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Nano Sapiens 12g - Ye Olde Mixed Reef


Nano sapiens

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If the Biocube stand will hold a 15" x 15" footprint, then you're golden. From the specs on the 12g nano (at oceanreeflections.com):

*Tank dimensions: (L)15" x (W)15" x (H)13"
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any more full tank shots or shots of more of the tank.Im wondering if this tank would fit on a biocube stand.There both 15x15.

 

The CadLights 12gal. has an integral glass 'base' that the tank itself is permanently attached to. The base measures 16-3/8 x 16-3/8 (including the front curve).

Edited by Nano sapiens
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I love the experiment! great looking nano, very clean..and the coraline on the rocks is a nice purple

 

 

can I have the Yuma lol

 

Glad you like it. It's still a work in progress :)

 

Since the live rock is from the bottom area of a tank that was 9 years old, the purple coraline is really thick in some spots. I'm seeing new encrustations of pink coraline algae which tends to colonize when light levels are relatively high.

 

If moma Yuma produces a few more offspring I may post them for sale. I'm waiting for little junior to grow up to see if it keeps its current color scheme (the orange spots overlay a base pattern that looks like a colored kaleidoscope...very B)

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Thank you so much for that experiment with the pet bottle Ato. I had an idea of this awhile back ,but kept running into to many questions if it would WORK ! With the stainless steel tube and all. Just never thought to perform the experiment. I am going to try and employ this method to my pico. Thank you again for simplicity !! ;)

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Thank you so much for that experiment with the pet bottle Ato. I had an idea of this awhile back ,but kept running into to many questions if it would WORK ! With the stainless steel tube and all. Just never thought to perform the experiment. I am going to try and employ this method to my pico. Thank you again for simplicity !! ;)

 

You are welcome :) . Let me know if it works out for you.

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 4 months later...

Such a great tank nano, I've spoke to you in the past about it, my tank is finally shipping from CAD, I ordered that thing in feb and it's leaving 4/10/09. I hope to get my tank exactly like yours, Is that thing completely stock still? no added flow? stock lights? stock pump? I'm guessed you're just running a heater back there. I'm hoping to duplicate both the blackout and the ATO.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Nano sapiens
Such a great tank nanoI

 

Why, thank you. Glad you like it :).

 

Is that thing completely stock still?

 

Yes, everything is stock except the pump. The original pump motor shaft corroded and as a result it was out of whack and making too much noise. CADLights has since changed to an improved pump I hear.

 

I'm guessed you're just running a heater back there.

 

2 submersible heaters, a primary and a 'backup'.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Any updates? How is the coloring looking? I didn't think you could keep SPS or LPS in these tanks, now you got me thinking about new stuff. New FTS!

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Nano sapiens

Well, here's what I started with LPS & SPS wise about two months ago:

 

1. Mini 3/4" frag of Pink Stylophora

2. Mini 3/8" polyp of an orange Acan Lord

3. Dime sized Pink Chalice

4. Neon-green Acropora millepora

5. Mini 1/2" frag of Gold Pavona

6. Red Goniopora colony (30+ polyps)

 

Pink Stylo: Bleached out day one, but is slowly making a comeback. Pink is now more brown-ish even though it is 3/4 of the way up in the tank. May need to be brought even closer to the light and/or nitrates may be too high (~20). Not a phosphate issue since they are very low.

 

Orange Acan: Now (2) polyps, both 1/2" diameter, excellent color and expansion. Loves to eat mysis shrimp. Sits half way up in the tank.

 

Pink Chalice: Nearly the size of a quarter! This is no slow growing Chalice. Sits half way up in the tank.

 

Neon-green Acropora millepora: I have frags at all levels of the tank. Surprisingly, this species will grow with the reduced lighting at the level of the sand bed (dark brown color) as well as higher up (lighter brown/green). I'm experimenting with a frag on the 'Hanging Frag Trapeze' which I am slowly raising closer to the light to see if it will become more green again.

 

Gold Pavona: This frag had some previous bleaching problems when I got it and subsequently lost half of its polyps. It has now stabilized and has changed from the original neon-gold to neon-pink color even though it is only half way up in the tank.

 

Red Goniopora: This is the small polyp variety with blue centers. Doing very well, so far with 2-3x/wk. feeding. Sits half way up in the tank.

 

Looks to me like the stock lighting is perfect for LPSs like Acans and Chalices. Plating SPS like Pavona and Montipora should do well. Tree-like Acropora SPSs are more of a challenge, of course, especially maintaining the bright colors, but I'm happy to see them growing. Of note is that with less light, feeding takes on more importance to keep SPS healthy.

