Just a few questions

[Luvthekeys]

I am waiting for a 28G LED PRO NANO CUBE to be delivered. I am new to Saltwater and have a number of questions but will only ask a few at a time. As to how I am setting it up. I have ordered 40 lbs of Carib Sea ACS00050 Aragonite Reef Sand, Hydor Koralia Nano 425 Aquarium Circulation Pump 425 GPH, Test Kit, Refractometer, Cobalt Aquatics Easy-Therm Submersible Aquarium Heater and a number of other additions to supplement the in tank filtration system. I plan to use 20 lbs of dry rock and 20 lbs of live rock when I cycle the tank. I plan to make it a FOWLR Tank however I do like soft coral and sea anemones.

1) the media included with the filter basket is sponge, charcoal, and bio-rings. Is there a better combination for the filter basket? I have seen a larger filter basket that is designed to replace the included one. They recommend a filter floss, Purgen and Chemi-pure Elite.

2)Should I add any type of fish or other live animal, i.e. Crab, Shrimp, Snail while the tank is cycling?

I am sure I will have more questions. I am trying to read as much as possible but I figure I can use your expertise too.


Thanks, Luvthekeys

 

[pegasus]

Welcome to the forum! I'll do my best to answer your questions...

1) Bigger is always better. As your system is new, the more mechanical filtration you can provide, the better. Once the system has matured, you will have an excellent natural filter due to the good quantity of rock and sand. In the meantime, filter floss will trap a lot of large particles, carbon will remove a lot of impurities, Chemi-pure will help remove quite a few other nasties as well.

2) No live animals while cycling the tank. You can jump start the cycle with a small piece of table shrimp, or you can simply add small amounts of fish food like you were feeding a single fish (ghost feeding). Add the same amount every day, and check your water parameters every few days. You want to see a spike in ammonia, and then a spike in nitrite. Once ammonia, then nitrite levels fall to zero and only nitrate is detected, the tank has cycled. Do a 50% water change, and your tank is ready for it's first inhabitant(s). It takes time for the system to adjust to new additions. Stock the tank slowly... one or two small fish at a time. Wait several weeks, and then add another fish or two. This allows the beneficial bacteria that consumes the nasties in the tank to populate to the proper level. This is actually what's happening during the cycling process, and it happens every time you introduce a new addition. Do not rush this process!!! Patience is the key to success, and as I've said countless times... nothing good ever happens in a hurry when it comes to saltwater. If you take your time and do it right, you'll be rewarded with years of enjoyment. If you rush things, you'll endure many months of torture...

 

[flower]

LOL..+1 on what Pegasus said...and I just want to say hello...

 

[mandy111]

I would ditch the bio- rings and replace with seachem matrix. The bio-balls/rings become nitrate factories and are not worth the trouble. They are not generally used in a salt water set up.
Other than that, follow what has already been said for the cycling and you should be good to go.
Just be patient and research lots.
Welcome.

 

[2014FishKiller]

I have Hydor Professional 600 Canister, I will add bio-ball if you have extra draw, since I am doing every 6-week clean up entire system, with weekly 10% water change, I never worry about nitrate.

 

[Luvthekeys]

Thank you all for the replies and welcoming messages. I have been reading a lot and sometimes that can only confuse me more. Dont get me wrong the more knowledge I have the better when tackling something new. I did have African Cichlids for years. However saltwater is a whole new ball game. I am thinking about using filter floss in the top basket and chemipure blue in the middle basket. What should I put in the bottom basket if anything? Also should I spend the extra fifty bucks to replace the stock basket on a JBJ 28 gallon Nano with a modified one from Intank LLC?

 

[pegasus]

It's easy to get sensory overload in the early stages, as you're trying to learn everything at once. Fortunately, learning about this hobby can be done in stages... as our systems progress. Always start with the simple basics, work your way up, and life will be much easier. Yes, compared to freshwater, saltwater is a totally different creature...

I don't use canister filters, so I'll have to let someone who's familiar with them answer that question.

 

[flower]

Hi,

The beauty of a canister filter is how versatile it is. You can put anything in the baskets you want or need. I ran carbon in the bottom basket. I would also opt for a spray-bar, that will give you plenty of surface movement and free up a power head.

 

[Luvthekeys]

Sorry I gave the wrong impression. It is not a canister filter. I am talking about a filter behind the false wall on the JBJ 28 gal. Nano. The lift out basket is very similar to the ones in the HOB filters. The manufacturer includes a sponge for the top, Charcoal for the middle and bio rings for the bottom. I am sure there are better choices. I was thinking filter floss Chemi-pure blue and the third choice for the bottom section of the filter is where I am unsure of a choice. Their is a larger modified version of the liftout basket that I have seen on Intank LLC that is claimed to provide more filtration. However it is a extra fifty bucks for just the larger lift out basket. No building my own is not a choice. You would know why if you saw anything I have built. The main question is what are the best choices to go in the liftout basket. I will have twenty lbs of live rock in the tank if that enters into the choices.

