First Saltwater Nano! OSUquarist

osuaquarist

osuaquarist

Member
Hi
My name is Alex and I just started my first Saltwater Aquarium!
I picked up this 12g Nano from someone off craigslist at $65! What a steal! This is my first SW tank so I am really excited to set it up. I went to Pishy Business in Columbus and picked up some saltwater and an obscenely small amount of LR to kick the cycle with it's die off. (Feb. 2)

Once I turned the lights on I noticed that it had 2? intakes???? I want to do a cassette tape overflow, in order to do this do I need to block off the lower intake?

I found a great ad on my local fishclub's forums a couple days later (Feb. 4) A member who had worked as a tank cleaner for a few years made a habit of collecting the LR from the tanks he tore down. He said he needed room so he was selling what he had collected off at $1.50pp! It was mostly Fiji and Tonga so naturally I jumped on the deal and now I had 18lbs of LR in my 12g nano!

Naturally I had to advertise my favorite beer imported from France. Viva la France!
Anyway after several tries at aquascaping and several rocks removed I think I have found the formation I will go with, at least for now... tell me what you think! (Feb. 5)

I checked the ammonia level yesterday and it was about .5, today it is about 1. How high will it spike before it recedes?
I just smashed one of the rocks I removed and filled the second chamber with it to allow for more bacteria. I'm really excited about this project and think it is shaping up fairly well, for my inexperience. Tell me what you think so far and I'll keep you guys up to date on its progress
 
paintballer768

paintballer768

Active Member
Originally Posted by OSUaquarist
http:///forum/post/2458581
I checked the ammonia level yesterday and it was about .5, today it is about 1. How high will it spike before it recedes?
I just smashed one of the rocks I removed and filled the second chamber with it to allow for more bacteria. I'm really excited about this project and think it is shaping up fairly well, for my inexperience. Tell me what you think so far and I'll keep you guys up to date on its progress

Cycles vary by the individual tank. Let it do its thing. Mine never rose above 1, yet some people's tanks get 5 and such. Looks very nicely. Keep us updated!
 
osuaquarist

osuaquarist

Member
Originally Posted by Charred Salad
http:///forum/post/2458667
Looking good!! What do you plan to put in there?
Thanks! I dunno there are so many choices! I really want to get a mandarin buy I heard that they are more difficult to keep. But I know I want some sort of goby. I'm going back and forth on clown fish, could I keep a mated pair in a 12g? If I could I might like to go down that route. If there are any awesome fish that would be cool I'm open to suggestions!
Originally Posted by paintballer768
http:///forum/post/2458717
Cycles vary by the individual tank. Let it do its thing. Mine never rose above 1, yet some people's tanks get 5 and such. Looks very nicely. Keep us updated!
Thanks a lot. ya I'm hoping the tank will cycle fairly quickly since I have a ton of cured LR in there. I'm hoping to get a CUC sometime next week if parameters look good. Any suggestions on a CUC?
Originally Posted by MaTT B
http:///forum/post/2458863
looks good!!!!
Thanks man
 
sac10918

sac10918

Member
You definatley cannot have a mandarin in there, Im sorry to say. They are my absolute favorite fish as well, but they require pods for a diet, and subsequently the require at least 100 pounds of live rock and a large tank.... There are lots of other great fish you can have though.... I personally loved my bicolor blenny and clownfish...
Looks fantastic though, and it sounds like you are off to a great start!
 
osuaquarist

osuaquarist

Member
Originally Posted by sac10918
http:///forum/post/2459071
You definatley cannot have a mandarin in there, Im sorry to say. They are my absolute favorite fish as well, but they require pods for a diet, and subsequently the require at least 100 pounds of live rock and a large tank.... There are lots of other great fish you can have though.... I personally loved my bicolor blenny and clownfish...
Looks fantastic though, and it sounds like you are off to a great start!
Sad news indeed. Are the copepods the only thing holding me back from a mandarin? Because I could think about starting a culture if the tank size isn't an issue.
 
ric maniac

ric maniac

Active Member
Yes, pods are a huge deal. I can guarentee that there is nothing you can do to keep the amount of pods required. sory, I think that a court jester goby would be cool.
Oh, and go ohio state! lol
 
osuaquarist

osuaquarist

Member
Originally Posted by ric maniac
http:///forum/post/2459169
Yes, pods are a huge deal. I can guarentee that there is nothing you can do to keep the amount of pods required. sory, I think that a court jester goby would be cool.
Oh, and go ohio state! lol
aw, well that sucks but It least I can have something to look forward to right?! Kind of like next season, where I pray to god we don't lose the championship AGAIN! ahhhh! Oh and that goby is pretty cool, what about the 4-wheel drive (double spot) goby; those seem pretty cool too.
Originally Posted by MaTT B
http:///forum/post/2459209
you could get like a pair of clowns and maybe a blennie or small goby
Ya I think I would like to get a pair of clowns, how difficult are they to breed/raise the fry?
 
matt b

matt b

Active Member
Originally Posted by OSUaquarist
http:///forum/post/2459261
Thanks Matt.

if you really want to raise fry i would try bangaii cardinals. they dont do threw the larvae stage so its alot easier. theres a thread from azfishgal somewhere if i can find it.
 
charred salad

charred salad

Member
Originally Posted by OSUaquarist
http:///forum/post/2459320
Wow that was such a great read. I am going to do that for sure, maybe not right away though
I, however, do agree with MaTT B: True Percula Clowns are hard to raise. But False Percula Clowns are much, much easier in my opinion. My false clowns are mated and my female is pregnant. This is just my opinion, but good luck with whatever choice you make. With a tank that small, I wouldn't nessesarily get a fish just to watch it mate/spawn. Maybe you could put a Bangaii Cardinal and a Clown? Again, good luck with your choice
 
osuaquarist

osuaquarist

Member

Originally Posted by Charred Salad
http:///forum/post/2459886
I, however, do agree with MaTT B: True Percula Clowns are hard to raise. But False Percula Clowns are much, much easier in my opinion. My false clowns are mated and my female is pregnant. This is just my opinion, but good luck with whatever choice you make. With a tank that small, I wouldn't nessesarily get a fish just to watch it mate/spawn. Maybe you could put a Bangaii Cardinal and a Clown? Again, good luck with your choice

What do you mean by this? The tank is too small to breed things in, or that it is big enough to get a cool fish just to enjoy? I have a while before I can get any fish so I'm glad for all the help and suggestions.
 
charred salad

charred salad

Member
i meant that i wouldnt put a fish in a tank that small to breed...the false percs and the bangaii cardinals will have children and some will likely survive. then your tank will get overcrowded. i guess you could try to breed fish in that tank but depending on the fish i wouldnt keep more than 1 or the fry.
 
matt b

matt b

Active Member
Originally Posted by Charred Salad
http:///forum/post/2460057
i meant that i wouldnt put a fish in a tank that small to breed...the false percs and the bangaii cardinals will have children and some will likely survive. then your tank will get overcrowded. i guess you could try to breed fish in that tank but depending on the fish i wouldnt keep more than 1 or the fry.
well he could have a pair of clowns or cardinals. and then IF they breed then you cant keep more then the one pair any way bcus you can only have 1 pair per tank or they will kill the odd one out. this has nothing to do with his tank its in every tank
 
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