[saltysteve]

hey guys new to the site but not to salt. had a 55 reef but thats now gone and wanted some thing small and easy to maintain so i thought a nano would be good.

what is a nano exactly- just a small tank?\
are nano's harder to maintain because of less water?
is this a good idea- a small tank with a huge sump (like45g)?
and which tanks are most using? the 29 nano?
i saw a glass 33 gal cube that really looks nice. i waNTED to get that and start it up
what do you guys recommend i go with???
thanx for any help

[rlcline76]

I hear rumors that chemistry could get easily out of whack in a nano. I gave 2 20 gallons. I did consider getting a bigger system, but I am getting to like my small system even with its limitations (can only have a few fish...and small ones at that).

With my son's tank, we are not messing with a sump. My husband is going to make one out of a 10 gallon for his 20.

[glampka]

A nano is a small tank usually under somewhere between 20 & 30 gallons depending on who you listen to.
Again, depending on who you listen to, some will say that nanos are more difficult to maintain because water chemistry changes happen faster. But with smaller volumes it's easier & less expensive to have to deal with any changes.
If you are talking about the cubes - it might be a toss up as to what is the most popular size. I have 2 12 gallon cubes.
If you are talking about the RSM, that is 1 nice set-up. A bit pricey but it contains just about everything you need.

[saltysteve]

whats a RSM? i was thinking of doing a 33 gal with a 55 gal sump. im not going put even put much in the 33 but i figured that the more more water the easier it woud be to maintain, no? i thought live rock filtered through a sponge and a protein skimmer would be leaving me with basic water changes.

inside the tank id like to have a small hill of rock in the middle of the cube on top of LS with two oe three fish and invertabres - some coral when i can afford it.

the other idea ive been throwing around is the bio cube - i saw that today and it looks perfect but i think lack of water will lead to disaster and tons of care.

has anyone ever tried to build their own bio cube?

[glampka]

RSM is the Red Sea Max - it's their all-in-one cube.
I would make the 33 into a sump & use the 55 as the display tank.
There are a number of "cubes" out there - Nano cube, Aquapod, RSM, Cad lights, Biocube & the list goes on..

[thelastmucci]

IMO after doing research on nano tanks I find that the Red Sea MAX is probally the best system. Originally I was leaning towards the AquaPod 24 gal HQI. But after reading and understading more about lights I find the RSM a better buy. It may cost more in the beginning but you won't have to upgrade anything unless you buy a bigger tank and (I could be wrong on this) you don't necessarily have to have a sump. Just my thoughts.

Best,
Tony

[Zia]

I would of bought a RSM if I had of shopped around more before I bought my 29 gallon biocube.

If I want to keep hard corals I need to upgrade these lights. Im not even sure I want to keep this hood but I cannot get comfortable with the idea of not having lights right above the tank.

If I upgrade the lights on this tank Ill have almost as much in it as the RSM cost and it has built in timers too which I dont have either.
I wish Id gotten that one but this one is ok anyway.
I like having a little tank just fine. Little tank, little cost.thats my motto.
I cannot imagine a power outtage or a water heater gone bizerk when Im not home with a big tank sitting there and all my little critters(expensive) suffering from it.
I dont want to see any of my animals die but the less the better.

I dont know anything about refugiums except they can overflow if the power goes out.
I like keeping things as simple as possible. This sump is working just fine.
Sure Id like to have a big anglefish and I saw two beautiful Morrish Idols the other day in the LFS but jeesh, Id worry about them all the time. Id have to get some kind of generator that would kick on if the power went out to keep the system up and running for several hours and that would be EXPENSIVE.
I might be paranoid about possible problems that could affect the tank but with the price or corals that the LFS stores charge around here I think some paranoia is par for the course.

[saltysteve]

ok i guess this is what id like to know-
i could do a 29 RSM but i know in a small water system u cant let mauntance go at all- every 2 weeks water changes and im imagining things could get out of control faster, right?
RSM about $700

or...
small display tank with large water reservior

i was thinking of doing the same size cube tank with a large sump which will provide double the water or more. so do u think the more water the less of problems happening as fast and the less time inbetween water changes?
tank 33g cube $150
sump tank 55g used $20
pump $40
lighting $180
misc. and custom stand $60
filter i already have

total $400
so what do u guys think?
Does my theory hold water?

[Zia]

I dont thnk u can get a RSM in 29gal. Itd have to be a 34gal.


Where are you going to put a 55gal refugium?

Yea it makes sense to me but Im pretty new to the SW world but it really does make since. Shoot you could keep most all of your lr in the refug and just have mostly fish in the display tank. Id think your water quality would be excellent. I think the idea will hod water if thats what you want to do. It just sounds a little bass ackards to me though but hey, to each his own.

[Zia]

I was on a SW site earlier and saw a Laboutei Fairy Wrasse. Have any of ya'll ever seen one of these fishes?
Its THE most beautiful fish Ive ever seen. I mean its totally awesome.
Id get one but their $200.00 so Ill just have to admire it from afar.

[plecosword]

a complete set of a nano can be expensive but maintaining it is not as bad. The water chemistry will change very easily though so whatchout what you add to the tank. i personally liked this nano. it comes with everything you need and powered with only one wire.
Red Sea MAX | the first fully featured, plug-and-play reef aquarium
whatch the video, it will give you and idea of what it has, youll like it.

[thelastmucci]

Hey does anyone else that's bothered to check out the RSM video have trouble with it. I'm running it on firefox with the ad-blocker down and still no video...going for the high res...belive I have WMP 11.

[saltysteve]

glampka- thanx for all the good info and response time! the RSM looks real nice but wouldnt that over heat and the cadlight tank looks alot nicer. when i think about it it seems a little nuts to spend that kind of money on such a system when you can really just make one for alot cheaper. anyway there s a place around my way that has bio cubes 25 % off. are they worth it? the price would be $265 plus tax for the 29

[plecosword]

you need windows media player, do you have a mac?

[thelastmucci]

Originally Posted by plecosword

you need windows media player, do you have a mac?

Actually I got it to work...I had to use IE instead of my beloved firefox but at least it was able to run...the video made me do this

[plecosword]

you dont like ie? if your worried about security, if you have internet security, you should not even worry about it. and do windows update, helps patch up vulneravilities and latest stuff.

[plecosword]

what did you think of the tank?

[thelastmucci]

Mario...it's not that I'm worried about security with IE I just don't like using it...I find it archaic and slow. Plus Firefox has lots of really neat plug-ins and add-ons. I do worry about security with Outlook Express thats why I use thunderbird. Plus it has a built in Spam blocker which is helpful.

As far as the tank...I loved it...it seems to be a breeze to setup and everything is nice and compact...seems like the ideal system for "noob"

[plecosword]

download internet explorer 7, its faster and if you dont like it, you can just remove it if you like. i really liked it. i do like the firefox plug ins but i just use ie7 because its simpler.
IE7:
Internet Explorer: Get It Now

What kind of fish do you plan to have in the nano? here are some fish you can have in a nano.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/s...fm?pCatId=2124
i hope it helps.