20gal journal

[lemmiwinks]

finally i'm back in buisness! i was forced to move my 4x2x2 reef in 2005 to go backpacking around europe for a year, and after all this time have finally picked up another tank.

it's a 65L nano, currently empty. i plan on stocking it (in good time of course) with a pair of 1" clarkii clowns, corillimorphs, rics, and LR (a low bioload). i also plan on keeping 1 BTA, i know some of you will probably think the tank could be a bit small, but i will be prepared to remove other corals to allow it to take over :)


it's currently running:

a weirpo canister filter (pics below show the media contents)

150watt heater (i'm not sure if this is the right size?)

2000LPH powerhead (probably too strong for a 20gal [?] but you can reduce the outflow)

[lemmiwinks]

current lighting is 1x15w actinic in the hood: this is going to be replaced. i will need some help on this, remember i will be keeping a BTA so it needs to be pretty strong.

options are either 4x24watt T5s, or 8x24watt T5s... or 1X metal halide, which i would prefer to avoid due to power costs. would 8 T5s be a huge overkill?


i have also ordered a reef octopus nano skimmer, should be ariving within the week. anyone have any experience with this skimmer?

http://www.reefoctopus.com.au/v2/pub/news.cfm

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/nano_skimmer.jpg

[lemmiwinks]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1184.jpg

a full shot of the tank & cabinet


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1185.jpg

close up of the tank


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1186.jpg

cupboards open


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1177.jpg

on the left is the sand, there it sits about 1" high in the tank. i know it's better to have it a bit deaper but i don't really want too much more unless it's absolutely necessary


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1182.jpg

closeup of the weirpo and powerhead model numbers etc.

[lemmiwinks]

so basically what i have done so far is completley rinse and clean out the tank and equipment, and left it to dry out (including the sand). it's over 30 degrees celsius during the day over here, so should be ready by midday tomorow. on that note, my home is well airconditioned and although i cannot afford a chiller, i will be using a desk fan on a timer during the hottest hours of the day to keep the temp down. the tank is also kept in a room without sunlight (it's a 1 window bedroom with the blinds kept closed).

now, although i have kept a 100gal reef with great success in the past, i have never been through the new tank cycling process. i know a fair bit about it but to be honest have forgotten the specifics. any links or personal insight would be much appreciated :)

tomorow i'm going to put the sand back in and fill her up with water delivered from 'marine ocean farm,' which is a company that delivers filtered sea water to most SW aquariums in Perth (Western Australia). i probably wont be mixing my own. for top offs i have a new RO/DI unit, so no copper filled tap water anymore!

after this i'm not sure where to go.. as far as i know, i should start with a bunch of LR (but when?), and once the tank has been through the first nitrate spike and calmed down, do a 50% water change, then if everything is going well add a hardy fish or two (like a humbug or blue damsel) to help the cycle further. am i on the right track with this approach?

[reefman13]

Pretty sweet! Make sure to take pics when it is all setup!

[lemmiwinks]

will do ;)

anyone know whether 4x24watt T5s will be enough for a BTA or should i go the full 8? its not that much more expensive (~30% for 100% more bulbs :D)

i would like to order them soon if i can get some input.

[mikellini]

Should be enough. Can you fit 8 bulbs under there with individual reflectors? Maybe 6 would be a better choice. I have 4x24 T5 and it takes up the full 12" of width. Then again, the Tek-2 reflectors I'm using are quite large, I think you may be able to fit 6 of the Icecap reflectors...

[lemmiwinks]

i'm not sure if they have individual reflectors, here are the two options i was looking at:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/AQUARIUM-LIGHT-8x24W-T5-650-Long-Fish-Tank-Light_W0QQitemZ150185668334QQihZ005QQcategoryZ20754QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/T5-AQUARIUM-OVERHEAD-LIGHTING-4x24W-600-Long_W0QQitemZ150188885226QQihZ005QQcategoryZ20754QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


http://cgi.ebay.com.au/T5-AQUARIUM-OVERHEAD-LIGHTING-4x24W-600-Long_W0QQitemZ150188885226QQihZ005QQcategoryZ20754QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

do you think 4x24watt T5s will be enough to keep a healthy BTA or should i go for 8?

thanks for your help mikellini, it's much appreciated :)

[lemmiwinks]

update: yesterday the tank was filled and today i have added 5kg of LR. it is partially cured, the LFS guy told me it has been in their store tanks for a while now and it doesn't smell anymore. the aquascaping so far is looking a bit boring if you ask me, could use a bit more rock etc but it is only temporary.


filled with water:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1191.jpg

the LR:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1190.jpg

in the tank:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1194.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1197.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1200.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1204.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1206.jpg

the plan from here is to do a 50% water change in 2 days, then add a damsel one week from now.

