Feasibility of Classroom Tank

[aclman88]

Huge update!  

 

Aqueon is donating a 16 gallon Biocube, protein skimmer, and some other unknown goodies!!!! Should be coming in the next couple of weeks.  So it looks like I will be set on lighting, the tank, protein skimmer and most everything else.  Still waiting to hear back from ESV and Instant Ocean about salt, so it looks like getting quality live rock is going to be an option since there are no other major components that need to be purchased/acquired.

 

For the live rock, can I just place it in a tank with saltwater and then wait for any mini-cycle to occur?

[Clown79]

11 minutes ago, aclman88 said:

Huge update!  

 

Aqueon is donating a 16 gallon Biocube, protein skimmer, and some other unknown goodies!!!! Should be coming in the next couple of weeks.  So it looks like I will be set on lighting, the tank, protein skimmer and most everything else.  Still waiting to hear back from ESV and Instant Ocean about salt, so it looks like getting quality live rock is going to be an option since there are no other major components that need to be purchased/acquired.

 

For the live rock, can I just place it in a tank with saltwater and then wait for any mini-cycle to occur?

Depends on the liverock.

 

If its established liverock from a tank with life in it, you should have no cycle.

 

Liverock that is from a holding container, will cycle on it's own. Just add it and test. You can add something like biospira to add good bacteria but that's about it.

 

Dry rock- you will need to start the cycle with bacteria and  by adding a food source like ammonia dosing, shrimp, ghost feeding.

 

 

Congrats on all the donations.

[mcarroll]

1 hour ago, aclman88 said:

Would going with aquacultured live rock stop the possibility of algal blooms?  I was under the assumption that diatoms and algae are a likelihood with any reef, especially a new one that has yet to stabilize.

With live rock blooms tend to be less likely and when they do happen they are less intense.   

 

Algae blooms are generally caused by raising nutrient levels too fast....faster than the tank can absorb them.  (Most often when fish are stocked too quickly.)  Algae are more or less specialists in taking up any and all "extra nutrients" before they can escape the reef.

 

If you get the "good stuff" direct from the ocean, more than likely its surfaces will already be populated by LOTS of kinds of algae so a bloom will also be less likely because of that. I suspect that's why they include a really nice set of scavengers and herbivores with your Package.  Seeing which algae survive captive conditions (and which thrive or which die) will be part of the interest!

 

2 hours ago, aclman88 said:

Is a skimmer something that needs constant adjustment, or can it be set and left for a week at a time?

Depends on the top-off situation as skimming does take (at least) a small amount of water out of the tank while running.  I think of it as a hyper-concentrated water change...usually a cup or less for small tanks.  But the ATO will have to compensate or the skimmer will eventually stop skimming when the water level drops too much.

 

Overflowing the skimming cup is the only other potentiality to be aware of....no biggie if it overflows into the tank (not even a concern), but you do not want it overflowing out of the tank under any circumstance.  Mostly this means don't rig up a situation that would allow it.....skimmer cup drain mods can be useful in certain installations, but I would not employ one while the tank is 100% for sure going to be unattended.  Skim on the drier side to the cup fills up only slowly, but otherwise just let it run while you're out.  Make sure it's dialed in at least a week before if you leave for break.

 

2 hours ago, aclman88 said:

I was leaning towards heating and cooling so that I can hook a fan up since the room can get warm in the summer (and even the winter when the heat is blasting).  Thoughts?

Keep in mind that fan cooling relies on evaporation and a temperature differential.  If it's 92 deg F in the building, the tank is really only gonna get down to 90 degrees or so from evaporation....and that's if you have lots of dry air.  (Tropicals shouldn't mind those temps a whole lot, BTW....a bigger deal if you're keeping temperates, which a lot of us do...lower 80's would be a better peak to shoot for in their case.)

 

If it's hot because the HVAC is off, that also implies no air movement -- your cooling setup will be it, maybe for the whole building.   The usual tank-mounted fan (e.g. TUNZE^® Aquawind) may or may not be sufficient in the Summer circumstance you're talking about.  Fan cooling could be limited by the size of your ATO as well.

