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mikeCSU's 16G Innovative Marine Nuvo


mikeCSU

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Still love your tank :) Ordered one for myself yesterday (along with two spin streams to try and a third light).

 

Did you ever attempt to raise the water level by doing something to the back of the overflow? I like what you did, but would prefer to not alter the cleanliness of the inside of the tank at all. Any other advice for a new Nuvo setup?

 

 

Thanks! Glad you like it.

 

Yeah, I did alter the overflow. I am all about cleanliness as well, but the water level was important to me. I ended up using 2 of these JBJ Nano Cube MSS. They are honestly so subtle that it really doesn't look bad at all.

 

Here is what it looks like currently:

fishtank_skimmer.jpg

 

I've considered doing something inside of the actual filter chambers, but you'd be limited by the top of the existing inlets(since you want the top layer of water to overflow so you skim the top). Alternatively, you could maybe cut the existing overflow inlets so that they go all the way to the top, which would allow you to more easily put something in the back chamber to raise the level. Something I might try if I ever break down this tank and start fresh.

 

Let me know when you get yours going. Would love to see some others.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Link to the tank in my sig :) I stole your equipment list layout :-p

 

The Innovative JBJ Nano Cube MSS that you used, are they for the 12g/24g? I ordered two each of the 12g/24g and 6g (shorter). Also ordered some rare earth magnets to make a mounting system. Got some that are rubber coated and others that I can attach/coat with silicon if need be.

 

Can't wait for inTank to come out with some media baskets that aren't...cheap...

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Link to the tank in my sig :) I stole your equipment list layout :-p

 

The Innovative JBJ Nano Cube MSS that you used, are they for the 12g/24g? I ordered two each of the 12g/24g and 6g (shorter). Also ordered some rare earth magnets to make a mounting system. Got some that are rubber coated and others that I can attach/coat with silicon if need be.

 

Can't wait for inTank to come out with some media baskets that aren't...cheap...

 

 

Ugh, where did you find a VDM in stock? I'm envious. Seems like they are sold out everywhere. I have a pretty hefty credit at a local fish store, so I'm gonna get an AI LED as well. Pretty excited for it.

 

Also, I'm not sure which version I used. They were the exact one I linked to. Probably 4.5" x 2.5" x .65" if I had to guess(i'm at work so I'm going off memory).

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I'll have to see how the smaller ones work out. You going with the AI Nano or Sol? I had a difficult time deciding... Guess it came down to not wanting to spend $400 for a light on a $300 tank.

 

Got the VDM (everything actually) from James at The Sea Store (theseastore.net, their website is still being redesigned I think).

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Hi.

Love the tank, looks well nice.

I'm thinking of getting one of my own, there's a guy who's about to start importing them to Europe soon.

I want to place an order and was wondering following: Is the light enough with the 2x8W to keep some SPS's under it or should I go with an additional light, adding 8 more Watts?

Let me know!

-Oskar Ek

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I'll have to see how the smaller ones work out. You going with the AI Nano or Sol? I had a difficult time deciding... Guess it came down to not wanting to spend $400 for a light on a $300 tank.

 

Got the VDM (everything actually) from James at The Sea Store (theseastore.net, their website is still being redesigned I think).

 

The Sol, but just because it's not costing me a dime. I think the Nano will be plenty though. I'm probably gonna put the Sol pretty high up and I'll still have to keep it turned down just to keep from toasting everything.

 

Hi.

Love the tank, looks well nice.

I'm thinking of getting one of my own, there's a guy who's about to start importing them to Europe soon.

I want to place an order and was wondering following: Is the light enough with the 2x8W to keep some SPS's under it or should I go with an additional light, adding 8 more Watts?

Let me know!

-Oskar Ek

 

Thanks for the compliments!

 

I'm not really sure about the SPS's. I'm new to the hobby so it's hard for me to make that call. I'd imagine that adding another light would be enough to sustain the SPS's, but I'm not sure how much growth you'd see. I'm sure someone else can answer this better. 3 Lights was enough for the clam however(thus far)

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If it's enough for a clam it should be enough for SPS's..

Those babies need quite a bit of light. What kind of clam have you got, can't seem to find it in any pictures. And.. how far up is it placed?

-Oskar

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If it's enough for a clam it should be enough for SPS's..

Those babies need quite a bit of light. What kind of clam have you got, can't seem to find it in any pictures. And.. how far up is it placed?

-Oskar

 

It's a small(2 - 2.5" maybe?) blue maxima clam that I have at the bottom of my tank(in the sand, though I tried to place a few small rocks beneath to keep him from digging too far in). It's not in any of my photos currently. I'll try to update my pictures tonight. Tanks actually a lot cleaner now. Not as much clutter in the sand.

