I'm new! Just getting started...please help?

shawnalammers · Jan 17, 2012

Hello all!

I'm just getting started with a 12 gal nano. My goal end result is to have corals, a couple fish, crabs, and shrimp (maybe other things if they will work). At the moment, I have my salt water circulating (day 5) and I'm working on getting the salinity right, and I believe I'm about there. It's at about 1.023-1.024. This weekend, I will be getting some live rock to put in, as well as some biozyme and water from my mom's 75 gal (just introducing things). Is this the way to go? I'm also interested in creating a cave/aquascape, but I'd like it to be sturdy. I've been going through the forums most of today, and I'm seeing that I need to drill into the rock and use rods of some sort. I'm not exactly sure how to go about this. I know that everyone has a way of doing things, and I just want to make sure I don't mess anything up! Is there anyone out there that can give me a little direction on the dos and don'ts of nano tanks? Also, I'm not familiar with the abbreviations (I need to find a place to look those up, too). Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Shawna

btkrausen · Jan 17, 2012

First of all...welcome to R2R

Make sure you sign up for the new membership contest!!!

You don't necessarily have to drill the rocks to get a stable aquascape, you can do it by simply stacking and moving around until they are sort of locked together. From what I've seen, most people actually don't drill and use rods, they just stack them until they find something that works and something they like visually.

As for starting the tank, get the salitnity to 1.026 (or close, doesn't have to be dead on), add some live rock, and wait.... you need to make sure that the water cycles properly before adding any livestock in there.

Most abbreviations will be marked with an underline, and if you hover over them it'll show what they mean.

Dave3112 · Jan 17, 2012

Welcome!! And I agree with everything said in the above post. I have not drilled any of the rocks in my aqua scape. I might in the future to make a really crazy shape or something but basic caves and overhangs are pretty steady if you take your time and see how they fit the best.

firefightered · Jan 17, 2012

Hello Shawna and welcome not only to reefing but aslo to the best forum on the net "Reef2Reef". You will find all kinds of great advise as well as bad advise so do your research. Your salinity is not tooo bad but it would not hurt to raise it a little with a 10 percent water change (NEVER MIX SALT IN YOUR TANK)and make it a little stronger(1.024-1.026). The best advise i can give you and probably will not get any neg. feed back on would be to GO SLOWWWWW. Do not add anything too fast. (add 1 fish wait a couple of weeks and then add another). Talk your mom into a cup or 2 of sand not water. Your bio load will be in the sand not the water. As far as aquascape... If you want caves and such Marine Depot just put out a great article on reefscaping. A lot of people on here us PVC to build the frame and then lay or tie the rock to it. One thing to keep in mind is make sure you have good water flow through out your tank including your sand to keep algea in check. As for finding abbreviations.. If I'm not badly mistaken there is a plce on this site where you can find them. I'll look and see what I can find for ya. If not than just do a google search for Reef abbreviations and that should help ya.. Anyway GOOD LUCK and ask any question you may have. This is a great place for rescourses, it has got me out of a bunch of jams. Almost forgot.... A nano tank is probably going to be a little harder to keep regulated do to it's small size. So any changes can cause things to go out of wack in a hury. Do good husbandry go SLOW and you should do fine.

Russellaqua · Jan 17, 2012

Welcome to the forums! I do agree with the others who have already replied. Do you have any corals in mind that you would like to keep? This can help determine what kind of lighting you will need, and what sort of equipment might be best suited for your tank. Be sure to get some good test kits and test often. Also, are you using tap water or reverse osmosis (RO) water in your tank?

Shelby2012 · Jan 17, 2012

I am new to SW as well and I am just cycling my first aquarium. As for aquascaping I used Epoxy glue which is saltwater friendly. All the rocks "clicked" together pretty well without it but I wanted to be sure the construction is stable and will not move in the future. This epoxy glue is comonly used for aquascaping as well as corals.
You can see my aquascaping below. I was not very carefull with hiding the glue which is almost the same color as the dry rocks I have but after some time it will be covered by corals, etc and it will blend with the rocks.

shawnalammers · Jan 18, 2012

Thank you all for the feedback and the warm welcome! Much appreciated! I suppose I'll be working on my salinity today. I'm glad to hear that I don't have to drill anything to achieve a nice look! Has anyone had issues with anything settling or falling? That would be my only concern.

As far as corals I'm interested in, (pardon my spelling of some of these) I love ricordia and pulsing xenia. I'm sure I will have mushrooms and others as well, I just don't know what will catch my eye when I hit the stores. My mother also has a clam that I adore, but it took her several years to be able to keep one. (She gave up after a couple, and I finally talked her into another one, and it's doing wonderful!) It seems as though her tank really likes the metal halide lights. Can I use those on a nano cube? All I have is what came with it, actinic and flourescent, I believe?

I guess that leads me to another question: Is there any equipment that I'll need to add? I can't go crazy with it all, unfortunately. I have a busy household, so I need to keep it as easy to manage as possible.

Honestly, I'm not sure what reverse osmosis water is.

I'm assuming I should be using that? I've just used tap water. I hope I didn't "uh-oh" by doing that. My mom (I'll just say "Mom" from here forward, and she's on here somewhere: robinreefer) has had good luck with it. I'm interested to hear what you all have to teach me about RO water (yay! I abbreviated!) :wink:

DaveA · Jan 18, 2012

shawnalammers said:
This weekend, I will be getting some ... water from my mom's 75 gal

You want to get a cup or two of sand from her tank. The water won't really be any help.

DaveA · Jan 18, 2012

shawnalammers said:
Honestly, I'm not sure what reverse osmosis water is. I'm assuming I should be using that? I've just used tap water. I hope I didn't "uh-oh" by doing that.

DEFINITELY do not use tap water. Go to Jewel and buy distilled water until you get an RO/DI system. RO/DI = Reverse Osmosis / De-Ionizer. You need to remove chlorine, flourine, any phosphates, and potentially other things from the water. An RO/DI system will do that. It will definitely pay for itself quickly from buying distilled water.

DaveA · Jan 18, 2012

shawnalammers said:
I guess that leads me to another question: Is there any equipment that I'll need to add?

A pH meter. You should check your pH regularly. If the pH drops, that is one of the first signs that something bad is going on. A pH meter will make taking readings easier, faster, and cheaper in the long run.

revhtree · Jan 18, 2012

Welcome to R2R!!

firefightered · Jan 18, 2012

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT use tap water. Take it from someone who has been there and done that..... Invest in a RO/DI unit or buy clean water from Wallyworld if you have to until you get the funds for a unit. Your corals will hate it and the algea will love it! If you plan on fish.. make sure you have a good skimmer. With the small tank you have it shouldn't be too much $$. Again.. use some sand out of your mom's tank. The water will do you little to no good. All the stuff you'll need to kick start your tank is in the sand or get a chunck of live rock. As fair as keeping a clam. From what I have researched, your tank needs to be up and running for at least a year or so. They seem to like a seasoned tank. Zenia seems to grow and spread very quickly so be careful of that. Some people have the same problem with mushrooms. I have not had that problem. As for the MH light.. Someone else will have to answer that one for ya. I run T-5 and LED.