20 Long Indo-Pacific Overhang/Shelf Biotope

[revaltion131]

Hi everyone.

 

I am experiencing a positive housing change in my life and that's provided me with the opportunity to return to a 'true' nano system. I have a 20 gallon long tank that I have been using for a QT for my larger (125 gallon) system. Now with a recent move, I have room to set up a good-sized QT that will be appropriate for the fish in that system and my 20 gallon is sitting unused. So, of course, we have to fill it!

 

The equipment:

 

• Generic 20 Gallon Long glass aquarium
  
• Heater
  
• HOB Filter suited to 30 gallons
  
• Current-USA Nova T5HO Fixture
  
• Refugium light for modded HOB filter
  
• 2 Koralia or modded Maxijet powerheads, size currently undecided
  

 

I have a generic HOB filter that I'm going to try to mod out for a fuge first. If it feels small, I'm going to go the AC70 route. I want a nice, strong flow across the top of the tank and then a lower, subdued one on the bottom half.

 

This started off as an idea to do a Red Sea reef-flat centered around a pair of Harlequin Shrimp. The more research and planning I've done, the more I've come to realize that a better choice would be to shift the locale of the biotope east a bit, as I can work in the fish choices I'd rather have. This will be a reef environment and the main part where the biotope comes into play besides livestock choices is in the rock-scape.

 

My goal are two specific rock formations. The first is simple and will probably be 1-2 pieces of actual rock. This will be a small island on the left hand side with a large leather coral, most likely a sinularia. My goal is some kind of taller, soft coral which will give some nice action and stand well on its own.

 

The majority of the tank will be dominated by a single massive piece of rock that hopefully will look almost like a slab. I have several pieces of man-made rock in my 125's refugium which will work as perfect support pillars for this shelf so that it will be held a good 5-7" off of the bottom and ideally the structure will be between 16" and 20" in length. With the actual height of the tank being 12", the standing height of the shelf should put it into the top 40% of the tank. My goal is to create a large, shaded area underneath this that will look like an overhang or cavern. I'm not sure if I'll leave the ends open or not, but I feel like I do need to enclose part of it or put an open pile underneath it somewhere for the Harlequin(s) to make their lair and for fish to use as hiding/sleeping areas.

 

I have the rocks and rubble I need for everything but the major shelf, so the first part of this set-up is finding the right piece of rock. I've been scouring the one LFS around here as well as tons of tank tear-down sales. The system will be dry until the end of August so the rock will be living and being seeded in my large tank until it's time to set up this tank. I may consider buying the right piece of dry rock. I am not sure if I want the large piece to have holes or not. Having holes large enough for the fish to pass through would create an interesting aspect but it depends on if the holes are too large and give more light under the rock than desired. We could also being talking about a very heavy piece of rock so I may end up reinforcing the support with PVC piping that I will either pile rocks around or take and coat in the same material some of my man-made rock was created from.

 

Here's the rough version of my livestock list, not including CUC:

 

• 1 Harlequin Shrimp or Pair
  
• 3-5 Threadfin or Orange-lined Cardinals
  
• 1 Possum Wrasse
  

 

I need more research on the eating habits of the cardinals to be sure that they won't chow on the shrimp, but a good-sized Harlequin will be just as large as the cardinals so I'm not overly concerned at this point. I will be keeping appropriate SPS species on top of the shelf of rock. Underneath the shelf, I'm going to try some unusual corals, gorgonians, and possibly plants that prefer a shaded area. Non-photosynthetics might be out of the question with the requirements for SPS, but we'll see what happens.

 

I would love to hear input on this system as a whole. Nothing new has been bought yet and we're not near the set-up so I have plenty of time to change things around. Thanks for any comments and/or advice you have to offer!

[Carloslekak]

This is gonna be great for shizzles!! following!!

IMOHE, I don't know the Orange-lined, but I do have a Pajama Cardinal housed with a 1 Harlequin and 1 Fire Shrimp and there have not been any problems between them whatsoever, But I do believe the smaller types of shrimp might be in trouble, I think there's a thread here where someone had his cardinal eat their peppermint shrimps. Hope it helps!

[animalmaster6]

This biotope is gonna be sick man!

