Nano for an office Environment

PaulPerger · May 11, 2019

I just picked up this sweet little 14 Gallon AIO for $30. I was planning to do a FW tank, but this thing has reef lights in it (each with independent power supplies, so lighting could be easily timed) and it would be a great little Nano Reef tank.

Here are my concerns...
- I will not be able to feed or do maintenance on weekends.
- I can not have a sump, so water changes will be my only means of exporting nutrients.
- I can not auto dose anything
- When I vacation, I can ask one of my associates to feed the tank, but that would be about all they could do.
- I can not have an ATO. So i am a bit conned about salinity rising and dropping when water is added back to the system.

So. For those who have kept nano reefs... are my concerns valid or am i creating mountains out of molehills?

bluprntguy · May 11, 2019

Evaporation out of that tank is going to be minimal due to the cover. I think you'd be fine to top up once or twice a week. The salinity swings are going to be minor.

You can easily do softies and some LPS and not have to worry too much about nutrients. Get some small hardy fish and it will be an awesome office nano with minimal work involved to keep it up.

If you could do an auto-feeder on the weekend, that would be ideal. I feel like fish would be best to have food daily, but they can survive over a weekend without. You could also just forego fish altogether and do some cool inverts.

Colin Adams · May 11, 2019

Yeah, I have always had All In Ones with these hoods, you will be amazed at how little evaporation you have so I would strike that off the concern list.
Most everyone with these tanks keep the bioload low and do waterchanges only, which covers both nutrient introduction and disposal, so no dosing required.

People have these concerns that nano's are tougher than large tanks, couldn't be further from the truth.
Will be interested in seeing this develop, good luck!

PaulPerger · May 13, 2019

Well. I had decided I wanted to a Nano Reef, but my boss asked that I do a FW tank due to the fact that if it ever sprang a leak for any reason, FW would be less damaging than SW would be.

Can't really argue with that, nor do I wish to argue with my boss, so FW it will be. So, no build thread for this one.

It will still be fun.