Nano nps help please

[james30ct]

I was looking into setting up a 10 gallon nano nps tank and I have some questions. 1. Can I do this bare bottom? 2. Can I do this with no sump and no skimmer? 3. How do you keep phosphates and nitrates down with constant feeding? Any help would be great.

[MarineSniper]

You're looking at a very tough project, especially with no skimmer or sump. The best way to do a small nps tank, if you want to keep more than 1 or 2 heads of suns, would be to plumb it to a 55 gallon sump

Your nutrient levels will build up extremely fast. While you could do water changes to remove them, the number, and amounts you'd have to do would prevent the bio filtration required from ever establishing itself, especially in a bare bottom. Miss even one water change and it may be disastrous

Some will state this can be done but I equate it the same as not cycling a new tank. It can be done, but; in the long run, it seldom works out. Minimum that I would recommend, to keep 2 or 3 small colonies of suns or dendros, would be a 29g with a 20g sump and a good skimmer. Your chances of long term success would be much higher and the upkeep exponentially less

[Terryz_]

The nutrient level will be a problem on the long run.. Unless you can do a wet skimming (Plumbed to and drainage) and auto top up... It has proven to work as my friend have tried it..

[james30ct]

What if I were to do small daily water changes and maybe some macro algae?

[MarineSniper]

You could probably maintain water quality with changes but you'll never be able to stop doing them. Is there no way to put a sump under the tank? That would allow you to place a large skimmer (I'd do a large one with the pump in the body, to save space, like a nac6), house some macro and nearly double your water volume

Most long term successes in nps comes from building a system capable of processing the excess nutrients largely on its own. I have a 4" sand bed, 100+ lbs of rock, a 900 gph skimmer, 30g sump filled with macro and another 4" of sand and liverock in it. I still have to do 25% water changes every 10 days to keep my nitrates at 5. I honestly don't believe a single 10g tank could sustain more than a small colony of suns or dendros, long term. The other problem is that both can reproduce very rapidly. I add about 30 new ones to my tank every month that way

If you're determined to try it, keep several things in mind. Start very small, a couple heads. After 3 days, check No3 daily until it starts to rise. Do that after 3 or 4 water changes and you should have a stable schedule. Get a good cleanup crew to help remove the good your corals miss. Probably most importantly, have a fallback plan in case the maintenance wears your interest down. Most are easy to rehome so don't let them go downhill before moving them. Sorry to be primarily negative about your idea, just being honest concerning the hardship. Good luck and let us know how it goes, if you move forward with the project!

[MarineSniper]

You could probably maintain water quality with changes but you'll never be able to stop doing them. Is there no way to put a sump under the tank? That would allow you to place a large skimmer (I'd do a large one with the pump in the body, to save space, like a nac6), house some macro and nearly double your water volume

Most long term successes in nps comes from building a system capable of processing the excess nutrients largely on its own. I have a 4" sand bed, 100+ lbs of rock, a 900 gph skimmer, 30g sump filled with macro and another 4" of sand and liverock in it. I still have to do 25% water changes every 10 days to keep my nitrates at 5. I honestly don't believe a single 10g tank could sustain more than a small colony of suns or dendros, long term. The other problem is that both can reproduce very rapidly. I add about 30 new ones to my tank every month that way

If you're determined to try it, keep several things in mind. Start very small, a couple heads. After 3 days, check No3 daily until it starts to rise. Do that after 3 or 4 water changes and you should have a stable schedule. Get a good cleanup crew to help remove the good your corals miss. Probably most importantly, have a fallback plan in case the maintenance wears your interest down. Most are easy to rehome so don't let them go downhill before moving them. Sorry to be primarily negative about your idea, just being honest concerning the hardship. Good luck and let us know how it goes, if you move forward with the project!

[MarineSniper]

Sorry for the double post but here's another thought, one I've considered doing on a rotating basis, with some of my smaller colonies of suns. If you do go with the 10g tank, I would seriously think about feeding your suns outside the tank. Place them in a Tupperware bowl bowl, in some tank water, and feed them there. This would eliminate virtually all the nutrients, the main reason nps corals are harder to keep. I've been thinking of doing this while mine are in my other tank during the upgrade I'm in the process of completing. I'll likely do the same after I move them back into the new tank, while my biological filtration builds back up to where it is now

[james30ct]

That would definitely help. I might start with a small sun or dendro and see how it goes