24G Nano Cube DX Startup, Setup, Manual for newbies, in the works

[sojurn]

Hey SH,

 

I read all about your 24G Refugium, and I was wondering if you thought it would be possible to do it with a 12G. Given the size difference and all.. I was also courious where you found the light ect.. How is your's worken out for ya? Still going strong?

Well thanks for all your imput on this and other great things you have posted here.

Great Tank and Great Thread man!

 

soj

[steelhealr]

To Sojurn..my submersible light has been keeping my chaeto alive, but, after a few months now, the lighting is probably just marginal. there has been some chaeto regression. I have dropped the light lower into the fuge to see if it makes a difference. If I were starting out anew, check out the DIY LED light post and see how they are doing. FYI, no one will know for sure in the immediate period if their DIY's will work. The final word comes out in the long run....weeks to a few months.

 

My tubastrea have finally opened on their own in the tank:

 

 

 

SH

[sojurn]

Ahh ok thanks SH I'll check out that post.. Thanks for your quick reply. Grats on your tubastrea opening up! Keep up the good work I look forward to further posts..

 

soj

[steelhealr]

Having a run of bad luck. The good news is that my order from LA arrived today. I'm telling ya that they can almost do no wrong by me. Here is the favites, pineapple coral, acclimating:

 

 

Unfortunately, the yashe goby doesn't look like he is going to make it although the randalls pistol shrimp did. This guy is struggling:

 

 

I'm not sure if the pistol shrimp will survive without the goby for protection. Unfortunately, when I notified LA about the fish, they told me that they were now out of stock. SH

[trekbear]

Hey There SH,

 

Great Favia you got from LA. I like the green w/ yellowish trim there. I know that coral will love it in your tank.

 

I hope your Yasa makes it. His colors look really good in the pick, so maybe it's a stress thing and he's just resting on his side and not looking into the tunnel at a bright light in the end of it LOL!

 

Keep us posted on his status. I do hope he makes it.. I would see if LA will replace him instead of going to your LFS for a watchman.

 

Great work there my friend, great work.

TrekBear

[Doriftu]

sorry to hear about your original firefish. Let us know if your yasa makes it also. tank is looking good none the less.

[NorCalTRD]

WOW! This thread is amazing! I'm new to this forum and only a few months into the aquarium thing. This has already started my modifications to my 24 NC. I removed all the stuff from the back and am going to get seagel and chemipure to get back there along with LR rubble and chaeto for chamber two. I ordered the hydor flo and a MJ 1200 tonight. Is there a good source online for the LR rubble? None of my LFS have any... as a last resort can i just buy a few pounds of it and break it up into rubble myself or would that be a no-no? LOL. Thank you SOOOOOO much SH for all of the tips and ideas that you have spawned in my mind for my NC!! You are AWESOME!

 

Jordan

[steelhealr]

LOL..thanks NorCalTRD...no problem....do exactly what you said above...buy the cheapest LR you can find, then break it up with a hammer into golfball sized pieces or smaller. If not, Premiumaquatics sells LR rubble.

 

The Yashia is still alive this morning...I'm keeping him netted off since he still does not look in the best of shape. I have put some cardboard above his area to keep the lights off him. SH

[steelhealr]

For those that don't already know, there is a fascinating symbiosis that occurs between two saltwater animals, a type of shrimp called a pistol shrimp, named because of a clicking sound the shrimp makes when threatened, and a particular type of goby called a watchman. This symbiosis is best seen with the Randalls banded pistol shrimp and the Yashia Haze goby.

 

The goby, which has excellent vision defends the cave that the pistol shrimp and goby live in. The shrimp, which has poor vision, brings food back to the cave to share with the goby and maintains the cave. The shrimp will even close up the cave at night which will be reopened in the morning by the goby as it exits.

 

Well, I ordered these two pair for my tank over the internet. Both arrived yesterday. The shrimp was great, however, the goby appeared near death while acclimating:

 

 

I released the pistol shrimp after he acclimated but 'quasi quarantined' the goby in netting. I thought he was going to die and didn't want it to get lost in the live rock and contaminate the tank. Well, this morning the goby looked better, but not moving. This evening it appeared upright and was moving it's gills. I decided to release it.

 

The goby swam and floundered a bit, but, eventually stayed upright in the tank:

 

 

My sixline even came up to check out the new addition:

 

 

Wouldn't you know it...the goby made it's way to the left side of the tank where there was a pile of sand near the rock. The pistol had dug a cave. The goby found it, the pistol came out and 'assisted' the goby into the hole. The pistol is 'tending' to the goby now who is making a push for survival. Life is amazing. SH

[NYReef]

That is an amazing story and told so well with text and pictures. Interesting post, as always, SH.

[steelhealr]

OK..whose been sleeping in MY bed. I found my blue hermit crab crawling around in a margarita shell today. Hmmmmmmm......SH

[steelhealr]

OK..whose been sleeping in MY bed. I found my blue hermit crab crawling around in a margarita shell today. Hmmmmmmm......SH

[steelhealr]

Follow up...what's the penalty for theft???