[mluna785]

That seems pretty soon to be adding fish. The LR you have looks pretty good but I would give it at least 2 weeks to see if there is any spike in ammonia.

[lemmiwinks]

thanks, i thought it was pretty good too.. not the best i've had but it's definatley the best around at the moment.

good point with the fish.. i will wait for the parameters to settle down before adding any, but i honestly dont know how long that takes :) your right it could definatley be more than a week.

anyway if the damsel is happy and healthy after another week or two i'll trade it in for a pair of clarkiis.. his only purpose is to test the water.

[reefman13]

That plan sounds pretty good to me.........I would just make sure that you do continuous water quality tests and make sure that you are using filtered water for top-off.

[lemmiwinks]

still shopping around for test kits actually, probably going to go for salifert Ammonia, Nitrate, Alkalinity & Calcium.. would this be enough?

[lemmiwinks]

another lighting option is the 2 foot halogen + 2x actinic unit:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/MixedPhotos255.jpg

i'm still after some advice on this. would the 4x24 watt actinics be enough for a BTA, or should i bite the bullet and go for a halogen?


during the week i have picked up a new piece of LR that is covered in sponges and has a huge feather star on the top.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1222.jpg

also had the reef octopus nano skimmer delivered, having a bit of trouble with the water level.. there are too many bubbles comming out and the collection cup fills with water in about half an hour. the pics were taken before the skimmer cup started to fill up.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1224.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1226.jpg

there are also bubbles being spilled into the tank by the outlet:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1212.jpg

i think both of these problems could be fixed by reducing the flow of the powerhead, but it isn't adjustable. any ideas on how this could be sorted?

cheers for your help everyone :thumbsup:




edit:

forgot to mention, i have had the water tested for PH, KH, amonia, salinity and nitrate every second day, and have been advised not to do any water changes yet. everything is fine appart from KH which was low but has been corrected, and low PH which is in the process of being corrected. nitrites are up there a bit but it's to be expected from a tank being cycled: even slightly less than expected as a majority of the LR was partially cured.

[jonathanws]

on the one rock with all the sponges it looks like you have a polyp of some sort in the middle. neat! has it opened up?

[lemmiwinks]

yeah that piece is loaded with a variety of life.. it has about 4 or 5 little anemones that hopefully isn't aptasia.. actually they are a dark reddish marone colour so i dont think they are :)
there's also a little white crab about 2cm across that is pretty interesting to watch.

[happyface888]

sweet set up I hope to hear a review on that nano skimmer

[lemmiwinks]

i'll let you know how it goes when i get it working properly.. at the moment it isn't even plugged in :(

[FishAreFriends2]

What filter media are you going to use for that canister? I always read negative things about using a canister for the long run but works fine with carbon. Some have even turned their canisters in to a dark refugium, just stuffed with rock rubble and I have seen others put chaeto with led lighting inside. Pretty neat.

[lemmiwinks]

not sure exactly what it is all called, there are pictures of it in the second post though. there is some carbon, cotton wool looking stuff, about 5 layers of different types of sponge pads and a bunch of those little tube brick things. what are the negatives for using canister filters in the long run? do the bacteria die off eventually without light or something?

[happyface888]

They contribute to High nitrates that is if you use the floss and pad, I wouldnt use the sponges pads or floss. Unless your willing to change them out. I have a canister and I just shoved rock rubble in it. Why waste it lol. But it does come in handy for checmical filtration stuff.

[lemmiwinks]

i have just ordered this lighting:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/MixedPhotos255.jpg

"1 x 150W 20 000K UV Block Globe + 2 x NEW T5 High Output Floro Globes."

i'm not sure as to the exact wattage of the T5s. how high above the tank do people hang their 150watt hailides?

[lemmiwinks]

*update*


added a new piece of LR, some macro algea and a blue damsel. theres still some work to do on the rock formations, but here it is so far:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1330.jpg

the damsel:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1333.jpg

also, i managed to catch this little guy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/oldskoolbreakz/IMG_1328.jpg

luckily i got him when i did. you can't really see in the pic but it is a tiny mantis shrimp, about 12mm in length. would have been nice to raise him in a small species tank, but he died after one night in the small container :(


water paramters are great. did a 35% water change today, PH was a little low at 8.0 but everything else is fine. should be ready for a pair of clarkii clowns for chirstmas :D