Please check my setup (10 gallon)

[dubious49]

hi all. i'm working on setting up a 10 gallon nano reef. only the tank and glass hood have been purchased so far but i'm getting ready to order the rest of the supplies.

 

here's what i'm thinking:

 

lighting - at this point i'm torn b/w the 2 20" coralife aqualight hoods. both house single 50/50 bulbs one at 28w and the other at 96w. i'm leaning towards the 96w but is that TOO much light for a 10 gallon? will it generate too much heat? the 96w fixture has built in fans and optional mounting legs to raise the fixture about 1.5 inches off the tank, but will that suffice?

 

filtration - a penguin mini (100 gph) HOB, 2 rio 50 powerheads (69gph each), 7-10 pounds of LR and 20 pounds of LS. do i need the HOB or just the powerheads with the LR and LS? what about a skimmer?

 

haven't begun to think about livestock specifics yet as i'm sure it'll be a while before the tank finishes cycling, but any ideas are welcome.

 

thanks in advance for any advice!

[tinyreef]

ALWAYS get the most light you can imo. there will come a time when you look at that 96W and smack yourself and ask why didn't you get the mh from the start? intensity can be decreased by distancing your light away (i.e. higher) from the water surface but you can only get so close to the water surface (brzzt!) in order to increase your light intensity.

 

go for the AC hob's instead. i believe they're cheaper to buy, cheaper to maintain (i.e. filters), and you can control their flow.

 

the rios might be too small actually (imho). i'd go at least the 90 or minijets for adjustability.

 

you could hold off on the skimmer for now but i'd recommend you get one anyway but i'm part of the 51% that uses skimmers around here.

 

poke around the members tank forum for some ideas on setup and options. hth

[dubious49]

thanks tinyreef!

 

ok, so i've revised my shopping list a little:

 

Lighting - Coralife Aqualight, Quad Strip Light, 1X96W, 20 inch

Filter - Millennium 1000

Power Heads - Micro-Jet MC450 (2)

Heater - Ebo Jager 50W

 

whaddaya think?

 

as far as setup/cycling my plan is to install the lighting, heater, filter and powerheads, fill the tank, allow the water level to reach the correct temp, pH and specific gravity, then add the live rock and live sand and let it cycle. sound right?

[basa90]

Skip the Millieum 1000 (IMO)

2 Micro jets are cool

I like the hood here is a pic of mine

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread...?threadid=11379