 

 

I'm obviously speculating....you can find out for sure and plan the heating and cooling accordingly....you're set for about anything having an external temp. controller.

[hinnenkm]

5 hours ago, Ratvan said:

Am I going mad or did you run a Fluval Spec 3 in your classroom at some point?

Yes, I did several years ago!! It's my second year with my nuvo 10 and had run a nuvo 20 for awhile too 🙂

[aclman88]

On 1/16/2020 at 9:37 AM, Tired said:

I MASSIVELY recommend getting yourself some proper live rock, for that reason, because good live rock will quickly if not instantly cycle your tank, and because of all the fun things that will come in on it. I used some really good live rock from my LFS, similar quality to what you can order, and it cycled my tank to a level of keeping zoanthids happy as soon as the rock was in. 

I will definitely reach out to a couple LFS as see if they can do anything to help with live rock costs.  Definitely going with Live rock... thanks for the push!

[aclman88]

23 hours ago, mcarroll said:

If you get the "good stuff" direct from the ocean, more than likely its surfaces will already be populated by LOTS of kinds of algae so a bloom will also be less likely because of that. I suspect that's why they include a really nice set of scavengers and herbivores with your Package.  Seeing which algae survive captive conditions (and which thrive or which die) will be part of the interest!

Definitely going with live rock and will also reach out to my LFS as @Tired recommended as well.

[aclman88]

The heater, thermostat, sand and RODI unit arrived yesterday.   Tank will be next week!

 

I would love some stocking ideas (and reality checks if needed) as far as fish and inverts are concerned.  

 

Some ideas of things I would like (I know I can't stock all of them, just want feedback):

 

Ocellaris Clown (single or pair)

Firefish Goby

Watchmen Goby + Pistol Shrimp

Skunk Cleaner Shrimp

Royal Gramma

Tuxedo Urchin

 

I would also love other suggestions for interesting fish or inverts.  For CUC I plan on Cerith, Nassarius and one or two trocus snails.  I am no longer a fan of hermits since they tend to harass my corals.

 

To be clear, fish won't be added anytime soon, I just would like to have a solid idea/plan for the tank moving forward..  

[DSA65PRO]

Make sure the School Custodians, know to never unplug anything related to the Aquarium. In many school districts they are instructed to unplug stuff, especially over any holidays. 

[aclman88]

1 minute ago, DSA65PRO said:

Make sure the School Custodians, know to never unplug anything related to the Aquarium. In many school districts they are instructed to unplug stuff, especially over any holidays. 

Good call!  My administration is already aware but I will definitely reach out to the custodial staff.

[Seadragon]

2 hours ago, aclman88 said:

The heater, thermostat, sand and RODI unit arrived yesterday.   Tank will be next week!

 

I would love some stocking ideas (and reality checks if needed) as far as fish and inverts are concerned.  

 

Some ideas of things I would like (I know I can't stock all of them, just want feedback):

 

Ocellaris Clown (single or pair)

Firefish Goby

Watchmen Goby + Pistol Shrimp

Skunk Cleaner Shrimp

Royal Gramma

Tuxedo Urchin

 

I would also love other suggestions for interesting fish or inverts.  For CUC I plan on Cerith, Nassarius and one or two trocus snails.  I am no longer a fan of hermits since they tend to harass my corals.

 

To be clear, fish won't be added anytime soon, I just would like to have a solid idea/plan for the tank moving forward..  

 

Just to give you some additional ideas, for the School NR, we went with a pair of Ocellaris Clownfish, Yellowtail Damselfish, and a Sharknose Goby (although we'd consider a Tailspot Blenny instead of a Sharknose Goby if we didn't already have an extra Sharknose Goby waiting to be transferred -- both are great fish with interesting personalities).  We like the Banded Trochus Snails for cleaning the glass of film algae and brown diatoms, Stocky Ceriths for being the jack-of-all-trades in terms of their appetite and sifting through the sand, and finally Mexican Turbo Snails for their voracious appetites on eating nuisance algae.  And finally a Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp to add that final touch with their beauty and doing their part in keeping the tank clean of extra food and cleaning the fish.

