downsizing?!?!?!?!?

[CrazyAggie05]

howdy yall! well i havent been around in a while unfortunately, ive been keeping busy! but anyways, heres my problem. ok in 3 weeks i graduate and commission into the air force. i thougt i had the whoe base hopping thing down, but alas i didnt. june 4th i go to alabama for 6 weeks for some classes, then july 26 i leave for holloman afb in new mexico. i have to be there on the 30th. theat means i can go home and get stuff, like the fish, and make it there in 4 days. problem is, my 20 gal is way to dang hard to tear down and put up, epsecially since ihave the big ole hob aquafuge. id also have to bring 20 gallons of water with me, a ton of lr, and all the corals and stuff. another issue that complicates things is the fact that i wont have housing when i get to new mexico! i have to go out and find a place, so if i am going to take the fish, they are going to have to be REALLY portable! hopefull i can maybe get a place in advance, like on base housing, if not i will have to stay in base billeting for a few days while i hunt for a place to live.

 

so, should i even bother taking them? my parents said they would take care of them, but i dont trust them lol. and whats the point of having them if i dont get to enjoy them? here what im thinking. downsize to a nanocube or aquapod. everything is built in. i could take all the water i need in one bucket, there would be much less lr and coral and fish. plus it would set up and tear down much easier i think. i would like to keep all the corals i am keeping now. not the same amount, but the same types. i.e. zoos, my hammer, rics, and my sps. nanotuners.com looks like they have some great deals. any other ideas?

 

oh, and which nanocubes do i need to watch out for? like which ones crack? i like that 6 with the MH lights, sounds like a good deal! any ideas?

[CrazyAggie05]

cmon yall ineed some help here!

[Charlie97L]

cmon yall ineed some help here!

 

id sell all the livestock... keep the equipment, and then re set up when you get down there and settled. it's a PITA, but it'd be best for the animals. i'd say most of them wouldn't make a 4 day trip in the car in the same bag. there's just too many variables to consider.

[Nuhtty]

JMO, but I would give it up for a little while until you have more permanent living arrangments.

 

Good luck.

[CrazyAggie05]

yeah ive been considering just giving up for a while.... but its only a day to get there, i was saying im allotted 4. once i get there ill be there from july 30 to next april, then ill go to del rio and be there for a year.... its a lot of moving which sucks.... it was one thing to move my tank back and forth during college, but this is toughter because its more than a 2.5 hour drive! but then again when i think about it, if i had a 6 gal nano, i could literally put everything in two buckets with heaters and airstones and be on my way. anyone else done that?

[formerly icyuodd/icyoud2]

what about setting up alittle self sufficiant 5g system.

i did with a couple 2.5s. the entire system, desk lights,lr,pump,tank,cheato and livestock was under $80.

 

easy to move and you'd have more than enough to fill the 2.5 display.

the rest you could trade for anything you need for the new system including a nice ato (for those weeks away)

i'd also advise stocking the sump with cheato or other macro's

a couple mangroves might also be a nice touch.

[CrazyAggie05]

wow thats really neat, got any more info on that setup?

 

i think its between doing that, or just gettin a nanocube 6..... or maybe a 12..... i really wanna keep my tailspot blenny. would he be ok in the 6 gallon?

[Nuhtty]

i really wanna keep my tailspot blenny. would he be ok in the 6 gallon?

 

As the only fish I would think so. They dont get much more than 3" right?

[formerly icyuodd/icyoud2]

i made the 5g sytem last year. i had it for 4 months then gave it to a very close friend. she's had it set up and running ever since (as her only aquarium)

 

the aquarium is 2 standard 2.5g aquariums. i removed the trim. the top tank is drilled through the bottom. the plan was to use a black piece of acrylic i have, 45* in the corner as my overflow, but the lfs screwed up the placement of the hole and the acrylic was too small to work. for this reason i used the 3/4 of a 3or 4" abs pipe (sorry cant remember which it was)

2 90* cpvc 1/2" fittings prevent the drain from gurgling.

the return if you look close is 3 90* fittings on each end of a 5" piece of cpvc pipe (all painted black) theres a t and union in the center connected to flexable hose.

 

top tank is lit with a 13watt power compact. the entire light is a $10 desk lamp from walmart. i removed the base(4 screws) and mounted the rest to the aquarium stand. the ballast is inside that plastic lump on the right hand side on off switch also.

as you can see in the top pick, it folds out of the way for cleaning etc.

heres the lamp i used.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/assortments/pro...fromSearch=true

but a wall mart version.

bottom tank is lit by a 27w phillips daylight.

 

the pump is a small table fountain pump 100gph.

i used my heat gun to bend a piece of cpvc pipe for the drain entering the sump, you can see it on the right, it prevented the drain from messing up the bottom of the sump (sand etc). used a piece of rubber hose as a bushing, and slipped it into the bulkhead in the bottom of the display.

 

if you have anymore questions, just ask