20gal Freshie to Reef Tank!

[Jacobnano]

Haha yea. He was banned from this site though, if you didn't know.

[yoshii]

Woah really? Why?

[Jacobnano]

Yea. Well lots of reasons, he was not liked by many, and had been temporarily banned many times, so it was the last straw. I guess he is a completely different person on the other forums.

[yoshii]

Oh that stinks He has some pretty awesome tanks

 

Hey so do you just have your coldwater tank and your aquapod 24?

I had a coldwater "tank" for a bit..actually it was more like a tub lol It probably only had 5-7gal of water in it. It was cool, fish would eat from my hand, but I got rid of it after about a month

[Jacobnano]

Yea it is a bummer, he was pretty funny, he should have toned it down a little so he wouldn't have been banned though.

 

Welllll I technically have a 24g, 15g CW, 10g Frag tank, 5.5g crappy tank, and a 3g freshwater haha. Oh really? How did you keep it cold? Was it saltwater or fresh? Why did you get rid of it???haha

[yoshii]

Yea it is a bummer, he was pretty funny, he should have toned it down a little so he wouldn't have been banned though.

 

Welllll I technically have a 24g, 15g CW, 10g Frag tank, 5.5g crappy tank, and a 3g freshwater haha. Oh really? How did you keep it cold? Was it saltwater or fresh? Why did you get rid of it???haha

 

hahaha techically I have 20galSW, 55gal SW, 10gal SW, which I tell my dad is my "quarantine tank" so I HAVE to have it, but is basically a frag tank in disguise ,3galFW(but they're less than a gallon in there now..it still has a guppy in there I think. used to be a salamander tank), a very large(idk gallons)"pond", which is actually the deep end of my pool with a turtle and fish hehe

 

Lol I didn't keep it cold, it was fine at room temp, during the day in the sun it would be about 70F tops, and night it would go down to the upper 60's. It was from the coast nearby(1-2hr drive) so everything was fine at room temp, everything in the "tank" were critters that live in tidepools and are used to the salinity/temp/etc swings. In fact, I think the tidepools they were from were about room temp or in the 60's.

 

I got rid of it because I got lazy and cheap and didn't want to use my empty 30gal(original plan) and didn't want to buy a filter/other stuff cause I wanted to use that money on my 20gal reef(not setup at the time) But the big reason I got rid of it is possibly the worst reason ever: The tank(tub) it was in was my saltwater mixing container and I needed to do a water change on my 55gal xD

[Jacobnano]

hahaha techically I have 20galSW, 55gal SW, 3galFW(but they're less than a gallon in there now..it still has a guppy in there I think. used to be a salamander tank), a very large(idk gallons)"pond", which is actually the deep end of my pool with a turtle and fish hehe

 

Lol I didn't keep it cold, it was fine at room temp, during the day in the sun it would be about 70F tops, and night it would go down to the upper 60's. It was from the coast nearby(1-2hr drive) so everything was fine at room temp, everything in the "tank" were critters that live in tidepools and are used to the salinity/temp/etc swings. In fact, I think the tidepools they were from were about room temp or in the 60's.

 

I got rid of it because I got lazy and cheap and didn't want to use my empty 30gal(original plan) and didn't want to buy a filter/other stuff cause I wanted to use that money on my 20gal reef(not setup at the time) But the big reason I got rid of it is possibly the worst reason ever: The tank(tub) it was in was my saltwater mixing container and I needed to do a water change on my 55gal xD

 

Ahh I have nano tanks, you have big tanks Wow a pond would be awesome, and turtles are neat.

 

I guess in Cali the tidepools would be pretty warm all the time, so that makes sense. Yes they are really tough critters! My tank took months to cycle, but I was able to keep anemones in there while it was cycling. You should set up that tank again!

 

Ahh thats true. I guess reefs are pretty cool, and since you have a job at a LFS you should probably have your own tank Lame!!! Those other reasons were ok, but to mix water is just silly haha.

[yoshii]

Ahh I have nano tanks, you have big tanks Wow a pond would be awesome, and turtles are neat.

 

I guess in Cali the tidepools would be pretty warm all the time, so that makes sense. Yes they are really tough critters! My tank took months to cycle, but I was able to keep anemones in there while it was cycling. You should set up that tank again!

