Setting up a 20g Peninsula, Need some advice

[Tomtank23]

Hi Everyone,

Cutting to the chase - I am looking to set up a 20 gal peninsula tank (probably the Nuvo 20g peninsula) and need some help figuring out what live things to put in it and what extra equipment I might need. This is my first saltwater tank. I've done a couple of freshwater tanks with the largest at 20 gallons which have taught me that careful preparation and planning go a long long way. I did a decent amount of research 2 years ago when I was thinking of getting one but ending up moving into a new home which has kept me too busy till now. That is to say that I know things can get much more complicated with saltwater and I think getting help from experienced reefers would probably do me better than fumbling around the internet looking for advice that may apply to my situation.

Okay, so let's start at the top, and Ill throw my questions out there as I go through the specs/ wants for this new tank.

The tank itself - I'm not married to the Nuvo 20g Peninsula but I do want a Peninsula that is AIO and about that size. I know its usually better for new guys to start larger but in terms of water changes and overall maintains I don't want to get too much bigger. It's easier for me to do more small water changes (5g) than have a 40 and do 1-2 a month 10g changes. Anyways if you all know something with a similar footprint, maybe a little wider, then I'm all ears. But for the rest of this post let's use this as the tank.

What I want to put in it -
Fish and inverts - 2 clownfish (gotta have those right?), probably a goby and pistol shrimp, maybe 1-2 other fishes (maybe a Mandarin Goby and just top off the copepods monthly). for Inverts- a good cleaning crew + that pistol shrimp. Anything else cool looking that you all can recommend.
If you all have suggestions or concerns (this may be too many fish) I'm definitely open to hearing them. Especially on the fish end as I've done some looking but certainly haven't seen it all.

Coral - This is mostly an open question. I'd love to have at least 4-5 separate species of coral. Definitely a Zoa or maybe a rock with a couple of different colored zoas on there. For corals generally I think on the sliding scale of easy/plain (1)------Difficult/colorful (5) I'm at like 3.5. I'm willing to put in some work for some better-looking corals but don't want it to consume my free time.

In terms of rocks and sand, I am going to try and have a super clean tank. therefore no live rocks or sand going in, but just going to add in one of those tank starter bottles and take it slow, everything going in is getting at least a 1-month quarantine. I have zero problems taking this at a snail's pace.

These are pretty much the parameters that should help figure out the next part -
What extra equipment do I need?

Lighting - I'm looking between the Fluval Marine ones and the Current USA orbit Marine IC pro LED - I know there are better overall ones out there but for where this tank is located I need slim low profile/close to the tank lighting options. Really interested in what you all have to say about this and how it affects what I can do with corals. Theres a lot written out there but I really rather trust experience with this one.

Back end filtration/pump - One of the chambers in there looks great for a refugium and that would be perfect with a Mandarin, not sure what's best for the 1st chamber. what are yall's thoughts?
Stock pump or upgrade? This is another area where freshwater exp. isn't much help. How much water flow do I need in the tank. I was thinking of getting one of those rotating blowers for the exit port of the pump. Do I need another fan?

Anything else? I am fairly limited in what I can add on to this - ie. no sumps or bioreactors - so really trying to embrace the AIO look.

I know these are kind of tight parameters, but I am working with the space I have available. Thanks to anyone who responds! I'm really looking forward to seeing what you all have to say and getting any tips I can on setting this up successfully.

Thanks!

 

[minus9]

First off, welcome! I would ditch the idea of a mandarin, just too small of a tank and you being new to the hobby, just not a good fish to start with. Clowns are good, small goby w/pistol (Randall's, aka candy pistol), lots of smaller gobies to choose from, yasha, hi fin, etc. Maybe a neon or sharknose goby for a cleaner and activity, plus they are another commonly captive bred fish along with the clowns. Are you going to use dry rock? If not, you'll need something to house your bio filter, sand will do a lot, but having live rock will give your fish hiding places and an opportunity for micro fauna to thrive and populate. Heat and salinity are your biggest enemies in a nano, so care and planning must be considered to address both. I'm not familiar with the lights you mentioned, but I would look at lights that have the same shape of the tank, it will make lighting much easier. Water changes with a high quality salt will make life easier and I would suggest Tropic Marin pro. It's not cheap, but it's great salt and well worth every penny. Later on when you need to dose 2 part or similar, then look into Tropic Marin all for reef. CUC should be mostly snails and maybe a hermit or two (scarlets are my preferred hermit).
Go slow and take your time. Good luck!

 

[Azedenkae]

Welcome to R2R!

The tank itself - I'm not married to the Nuvo 20g Peninsula but I do want a Peninsula that is AIO and about that size. I know its usually better for new guys to start larger but in terms of water changes and overall maintains I don't want to get too much bigger. It's easier for me to do more small water changes (5g) than have a 40 and do 1-2 a month 10g changes. Anyways if you all know something with a similar footprint, maybe a little wider, then I'm all ears. But for the rest of this post let's use this as the tank.