 

 

 

No sign of the Randall's, no clicking, no sign of the Yashia, although, I think I am seeing sand rearranged near where they were seen last.

 

Gorgonian is still alive. Woo hoo. SH

[gjones]

5 weeks in the pump chamber! Lock him up! O, and shouldn't a murder charge be tacked onto that for killing the snail? Sounds like a life sentence, 1 count 1st degree murder, one count grand theft shell! Unless you want to make a hermit crab elsctric chair .

 

I don't know what you should really do, i'm sure you'll think up a fitting solution.

 

BTW, your tank looks great, and on a personal update 1 week from wendsday i'm taking a road trip to premium aquatics for my LR!

[steelhealr]

WTG.....keep me posted and let me know when you crank it up. Good luck and welcome aboard...seems like you did a lot of research. WTG. SH

[gjones]

Thanks SH, i have everything except the LR, and a substrate. My RO/DI came in yesterday, and all my other remaining hardware came in today. I'll try to post some pics tomorrow or friday, the digital camera that i have access to is very old, and it's giving me a few headaches, but i'll give it a try.

[steelhealr]

Hi..this morning I found my ocellaris trapped between the cassette skimmer and the grate. Fortunately he was alive. I lost a firefish last week from the same problem. I am going to change over to Stoney Waters skimmer mod. I think Doriftu's cassette skimmer mod was absolutely innovative. It's just not working well for me with regards to livestock. Anyway, I have some plastic I'm going to tool around with later and switch skimmer mods. SH

[debbeach13]

I am up to page 22 and there is no way this thead is going on page 2 a must read for someone thinking set up a nano. For some noobies like me must get this info. Did I say Thank you. If not Thanks

[steelhealr]

No problem Debbeach...welcome aboard. If you are plowing thru this thread, first, I give you a lot of credit, and, second, you're gonna do great...not because of this thread, but, because you're doing the research. Ready to help out when needed. SH

[steelhealr]

So....after that....update:

 

1) Purple gorgonian is still alive...go figure under stock lighting

2) I think my new brain is withering (favites). Although I see green in the cenral polyps, I can see the peripheral (?) corallites showing. Might be a no survival claim to LA.

3) Yashia haze and banded pistol are still alive. Funny..haven't heard any snapping noises.

4) Ditched the cassette skimmer...too dangerous...fish get trapped in it. Lost my firefish in it and the firefish that replaced it, uh, well...(cough)..doesn't have the same personality as the first one (did a mature guy just type that????) LOL. Saw it twice since acclimating...don't know how it is still alive. I never see it eat.

5) Added 2 Blue ricordea from Old_Diver on Ebay. Again...he tossed in extra stuff and extra cleanup crew (he tossed in a handful of astreas...not bad).

 

Will takes pix of the withering brain and the new blues when I get a sec. SH

[Doriftu]

wow sorry to hear about your problems with the cassette, i'm sure the other option will work much better for you livestock wise, i've never had a problem with any of my other livestock (firefish or clown) getting stuck in there, however, my blenny did find his way in there once prior (before the tank crashed and he subsequently died).

 

Hope your new brain pulls through, be sure to post some pics of it. I'm actually nursing a red open brain back to full health that i picked up at the lfs the other day, when i got it the colors were looking faded etc. I've had it just over a week + and its already showing signs of improvement, colors becoming more vibrant and somewhat bleeched areas showing color. I've been alternating target feeding and it seems to be very responsive to that. (fresh shrimp cut up, brine shrimp, cyclopeeze and even some formula one)

[steelhealr]

Thanks Doriftu...I still think your cassette mod was one of the most popular and innovative 'mods' here and will go down in 'nano history' here. I moved my brain to a higher area and am playing around with position right now to see if that makes a difference. It was on the substrate and now a 1/3rd higher with higher flow. We'll see.

 

I think it's amazing what you guys chop up and put in your tank. Geez, if I even break a HALF cube of mysis up it bumps my nitrates. SH

[Doriftu]

Well i tend to be very careful when target feeding. I try to only get and leave what i'm actually feeding. Sometimes its difficult to even keep the hermits and even pods from stealing the food. I've actually watched a group of pods run up and steal food from the brain. Another time a hermit attempted to do so, lets just say that was the last time he ever did that

[gjones]

Hey SH, I started a thread about this, but i thought i'd ask you since you have the same RO/DI as me. Did you have any problems with the PH of the ro water? My PH goes from 7.8 out of the tap, to 8.8+ from the RO/DI, salt mix, and buffer didn't lower it any. The test kit is acurate, my cichlid tank reads 8.2, and so does the kit at work, havent tested my ro water with the test kit at work yet, but I will test it on tuesday.

[steelhealr]

GJones..that's strange. If anything, the water can tend to come out as acidic, hence, when you aerate it, the pH can come up..but...mine comes out as 7.0, sg 1.000, 0 nitrates. You might need a TDS meter (total dissolved solids) to check and see if it is working well. Is it connected correctly??? Take a pic of your lines and let's have a look. SH