chaseter's biocube nano extravaganza

chaseter

chaseter

Member
After ***** shipped me a broken 14 gallon biocube, I finally got it again this past weekend!.
I added live sand and some live rock yesterday. I am going to let it run for a while and then add some cleaning crew to slowly allow the bacteria to adjust to the bioload. Then 2 clowns, then a yellow goby, and then the last fish is up to you! I would love to hear suggestions on what would make a great last fish that is colorful and would fit in my 14 g.
Here is my tank so far!


All the levels are great and I even did a slight mod. The filtration for these things aren't the best so I put some charcoal in a little bag and put it over the bio balls to allow for some better filtration.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Nice bio-cube...but don't you think you should let it do its begining cycle before you add anything???
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
That is what I meant for letting it run for a while

My LFS said that since the live sand and live rock contain the bacteria that they added in, it will speed up the cycle.
So, what do I add to make it cycle? I don't want any damsels but the LFS said I could put a few cuc in there to start the cycle and that they are more hardy and won't die off.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
I personally do not believe in cycling with live stuff....do you have your own test kits?
If after a couople of days, you have no ammonia spike you can either throw in some food, or some people use a raw shrimp.....then you should start to see ammonia....then nitrites....then nitrates...then hopefully with in a couple of weeks...all will be at 0
THEN you can begin by adding some cuc
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Sweet, then I will throw in a raw shrimp and let it cycle. Hopefully with the added LFS bacteria, the cycle won't take 6 weeks.
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Do I leave the lights on or off since the bacteria aren't photosynthetic and that would stop the growth of algae and other pesky plants that won't be maintained with the cuc/fish?
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Thanks meowzer!
Also, when would you suggest adding copepods? I don't want to spend more money on a refugium and I would like them to become abundant in my aquarium before adding corals. Or, is a refugium necessary instead of buying packets of copes regularly?
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
You should get copepods naturally with your LR....You can add more if you would like, but I would not until after you have cycled, and started to add your clean up crew...
Why would you have to add them regularly? What are you planning on keeping?
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Well corals and other inverts eat copes. I wanted a mandarin but was told that they eat too many copes to happily survive in a small tank. I want my corals to be happy and thrive so I wanted enough copes for them to munch on.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
IMO you should be fine with what your LR produce...and I agree wit ha 14g being too small for a mandarin
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Well, the LFS was right! The live rock, the live sand, and the bacteria additives made my tank cycle in 5 days! I waited an extra day to make sure and sure enough, nitrates and nitrites were at zero. The tank has a good algae population and I can even see some copes swimming around.
So, I took a water sample to my LFS and they said everything was perfect and that I am ready for fishies! This morning I bought a tiny brittle star, he is about 2.5 inches, a couple of tiny cleaner shrimp, an emeral crab, and about 5 snails. I didn't want to by any fish yet because I want the bioload to adjust and I don't want any dead fish.
The snails went right after the algae and they are going crazy! The shrimp were a little shy but I dropped a couple of meaty fish pellets in there and they came out of hiding to feast and so did the emeral crab. The star fish is hanging out in my little cave with his legs coming out of holes in the rock fishing for food. I am so excited

My next purchase will be a more visible shrimp like the blood shrimp or a larger cleaner shrimp that will take care of my fish as well. They are expensive though
But, the ones at my LFS will eat out of your hand or come to the top to say hello and tickle your finger
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Here is my little brittle star. He likes to hang out in the back and hang out by the bottom filter intake.

You really can't see anything:( The crab hangs out in the cave with the star fish and the shrimp while a couple of snails are digging in the sand or clinging to the side of the tank.

Hopefully at the end of this week, if all my levels stay normal, I will be getting a fish

Haven't decided which one I want to get first. Any suggestions? I want 2 clowns but I am going to wait a while for those. Maybe get a coral or two when I get the fish. So, any coral or fish suggestions!?
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
Thanks! The one at the front is man made but it is porous for things to grow in and eventually become live rock. All the other live rock I got at my LFS for 5 bucks a pound. There are 4 big pieces and about 5 or 6 frag pieces that make up the structure.
So, about 15 or 16 pounds of lr plus ls. I can't wait to see it with coral and fish!
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
They had a ton of those little pieces in different sizes and different shapes and the rock was 10 bucks. When I go to my LFS tomorrow, I will get you the name of the brand and you can look into it. They also had a few different colors.
 
chaseter

chaseter

Member
My LFS had two huge plastic tanks filled with lr, I would say easily 300 gallons each, and they let you pick out whatever pieces you want and assemble your tank right there to gauge what pieces you needed!
 
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