A 20g is fine, it is in that sweet spot where it is large enough to be easier to manage even for a newbie. I have the Nuvo Fusion 20 and while certain things would certainly be better with a larger aquarium (mainly pertaining to space in the back chamber and being able to place equipment without worrying too much about water levels dropping too much), it is fine.

What I want to put in it -
Fish and inverts - 2 clownfish (gotta have those right?), probably a goby and pistol shrimp, maybe 1-2 other fishes (maybe a Mandarin Goby and just top off the copepods monthly). for Inverts- a good cleaning crew + that pistol shrimp. Anything else cool looking that you all can recommend.
If you all have suggestions or concerns (this may be too many fish) I'm definitely open to hearing them. Especially on the fish end as I've done some looking but certainly haven't seen it all.

My only concern is the mandarin, but if you are willing to put in the work then it should be fine. I have never kept one so I do not know monthly copepod top offs is enough, so I cannot really offer more than that. Otherwise, mandarins also tend to be more 'outgoing' fish, which may run into problems later when the clownfish get larger and may terrorize everything else that is a bit too active in the tank.

Coral - This is mostly an open question. I'd love to have at least 4-5 separate species of coral. Definitely a Zoa or maybe a rock with a couple of different colored zoas on there. For corals generally I think on the sliding scale of easy/plain (1)------Difficult/colorful (5) I'm at like 3.5. I'm willing to put in some work for some better-looking corals but don't want it to consume my free time.

I have only really started to take care of corals, maybe I would be around 1.5 - 1.75 on your scale, so can't help you there. XD I mean if you really want to know, I love glove polyps and xenia and there are some really beautiful ones with beautiful colors and I love how they move in the water so... I would suggest them. But that is just me and my lack of experience with corals.

In terms of rocks and sand, I am going to try and have a super clean tank. therefore no live rocks or sand going in, but just going to add in one of those tank starter bottles and take it slow, everything going in is getting at least a 1-month quarantine. I have zero problems taking this at a snail's pace.

Just to clarify, your plan is to just seed biomedia specifically then, and then once your tank is cycled, then you would add sand/rocks? Sorry I do not quite get the plan here of how you plan to keep your tank super clean as I presume you would plan to add rocks/sand later on?

These are pretty much the parameters that should help figure out the next part -
What extra equipment do I need?

Lighting - I'm looking between the Fluval Marine ones and the Current USA orbit Marine IC pro LED - I know there are better overall ones out there but for where this tank is located I need slim low profile/close to the tank lighting options. Really interested in what you all have to say about this and how it affects what I can do with corals. Theres a lot written out there but I really rather trust experience with this one.

For a similar price, I would suggest an AI Prime 16 HD. I have one over my Nuvo Fusion 20 so it works. With that said, 1. there are some spots to the edges that do not get as much light and 2. I do not know enough about the Current USA or Fluval lights to evaluate how effective they may be. I was just thinking, since it is a peninsula, you can attach it to the divider between your main area and the back chamber, and that should like up your aquarium super nicely, probably better than how mine is lit up. The cable has to go over the back chamber or something, but that should not be too much of an issue I would not think. But yeah, don't take this as me saying the Prime is defo better than your other choices, just that it is working well for me.

Back end filtration/pump - One of the chambers in there looks great for a refugium and that would be perfect with a Mandarin, not sure what's best for the 1st chamber. what are yall's thoughts?

I would suggest that is where you keep your biomedia + heater. Then you can have a fuge in your second chamber, yeah. Or vice versa, I suppose either/or works.

Stock pump or upgrade? This is another area where freshwater exp. isn't much help. How much water flow do I need in the tank. I was thinking of getting one of those rotating blowers for the exit port of the pump. Do I need another fan?

Stock. I turn down my stock pump to the lowest setting and there is still plenty of flow. You don't really need a blower or anything.

Anything else? I am fairly limited in what I can add on to this - ie. no sumps or bioreactors - so really trying to embrace the AIO look.

You can add a skimmer, I think there is one that fits. Otherwise yeah nah, no suggestions really except you probably would want some really effective biomedia, if you are cycling sans rock/sand. MarinePure should work.

Good luck!