 

We never went with a Nassarius snail because we heard of things such as when shrimp are first acclimating, they may eat it if it seems to be in a weakened state at the time.  We have enough CUC and didn't need a carnivorous snail and opted for algae-eaters only in that department.

[icatchsnook]

This thread is so cool, I really love seeing how the companies  you have contacted are supporting this!

[hinnenkm]

5 hours ago, aclman88 said:

The heater, thermostat, sand and RODI unit arrived yesterday.   Tank will be next week!

 

I would love some stocking ideas (and reality checks if needed) as far as fish and inverts are concerned.  

 

Some ideas of things I would like (I know I can't stock all of them, just want feedback):

 

Ocellaris Clown (single or pair)

Firefish Goby

Watchmen Goby + Pistol Shrimp

Skunk Cleaner Shrimp

Royal Gramma

Tuxedo Urchin

 

I would also love other suggestions for interesting fish or inverts.  For CUC I plan on Cerith, Nassarius and one or two trocus snails.  I am no longer a fan of hermits since they tend to harass my corals.

 

To be clear, fish won't be added anytime soon, I just would like to have a solid idea/plan for the tank moving forward..  

In a 16, you'll be fine with all of those as far as stocking ... just for the goby + pistol pair, go for a smaller goby than a watchman (because they get big).  A high fin goby, aurora goby, yasha goby, or a couple other options are out there. Looking forward to seeing your progress!

[aclman88]

On 1/17/2020 at 4:45 PM, hinnenkm said:

In a 16, you'll be fine with all of those as far as stocking ... just for the goby + pistol pair, go for a smaller goby than a watchman (because they get big).  A high fin goby, aurora goby, yasha goby, or a couple other options are out there. Looking forward to seeing your progress!

 

Thanks for the heads up!   I will be sure to keep everyone posted!

[ChristopherDido]

I just saw this!  So glad you got stuff for the tank!  I have had a reef tank for over 2 years now in the classroom.  Ask any questions you've got.  Mine is also in a Middle School Classroom FYI.  I run a 20 Long with an AC 70, 2 Par 38 Bulbs and an Auto Aqua Smart ATO.  I made a decision this passed year to put the tank on Wheels, I know many will advise against it, but I got tired of breaking down and having to drag everything either home or into a back hidden office over long breaks.  Let me know if you need any help or suggestions.

[aclman88]

43 minutes ago, ChristopherDido said:

I just saw this!  So glad you got stuff for the tank!  I have had a reef tank for over 2 years now in the classroom.  Ask any questions you've got.  Mine is also in a Middle School Classroom FYI.  I run a 20 Long with an AC 70, 2 Par 38 Bulbs and an Auto Aqua Smart ATO.  I made a decision this passed year to put the tank on Wheels, I know many will advise against it, but I got tired of breaking down and having to drag everything either home or into a back hidden office over long breaks.  Let me know if you need any help or suggestions.

I will definitely be picking your brain.  For summer breaks, do you leave the tank at school and periodically pop in for refill ATO and check on everything or does it come home with you?

[aclman88]

The tank came in today so I was able to unpack it and play around a little bit with it.  Coralife also sent along their protein skimmer and a UV sterilizer, which is pretty awesome.  I wanted some advice on setup of the rear chambers as I haven't used an AOI tank before.  I have seen people mentioning taking out a false bottom in one of the chambers... which chamber would this be in?  The inflow (not sure that is what it is called)

 

I have the following items at my disposal:

• UV sterilzier (hooks up inline with the return pump)
• Protein Skimmer
• Heater
• Media Rack

Also, I am not sure what the chamber numbers are as I see people refer to chamber 1, 2 or 3.... silly question but which chamber is which?  Is chamber 1 where the intake is and chamber 3 is where the return pump pushes water back into the display?

 

Thanks!