 

Ahh thats true. I guess reefs are pretty cool, and since you have a job at a LFS you should probably have your own tank Lame!!! Those other reasons were ok, but to mix water is just silly haha.

 

Actually, something weird lol, I'm starting to like nano tanks more and more..they are waay easier IMO. My smaller tanks have alot better water quality than my 55gal xD I'm thinking of cleaning up the 3gal(the one with a guppy I have never fed with like 2" in water in it lol) and starting a pico reef, I would TOTALLY do that except I wouldn't be able to keep up with top off because my parents are divorced(if I mentioned this somewhere already, sorry) but I'm only "with my tanks" every other week :'( BUT I've been thinking about making one of those DIY ATO things, I'm not very good with those things lol

 

In my "tidepool tub" (yeah, that's what I actually called it..) I had a nem, green foot/base with pink tentacles, although when I got it some tentacles were white. It ate a ton of mysis, was really awesome

[Jacobnano]

Actually, something weird lol, I'm starting to like nano tanks more and more..they are waay easier IMO. My smaller tanks have alot better water quality than my 55gal xD I'm thinking of cleaning up the 3gal(the one with a guppy I have never fed with like 2" in water in it lol) and starting a pico reef, I would TOTALLY do that except I wouldn't be able to keep up with top off because my parents are divorced(if I mentioned this somewhere already, sorry) but I'm only "with my tanks" every other week :'( BUT I've been thinking about making one of those DIY ATO things, I'm not very good with those things lol

 

In my "tidepool tub" (yeah, that's what I actually called it..) I had a nem, green foot/base with pink tentacles, although when I got it some tentacles were white. It ate a ton of mysis, was really awesome

 

Yes! They are awesome. Yea I had my 3g as a seahorse tank, but it was a lot of work so I switched to a FW haha. Ahh thats a bummer, how will the tanks be fed on those off weeks? Water changes are fine once a week, but feeding should be 2-3 times a week Yea I have been meaning to make one too haha, they would be handy.

 

Nice nickname Sweet! I need to get more colorful anemones for my coldwater tank....

[yoshii]

well, you know you're addicted when after dinner, you run upstairs to the computer to look at fish forums..

(seriously, just happened)

[Jacobnano]

Haha yea, it will get worse. Eventually you will have a ton of posts.....lol

[yoshii]

Yes! They are awesome. Yea I had my 3g as a seahorse tank, but it was a lot of work so I switched to a FW haha. Ahh thats a bummer, how will the tanks be fed on those off weeks? Water changes are fine once a week, but feeding should be 2-3 times a week Yea I have been meaning to make one too haha, they would be handy.

 

Nice nickname Sweet! I need to get more colorful anemones for my coldwater tank....

 

My dad feeds the tanks, and I usually get my mom to drive me there once or twice a week for "fish stuff" So I'll do water changes and feed the fish more variety. My dad basically just feeds the fish, the lights are on timers and I usually do a water change the day before I leave for my mom's house.

 

Since it wouldn't have a sump, all the ATO devices I've seen need a sump, but look what I found

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=65554

It uses a "Glass Tea Jar" and pressure I think, I'm still reading

 

Your coldwater tank looks awesome though! I only had 1 nem, 2 fish, alot of different macros, a couple of snails, 2 larger crabs, a few smaller crabs, hermits, a mussel, a starfish, live sand and a small pump for water circulation. Not even a filter lol I had a ton of live sand though

[Jacobnano]

My dad feeds the tanks, and I usually get my mom to drive me there once or twice a week for "fish stuff" So I'll do water changes and feed the fish more variety. My dad basically just feeds the fish, the lights are on timers and I usually do a water change the day before I leave for my mom's house.

 

Since it wouldn't have a sump, all the ATO devices I've seen need a sump, but look what I found

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=65554

It uses a "Glass Tea Jar" and pressure I think, I'm still reading

 

Your coldwater tank looks awesome though! I only had 1 nem, 2 fish, alot of different macros, a couple of snails, 2 larger crabs, a few smaller crabs, hermits, a mussel, a starfish, live sand and a small pump for water circulation. Not even a filter lol I had a ton of live sand though

 

 

Oh good, that way someone is caring for the tank Nice plan, basically the more water changes the better haha!