 

[Tomtank23]

First off, welcome! I would ditch the idea of a mandarin, just too small of a tank and you being new to the hobby, just not a good fish to start with. Clowns are good, small goby w/pistol (Randall's, aka candy pistol), lots of smaller gobies to choose from, yasha, hi fin, etc. Maybe a neon or sharknose goby for a cleaner and activity, plus they are another commonly captive bred fish along with the clowns. Are you going to use dry rock? If not, you'll need something to house your bio filter, sand will do a lot, but having live rock will give your fish hiding places and an opportunity for micro fauna to thrive and populate. Heat and salinity are your biggest enemies in a nano, so care and planning must be considered to address both. I'm not familiar with the lights you mentioned, but I would look at lights that have the same shape of the tank, it will make lighting much easier. Water changes with a high quality salt will make life easier and I would suggest Tropic Marin pro. It's not cheap, but it's great salt and well worth every penny. Later on when you need to dose 2 part or similar, then look into Tropic Marin all for reef. CUC should be mostly snails and maybe a hermit or two (scarlets are my preferred hermit).
Go slow and take your time. Good luck!

Thanks for the heads up on the Mandarin and the other fish to look at! Ill definitely look at those cleaners. These smaller tanks usually dont fit a lot of the more common ones like tangs.
For the rock, yep I kind of miswrote the post in that regard. Definitely using high porosity dry rock as a couple of big pieces in the middle of the tank.
Heat and salinity, i will watch that, thanks! and thanks for the quality salt tip, Ill check them out.

thanks for the advice!

 

[mdb_talon]

I agree with others regarding not getting a mandarin. You either need one that eats pellets or you need to spend a fortune on pods. In a situation where you have a refugium or similar protected area for pods to reproduce then it is feasible...otherwise i would say it is not(again unless you get the rate one that eats pellets).

As far as coral my advice is just figure out what you like and research it...see how it grows and what it needs, etc.. plan for months/years down the line. For example many start with GSP because it is cheap, easy, and looks nice. However often 6 months later they have a 20g full of GSP and ripping it out.

 

[Tomtank23]

Welcome to R2R!

A 20g is fine, it is in that sweet spot where it is large enough to be easier to manage even for a newbie. I have the Nuvo Fusion 20 and while certain things would certainly be better with a larger aquarium (mainly pertaining to space in the back chamber and being able to place equipment without worrying too much about water levels dropping too much), it is fine.


My only concern is the mandarin, but if you are willing to put in the work then it should be fine. I have never kept one so I do not know monthly copepod top offs is enough, so I cannot really offer more than that. Otherwise, mandarins also tend to be more 'outgoing' fish, which may run into problems later when the clownfish get larger and may terrorize everything else that is a bit too active in the tank.

I have only really started to take care of corals, maybe I would be around 1.5 - 1.75 on your scale, so can't help you there. XD I mean if you really want to know, I love glove polyps and xenia and there are some really beautiful ones with beautiful colors and I love how they move in the water so... I would suggest them. But that is just me and my lack of experience with corals.

Just to clarify, your plan is to just seed biomedia specifically then, and then once your tank is cycled, then you would add sand/rocks? Sorry I do not quite get the plan here of how you plan to keep your tank super clean as I presume you would plan to add rocks/sand later on?

For a similar price, I would suggest an AI Prime 16 HD. I have one over my Nuvo Fusion 20 so it works. With that said, 1. there are some spots to the edges that do not get as much light and 2. I do not know enough about the Current USA or Fluval lights to evaluate how effective they may be. I was just thinking, since it is a peninsula, you can attach it to the divider between your main area and the back chamber, and that should like up your aquarium super nicely, probably better than how mine is lit up. The cable has to go over the back chamber or something, but that should not be too much of an issue I would not think. But yeah, don't take this as me saying the Prime is defo better than your other choices, just that it is working well for me.

I would suggest that is where you keep your biomedia + heater. Then you can have a fuge in your second chamber, yeah. Or vice versa, I suppose either/or works.

Stock. I turn down my stock pump to the lowest setting and there is still plenty of flow. You don't really need a blower or anything.

You can add a skimmer, I think there is one that fits. Otherwise yeah nah, no suggestions really except you probably would want some really effective biomedia, if you are cycling sans rock/sand. MarinePure should work.

Good luck!

Awesome feedback! thank you!
Glad that 20g will work out. That's good to know about the clownfish.

I am always interested in what corals people like so even if they are on the easier side im glad to get some direction on that front.

Thanks for the heads up on the rest. for the back end, that is what i was thinking doing so good to confirm that is a workable solution.

And a big thank you on the pump, knowing what to spend my money on is huge.

Thanks!

 

[Tomtank23]

I agree with others regarding not getting a mandarin. You either need one that eats pellets or you need to spend a fortune on pods. In a situation where you have a refugium or similar protected area for pods to reproduce then it is feasible...otherwise i would say it is not(again unless you get the rate one that eats pellets).

As far as coral my advice is just figure out what you like and research it...see how it grows and what it needs, etc.. plan for months/years down the line. For example many start with GSP because it is cheap, easy, and looks nice. However often 6 months later they have a 20g full of GSP and ripping it out.