[ChristopherDido]

39 minutes ago, aclman88 said:

The tank came in today so I was able to unpack it and play around a little bit with it.  Coralife also sent along their protein skimmer and a UV sterilizer, which is pretty awesome.  I wanted some advice on setup of the rear chambers as I haven't used an AOI tank before.  I have seen people mentioning taking out a false bottom in one of the chambers... which chamber would this be in?  The inflow (not sure that is what it is called)

 

I have the following items at my disposal:

• UV sterilzier (hooks up inline with the return pump)
• Protein Skimmer
• Heater
• Media Rack

Also, I am not sure what the chamber numbers are as I see people refer to chamber 1, 2 or 3.... silly question but which chamber is which?  Is chamber 1 where the intake is and chamber 3 is where the return pump pushes water back into the display?

 

Thanks!

Ok so on this, this one is confusing, maybe someone with a BioCube will chime in for that, I had a NanoCube and had two "Returns," so yeah can't help there.The Biggest thing I will say with having a Biocube AIO (again similar to NanoCube) would be to make sure you leave enough room behind, not a ton but enough to be easily be able to reaching things easily in the back chamber without hitting your arms all over a wall.

1 hour ago, aclman88 said:

I will definitely be picking your brain.  For summer breaks, do you leave the tank at school and periodically pop in for refill ATO and check on everything or does it come home with you?

For summer breaks now I will just wheel out my cart (after taking out 75-80% of the water) into a back area that will not have work potentially being done in the room.  I have over summers usually returned the fish to LFS, and get Credit for them for the following year (I have a really good LFS here that loves teachers 🙂 ) and everything else I leave running on normal schedule.  I usually try to pop in about every 4 days or so just to make sure that the ATO is working and filled up.  I can go a long weekend with very little evap, even without the ATO (Tight Fitting Lid.)  

 

For Breaks, ie Christmas, etc... I will usually do a big water change right before break (well kids do the water changes for our club.) Do a Heavy feeding and usually buy a "bag" of brine, aka live food.  Fish are pretty hearty(sp?) they can usually go seven days with no food.  One piece of advise, make sure your heater is strong enough in case they cut off the heat over winter, found out they do that the hard way here my first year lol.  

[aclman88]

16 hours ago, ChristopherDido said:

For Breaks, ie Christmas, etc... I will usually do a big water change right before break (well kids do the water changes for our club.) Do a Heavy feeding and usually buy a "bag" of brine, aka live food.  Fish are pretty hearty(sp?) they can usually go seven days with no food.  One piece of advise, make sure your heater is strong enough in case they cut off the heat over winter, found out they do that the hard way here my first year lol.  

 

Good thinking... I have a couple tanks at home so not sure taking another is an option since there isn't really much space.  I do work during the summer close to the school so popping in once or twice a week wouldn't really be a problem at all.  Good idea.

 

Do you quaratine any additions to the school tank or just dip. acclimate, and hope for the best?  I would like to set up a QT/Frag tank for inverts but not sure I have the resources to accomplish that just yet.

[aclman88]

18 hours ago, ChristopherDido said:

Ok so on this, this one is confusing, maybe someone with a BioCube will chime in for that, I had a NanoCube and had two "Returns," so yeah can't help there.The Biggest thing I will say with having a Biocube AIO (again similar to NanoCube) would be to make sure you leave enough room behind, not a ton but enough to be easily be able to reaching things easily in the back chamber without hitting your arms all over a wall.

Good thinking, I never would have thought about that. How much space do you leave between the back of your tank and the wall?

[icatchsnook]

19 hours ago, aclman88 said:

The tank came in today so I was able to unpack it and play around a little bit with it.  Coralife also sent along their protein skimmer and a UV sterilizer, which is pretty awesome.  I wanted some advice on setup of the rear chambers as I haven't used an AOI tank before.  I have seen people mentioning taking out a false bottom in one of the chambers... which chamber would this be in?  The inflow (not sure that is what it is called)

 

I have the following items at my disposal:

• UV sterilzier (hooks up inline with the return pump)
• Protein Skimmer
• Heater
• Media Rack

Also, I am not sure what the chamber numbers are as I see people refer to chamber 1, 2 or 3.... silly question but which chamber is which?  Is chamber 1 where the intake is and chamber 3 is where the return pump pushes water back into the display?

 

Thanks!