 

Actually there are plenty that don't need a sump. You can use that one, many people do. Another is using a TOM Aqualifter and a float switch. Do a search on here and it is incredibly simple to set-up.

 

Thanks! You had a lot more than I do right now, I need to get some more. I usually go and collect things about once a year, so I have to make those trips worth it Yea the simpler the better, plus less pumps means less heat in the water. Do you have any pics of your tidepool tub lol?

[FZhang]

kinda confused as to whether the thread is about the 20 gallon or the 55 gallon now. But either way for lighting if you want to go metal halides you could check out fishneedit.com. Here's a 150W for $140. It might be a while to save up but it's definitely cheaper than most others and for decent quality. Most people like it. But if you're just going to go with those coral's you listed early you probably wont need one on the 20. They actually have a 24" inch T5 that might be good for the 20 gallon.

 

And for the clean up crew you might try emailing John at reefcleaners.org. They are good with clean up crews. Link to a form to fill out. He's good with that usually.

 

Good luck with the tank!

 

Edit: by the way was that heat wave you were talking about like 2 weeks ago? It was freaking ridiculous. But now its freezing

[yoshii]

Oh good, that way someone is caring for the tank Nice plan, basically the more water changes the better haha!

 

Actually there are plenty that don't need a sump. You can use that one, many people do. Another is using a TOM Aqualifter and a float switch. Do a search on here and it is incredibly simple to set-up.

 

Thanks! You had a lot more than I do right now, I need to get some more. I usually go and collect things about once a year, so I have to make those trips worth it Yea the simpler the better, plus less pumps means less heat in the water. Do you have any pics of your tidepool tub lol?

Haha I guess, I barely let my dad do anything with my tanks, if I could come over more often, then I would ban him from coming near my tanks LOL He liked to overfeed, but I've found out he's not good at finding my hidden food supply

 

Really? maybe cause I just searched on google, why didn't I think of searching on here?

 

Luckily, my dad likes going to the beach (although most of the trips he takes is by himself) but he just likes talking long walks and my brother doesn't like it when I stop every 5 seconds to look at stuff in tidepools hahaha. I got all that stuff on one trip, and when I took everything out my dad simply went out on another trip and put it back lol. Although the star didn't make it It was in pretty bad shape when I got it(falling off the rock) but I figured I might as well try. side note: I kept all the macros and they are doing great in my 10gal frag tank(yes, even with the higher temp)

 

One thing I didn't do (I like photography, so this is weird for me) was take many pictures I think I have a few, but I don't have them on the computer right now, I'll look for them for you next week(when I get to my Dad's house)

[Zo0k365]

Yea. Well lots of reasons, he was not liked by many, and had been temporarily banned many times, so it was the last straw. I guess he is a completely different person on the other forums.

 

RIP his blessed soul. I sorta miss his comments. Also I have pity for you, I have one LFS and I was fired from it so I hate going there.

[yoshii]

Btw, thanks for being the warm welcome to this forum

 

And I've seen alot of teen reefers on this forum (the other forum I'm usually on has a couple, but not alot)

which is pretty awesome Even some other teen girls (woot!)

 

 

RIP his blessed soul. I sorta miss his comments. Also I have pity for you, I have one LFS and I was fired from it so I hate going there.

 

He's pretty funny, sorry to hear he can't post here anymore

Move to California lol

[Jacobnano]

Haha I guess, I barely let my dad do anything with my tanks, if I could come over more often, then I would ban him from coming near my tanks LOL He liked to overfeed, but I've found out he's not good at finding my hidden food supply

 

Really? maybe cause I just searched on google, why didn't I think of searching on here?

 

Luckily, my dad likes going to the beach (although most of the trips he takes is by himself) but he just likes talking long walks and my brother doesn't like it when I stop every 5 seconds to look at stuff in tidepools hahaha. I got all that stuff on one trip, and when I took everything out my dad simply went out on another trip and put it back lol. Although the star didn't make it It was in pretty bad shape when I got it(falling off the rock) but I figured I might as well try. side note: I kept all the macros and they are doing great in my 10gal frag tank(yes, even with the higher temp)

 

One thing I didn't do (I like photography, so this is weird for me) was take many pictures I think I have a few, but I don't have them on the computer right now, I'll look for them for you next week(when I get to my Dad's house)

 

Haha yeah I don't trust anyone with my tanks

 

Yea search here, there are TONS of threads on ATOs.

