How much rock is too much for a Nano tank?

[MrFus]

I'm putting together a small 20 gallon (waterbox 20) nano to keep a few Zoas only...

Most of sites recommend 1 to 1.5 lbs of rock per gallon, I'm planning to use 20lbs of caribsea arag-alive and some MarcoRocks dry live rocks for the aquascape. Due the limited footprint on the Waterbox 20 I will like to keep the scaping clean and spaced, did I really need to fit 20 lbs of rock on the tank?

 

[Azedenkae]

I'm putting together a small 20 gallon (waterbox 20) nano to keep a few Zoas only...

Most of sites recommend 1 to 1.5 lbs of rock per gallon, I'm planning to use 20lbs of caribsea arag-alive and some MarcoRocks dry live rocks for the aquascape. Due the limited footprint on the Waterbox 20 I will like to keep the scaping clean and spaced, did I really need to fit 20 lbs of rock on the tank?

Nah, I have about 15 lbs of rock in my 20 gallons. Adding anymore feels like it would just clutter everything too much. Imo you could even have less than that, provided you have good biomedia that can replace a lot of the nitrification that may occur in your rocks.

 

[MrFus]

Nah, I have about 15 lbs of rock in my 20 gallons. Adding anymore feels like it would just clutter everything too much. Imo you could even have less than that, provided you have good biomedia that can replace a lot of the nitrification that may occur in your rocks.

I just saw a pic of a 20 gallon filled with 20lbs of rock and it looks nice, my main concern it's that I know some zoas tend grow fast and I will like to space my rock formations on the nano so I can keep growth under control fragging the fast growers, it's easier to pull a medium size rock out and work it than try to do the work inside the main tank or move big pile of rocks in and out to do fragging and cleaning!!

 

[Azedenkae]

I just saw a pic of a 20 gallon filled with 20lbs of rock and it looks nice, my main concern it's that I know some zoas tend grow fast and I will like to space my rock formations on the nano so I can keep growth under control fragging the fast growers, it's easier to pull a medium size rock out and work it than try to do the work inside the main tank or move big pile of rocks in and out to do fragging and cleaning!!

You one can definitely fit quite a lot in the tank and have it still look nice, but it is not necessary to have that much if you don't want to. It's up to you.

 

[Micro-Reefs Aquarium]

I would like to chime in, I too just got back into the hobby and started a 12.5 gallon AIO system and got my brother to get the same tank as mine, but in black acrylic. He ordered 20 lbs of live rock from KPA aquatics.

We were trying to use the 1-1.5lbs per gallons rule.

It didn't work at all! He took 10 lbs for him and I got the other 10 lbs for mine. We both put in 20 lbs of live sand. Here is a picture so you can see what it looks like in 12.5 gallons.

 

[MrFus]

I would like to chime in, I too just got back into the hobby and started a 12.5 gallon AIO system and got my brother to get the same tank as mine, but in black acrylic. He ordered 20 lbs of live rock from KPA aquatics.

We were trying to use the 1-1.5lbs per gallons rule.

It didn't work at all! He took 10 lbs for him and I got the other 10 lbs for mine. We both put in 20 lbs of live sand. Here is a picture so you can see what it looks like in 12.5 gallons.

It looks really nice and clean!... I feel that my best bet its going to be to order 20lbs and start with more or less 15lbs of rock and see how much of real volumen they take on the tank based on the placement that I'm running on my head, then I could add or remove to the scaping until I get it balanced!

I see that you are running a CSXC-1 to keep it cool, I probably going to end getting one too to fight the Florida summer!

 

[Micro-Reefs Aquarium]

It looks really nice and clean!... I feel that my best bet its going to be to order 20lbs and start with more or less 15lbs of rock and see how much of real volumen they take on the tank based on the placement that I'm running on my head, then I could add or remove to the scaping until I get it balanced!

I see that you are running a CSXC-1 to keep it cool, I probably going to end getting one too to fight the Florida summer!

Good call on the live rock 15 lbs will look great in your system since it is a bit bigger than mine. I had to get the CSXC-1 because I like to run cover tops and on acrylic that is a heat trap. I was getting 84F degrees and I wasn't even in summer yet, I live in Florida. So, I quickly ordered the last of the chillers since they are all out of stock, due to pandemic.

Let me find a picture of my brothers tank so you can see the difference in live rock, he kept the nicer pieces and has much nicer scape than mine, I couldn't complain, they were free.