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Here is a panaram from the beginning of the month(click for larger view):

 

fishtank_panaram_3-1-2011_small.jpg

 

I feel like the tank always looks so much more crowded in photos, but I still might trade in some of the corals. My goal is to get that rock on the right to be covered by zoas, and also have that center column covered by zoas. What do you guys think? too crowded or on the right track? Everything seems to be healthy, I just don't want it to be too overwhelming. Maybe as the corals grow more into their spots, it'll look a little less busy.

 

I may get rid of some of the smaller ones that consume certain areas to replace them with single, more difficult corals). Slowly try to add a bit more quality and reduce some of the quantity. Alternative, I may just start a second tank and spread some of them out between the 2.

 

I'll add some more photos tonight or tomorrow. I'll try to get more close-ups.

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Looks nice, see the clam there, fully opened.

I'd try to stick a branch of Hystrix in the, or something like that, to get some hight and to add in that dimension.

-Oskar Ek

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By the way, is it possible to connect the light fixtures to timers? Because I have a moonlight right now that needs switching on every time and I want to be able to automate the system since I work at sea.

-Oskar Ek

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By the way, is it possible to connect the light fixtures to timers? Because I have a moonlight right now that needs switching on every time and I want to be able to automate the system since I work at sea.

-Oskar Ek

 

 

Yep. I actually just got an Apex Jr which lets you place a timer on individual outlets. Think you can pick it up for $150. I think it's worth the price over getting individual mechanical timers for your outlets.

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  • 6 months later...
Any updates? Are you still on stock lighting?

 

Ah! So glad you replied, I've been so busy I totally spaced this thread.

 

Back in the spring I upgraded to an AI sol. I also switched my powerhead to an Ecotech mp10 a few weeks ago.

 

Unfortunately, my favorite(and first) fish, Joey, jumped to his death. When I first added him to the tank, he had jumped out once but luckily I was in the room and put him back in right away. I got him another clown, and he really settled down and was doing great. Unfortunately, the other clown outgrew him rather quickly, and I think was occasionally aggravating him and he jumped to his death this past summer.

 

My third fish(the tail spot blenny) also died when he managed to swim into my old powerhead. I've sense returned the other clownfish(too aggressive for such a small tank) and added 2 new black and white clownfish(much smaller), a yellow clown goby, a banggai cardinal, and a bluestrip pipefish. All of which are doing great.

 

I've fragged and/or sold a few of my corals, and have really cleaned up the tank. I feel like my tank is really in a good place right now. All the corals are growing like crazy and i'm just micro managing to keep everything happy. I'm also working on improving my auto-top off and also creating an auto-water changer to the mix. I've found some float switchers that are a lot smaller than any I've seen most top-off's selling. I'm thinking of building some custom top-offs and creating a means for people to purchase them for their pico/nano tanks.

 

Unfortunately I'm not home right now, but I'll be sure to add some photos in the next few days. Thanks again for following up.

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Got some really nice growth I can see..

What happened to the clam, did it make it?

Looking forward to getting my own 16G in October.

Good luck!

 

Unfortunately the clam did not. The clam was doing great for months. I decided to add a second, smaller one in. The second one had issues from the get go and started receding. As soon as the second one was nearly gone, my original suddenly started having issues. I checked all my parameters and everything seemed fine. I am not really sure what happened, though my belief is that the second one brought a disease, parasite, or hitchhiker of some sort that caused the issue. The timing was all too coincidental for it to do great for nearly 6 months and then suddenly show stress within a few days of the other dieing.

 

I decided I'd wait awhile before venturing down that path again.

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  • 3 months later...

Well guys. I've gonna be moving on from my Innovative Marine 16 in the next few weeks. I'm upgrading to my new beauty:

20121223_112647.jpg

I'll be sure to take some parting photos of my IM(I know I've been terrible about this). As well as fill you in on the new set-up.

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It's a 75g tall! So 48" x 18" x 18". Got some new toys to play with too. Very excited to get this going. I'll start up a new thread soon and this time I'll try to be better about keeping up with it haha.

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  • 3 months later...

Hey Mike. Just read through your thread and really like how your 16g looks (looked). I'm new to the hobby but plan on getting an IM myself in the next few months. Couple questions...what made you change to the MP10 and ditch the HK...did it have something to do with the HK killing one of your fish? Also, where did you find the Apex Jr. for $150...I'm only seeing it for $220? Thanks for any info!

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  • 3 months later...

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