 

Ahh very cool. Yea I am the same way, I love exploring the tidepools Yea starfish can be pretty tough to keep, I don't know why. Whoa thats awesome! Do you have any pics of the tank with the macros???

 

Alright I guess we will all be waiting then for more pictures. I like seeing other CW set-ups!

 

Hi5 for liking photography, me too!

 

 

RIP his blessed soul. I sorta miss his comments. Also I have pity for you, I have one LFS and I was fired from it so I hate going there.

 

He's still alive I guess I technically have Petco...they kill everything though.

 

 

Btw, thanks for being the warm welcome to this forum

 

And I've seen alot of teen reefers on this forum (the other forum I'm usually on has a couple, but not alot)

which is pretty awesome Even some other teen girls (woot!)

 

 

He's pretty funny, sorry to hear he can't post here anymore

Move to California lol

 

Ahh yes, we here at NR welcome everyone

 

There are actually!!! We have yet to get TOTM (tank of the month) but I know we will eventually, with so many of us we have to. Yup girls and guys

 

Ha moving to Cali would be awesome.

[yoshii]

Haha yeah I don't trust anyone with my tanks

 

Yea search here, there are TONS of threads on ATOs.

 

Ahh very cool. Yea I am the same way, I love exploring the tidepools Yea starfish can be pretty tough to keep, I don't know why. Whoa thats awesome! Do you have any pics of the tank with the macros???

 

Alright I guess we will all be waiting then for more pictures. I like seeing other CW set-ups!

 

Hi5 for liking photography, me too!

 

The other day my sister was looking in my 55gal so I came up to her and said "What are you doing!" she replies, "Dude, I'm just looking." then she gives me a weird look and walks off XD I feel like an over-protective mom LOL

 

Hahahaha, you don't want to the see the macros..seriously, they are piled up in one of the corners(cause of the flow) I don't even bother trying to "plant" them anymore, they just keep falling out. But I'll see if I can find any pics

 

Photography is awesome, which makes you awesome too lol

 

yaaay! It's my first day on this forum and I have 3 pages

[Jacobnano]

The other day my sister was looking in my 55gal so I came up to her and said "What are you doing!" she replies, "Dude, I'm just looking." then she gives me a weird look and walks off XD I feel like an over-protective mom LOL

 

Hahahaha, you don't want to the see the macros..seriously, they are piled up in one of the corners(cause of the flow) I don't even bother trying to "plant" them anymore, they just keep falling out. But I'll see if I can find any pics

 

Photography is awesome, which makes you awesome too lol

 

yaaay! It's my first day on this forum and I have 3 pages

 

Haha I do the same thing with my brother!!!! He knows a lot about them, he wouldn't do anything bad, but still haha

 

Yay! I still want pics lol. What color are the macros?

 

Yes it is! Thanks for the complement You should make a photography thread, and upload some of your best pics!

 

Edit: Congrats! You need more pics on the thread though

[yoshii]

Haha I do the same thing with my brother!!!! He knows a lot about them, he wouldn't do anything bad, but still haha

 

Yay! I still want pics lol. What color are the macros?

 

Yes it is! Thanks for the complement You should make a photography thread, and upload some of your best pics!

 

Edit: Congrats! You need more pics on the thread though

I have one brother and one sister (I'm a triplet ) and they think I'm a freak for liking "boring fish"

So do my friends lol xD

 

Here's some pics (uh kinda)

I moved some over to my 55, behind the butterfly is some red macro, I think it's Gracilaria, then I have some other red macro which I think is the same kind as the one in the FTS of your CW tank (its kinda slimy, kelpish-looking) then some kind of sea grass, and some ulva, umm a couple more diff kinds of red macros, I can't really describe them accurately. Oh, some cheato, but I got that from my LFS.