 

[pegasus]

Sorry I gave the wrong impression. It is not a canister filter. I am talking about a filter behind the false wall on the JBJ 28 gal. Nano. The lift out basket is very similar to the ones in the HOB filters. The manufacturer includes a sponge for the top, Charcoal for the middle and bio rings for the bottom. I am sure there are better choices. I was thinking filter floss Chemi-pure blue and the third choice for the bottom section of the filter is where I am unsure of a choice. Their is a larger modified version of the liftout basket that I have seen on Intank LLC that is claimed to provide more filtration. However it is a extra fifty bucks for just the larger lift out basket. No building my own is not a choice. You would know why if you saw anything I have built. The main question is what are the best choices to go in the liftout basket. I will have twenty lbs of live rock in the tank if that enters into the choices.

My bad. You didn't give the wrong impression... I didn't associate the basket with the JBJ's integrated filter system. Sorry about that. It still works of the same principle, but since I use natural filtration, I can't recommend any particular setup. Flower has had plenty of experience with these types of filters, so I wouldn't hesitate to rely on her recommendations.

 

[flower]

Hi,

I'm not familiar with the nano cubes built in filters. I do know the ceramic beads (bio-rings) work on the same principle as live rock. You can replace them with rubble rock, their purpose is to give surface area for good bacteria to grow on.

You can put anything you want in the baskets, you have live rock in the tank, so the use of bio-rings isn't necessary... The only "best" choice" is whatever you feel you need it for. Therefore you can add anything you like, just like in a canister. The water is going to flow through it and do whatever job you need done. You don't have to put anything in the extra basket, you can leave it empty until you need it, or even just add more of what you already have in another basket.

Example of some choices:
Carbon: polishes the water, and also removes toxins (needed for corals to prevent chemical warfare).
Sponge: Collects large particles (has to be replaced)
Chemi-pure: Helps with phosphates. (has to be replaced)
Bio-rings or rubble rock: Gives extra surface area for good bacteria to attach to. (it has to be rinsed once in a while)

The only thing that will remove nitrates are water changes, macroalgae, or purchasing an Aquarapure filter.

 

[Luvthekeys]

Thanks to all for taking the time to answer my questions. I know many have different views but I consider all of them. I have am leaning towards putting Floss in top basket, Purigan in middle basket and Chemi-pure elite in the third basket. I also will use some of the rubble from the dry rock i am gettting. I would still like to know if anyone has any experience with the modified replacement filter basket sold by In-Tank LLC. The tank and stand are supposed to arrive Friday and I plan to fill it with plain water to do a leak test before I do anything else. I read they are well packed but I still want to check it out before adding sand, rock and salt water. I already have Instant Ocean and the Sand. Some of the dry rock is in. The local reef store had cured live rock for seven dollars a lb. He emailed me and said it has corals on it. I live in Florida so I can get it cheaper mail order but it is freshly harvested and I am leery of getting unwanted hitchhikers.So it will be twenty pounds of dry rock and fifteenth to twenty lbs of live rock. Is that two much rock for a 28 gallon tank? I plan on more invertebrates and less fish.

 

[mandy111]

Hi,

I'm not familiar with the nano cubes built in filters. I do know the ceramic beads (bio-rings) work on the same principle as live rock. You can replace them with rubble rock, their purpose is to give surface area for good bacteria to grow on.

You can put anything you want in the baskets, you have live rock in the tank, so the use of bio-rings isn't necessary... The only "best" choice" is whatever you feel you need it for. Therefore you can add anything you like, just like in a canister. The water is going to flow through it and do whatever job you need done. You don't have to put anything in the extra basket, you can leave it empty until you need it, or even just add more of what you already have in another basket.

Example of some choices:
Carbon: polishes the water, and also removes toxins (needed for corals to prevent chemical warfare).
Sponge: Collects large particles (has to be replaced)
Chemi-pure: Helps with phosphates. (has to be replaced)
Bio-rings or rubble rock: Gives extra surface area for good bacteria to attach to. (it has to be rinsed once in a while)

The only thing that will remove nitrates are water changes, macroalgae, or purchasing an Aquarapure filter.

Seachem matrix will and does remove nitrates too unlike bio-balls. Water changes are not the only way to control them ?

 

[flower]

Seachem matrix will and does remove nitrates too unlike bio-balls. Water changes are not the only way to control them ?

Mandy,
Thanks for the heads up! I have never heard of Seachem Matrix. I love my Seachem test kits, they make a good product, I trust the brand. I know Instant Ocean put out an additive that claimed to remove nitrates. It didn't work for me, but it's been many, many years since I even looked into anything like it.

