12 gallon aquapod questions

nctarheels

nctarheels

Member
so i'm getting ready to get the 12 gallon aquapod and i have a few questions as this would be the first nano cube i have done:
1. how many and what kind of clean up crew should i get?
2. what stock list would you like to see go into this?
3. what is the best way to control cyano algae, because i know that this is harder to control in a nano?
thanks!
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
in my 12aquapod i have about 20 snails, mostly nassarius and turbos and around 7-10 hermits. They do a good job of keeping everything clean. For stock i have star polyps, mushrooms, plenty of zoas and a frogspawn. Gorgonia and feather dusters are good too. As for livestock I have a clown, firefish and a cleaner shrimp. I would recommend against getting any ornamental type crabs for such a small tank because there usually isn't enough food for them and they will end up going after corals, snails or slow fish when they're hungry.

as for the algae issues, best offense is a good defense. I regulary do 10% water changes every week and once a month Ill change about 40%. RO/DI is a must for all tanks, but much more so with small volumes since there's not enough water to buffer any impurities.
 
joshr

joshr

Member
Originally Posted by mkzimms
http:///forum/post/2540356
in my 12aquapod i have about 20 snails, mostly nassarius and turbos and around 7-10 hermits. They do a good job of keeping everything clean. For stock i have star polyps, mushrooms, plenty of zoas and a frogspawn. Gorgonia and feather dusters are good too. As for livestock I have a clown, firefish and a cleaner shrimp. I would recommend against getting any ornamental type crabs for such a small tank because there usually isn't enough food for them and they will end up going after corals, snails or slow fish when they're hungry.

as for the algae issues, best offense is a good defense. I regulary do 10% water changes every week and once a month Ill change about 40%. RO/DI is a must for all tanks, but much more so with small volumes since there's not enough water to buffer any impurities.
Thats nice for a 12g
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
thanks, its about a year and a half now... going strong. That pic is from about 3 months ago and its doing really amazing. maybe ill start a thread for myself.
 
nctarheels

nctarheels

Member
thanks a lot! i think for livestock ill do
15 turbo snails
5-7 nar snails
5-10 hermits
1 cleaner shrimp
and either 2 true percs or
sixline wrasse and royal gramma
sound ok to you?
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
that sounds perfect for a 12. if your going to pick up 2 percs i would try and get them at the same time because they can get a little territorial and nasty.
 
T

touchthesky00

Guest
Originally Posted by mkzimms
http:///forum/post/2540356
in my 12aquapod i have about 20 snails, mostly nassarius and turbos and around 7-10 hermits. They do a good job of keeping everything clean. For stock i have star polyps, mushrooms, plenty of zoas and a frogspawn. Gorgonia and feather dusters are good too. As for livestock I have a clown, firefish and a cleaner shrimp. I would recommend against getting any ornamental type crabs for such a small tank because there usually isn't enough food for them and they will end up going after corals, snails or slow fish when they're hungry.

as for the algae issues, best offense is a good defense. I regulary do 10% water changes every week and once a month Ill change about 40%. RO/DI is a must for all tanks, but much more so with small volumes since there's not enough water to buffer any impurities.
wow thats really nice, is that just stock lighting in there?
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
yea stock lighting. one 27w 10000k/6000k daylight, one 27w 460nm/420nm PC. ive always been very happy with the stock lights that come with this thing... to be fair this photo was taken one or two days after i dropped in a set of fresh bulbs, so its particularly good.
that combination in the nanos seems to make things grow like crazy. the con is that because of all the different spectrums you need to keep a close eye on how old the bulbs are, the mixture of color temperatures doesn't seem to change to the eye so its not as obvious when they're going bad as a single spectrum bulbs.
 
T

touchthesky00

Guest
Originally Posted by mkzimms
http:///forum/post/2544261
yea stock lighting. one 27w 10000k/6000k daylight, one 27w 460nm/420nm PC. ive always been very happy with the stock lights that come with this thing... to be fair this photo was taken one or two days after i dropped in a set of fresh bulbs, so its particularly good.
that combination in the nanos seems to make things grow like crazy. the con is that because of all the different spectrums you need to keep a close eye on how old the bulbs are, the mixture of color temperatures doesn't seem to change to the eye so its not as obvious when they're going bad as a single spectrum bulbs.
so would you recommend getting a 12g aquapod? im deciding between nano set ups right now
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
I like the aquapod, but there arent as many mods for them as there are for the 12g JBJ nanocubes. i also cant confirm this right now, but the aquapods have a 12g display and 4g chambers in the back for a total of 16g and i think the nanocubes have 12g total. thats how it used to be, i dont know if JBJ has changed their setup with the new line of tanks. the aquapods also come with a split loc-line return where as the nanocubs come with a single loc-line return. off hand i dont know the stock light setup on the nanocubes. i can tell you one thing for sure though, stay away from the bio-cubes. i have one on my desk and it feels a little cheap and the stock lighting is crap.
any 12g nanocube owners want to chime in on this?
i think which ever you choose nanocube or aquapod you will be happy with the decision. they're both great tanks.
 