 

I know! If this was someone else's thread I would kill them by now for not posting enough pics xD

Actually, I don't own a camera, my dad's camera is HORRIBLE at macro shots(my fav) and just makes life hard in general. So I use my dad's camcorder which is good for macro, but is grainy and photobucket doesn't really help with that. The color on the camcorder is better than the camera, but still can't capture the right purple of my GSP or royal gramma, etc

[yoshii]

Ok, here are some corals that will be going into the 20gal:

Yellow Polyps <3 (Yellow is my fav color)

Also, on the same rock as the Yellow Polyps is a cool looking shroom, and lots of diff kinds of tunicates(sp?)

Here is some xenia that I no longer have my hermit crab killed it!

Here some NEP zoas note: the color is actually brighter, but I had to move them out of the light to get a decent pic

 

Also, heres a few on my orange monti cap(This may or may not be going in the 20gal)

please note: this frag has since colored up to a nice orange color, these pics were taken a day after I got it. The tank they were previously in had PC lighting, but it was in the lower part of the tank. I have placed it higher up in my tank(under PCs) and now it looks totally different

[Jacobnano]

I have one brother and one sister (I'm a triplet ) and they think I'm a freak for liking "boring fish"

So do my friends lol xD

 

Here's some pics (uh kinda)

I moved some over to my 55, behind the butterfly is some red macro, I think it's Gracilaria, then I have some other red macro which I think is the same kind as the one in the FTS of your CW tank (its kinda slimy, kelpish-looking) then some kind of sea grass, and some ulva, umm a couple more diff kinds of red macros, I can't really describe them accurately. Oh, some cheato, but I got that from my LFS.

 

I know! If this was someone else's thread I would kill them by now for not posting enough pics xD

Actually, I don't own a camera, my dad's camera is HORRIBLE at macro shots(my fav) and just makes life hard in general. So I use my dad's camcorder which is good for macro, but is grainy and photobucket doesn't really help with that. The color on the camcorder is better than the camera, but still can't capture the right purple of my GSP or royal gramma, etc

 

Haha yea, some of my friends think I am a little obsessed, but they still think my tank is "pretty" haha. Wow being part of triplet would be cool lol.

 

Ahh nice. That does look more like tropical than temperate, which is interesting. Oh really? I have been trying to figure out the name of it, but I have nooo idea. Looks like you neeed more pics.

 

Things to buy: new light, new camera! You can still make a photo thread you know They don't have to be amazing photos You can always edit the photos to get the color right, it is really tough to take pictures of my tank to get the color right.

 

Ok, here are some corals that will be going into the 20gal:

Yellow Polyps <3 (Yellow is my fav color)

Also, on the same rock as the Yellow Polyps is a cool looking shroom, and lots of diff kinds of tunicates(sp?)

Here is some xenia that I no longer have my hermit crab killed it!

Here some NEP zoas note: the color is actually brighter, but I had to move them out of the light to get a decent pic

 

Also, heres a few on my orange monti cap(This may or may not be going in the 20gal)

please note: this frag has since colored up to a nice orange color, these pics were taken a day after I got it. The tank they were previously in had PC lighting, but it was in the lower part of the tank. I have placed it higher up in my tank(under PCs) and now it looks totally different

 

Tunicates?? Neato!

 

How did a hermit kill Xenia??!!

 

Cool, I love zoanthids

 

Awesome! I have an orange cap too! They grow the fastest of any SPS I have.

[yoshii]

Haha yea, some of my friends think I am a little obsessed, but they still think my tank is "pretty" haha. Wow being part of triplet would be cool lol.

 

Ahh nice. That does look more like tropical than temperate, which is interesting. Oh really? I have been trying to figure out the name of it, but I have nooo idea. Looks like you neeed more pics.

 

Things to buy: new light, new camera! You can still make a photo thread you know They don't have to be amazing photos You can always edit the photos to get the color right, it is really tough to take pictures of my tank to get the color right.

 

I have a bookmark of a page that lists all sorts of CW SW plants, I haven't gone through it all, but it's bookmarked on my other computer(at my dads house once again) But of the part of the site I went through, I didn't see the one we have

[Jacobnano]

I have a bookmark of a page that lists all sorts of CW SW plants, I haven't gone through it all, but it's bookmarked on my other computer(at my dads house once again) But of the part of the site I went through, I didn't see the one we have

 

Sweet! I guess I will have to wait, but it would be cool to know all the species that I find. Oh really? Well thats weird, it must be pretty special then haha!