23L Nano Marine

Thought I would share a few pics of my Marine edge.......

Fluval Sea Nano LED upgrade
Fluval Sea CP1 Pump
Live Rock
Metalic Green Star Polyps
Blue Mushrooms
Green Zoas
Pulsing Xenia
2 Feather dusters
2 Tangerine Clowns (with Nem)
1 Neon goby
1 Fire shrimp





Hope you like

Cheers Tim

Great pics and a really good looking layout. I've no experience of marine but do have a 23L freshwater Edge...so maybe one day it could go marine?

What's the maintenance like eg water changes, feeding, water quality etc?

Thanks,

Rick.

Thanks

It's surprisingly easy to setup and maintain. Find yourself a good LFS who sells RO and Salt water first then get yourself some water containers, I've got a 20ltr one for the salt water and 5ltr for the RO.

As the water evaporates top up with RO water (as salt doesn't evaporate) to keep the specific gravity (SG) (salinity) stable. I do weekly 10% water changes with the ready made salt water. You don't need to add anything else as using a decent salt water mix replenishes any minerals etc used up in the tank. Using a hydrometer or a refractometer is the best way to measure the salt water's SG.

Filtration is done by way of using live rock. Live rock is basically rock that has come away from the reef during storms etc and is increadably pourus. Team with micro life, the circulation pump moves the water through and around the live rock allowing the bacteria and micro life to process the ammonia into nitrates, much the same way as your biological filter (ceramic bag) on the hang on does. Normally using this method you would require a protein skimmer to remove the nasties from the water, however regular water changes on the small volume eliminates the need on this tank. I have left the hang on filter as it is for now but will probably remove the filter sponges etc with some small live rock rubble pieces.

Equipment wise the only things I have changed is added a small pump for circulation (most corals like flow) and upgraded the lights. That was the most expensive part, the light unit is a Red Sea nano led, cost about £120, it fits straight in with only a slight adjustment to the hood, unnoticeable to the untrained eye.

Feeding is quite important as the volume of water is so small any over feeding will seriously effect your water quality. I feed a tiny pinch of flake twice a day, half a block of misis frozen every three days, liquid coral food is added once a week the day after the water change, and finally live copepods once every couple of months.

I test the water each week and so far I have not had any problems to speak of (touch wood)

The cost, including the tank probably came in at approx £300 not including fish and corals, all inall I think that is an absolute bargin for a very smart tank.

Hope this helps

Cheers Tim

Tim,

An excellent brief that I will bookmark, thanks.

Don't feel shy about posting any further pics :-)

Thanks again,

Rick

No problem, glad to help.

I am by no means an expert in the field! I've had a 10 year hiatus from marines and an unbelievable amount has changed.

The key I think to success is "keep it simple stupid"

Tim

Awesome!! 

Thanks for the details Rick, especially helpful was your feeding cycle and your saltwater replenishment pattern!  Great stuff.

Just got a 23L nano about 10 days ago.  Currently have one domino damsel and a naked live rock getting the climate balanced for additions.

I have a couple questions that I would really appreciate you taking a look at:

1)  How long do you keep your reserve saltwater and RO water? If you change out 10% of the every week and you have a 20L container if saltwater, I'm guessing you go in to refill the containers about every two months?  If so, under what conditions do you keep your reserve containers?

2)  You mentioned replacing the filter sponge with live rock rubble pieces?  That sounds like a great idea.  The factory hang-on filter is 3 parts: sponge, carbon satchel, and filter rocks.  Which parts are you considering replacing with live rock?

Thanks again for your detailed report!

Shogo

I presume your talking to me? (Names Tim by the way  )

1) Yes the water tends to last about a month and a bit. Kept in air tight containers at room temperatures.

2) In my filter I now have just rubble and a bag of elimiphos (phosphate remover)

Cheers Tim

Oops yes, TIM!!  Sorry about that...

Great, thanks for the info!