I have the biocube16 also and have been running mine for about a year now.  I have never used a protein skimmer in my system but I have used the Coralife UV sterilizer.  I took the UV offline because it was creating a lot of heat in the tank and kept blowing out the bulbs after only a week or two (Coralife was really cool and sent a replacement at no charge but when the replacement blew out I took the UV system out).  The false bottom is in chamber 1 (see below for reference) and is a bit of pain to get out of the 16 compared to how it was factory installed in the older 14's.  Best strategy is prying it out gently using a plastic pick, or really super carefully with a flathead screwdriver.  It is not adhered in there, it just has some plastic stops glued to the sidewalls that hold it in there.  Note that the false bottom is constructed so that it forces the water flow through the cartridge filter.  Removing the false bottom will change the water flow pattern such that if you ever put the cartridge filter back in it will no longer work properly.  Absolutely doesn't matter if you never plan on using the cartridge but just a heads up.  I like to put the plastic cartridge part in (with the original floss mat and charcoal cut out) with a nice pad of thick filter floss when I'm doing heaving cleanings so it traps the garbage quickly, then I remove it after an hour or so.  I cut out a couple of the crossbars in the front of the false bottom (if you shine a light in there you'll see the false bottom has a plastic grating in the front that allows water to flow and is solid plastic in the back) so that I can stick the tip of the turkey baster down in there to agitate the garbage out once in a while.  I also have put a carbon bag in the plastic housing for the cartridge and used this to push the water directly through the bag instead putting it in chamber 2 or 3.  I took the black plastic film backing off the tank so I could shine a grow light into chamber 2.

 

Chamber clarifications: 

Chamber 1 is where the stock filter cartridge goes (right most facing the front of the tank)

Chamber 2 is the middle chamber that has the rack

Chamber 3 is where the return pump is housed (leftmost facing the front of the tank)

 

I have tried a bunch of configurations for the back sump and below is how I have it setup now.  Not saying it's perfect but it's what I've settled on after trying a bunch of different setups, with and without the chaeto.

 

Chamber 1: nothing is in there but the false bottom is still there for the above mentioned purposes.

Chamber 2: using original media rack, top plastic diffuser plate is removed.  Top of media rack has a small section of filter floss that traps only some detritus that I swap out once a week.  Bottom-middle shelf of rack is removed to allow a bit larger volume where I grow chaeto using a light attached to the back of the tank, nothing is below the rack on the floor level of this chamber.

Chamber 3: I left the original sponge in there (it's located at the bottom of the sump secured by some plastic fins between chamber 2 & 3) as I feel like it protects my return pump a bit from bits of chaeto, I swapped the original pump for an MJ1200.  I have a few bioballs that float in this chamber as well.

[aclman88]

2 hours ago, icatchsnook said:

Chamber 1: nothing is in there but the false bottom is still there for the above mentioned purposes.

Chamber 2: using original media rack, top plastic diffuser plate is removed.  Top of media rack has a small section of filter floss that traps only some detritus that I swap out once a week.  Bottom-middle shelf of rack is removed to allow a bit larger volume where I grow chaeto using a light attached to the back of the tank, nothing is below the rack on the floor level of this chamber.

Chamber 3: I left the original sponge in there (it's located at the bottom of the sump secured by some plastic fins between chamber 2 & 3) as I feel like it protects my return pump a bit from bits of chaeto, I swapped the original pump for an MJ1200.  I have a few bioballs that float in this chamber as well.

 

Thanks!  I am thinking of keeping the same setup... I have a protein skimmer coming, but that will only fit in chamber 2 I think.  Do you know if I could create a DIY media basket for chamber 1?  Regardless, I want to be able to run filter floss, purigen and possibly carbon.  I was also liking the idea of using the bottom of chamber 2 as a fuge to keep a healthy population of pods. 

 

So ideally (not even sure if its possible)

 

Chamber 1: Media Rack with floss, purigen and carbon

Chamber 2: Skimmer with Chaeto under

Chamber 3: Heater and Return Pump

 

Thoughts?