Yeah I was planning on having a refugium so thought it might work out.

For corals, thats the sort of pitfalls im trying to avoid - start really liking a certain coral, then find out it has some fatal flaw like the GSP ( I found out about their growth rate accidentally). Ill keep looking though.

thanks for the help!

 

[MarkyMark_]

Welcome! Two alternative tanks to the Nuvo 20 are the Waterbox peninsula 15 which is smaller and peninsula 25 if you want to go slightly larger. I am a new reefer myself but from what I have researched, establishing a self sustaining population of pods to feed a mandarin goby in a 20 gallon reef tank isn't feasible.

Have you considered running your nano tank without the use of a skimmer? I myself have recently set up my first tank (Waterbox Cube 20) with plans to run my tank without one and rely on a consistent water change regiment. Check out my build thread where I list all of the equipment I am using as well as my reasoning behind my decisions. There is a lot of amazing information in the nano tank builds section of the forum that can help guide you as it did me.

 

[Tomtank23]

Welcome! Two alternative tanks to the Nuvo 20 are the Waterbox peninsula 15 which is smaller and peninsula 25 if you want to go slightly larger. I am a new reefer myself but from what I have researched, establishing a self sustaining population of pods to feed a mandarin goby in a 20 gallon reef tank isn't feasible.

Have you considered running your nano tank without the use of a skimmer? I myself have recently set up my first tank (Waterbox Cube 20) with plans to run my tank without one and rely on a consistent water change regiment. Check out my build thread where I list all of the equipment I am using as well as my reasoning behind my decisions. There is a lot of amazing information in the nano tank builds section of the forum that can help guide you as it did me.

Thanks for the other peninsula options! I think i might stick with the nuvo just cause it perfectly matches the length of the sink it'll sit in front of, as tantalizing as the 25 is - its a bit short.

The plan I came up with two years ago had me going with a refugium and not a skimmer so its good to hear that confirmed. Ive heard skimmers can be noisy and this will be located right in the middle of my kitchen so noise is an important factor. I just want to make sure that they both pretty much do the same thing.

Great build! I will definitely be following your post to see how things turn out! Thanks for the help.

 

[Subsea]

Thanks for the heads up on the Mandarin and the other fish to look at! Ill definitely look at those cleaners. These smaller tanks usually dont fit a lot of the more common ones like tangs.
For the rock, yep I kind of miswrote the post in that regard. Definitely using high porosity dry rock as a couple of big pieces in the middle of the tank.
Heat and salinity, i will watch that, thanks! and thanks for the quality salt tip, Ill check them out.

thanks for the advice!

You should understand that starting with dry substrate & dry rock will likely extend the uglies in your new tank cycle. Getting a rock wet with bacteria in a bottle is not a live rock.

 

[saltybees]

Prime 16hd is an excellent low profile light but a bit more money then what you’re looking at. Nero 3 for a power head and 100% tunze nano ato!

 

[minus9]

I've found that paying a premium for live ocean rock, especially in a nano is worth every penny. I would highly suggest buying ocean rock and "pushing" out hitchhikers through hyper-salinity. Having that diversity from the beginning will pay dividends in the long run. I will never set up a tank without ocean rock again, never.

 

[Tomtank23]

I've found that paying a premium for live ocean rock, especially in a nano is worth every penny. I would highly suggest buying ocean rock and "pushing" out hitchhikers through hyper-salinity. Having that diversity from the beginning will pay dividends in the long run. I will never set up a tank without ocean rock again, never.

Really? does that work for everything?? Ive read that pest and parasites are a huge problem with salt tanks. Thats why I was trying to plan the cleanest tank possible - slow as hell but fewer problems.

But I totally get the idea of getting that diversity in the biofilter. If hypersalinity can kill all the pests ill definitely look into it.

Thanks!

 

[Tomtank23]

You should understand that starting with dry substrate & dry rock will likely extend the uglies in your new tank cycle. Getting a rock wet with bacteria in a bottle is not a live rock.

Yeah I did guess this would be the case, but does this outweigh the danger of pests and parasites from live rock? honest question, as ive read that those are major problems, but id definitely be more interested in what experienced reef keepers have to say

 

[Subsea]

@Tomtank23
If you think you can eliminate all pest in the marine enviroment, you are in for a rude awakening. Best defense against pest is healthy immune system. Fish & coral mucous are imbededed with bacteria, virus and protozoan. Without pest, fish immune systems suffer and systems become fragil. More fish die from stress during quarantine than all other causes combined by a factor of 400%.

I suggest you get some uncured diver collected live rock to inoculate your system with diversity.

Gulf Live Rock.com

gulfliverock.com

 

[Subsea]

GSP does not have a fatal flaw. If it grows more than you want, frag & sell as nutrient export.