I don't understand why you even mentioned bio-balls, since they have nothing to do with removing nitrates, it is simply extra surface area for good bacteria to grow on, if anything it "creates" nitrates by helping to move the nitrogen cycle along to the last stage... which is nitrates.

Macroalgae has become my magic answer to all nasty stuff, from ammonia to nitrates and everything in between. Before discovering microalgae, I used the Aquaripure nitrate filter besides water changes to keep the nitrates at 0, but that did nothing for phosphates. Macroalgae takes care of removing phosphates as well, it's all natural, and much cheaper then replacing all the media, supplements, and additives sold in the stores, the Aquaripure filter simply became unnecessary.

Lovethekeys,
Build the rock half way up the tank, if you add too much rock the poor fish have no place to swim. It really doesn't take all that much rock to keep a fish tank, when you have all that chemical filtration, live rock is a natural filter, but you are not relying on it as your only filter.

 

[mandy111]

Mandy,
Thanks for the heads up! I have never heard of Seachem Matrix. I love my Seachem test kits, they make a good product, I trust the brand. I know Instant Ocean put out an additive that claimed to remove nitrates. It didn't work for me, but it's been many, many years since I even looked into anything like it.

I don't understand why you even mentioned bio-balls, since they have nothing to do with removing nitrates, it is simply extra surface area for good bacteria to grow on, if anything it "creates" nitrates by helping to move the nitrogen cycle along to the last stage... which is nitrates.

Macroalgae has become my magic answer to all nasty stuff, from ammonia to nitrates and everything in between. Before discovering microalgae, I used the Aquaripure nitrate filter besides water changes to keep the nitrates at 0, but that did nothing for phosphates. Macroalgae takes care of removing phosphates as well, it's all natural, and much cheaper then replacing all the media, supplements, and additives sold in the stores, the Aquaripure filter simply became unnecessary.

Lovethekeys,
Build the rock half way up the tank, if you add too much rock the poor fish have no place to swim. It really doesn't take all that much rock to keep a fish tank, when you have all that chemical filtration, live rock is a natural filter, but you are not relying on it as your only filter.

I. Was actually the one that suggested removing the bio balls as I mentioned , they 100% become nitrate problems. Take a look at the Matrix it us an amazing product. I have recommended it to many reefers having nitrate issues & has worked every time.

 

[Luvthekeys]

Okay next question relates to the included JBJ wave maker that comes with the tank. From what I have read the two included Accela powerheads 266 gph each that run the filtration system are supposed to be plugged into the wave maker. With my limited understanding it appears the wave maker turns one on and then after a chosen setting turns it off and the other on. To my novice thinking that would effect your filtration system since you are cutting down the return flow. I have bought two Hydor Koralia Nano 425 Aquarium Circulation Pump 425 GPH for circulation purpose. My question is as follows. If I use the two Koralia pumps instead with the wave machine would that not be a better choice. My thinking is that it would leave the two other two pumps running constantly for better filtration. However would using the higher flow rate of the circulation pumps be too much wave action for a 28 gallon JBJ Nano tank. I hope I made that clear if not I blame it on my limited knowledge or my old age. Pick one!

 

[lmforbis]

You use the wave maker to mimic ocean currents and oxygenate the water. The wave makers give great flow and keep the water stirred up. This will help eliminate dead spots and help filtration.

 

[Luvthekeys]

Thank you for your reply. I did understand that but my main question was which pumps to use with the wave maker. Filteration pumps 266 gph or the circulation pumps 425. My concern being if I use the filtration pumps would that cut down the flow over the media in the filter trays.

 

[flower]

I never used a wave maker in all the years I've kept SW tanks. One fellow advised me against them, he said they can create such a turbulence from one side to the other, that it splashes the water over the rim... (years ago, I'm sure they fixed them since then)

The point is...you don't have to have a wave maker. You can get plenty of circulation from the Koralia power heads you have, just make sure there is flow to all areas of the tank. I use a dowel with a plastic ribbon tied to one end. Move the ribbon to different areas, some will have stronger current then others, which is perfectly fine, but if the ribbon drops, that's a dead spot, readjust the power heads.

 

[pegasus]

My thinking is if the JBJ 29 comes with alternating power heads that double as wave makers, they should be fine to use operating independently from each other. The key to getting maximum results from media such as carbon, chemi-pure, Purigan, etc., is contact time. Too much flow, and the nasties don't get absorbed. As far as flow goes, as long as it isn't splashing water out of the tank or creating sand storms, it's not too much. Fish adapt to flow, and it's actually very healthy for them as it gives them exercise... not to mention the fact that it keeps detritus stirred up so it can be removed by the filter. I use 4 power heads in each of my tanks, and the fish and corals love them. I asked them... and they gave me two fins up! LOL!!!