|
Nano Reef Aquarium by Sam Pol Learn how to set up and maintain a nano reef tank. Check the equipment recommendations in this article for all the products used on this Nano Reef Aquarium setup. You probably have seen a nano reef. They are quite spectacular for several reasons. They are incredibly stunning recreations of beautifully diverse tropical coral reefs. So read on to learn more about this unique perspective to reef keeping.
Easy Nano Reefin' Here are some common thoughts: Reef aquariums are not that difficult. Most nano reefs are between 5 to 14 gallons. Aquarium
You may also choose another aquarium such as the popular 12 gallon Nano Cube or the CPR 6 gallon Nano Tank. The Nano Cube is an all-in-one style aquarium that includes some filtration compartments in the back. This may allow you to hide some of the aquarium equipment from view.
Filtration
Live sand also plays an important role in filtration. Live sand refers to a sand bed that has become colonized with nitrifying bacteria. In an aquarium this can happen naturally over time or the sand bed can be seeded with pre-colonized sand from an established saltwater aquarium or you may also purchase pre-colonized live sand. The Live Rock and Live Sand will be the basis for your "living" biological filter. Water Movement
The hang on back filter is a nice addition as it allows the occasional use of filter media for water polishing. Normally the HOB filter and the power head are used without sponge filter media or bio media leaving this filtration job to your live rock and live sand. Some hobbyists do use carbon media other filter resins to help remove excess nutrients and pollutants. A reef grade chemical media such Carbonit-P is a good choice.
Lighting
LED Lighting Options
Heating
Thermometer
What is a reef? Reef
So this is what we will create in our aquarium but in miniature or nano form. The live rock will form the reef structure with caves and overhangs that the corals, crabs, snails, shrimp and fish can populate. The live rock will also be your primary biological filter. Live sand will also serve as part of the nano reef habitat. There are some fish and snails that live in and around the sand and we will discuss them in this article. The sand bed also serves as part of your biological filter. Substrate
We need to replicate seawater as closely as possible to have a successful nano reef. The following water parameters represent the acceptable ranges for reef aquariums:
Salt Mixes
Additives
This chart is a timeline describing step-by-step setup of your Nano Reef aquarium. After the chart is an explanation of each step.
Choose Location
Wet Test
Plug in the power strip and check the function of all of your equipment. Check that the lights are working and that the heater is doing its job as well. Check the water flow from the power head and the HOB filter. Note that the mechanical filter media that usually comes with power filters is not normally used on a nano reef. You may use the sponge media occasionally for water polishing but it is probably best not to use the media all the time. You will want to run everything for about 24 hours as this will also serve to clean the equipment a bit before you actually set everything up. After your done with the "wet test” turn all of the equipment off in the aquarium and drain out the tap water and unplug everything. Be sure and empty the water out of the hob filter as well. Mixing the saltwater We recommend the use of RO/DI (Reverse Osmosis/De-ionized) water for the basis of your saltwater mix. The use of RO/DI water will eliminate a larger number of problems that can normally arise from the use of tap water. Tap water contains many impurities and contaminants that are not suitable for many saltwater species. Large amounts of phosphates and silicates in tap water can contribute to nuisance algae blooms. RO/DI water can be purchased from your grocery store pre-bottled or from a vending machine. Local fish stores may also sell RO/DI water. Another option is to get your own RO/DI water purification filter. If you plan on being a saltwater aquarium hobbyist for any length of time then a RO/DI unit is a great investment. Fill the mixing bucket with a known amount of RO/DI water. You may want to mark off the sides of your bucket by filling a gallon jug, pouring it in the bucket and marking the outside of the container with a marker. Repeat this process until you have marked the majority of the container with 1 gallon increments. Add the indicated amount of salt mix (see manufacturers instructions) for the amount of water in the bucket. This is usually about ½ cup per gallon. You can use a large spoon to initially mix the salt. After adding the salt mix drop your powerhead into the bucket and plug it in. Let the powerhead run for about an hour to thoroughly mix the salt. Preparing the sand Adding the saltwater Add your first batch of saltwater to the aquarium by slowly pouring it over a plate to prevent excessive stirring of the sand. You may also add a hose to the return end of your power head to pump the water from the bucket to the aquarium. Start mixing another batch of saltwater if you need more to completely fill the aquarium. Aquascaping You will want to select the best Live Rock that you can find. Good quality live rock will have nice coralline algae growth and is usually already cured. Cured Live Rock will have an ocean type smell whereas uncured live rock will stink! You will also notice lots of little creatures on the Live Rock such as small feather duster worms and other tiny organisms such as small sponges. The holding tank water should be crystal clear and also not have any excessively stinky odors. It is sold by the pound and costs range from $6.00 to $10.00 per lb. Live Rock is available at local fish stores and through mail order over the Internet. Stacking the rocks Start by building the foundation for your structure. Foundation rocks should be smaller pieces of rock. The goal is to create areas that water can pass through and around while minimizing the amount of the sand bed that you cover. This also creates cave type areas for fish and other creatures to hang out in. These foundation rocks also need to be pushed into the sand so that any digging species that you may add to the aquarium don’t topple the rocks. The main idea is to create an environment that the animals can be comfortable in. You also need upper surfaces to place corals so they can receive the light they need. The next step is to place the upper rock structure. These can be larger live rock pieces and should be supported by the foundation rocks. Take into consideration the natural upper surfaces of the live rock that need to be facing the light. These surfaces will usually have more coralline algae growth.
