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February 2017 Featured Reef - holy carp's 12 Gallon Nano Reef


Christopher Marks

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Christopher Marks

For February we're featuring community member holy carp and his 12 gallon nano reef aquarium!
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Click the picture above to check out his reef profile! You can find holy carp's 12g nano reef aquarium journal in our Members Aquariums forum. Feel free to post any comments or questions you may have for holy carp, and he'll try his best to answer them here.

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Bravo! Nicely done all the way around. I've often thought about a dive into a Mr. Aqua, this tank makes me want to even more. Keep up the great work.

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Tom Old Man Reefer

Really beautiful tank!

But how do you consider it a 12Gal when you have a 10Gal sump attached to it? You must mean the display is 12 gallons? One point to consider with some nano reefs is the total water volume. Its possible to have a 12gal display tank with a 250gal sump :-). The results of a tank with a high water volume sump takes it to a different level. Just keeping it real. But really nice tank!

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Really beautiful tank!

But how do you consider it a 12Gal when you have a 10Gal sump attached to it? You must mean the display is 12 gallons? One point to consider with some nano reefs is the total water volume. Its possible to have a 12gal display tank with a 250gal sump :-). The results of a tank with a high water volume sump takes it to a different level. Just keeping it real. But really nice tank!

 

I totally agree that the full system volume has a lot to do with stability and the ability to accommodate filtration capacity. I also think the display volume has a lot to do with managing coral warfare, fish territoriality, and the visual aesthetic. "12 gallon nano" was just taken from the tank manufacturer's model name - Mr. Aqua 12 Gallon Long. But manufacturers' measures are neither accurate nor precise: this tank has an actual fluid capacity of 10.75 gallons if filled to the brim.

 

If you're asking about the total volume the system holds, it's just under 15 gallons of water. For real. ;)

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BattleAthletics

Bravo! Nicely done all the way around. I've often thought about a dive into a Mr. Aqua, this tank makes me want to even more. Keep up the great work.

Do it brad!!!

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Tom Old Man Reefer

Agreed holy carp,

And when you add live rock and coral, water volume decreases even more. In the past I've had a 250 gallon display, and in my advance reefing years :-), I've really grown to enjoy my 10 gallon nano for many reasons. One being ease of maintenance and cost. :-). With the large display, I often found my self just looking at one section at a time any way. :-). Moving to larger display aquariums is somewhat of an addiction in early reefing years. :-)

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  • 4 weeks later...

Congrats, very elegant tank!

 

Question:  What is the rear-most bulkhead? A second return?  The DIY overflow is very cool and clever. And that's obviously a return nozzle in front of it. Am just curious about/trying to figure out what the rearmost line is...

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On 3/11/2017 at 11:09 PM, malacoda said:

Congrats, very elegant tank!

 

Question:  What is the rear-most bulkhead? A second return?  The DIY overflow is very cool and clever. And that's obviously a return nozzle in front of it. Am just curious about/trying to figure out what the rearmost line is...

Thank you.

 

Yes, the front is the return nozzle (1/2"), middle is obviously the drain that skims the surface (1"), and the back bulkhead is a full siphon drain (1/2") with a low profile screen and a simple ball valve near the sump to slightly restrict the flow and encourage a siphon to form more quickly after the water level has dropped during maintenance, water changes, power outages, etc.  This way, the skimming 1" drain is not using a lot of its max capacity and can accommodate the flow variations from the program-controlled return pump without significant changes in water level.  I wanted two drains for some added security, even though the water level I maintain in the return pump section of the sump ensures that no significant amount of water could ever overflow the display tank even if both drains were completely obstructed.

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Ah, gotcha ... basically a 'herbie' setup plumbed to the side wall rather than the bottom of an overflow box. Very well thought indeed. I love seeing unique DIY set-ups like this -- fantastic source of inspiration and creative spark for the community. Thanks!

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