Am I forgetting anything?

[Tadashi]

I am getting my feet wet again after a 4-year hiatus in reefing. I have decided to setup a 14-gal Nano reef at the office since I spend shot 60% of my life there. :p

Anyhoo, I thought I would solicit advice on how to set this up. I have been reading many posts on setup and gotten many ideas which were not possible 4 years ago.

Keep in mind this will be in an office so must be as professional as possible and automated for the weekend and holidays.

The equipment I have purchased so far:
- 14-gal Oceanic BioCube w/ stand
- CPR Bakpak 2R+ w/ Accela pump (worse case if I cannot get it to fit I have a Rio 800 venturi pump), I pulled out all the wet dry filtration from the BioCube and punched out the small compartment under the overflow to prevent detritus buildup
- SunPod 20" 250W HQI 14000 K MH w/ lunar LEDs (not sure if this has a built in timer), I will ditch the OEM hood but keep it as backup
- Swapped out the 137 gph return pump for a MJ1200 (295 gph) - will this be too much?
- MP-10 Vortech Prop Pump (for circ in reef crest mode)
- Oceanic 1/10 hp Inline chiller (reviews said it was very quiet)
- AT-1 auto top-off sensor connected to a MJ1200 in a bucket of RO/DI
- 100W heater

I plan on gretting 20lbs of LR (premium Fiji cured, no place to cure my own here nor purchase such small amount of raw rock). I have Southdown Aragonite oolotic sand for a 2.5" bed plus I will get about 1" of live sand to top it off. I will have to cover up the bottom vents in the overflow.

The tentative livestock will be 2 black & white percs, 2 blood cleaner shrimp, blacksailfin blenny, and various SPS and clams. I am fighting my desire for a BTA so will get some nice green frilly mushrooms for the clowns.

I will also get nassarous snails for sandbed and nerites for algea, pod kit and worm kit for the LR and LS.

The two clowns will be first after the cycle and blenny later if the tank seems to be doing okay. The clams will also be much later if I decide I want to dose with phytoplankton. The only thing I plan to dose in Calcium if I do not get a calcium reactor.

I plan to get a UPS with a 1 hr battery for circ pumps and heater in case the elec goes out. Got two portable GFCI for safety, but UPS with circ pump will be on seperate circuit to avoid trippage issues killing the tank when I am not at the office. I will also get a titanium grounding rod.

What have I missed?

[james3370]

hydor flo deflector for the retrun inside the tank....creates great randomized flow throughout the tank. it also keeps the surface aggitated for gas exchange & is good for cutting down on that "pond film" look on the water surface

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=11363

i had one on my biocube 8 & it worked great

[Tadashi]

Thanks for the suggestion.

I was originally going to use Mini-jet 606s (2) and my Aquarium Systems wave strip since I had these on-hand in my aquarium junk box. My coworker will use this stuff now.

After reading a bunch of posts I went with the MP-10 Vortech Prop Pump to create an ocillating flow with one powerhead and reduce clutter inside the tank.

I hope the overflow that is built into the cube will also help in sucking in the pond scum on the surface otherwise I will have to mod something.

[james3370]

i missed the mp-10 in your original post....that should do great for random flow. if you need to break up the surface, you can always branch either the input thru the wall w/ a t & do a loc-line near the surface or do it inside the tank once it comes thru the wall

....but i'd be willing to bet the mp-10 will keep it aggitated just fine :)

[Tadashi]

I wish I could branch a line in the back wall. The 14-gal is a bit cramped already with all the pumps I shoved behind there. I should have gotten a 29-gal :p, but that may have been too big for the office.

[Ansphire]

great choice on the mp10,, with this pump in there you can leave the original return pump.. no need for the extra noise since the mp10 will give you the flow you need and MORe...


Another thing is you can skip the skimmer if you want.. many of us keep our nano's skimmerless with great success... that would give you a little more space in the cramped back for maybe a fuge.

[korth659]

sounds like a good plan

[Tadashi]

Ansphire: I thought about going skimmerless but I think it is my security blanket for now. It makes me nervous going without especially when I see how much crud it pulls out.

I figured I would be pushing the limits with the 2 clowns and possibly a bicolor blenny.

Korth: Thanks. I figure it will be a good plan until the water hits the tank. =D I still feel like I am forgetting something. Normally this would not concern me but this will be at work and unattended on weekends and nights.

[cherubfish pair]

Yes, a refugium would be nice. There are submersible lights that could light a fuge in one of the back chambers. Tell me if you're interested and I'll post a link in this thread.

Also let me mention: Impressive sign-up date!

[Ansphire]

yeah but dude you have to remember that allot of that gunk that the skimmer pulls out is Coral Food... in a nano, you might be stripping out the little bit it has...

but anyway.. looking forward to some pics!

[Tadashi]

I would be interested in a refugium that would fit on the back. I am thinking I would have to ditch the skimmer to get one that would fit. :( Not sure I am comfortable in doing that just yet.

Yeah, I have been around a little bit. I have just been lurking for the past few years until the spousal unit gave me the authorization to jump back in. =D