 

Imo Orange Lined Cardinals are 100% reef-safe. THey only get to 2-2.5 inches at most. Pajama Cardinals are not always reef-safe. Some threads said they eat Harlequins and other shrimps.

 

Make sure you have a screen because you livestock includes many jumpers.

[revaltion131]

I actually have an acrylic lid I cut for the thing awhile ago so jumpers are of no concern. The pajama and bengaii cardinals are both of different generas than these guys, which are both Apogon sp., so there is a little difference to be had but how much is up for debate. Thanks for the references to those types eating shrimp.

 

I forgot to add that I will be painting the back black on this tank. Is there a specific spray paint type to use (besides something that'll work on glass) or are we thinking that if I do a proper taping job and of course let it dry before getting water anywhere near it, I'll be fine?

[KMG]

I keep 4 threadfin cardinalfish in a 34G with a pair of skunk cleaner shrimp and a green clown goby. While I wouldn't bet on them not trying to sample a very tiny shrimp (like a sexy shrimp), IME they're completely reef-safe with most shrimp. Like the orange-lined cardinals, threadfins are one of the smaller species, and very peaceful.

[revaltion131]

Thanks KMG, that's the kind of info I was looking for. I do intend to go with the smallest species available, which is why I narrowed down to those two. My LFS does get ORA fish so I hope to get a nice group of ORA specimens from them.

[Oceanus]

Orange liners should be fine. No prob with those.

 

 

((watching thread))

[KMG]

I haven't seen any threadfins from ORA on offer for a long time--at least a year. If your LFS isn't able to get them from ORA, have them try Sustainable Aquatics. They offer tank-raised threadfins that have been collected as larvae and raised in their facility in TN. My two pairs of threadfins are from SA (I bought them off Diver's Den). They arrived in perfect condition and have been thriving and eating like pigs ever since.

[revaltion131]

I'll have to keep that source in mind, thanks! The store in question had a few maybe about a month ago, but there wasn't anything that said if they were TR or WC.

[KMG]

I'm a big advocate of CB or TR livestock over WC anyway, but it's especially worth it in the case of threadfin cardinals. They tend to be delicate shippers; a lot of the WC ones I've seen are in pretty rough shape and suffer major losses within a week or two. DD is a little pricey, but the advantage of going through them is that they get the fish nice and fat before shipping them out. Mine have done beautifully. I'm planning to get another pair or two when I eventually upgrade my current system.

[revaltion131]

For what it's worth, I haven't lost a single DD fish to any issue that was at all related to capture, holding, or shipping. LA does a very good job.

[KMG]

They really do. People on forums probably think I work for them, because I'm always recommending them.

[revaltion131]

Alrighty. I found my rock, thankfully on sale. This piece will need to be split up at least once, probably twice, but it is exactly what I was looking for. The big, flat, and dull looking rock in the pictures is the one that's going to serve as my slab piece. It is massive and weighs around 20 lbs.

 

 

I'll be using PVC pipes with probably a 1.5" diameter and a height of 6" as support pillars. They'll be buried in the sand, sitting on the actual glass bottom of the tank. The next step after buying and cutting the pipes is going to be to coat them in DIY rock. Anyone have any recommendations of guides for the rock making?

[animalmaster6]

I love the Bellus.

 

 

Look at this thread http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=223431

[revaltion131]

Thanks for the link. I'll have to dig through it and see what I can find. I've googled it but there's 20 million guides so I'm a little intimidated and want to be sure to pick the right one.

 

For reference, the rocks are in my 125 getting seeded.

 

My bellus female had me worried for a couple of days but she's starting to perk back up. The male is an awesome fish with probably the best personality out of any of the fish I've ever had. He acts almost like he would come right out of the tank to say hello if he could.

[animalmaster6]

I actually got a few ideas from that nano guide for my 125g.

[C-Rad]

The next step after buying and cutting the pipes is going to be to coat them in DIY rock. Anyone have any recommendations of guides for the rock making?

I looked into making my own rocks, but haven't done it yet. Be aware that if you use Portland Cement (and I think you have to) then you will need to rinse the rocks you make in fresh water for weeks or months before you can put them in your tank (something about PH). So do the rocks early in the project so they can let them steep while you work on the rest.

[revaltion131]

I'm probably a month or more from even getting water in the tank they'll be in so I think we're good right now. Thanks a lot for the heads-up!