have news on the end of the cycle within the next couple weeks.

 

uNANOmus

[lysis01]

Awesome tank. I'll be sure to follow your progress. Happy reef keeping!

[Psychosis]

THat sealife rock is all way's awesome. Fresh from the ocean floor to your door.

 

Holy crap, some one tell them to use that as a slogan!

[cichlidtx]

Looks like your off to a good start. The stand looks great, thanks for compliments. I will be tagging along.

[bluenassarius]

nice start