proenca
03/21/2016, 08:48 AM
Hi there,
I've kept too many freswater, marine and reef systems over the years - my last reef was a 300g sps and now due to traveling and moving a lot, I stoped it.
However, I'm now based in an office and I've talked about having a nano reef here and everyone was super duper excited.
So who is more excited than anyone ? me :)
Plan is simple : setup a simple and easy to mantain zoo+shroom+softie garden with no fish and with inverts (lysmata shrimp + astrea and hermits)
Current setup ( from spares I had ) is :
** all glass, 11g ( 45l ) tank
** I'm modding a Eheim Liberty 200 ( hob filter, similar to an Aquaclear ) to use as a refugium/chaeto filter , which will run on opposite timing to the main lights on the tank
** tunze powerhead
** led lights ( still deciding which ) - low heat and high output
** good quality liverock
** fine sand caribesea
and that's it ;) I'm fortunate enough that my office just setup a massive 400g saltwater aquarium at the lobby and we have already talked to the maintenance guys ( who come 3 times per month ) to bring me an extra 2 gallons of already made saltwater, so I change it on my tank. So my tank will have 80% water change monthy, over the course of three weeks.
Now my worries is : surface skimming. Its a glass tank, with no holes or surface skimming - wont the water get ( top ) with that nasty oily film ? will the 2-3 times monthly water change sufficient, together with the no fish bioload, to keep that oily film to a minimum ?
I've been searching if there is a surface skimmer box ( which I could direct then the HOB to pull water from inside it ) but seems to no avail - there is surface skimmer returns to connect to a sump, but I dont want to have sump here - neither there is space.
Or should I delay the tank for a week or two more and create my own surface skimmer section on the back ?
I'm not new to reefing, but I'm a newbie at nano's :)
I've kept too many freswater, marine and reef systems over the years - my last reef was a 300g sps and now due to traveling and moving a lot, I stoped it.
However, I'm now based in an office and I've talked about having a nano reef here and everyone was super duper excited.
So who is more excited than anyone ? me :)
Plan is simple : setup a simple and easy to mantain zoo+shroom+softie garden with no fish and with inverts (lysmata shrimp + astrea and hermits)
Current setup ( from spares I had ) is :
** all glass, 11g ( 45l ) tank
** I'm modding a Eheim Liberty 200 ( hob filter, similar to an Aquaclear ) to use as a refugium/chaeto filter , which will run on opposite timing to the main lights on the tank
** tunze powerhead
** led lights ( still deciding which ) - low heat and high output
** good quality liverock
** fine sand caribesea
and that's it ;) I'm fortunate enough that my office just setup a massive 400g saltwater aquarium at the lobby and we have already talked to the maintenance guys ( who come 3 times per month ) to bring me an extra 2 gallons of already made saltwater, so I change it on my tank. So my tank will have 80% water change monthy, over the course of three weeks.
Now my worries is : surface skimming. Its a glass tank, with no holes or surface skimming - wont the water get ( top ) with that nasty oily film ? will the 2-3 times monthly water change sufficient, together with the no fish bioload, to keep that oily film to a minimum ?
I've been searching if there is a surface skimmer box ( which I could direct then the HOB to pull water from inside it ) but seems to no avail - there is surface skimmer returns to connect to a sump, but I dont want to have sump here - neither there is space.
Or should I delay the tank for a week or two more and create my own surface skimmer section on the back ?
I'm not new to reefing, but I'm a newbie at nano's :)