Try to avoid placing the Live Rock directly against the glass leaving sufficient room for good water flow. Also remember to leave enough room on the sides and front of the reef structure to allow cleaning the glass with a magnet cleaner. Seeding the sand bed Filling the aquarium After the aquarium has circulated for a few hours test the saltwater for the following parameters:
Once the aquarium is filled, the water parameters are correct and the equipment has run for about 24 hours you can begin the waiting game. Keep in mind that it may take up to 6 weeks for the aquarium to cycle (become stable) and that patience is key during this process. You can verify the progress of the cycle by testing your aquarium for ammonia, nitrite and then finally nitrate. Test for ammonia first ever other day until you see the ammonia levels rise and then fall. You will then see the same pattern with nitrite and then nitrate. This process normally takes several weeks. Aquariums that are setup with live sand and live rock that has been cured will experience faster cycles of only 10-14 days. For more information on the Nitrogen Cycle read our article on Cycling Your Aquarium. You will then be able to add corals after about 1 month and a fish after about 2 months. Adding too much livestock too quickly can be dangerous. The small volume in a nano reef needs to adjust to changes slowly. You will be able to add hermit crabs and snails possibly as soon as 2 weeks after you setup. This depends on how quickly your aquarium cycles. The cleanup crew is basically the janitorial staff of the reef! The cleanup crew consists of various invertebrates that have a great reputation for keeping the tank tidy. Cleanup crews for Nano Reef tanks usually consist mostly of snails and hermit crabs. Astraea Snails, Turbo Snails and Margarita Snails are employed to keep the glass clean. Nassarius Snails are good for both glass duty and also to stir the sand bed. Hermit Crabs are great for devouring excess algae and detritus. Left handed Hermits, Scarlet Reef Hermits and Blue-leg Hermits are the most commonly used among the Hermit Crabs.
The number of snails and crabs you add depends on the size of your aquarium. A good rule of thumb is to add about one snail per 1-2 gallons and one hermit crab per 3-5 gallons. A good cleanup crew for a 10 gallon Nano Reef would be:
Pay close attention to your water parameters after adding your cleanup crew as you may experience a small secondary cycling period. Test your water for any ammonia, nitrite or nitrate peaks. You will also want to begin regular water changes of at least 10 -15% (about 1 gallon) every week to 10 days. After your nano reef has been up and running for about a month you can begin to add some corals. A few good starter corals would be Mushroom Corals, Star Polyps, Zoanthid Corals or Pulsing Xenia. Here is a bit more about those species:
There are a good number of fish that you can keep in a nano reef aquarium. The main requirements for nano reef fish is that they need to be small and not too aggressive. Here is a small list of some of the nano reef compatible fish:
Stocking In a 10 gallon nano reef you can only keep about 2-3 small fish. This is based on the ½” of adult fish per gallon rule of thumb. This leaves us about 5” of adult size fish total. Two Percula Clownfish would be a good choice. With some of the smaller gobies you may be able to keep 3 fish. Keeping fish larger than 2-3” (Adult Size) is not recommended. Stick with the smaller species and the fish will be happier. Feeding your fish and corals is easy if you know what each of your animals requires as part of its diet. The other important thing about feeding in a nano reef is to feed only what can be eaten by the creatures in your tank. You need to feed just enough food for each fish to get a few bites and not much more. Some of the excess will likely get consumed by your cleanup crew in case you do slightly overfeed. A decent carnivore fish diet:
Weekly feedings of small amounts of live foods such as live brine shrimp will also greatly benefit the aquarium. You may also need to target feed your corals if they require micro-plankton or other foods. This can be done easily with a squirter and a micronized food like Coral Frenzy.
Water Changes You should change about 10% of the water in the aquarium about 3 times a month. A good way to remember is to do water changes on the 10th, 20th and 30th day of each month. Follow the manufacturers directions to mix your replacement saltwater before you start your water change. In a 10 gallon aquarium you will need to change about 1 gallon of water. Your 5 gallon bucket will come in very handy for water changes. We recommend that you use RO/DI water as the basis for your saltwater mix. Add the indicated amount of salt mix (see manufacturers instructions) for the amount of water in the bucket. This is usually about ½ cup per gallon. You can use a large spoon to initially mix the salt. After adding the salt mix drop your extra powerhead into the bucket and plug it in. Add a heater if necessary to bring the temp up to the 76-78F range. Let the powerhead run overnight to thoroughly mix the salt. Test the water for specific gravity using a hydrometer. The specific gravity should be between 1.021-1.023 and should match the specific gravity of the aquarium water. Adjust the specific gravity if necessary by adding RO/DI water to lower it or by adding salt mix to raise it. Remove the necessary amount of water from your aquarium (1 gallon in this example). At every other water change you should use a turkey baster to carefully blow any detritus off the rocks and sand. Do this before you start the water change to help remove waste. Add the new saltwater into the aquarium and bring it up to the normal level. That’s it for the water change. Filter and Powerhead Maintenance If you are using any carbon media in the HOB filter change it out every 4-6 weeks.
Optional Equipment
A protein skimmer can be a great benefit for any saltwater aquarium. Using a protein skimmer on a nano reef can help especially when keeping more sensitive corals such as SPS (Scleractinians) corals.
Nano Reef Setup Kits
If you are interested in learning more about Nano Reef aquariums and Marine Aquarium keeping take a look at these books.
Sam Pol 30 years ago Sam Pol didn't know he would still be keeping aquariums today...what he did know is that aquariums were fascinating. He used to "collect things" from the Gulf beaches at low tide to take back and stock his trio of 10G "Metaframe" saltwater tanks. That fascination of "fish tanks" continues today. Sam has been sharing his experiences of both freshwater and saltwater aquariums for several years now through his articles appearing here on aquabuys.com. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