[icatchsnook]

2 hours ago, aclman88 said:

 

Thanks!  I am thinking of keeping the same setup... I have a protein skimmer coming, but that will only fit in chamber 2 I think.  Do you know if I could create a DIY media basket for chamber 1?  Regardless, I want to be able to run filter floss, purigen and possibly carbon.  I was also liking the idea of using the bottom of chamber 2 as a fuge to keep a healthy population of pods. 

 

So ideally (not even sure if its possible)

 

Chamber 1: Media Rack with floss, purigen and carbon

Chamber 2: Skimmer with Chaeto under

Chamber 3: Heater and Return Pump

 

Thoughts?

Doing a media rack in chamber 1 would not work in the normal sense of having the media be fed water by gravity since the flow in chamber 1 is upwards to the overflow tab between chamber 1 & 2.  Water comes in from the display side through the upper and lower slits in the wall then flows up to the tab where it waterfalls into chamber two then passes through the sponge at the bottom of chamber 2 into chamber 3.  Depending on design of the skimmer it may or may not fit above the chaeto, but in my experience the chaeto is actually super effective at general nutrient control and I have not used a skimmer.  So effective actually that I have been cutting down the size and lighting duration just to keep some level of measurable nitrate and phosphate in the system.  When the chaeto was the size of a small loaf of bread and lit for 12 hours my nutrients were locked at zero and the coral suffered.  Since then I've cut the cheato ball down to a raquetball size (which triples in size every week) and lighting down to 7hours per day and the coral looks better.  I'm not sure you can fit the heater in chamber 3 due to obstruction by the pump and return hose, and there is some risk that it could become exposed to air if the sponge gets clogged or some other obstruction in chamber 1 or 2 develop.  I don't run a heater because the cheato light produces quite a bit of heat, but most people with the biocubes running heaters that I have seen put it in chamber 1.

[ChristopherDido]

12 hours ago, aclman88 said:

Good thinking, I never would have thought about that. How much space do you leave between the back of your tank and the wall?

In my house I have about 3 inches between back of tank and wall at the school it was closer to 6 inches. Is not an exact science but kids hands have a habit of dropping things (sponges, filter floss, media baskets etc...) You want to make sure you can fairly easily reach them when that happens. Most of this is trial and error learning for me lol.

[Hannahhhh]

On 1/9/2020 at 12:55 PM, aclman88 said:

Hey guys!

 

I was at  a frag swap recently, and after talking to some members who were also teachers I was enticed by the idea of starting a nano reef for my middle school classroom.  I wanted to reach out to see if anyone has any experience or advice before I really commit to this.  I teach science and currently have a variety of animals and freshwater tanks, but since we do an entire unit on Ocean Acidification and Coral Bleaching, I thought it a good idea to try a small reef tank keeping mostly softies and possibly a few very hardy LPS coral.

 

One of my main questions concerns the type of tank.. I have a 20L not being used along with filters, heaters, powerheads, ATO.  I would need to purcahse a filter and lights.  I am also considering going with a Fluval Evo XII as it is an all in one and might be a little easier to maintain.  Does anyone have any thoughts or advice which way to go?

 

Thanks!

I have the fluval evo 13.5, and it is such an easy tank to use. If you’re planing on sticking with softies and LPS corals you will be totally set! When I was using mine as a reef tank I upgraded my lights to an AI prime, but if you want a truly low maintenance tank I would suggest sticking with the included hood and lights. They work great and the hood does wonders at reducing evaporation. I sized up my reef tank and I’m currently using my fluval tank for a Pygmy octopus. 

[This guy is extra salty]

On 1/21/2020 at 12:15 PM, ChristopherDido said:

I just saw this!  So glad you got stuff for the tank!  I have had a reef tank for over 2 years now in the classroom.  Ask any questions you've got.  Mine is also in a Middle School Classroom FYI.  I run a 20 Long with an AC 70, 2 Par 38 Bulbs and an Auto Aqua Smart ATO.  I made a decision this passed year to put the tank on Wheels, I know many will advise against it, but I got tired of breaking down and having to drag everything either home or into a back hidden office over long breaks.  Let me know if you need any help or suggestions.

I was just about to tag you lol