Edited by Nano sapiens
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Nano, the bulbs on these cad hoods are misleading I think, it says HO, which leads me to believe they are high output, but on the website it says they are standard output. But yet here you are, keeping stuff in there I didn't think was possible.

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Nano sapiens
Nano, the bulbs on these cad hoods are misleading I think, it says HO, which leads me to believe they are high output, but on the website it says they are standard output. But yet here you are, keeping stuff in there I didn't think was possible.

 

Yes, the bulbs are 'standard output'.

 

It is a misconception that all SPS can only be kept in extremely bright light. If you look at pictures of natural reefs you'll see SPS growing at various depths (however, there is obviously a maximum depth where photosynthetic corals will not thrive). What is true is that many SPS will not retain bright colors without very strong illumination and very high quality water.

 

Of note: In studies it has been shown that SPS can be kept in very low light levels when feed very often. Their colors will however turn to various shades of brown. I have kept a Leptastrea and a Tyree Green/Purple Rim Montipora for years under 10 hrs. of 80W standard fluorescents and 3 hrs. of 110W PCs in a 50 gal. tank at all levels and they grew into multiple, large colonies. I also fed the fish daily and didn't change water often, so there was plenty of nutrition available.

 

Since I just started experimenting with SPS in this nano tank I can't say what will and won't survive (and thrive) over the long term. I'll keep updating this post as the months go by...

Edited by Nano sapiens
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  • 4 weeks later...
Nano sapiens

Ok, time for an update...

 

High Nitrate Issue (25 ppm): I've added a black plastic strip all around the bottom of the tank at the gravel line. The purpose of this is to prevent light from nourishing the cyanobacteria that were happily fixing nitrogen back into nitrate. After 1 week my nitrates are down to around 18 ppm (I'll be happy with 10 ppm):

 

CynobacteriaShield.jpg~original

 

Hydor Oscillator Modifications: Hydor makes a great unit, but a few things needed adjustment/improvement. Flow out of the unit in this CAD tank was too strong, thus clearing away gravel all the way to the bottom glass in the left hand corner, so I added some flow diffuser fins which helped a bit:

 

Modified_Hydor.jpg~original 

 

Next issue was having to remove small snails from the back and inner workings of the unit. These critters would cause the unit to stop turning every 2-3 days, so the solution is a press fit plastic 'shield' to prevent their entry:

 

HydorShieldwithArrow.jpg

 

Super Glue Issue: Learned that all 'Super Glue' is not the same. I bought some from ACE hardware called 'Home Repair' (or something like that) and the vapors were deadly to my Pink Stylo (and probably killed a few of my remaining brain cells, too). Not only that, but anything I glued lost its adhesion in 1-2 weeks, so all my frags were literally 'dropping like flies' . I'm now using Loctite Super Glue Gel exclusively with positive results.

 

Lighting: Starting to replace bulbs after 10 months of use (one bulb each week). Big improvement in color and brightness. Took LUX readings at various depths in my tank using the old 10 month old bulbs and the brand new bulbs (30% average decrease in light level comparing old to new). Moving forward, I plan to change bulbs at least every 8 months. Of note is that at 2/3 level (measured from the bottom) the LUX level of the brand new bulbs is about 30% lower than my LFS's tank level where he keeps SPS under a bank of T5s. To get this kind of lighting intensity the corals would need to be placed about 2" under the water's surface when using the stock CADLights T5 lighting and new bulbs.

 

Heating: After turning off my pump to feed my corals, then forgetting to turn it back on again after 12 hours my tank went from 78 to 73 degrees due to the heaters being in the sump. Unfortunately, I lost a few new Zoas due to an infection that may have occurred due to this chilling. I plan to add my backup heater soon into the main tank to avoid wide temperature swings and do it in such a way that it is as invisible as possible.

 

Corals:

 

1. Pink Stylophora: Remaining polyps killed by noxious super glue vapors! :angry:

2. Pink Chalice: Growing, eating :)

3. Orange Acan: Growing, eating :)

4. New Red Acan (3/4 polyp): LFS owner sliced a small frag from a beautiful blood-red acan grouping. Turned out to be not quite a whole polyp, but it is eating well (fed every 2nd day). Not puffing up much, but may be adjusting to the new bulbs' higher light levels.

 

NeptuneFrags060309.jpg~original

 

5. Green A. millepora: Originally placed too low in the tank without enough light and flow. Now placed at the highest location in my tank with moderate flow. Remaining polyps light brown, but extending well. If I loose this piece I may try a 'Bali Green Slimer'.

6. Gold Pavona: After taking a dive into the sand...upside down of course...this piece lost a bit of its size. Seems to be very slowly receding, so I may loose this one. :( . Will try raising piece to highest light level in tank.