T

touchthesky00

Guest
Originally Posted by mkzimms
http:///forum/post/2544406
I like the aquapod, but there arent as many mods for them as there are for the 12g JBJ nanocubes. i also cant confirm this right now, but the aquapods have a 12g display and 4g chambers in the back for a total of 16g and i think the nanocubes have 12g total. thats how it used to be, i dont know if JBJ has changed their setup with the new line of tanks. the aquapods also come with a split loc-line return where as the nanocubs come with a single loc-line return. off hand i dont know the stock light setup on the nanocubes. i can tell you one thing for sure though, stay away from the bio-cubes. i have one on my desk and it feels a little cheap and the stock lighting is crap.
any 12g nanocube owners want to chime in on this?
i think which ever you choose nanocube or aquapod you will be happy with the decision. they're both great tanks.
is the aquapod a fliptop canopy?
did you buy yours from online or a lfs? and if you dont minde, how much did you pay for the setup?
 
nctarheels

nctarheels

Member
Originally Posted by touchthesky00
http:///forum/post/2544661
is the aquapod a fliptop canopy?
did you buy yours from online or a lfs? and if you dont minde, how much did you pay for the setup?
yep its flip top and also has a separate lid for feeding. i got mine for about 125 by googling aquapod 12 gallon and clicking one of the first links.
on a separate note, what modifications to the chamber should i do if im keeping a reef?
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
Originally Posted by nctarheels
http:///forum/post/2544939
on a separate note, what modifications to the chamber should i do if im keeping a reef?
there are really two ways you can go with this...
one is to add rubble live rock to all the chambers which is my current setup and by far the easiest.
the second is to cut out the divider between the middle two chambers and use a razor blade to remove the black plastic covering the glass on the back... fill the chamber with rock and cheato and then place a light pointing through the glass into the back chambers to make a mini-fuge. id like to try this method but have not had the time.
another mod is to put a piece of plastic down the first chamber to cover the overflow holes that are located toward the bottom of the tank, thus forcing all your water through the overflow at the top and through the filter media for added surface skimming.
ive also heard of people drilling another hole to add a second pump and running that through a rotating hydor-flow nozzle for additional water movement. my friend has done this and it was pretty easy and seems to be effective. im emailing him now to see if he has a picture of that setup.
 
T

touchthesky00

Guest
Originally Posted by mkzimms
http:///forum/post/2545019
there are really two ways you can go with this...
one is to add rubble live rock to all the chambers which is my current setup and by far the easiest.
the second is to cut out the divider between the middle two chambers and use a razor blade to remove the black plastic covering the glass on the back... fill the chamber with rock and cheato and then place a light pointing through the glass into the back chambers to make a mini-fuge. id like to try this method but have not had the time.
another mod is to put a piece of plastic down the first chamber to cover the overflow holes that are located toward the bottom of the tank, thus forcing all your water through the overflow at the top and through the filter media for added surface skimming.
ive also heard of people drilling another hole to add a second pump and running that through a rotating hydor-flow nozzle for additional water movement. my friend has done this and it was pretty easy and seems to be effective. im emailing him now to see if he has a picture of that setup.
will my tank work if i dont want to make any of those mods to it?
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
absolutely... i would recommend filling the chambers with rubble rock though.
ps: here's a pic of my buddies tank with the second drilled return and hydor.
 
T

touchthesky00

Guest
nctarheels. id say go for the royal gramma. it is such a beautiful fish. i had one and its colors were so vibrant , it was the first fish i noticed! and great personality too
 
T

touchthesky00

Guest
mkzimms,
so does the 12g aquapod basically come with everything that i need? like is the filtration all good and everything?
can u explain what exactly this back chamber thing is and what it does? lol
thanks
 
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