10g low-budget diy nano reef

Nevin · #1 02-19-2008, 10:22 PM

Thanks for the ID--I'll try to get a picture of the other ones soon, but the tentacles are very slim, so hard to capture on my not-so-great camera.

The brown diatoms have died down somewhat, starting to be replaced by green algae. I didn't see a lot of pods on the glass and wanted to "feed" my new skimmer, so I scraped it off today.

I haven't been able to get the foam to climb more than halfway up the tube in the Rio, but I suppose I just need to be patient and keep fiddling with it. My water level is stable, so I hope it will stay adjusted once I get it right.

Regards,
Nevin

Nevin · #2 02-21-2008, 02:52 AM

0 mg/L nitrite
0.6 mg/L ammonia
8.5 ph
9 dkh

First time to test kh. It's much higher than my freshwater tanks have ever been--guess the sand and rock buffer it? I don't know what a desirable ph is for saltwater either.

Everything is looking good--no algae at the moment and I've finally got some foam coming out the neck of the skimmer, though nothing falling in the cup yet.

prosnow · #3 02-22-2008, 12:10 PM

so thats just acrylic siliconed in?

Nevin · #4 02-25-2008, 08:03 PM

Yes, I just cut up some acrylic and stuck it in. Works well, looks alright, and far cheaper than an "all-in-one".

Regards,
Nevin

Nevin · #5 02-25-2008, 10:04 PM

Hi all,

I've been keeping an eye on several varieties of algae that came with one of my rocks. I'd be much obliged if anyone can help me ID them, or at least tell me whether they're likely to become "pests" and overgrow everything. Number 1 are red stalks about 1/4" long.

Numbers 2-5 are easier to see. 2 and 4 might be the same.

I could probably start adding a cleanup crew at this point, if anyone has snails/hermits available for cheap?

Thanks,
Nevin

Nevin · #6 03-03-2008, 07:20 AM

Up to now I haven't thought much about what kind of livestock. In addition to corals, I'd like to have a shrimp or two and a small clownfish. Would a bangaii cardinal fit in with these in a 10G? I've seen minimum tank sizes of anywhere from 7-20G. I know clownfish are territorial, so thinking they might not get along in a small tank?

Regards,
Nevin

Nevin · #7 03-07-2008, 07:04 PM

Haven't updated in a while as I'm just letting the tank mature and building a stand.

Added two little zoa colonies and a tiny mushroom. Took out my bumble bee snail as it was eying the zoas.

Still looking for opinions on whether a bangaii cardinal is ok in a 10g tank and compatible with a clown.

I'll probably start adding my cleanup crew soon. I'm thinking of starting with J&L's standard 5-10g package: http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/s...ategory_ID=250 -- wonder if I should substitute a couple of nassarius snails to clean the sandbed? Are the blue legged and red scarlet hermits safe with corals and zoas?

Any advice most welcome.

Regards,
Nevin