Fluval Evo 13.5 equipment and stocking

[JacobJNY320]

Originally, I was hoping to start a Nuvo 40 but with my budget of $1 200 CAD that's pretty hard so I've been looking into the fluval 13.5. unfortunately it's going to fill up quick, but hey at least it doesn't destroy all other possible reef projects in the future in terms of space and money. the fish I want are a pair of clownfish, a firefish, a watchman goby ,some type of blenny or goby, or some other fish that are colorful or have a special function or ability, like sand sifters. looking

I want to keep some soft corals, some eupyllia corals, and eventually a rose bubble tip anemone for the clownfish.

is the light strong enough to grow a rbta or should I buy a new light, thinking of getting the hipargero aqua knight A029 since it's on sale for only $40 CAD right now. I think it should be able to support a rbta because par gets a bit over 250 in center of the tank, but what is your experience?

what would maintenance look like?

Do I need the skimmer?

what fish can I have in there along with the 2 clownfish?

is stock return pump quiet if not are there any return pump that are quiet and fit in back chamber?

any quiet powerhead for this tank?

looking to buy all equipment at once so I can start cycling right away.

 

[JacobJNY320]

BUMP

 

[Edp251]

Hi,

i have had an rbta successfully in that tank but did use a spare led i already had to get adequate par.

lightly stocked with 2 fish so i have not needed a skimmer. Due to small water volume i would probably use water changes if nutrients got too high

stock pump is nice and quiet. I added a very small hydor koralia for flow

the only other particular thing was that the stock cover was great at preventing evaporation but made a mess every time i lifted it due to condensation dripping. I finally removed it as it did not work great with the led light i added

best of luck! Its a great little setup. I am doing softies and lps and they are doing great

 

[JacobJNY320]

Hi,

i have had an rbta successfully in that tank but did use a spare led i already had to get adequate par.

lightly stocked with 2 fish so i have not needed a skimmer. Due to small water volume i would probably use water changes if nutrients got too high

stock pump is nice and quiet. I added a very small hydor koralia for flow

the only other particular thing was that the stock cover was great at preventing evaporation but made a mess every time i lifted it due to condensation dripping. I finally removed it as it did not work great with the led light i added

best of luck! Its a great little setup. I am doing softies and lps and they are doing great

Thanks for info!

what led did you add?

What fish would I be able to put along with the 2 clownfish? I'm pretty good at staying on top of water changes.

Do you think it would be a good idea to change the 1st chamber into a refugium?

If so do you have any good refugium lights that aren't going to break the bank?

Would it be better to switch media basket to 1st chamber and move refugium to 2nd chamber instead?

 

[Edp251]

Hi

i added an inexpensiveHIPARGERO LED Aquarium Light – Aquarium LED Lights 30W Saltwater Lighting with Touch Control and 3W Cree Chips for Coral Reef Fish Nano Tank

As i use it as a softie/lps frag tank. Fish are a single percula clown and a tailspot blenny for algae. Lovely little fish that is useful and may do ok with your clowns but clowns do get territorial and aggressive as they age.

can’t comment on the sump arrangements you mention as i run mine stock just as it came. I do think folks have customized as you are thinking but i haven’t needed to. Thing more or less runs great out of the box.

i simply put porous media balls in the first chamber. I store extras in the sump of my larger system and this helped me cycle the 13.5 very quickly.

Enjoy it.

 

[JacobJNY320]

can’t comment on the sump arrangements you mention as i run mine stock just as it came

Do you use stock media basket as well?

 

[Edp251]

I do. Tank stays clean and on spec with respect to parameters so i have never messed with it.

i assume i would approach it all very differently if i stocked it more fully and/or wanted corals that were more difficult to keep but that is not how i am using it