 

[Micro-Reefs Aquarium]

To give you an idea of scale, 12.5 with 20 lbs live sand and about 10 lbs maybe 12 lbs of live rock from KPA aquatics.

 

[Udest]

Yeah at that point its just up to what you'd like to see I have a 29 and i have probably 30 lbs of stone in the tank and my params are fine though space may be a bit tight in spots because my center piece is soo big lol.

 

[MarkyMark_]

My Waterbox Cube 20 has 21 pounds of rock (Mix of various rocks including some marco rock from the sump of an established tank.) At first, I felt it was too much rock and struggled to create satisfying aquascape, however after several iterations I am very satisfied with this amount of rock for my tank. One thing to note, marco rock is dense heavy rock compared to some other types of rock. 21 pounds of marco rock differs significantly in size and volume from 21 pounds of various other types of live rock.

Here is an image of my tank shortly after set-up:

Check out my build thread for more info

 

[Acrofiend]

The sand alone will have enough biological filtration. Just scape it how you’d like.

 

[Imaexpat2]

I used to follow rules like that back in the day ( a couple decades plus). It works pretty good on larger tanks but not so much in Nano's in my experience. Unless you got some seriously dense rock, getting 20 lbs in a 20H sized tank for instance, takes quite a bit of rock! Stack it too tight and you have a "wall aquascape" thats an absolute Detritus Magnet and prime locations for algae to get a solid foot hold in. I want good flow through my rock work...that usually dictates less rock than the 1-1.5 lbs rule recommends. Aesthetics also plays a part in your tank too! If you dont like the way your tank looks then whats the point of getting in the hobby?

These days I am using a lot less rock in my tanks! Maybe 1/2 to maybe 3/4 lbs to a gallon of water. I am more about the Aesthetics more than I am the pounds of rock I have for biological filtration. Make no mistake thats important too, but its not the only factor.

I say use however much you need to get the look you want and provide spots to place the corals you plan to have ad call it good! If you can achieve the 1-1.5 lbs of Rock per a gallon, great! If you come up a few pounds short, I bet your tank wont know the difference if you chose your livestock wisely.

 

[kutcha]

so the rule is for the rock includes sand and honestly with the bio balls and ceramic blocks/cubes the need for alot of rock has diminished because these bioballs/bricks can hold so much nitrifying bacteria and other good things that you dont have to follow that rule to a science at all.

 

[Micro-Reefs Aquarium]

I used to follow rules like that back in the day ( a couple decades plus). It works pretty good on larger tanks but not so much in Nano's in my experience. Unless you got some seriously dense rock, getting 20 lbs in a 20H sized tank for instance, takes quite a bit of rock! Stack it too tight and you have a "wall aquascape" thats an absolute Detritus Magnet and prime locations for algae to get a solid foot hold in. I want good flow through my rock work...that usually dictates less rock than the 1-1.5 lbs rule recommends. Aesthetics also plays a part in your tank too! If you dont like the way your tank looks then whats the point of getting in the hobby?

These days I am using a lot less rock in my tanks! Maybe 1/2 to maybe 3/4 lbs to a gallon of water. I am more about the Aesthetics more than I am the pounds of rock I have for biological filtration. Make no mistake thats important too, but its not the only factor.

I say use however much you need to get the look you want and provide spots to place the corals you plan to have ad call it good! If you can achieve the 1-1.5 lbs of Rock per a gallon, great! If you come up a few pounds short, I bet your tank wont know the difference if you chose your livestock wisely.

Amen, brother very well stated!

 

[MrFus]

I remember 20 years ago when I moved from freshwater to saltwater there wasn't too much focus on aquascaping on saltwater, it was more on the idea of put as much live rock as possible on the tank to help with the filtration and that is all! Probably the idea on how much rock per gallon of water has it origin on that period of the hobby.

Now that I'm trying to go back to saltwater I can see how all the advance on tech from LED lights, mini pumps and powerheads, filtration media designs and materials, etcetera open the possibilities to create not only a efficient close system but a more aesthetic one even on nano size tanks.

 

[MrFus]

I just wanted to post an update on the rocks issue...

The rocks are huge for the nano, I guess a couple can be used just as they are out from the box but for the practical purpose of aquascaping a nano like the Waterbox 20 I'm going to resort to chisel and hammer to reduce the size, run the Dremel and glue to shape the scape.