 

NeptuneFrags2-060309.jpg~original

 

7. Letastrea sp.: Looks healthy and feeds, but slow growth.

8. Red Goniopora: Doing very, very well, even after falling into the sand. Growing down the sides of the cut frag on all sides :happydance:

 

Lost nearly all my Green Radioactive Zoas for no obvious reason. Other Zoas/Palys doing fine. All Rics and Yumas ok, too.

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Nano sapiens
This is day 4 of my cycle, only added

inverts: 2x blue legged hermits and a coral banded shrimp.

Corals: assorted ricordea floridas, greens and orange & green.

Soon will be adding lots of zoa's...

 

Firstly, thanks for you kind words...and your english is just fine :)

 

If I understand this correctly, you are putting in corals after only 4 days into the break-in cycle? Even if my live rock, sand and water were taken from a fully established tank I'd wait at least 2-3 weeks to make sure everything had stabilized before adding the first hardy coral.

 

If this is a virgin setup you should consider having someone with an established aquarium house the coral pieces for a while until your new tank has matured. Personally, I'd wait about 2 months after your parameters are fine before trying hardy coral.

 

Good luck and enjoy the tank :)

Edited by Nano sapiens
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how is the stock ligthing working for you so far? i really like the tank, but the low wattage of the light is the only thing keeping me from buying the tank.

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Nano sapiens
MLK said:
how is the stock ligthing working for you so far? i really like the tank, but the low wattage of the light is the only thing keeping me from buying the tank.

 

As an example I have a few SPSs in the tank that are doing fine and some that are not. Probably the best way to answer your question is that for most reef organisms the lighting is fine as long as you position the animals properly and change out the bulbs at least every 8 months. Those that require very intense lighting (many Acropora, Anemones, etc.) need either a more intense light source or supplemental lighting.

 

Here is a drawing showing LUX readings at various tank levels:

 

NanoStockT5LUXReadings.jpg~original

 

Note that 10 month old bulbs loose about 30% brightness compared to brand new bulbs.

 

I took LUX readings in my LFS's tanks where SPS were kept. The readings ranged from 470 to 520 from banks of T5s. In order to get this same intensity using stock CADLights lighting I'd have to position the coral about 2-4 inches from the water's surface..

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cool, thanks for the reply. do you have anymore recent full tank shots? I'm still trying to decide between this tank and the 22 gallon setup. just with they had a stand for the 12

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Nano sapiens
MLK said:
cool, thanks for the reply. do you have anymore recent full tank shots? I'm still trying to decide between this tank and the 22 gallon setup. just with they had a stand for the 12

 

With flash:

12gCADLightsNanoFTS062809.jpg~original

 

Without flash:

12gCADLightsNanoFTSNoFlash062809.jpg~ori

 

Closeup:

12gCADLightsNanoCloseup062809.jpg

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  • 3 weeks later...
Nano sapiens
Looks good! How are your SPSs doing?

 

For the most part better than I expected considering my higher nitrate levels. I've dropped coral feeding from twice to once per week and I'm now running (3) Actinics to (1) 10K.

 

By type:

 

Green Millepora: Tissue recession and brown polyps. I've found this coral not to be suited to the light, flow and nitrate levels in my tank.

 

Pink Chalice: Did very well, but I gave it away due to it getting bigger and threatening its neighbors (Chalice have sweepers and a mighty powerful sting!).

 

Gold Pavona: This was a weakened frag to start off with since I got it bleached out. I thought for sure it would wither away to nothing, but since I've installed new bulbs and increased the lighting from 8 to 9 hrs./day this coral is finally starting to grow.

 

Green Bali Slimer: Front of the frag looks okay with decent polyp extention, but back is showing some receding areas near the base. The rear is having trouble since the piece is leaning backward about 10 degrees, so it isn't receiving enough light back there. Front flat base area is spreading fast since it receives the most light. I've decided not to mess with the positioning and just watch how it adapts.

 

Sunset Montipora: This one was completely milky white with very faint green polyps when I bought it since it was kept under very high powered light. After a few weeks of my moderate lighting the base is coloring up a nice orange and the polyps are turning bright green. Should be in full color in a few weeks.

 

Tyree True Undata: Just got this frag last week from 'PurpleUp', but I can already see some healing/growth around the edges where its flesh met my superglue. Polyps are out and extending nicely, so this one looks happy so far.

Edited by Nano sapiens
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  • 2 weeks later...
supertech99

i recently inherited one of the cadlights 4x8w t5 lights and i cant find replacement lamps for them! also was wondering how they would compare with 40w of pc light which is what I was considering swapping it out for. what do you think? its over a softiereef 5.5gal with 2 frogspawn frags and a cap coral frag less than an inch from surface when open.

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