Converting my 20h tank, need help.

[HavinPhun]

Considering converting a 20h tank into a reef tank. Was considering the following equipment -

Miniflotor Skimmer
Rena Air Pump 100
AquaClear Powerhead 201

Is this equipment going to be ok for a small tank like mine? I was considering just buying a 24g Nano, but don't realy want to ditch my current tank.

Also, what sort of lighting will I need for my 20h tank?

 

[Anonymous]

For lighting I would use a 175 MH. I am not afalilure with the other equiptment you have listed.

 

[ChrisRD]

What's the air pump for? To run the skimmer (not familiar with that skimmer)?

As for lighting, what do you plan on keeping in the tank?

 

[HavinPhun]

I mainly just want to put some LR in my tank and see what happens 8O
Yes, the air pump is for the skimmer. It is just a small $37 skimmer. Is it even worth having? I have read that people keep tanks with no skimmer or aditional filtration besides the LR. Is this a possibility? I am also prepared to modify the lighting on my eclipse hood, not sure if I can do this either. Alternative to this I am looking at this set of lights
http://hellolights.com/201xcoaqpcho.html

If this is going to be shotty equipment and I will be much happier just dropping the $249 on this 24g nano, please let me know. Speaking of that, is that a decent price on the nano? I couldn't find much online about ordering them. Thanks for all the help

 

[ChrisRD]

Personally, if I already had the 20H, I'd just use that and spend the money on a decent skimmer (AquaC Remora is nice for small tanks), good lighting and a couple of powerheads.

The fixture in the link should be fine for the lower light corals, but if you take an interest in more light demanding species later, you'd probably end-up upgrading.

IMO a better plan is to do some research on what critters you might like to keep and then decide on what equipment would be best to provide the right environment for them. Check out the library here for lots of good information, book suggestions, etc. (check the top of the page for a link).

 

[HClH2OFish]

Which brand of Eclipse is this?
I've got the Eclipse3 and while it *looks* nice, the pump is seriously underpowered. I don't like the biowheel either, and the lights can be a pain.
In retrospect, if I were doing it all again, I'd get one of those nano's. Easier to deal with and looks better. The Eclipse is just a generic tank with a fancy hood, IMHO.

 

[HavinPhun]

Still considering what to do. Has anyone had any luck with using a Powerhead and LR and that is it? As in not using a skimmer at all? Does a new nanocube have somesort of skimmer built in? The guy at the store said I could buy the nano and set it up as is w/out any other equipment. Is this right?

 

[HClH2OFish]

If you don't have a large bioload in the tank, you could get by without a skimmer and instead do religious water changes every 1-2 weeks. Again, it's gonna depend on what all you're gonna want in the tank.

If the nano is a JBJ nano cube, they have skimmer built into the back. Nice little units and the 24 would be a good one to start with. There's lots of differenct mods that people have put on them as well to customize them for different needs.

Just to give you an idea, I've got an Eclipse system as well. The only thing I've done to the stock setup is remove the biowheel, and put on a surface skimmer to help with oxygen exchange. No skimmer and I use filter socks with carbon instead of their filters (they get dirty too quickly for my tastes)

I've got a 2lb chunk of LR, a store bought 'cave' and my Bow-tie damsel. About 1" of crushed aragonite and 1/2" of sand.

Works fine for just my one fish, but if I were going to put anything else in, I'd switch out that Eclipse canopy with something that will do the job better.

I don't have pics of my 15H on my website, but have a few of my 25H
Check out www.codeofthewalrus.com for pics of our critters if ya like

 

[Anonymous]

Has anyone had any luck with using a Powerhead

Yes. I have one that has currently been running for almost two years...Personally a Maxijet is even better (i have a MJ 900 also)...I agree with Chris on getting a good skimmer..I know people have had good success with just LR and water movement but I am unsure if this is the way to go as a novice...I also agree with looking (long term) into the critters you want to keep, such as polyps softies SPS corals, fish and other various inverts..this too will also help you decide on the equipment to buy...If you go LPS or SPS corals a MH system will work...polyps and softies for the most part will be good with the lighting youre currently looking into...I have a 20gal and here is the list of my equipment to give an idea..I have two PH's, AC201 and MJ900, BakPak 2R skimmer, 175W MH 10000k bulb (13000k Aqualine AB on the way for replacement) about 25-30lbs LR..some SPS corals, LPS, polyps, mushrooms, and one softie, two anemones, one Rose Bubble Tip and one Carribean flower...I added my corals and anemones to give an example to coincide with my lighting system and its importance with such animals...

HTH

 

[Anonymous]

Does a new nanocube have somesort of skimmer built in?

The JBJ does not..the CPR does but it will run you almost 300 bucks (worth it IMO)..The CPR has a pretty decent lighting system like the one you are looking at, plus it has a skimmer (im pretty sure) built in...There is a link in the nano forum i posted
http://www.reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=63030
showing the CPR nano cube with a link in the topic to an online dealer that carries it... JBJ is also a good nano cube but lacks the skimmer and has better access to feeding your livestock vs the CPR(which i think you have to remove the hood to feed)

 

[HavinPhun]

Leaning toward the nano now. It just looks so much better than what my 20h would end up looking like. I found one for $189 online @ aquabid with these features.

24 gallon glass cube, Integrated 3 stage filtration, JBJ flourescent bulb lighting, Fan-Cooled "Flip Top" canopy. CE Approved. Dimensions: 18 x 19.6 x 19.7 inches. Capacity: 24 Gallons. Power: 72 total watts. Flow: 290 GPH. Lift: 1.3 M. Voltage: 110V

Let me know what you think about this move :roll:

 

[Anonymous]

Leaning toward the nano now. It just looks so much better than what my 20h would end up looking like. I found one for $189 online @ aquabid with these features.

24 gallon glass cube, Integrated 3 stage filtration, JBJ flourescent bulb lighting, Fan-Cooled "Flip Top" canopy. CE Approved. Dimensions: 18 x 19.6 x 19.7 inches. Capacity: 24 Gallons. Power: 72 total watts. Flow: 290 GPH. Lift: 1.3 M. Voltage: 110V

Let me know what you think about this move :roll:

Do you know what they mean by Integrated 3 stage filtration? Personally I would not buy any set up that included mechanical filtration, because I do not think it is needed. I do not see a skimmer listed either, which is a good idea but not necessary if you stay on top of water changes.


I have run small tanks such as 20s with just powerheads and live rock. It works fine BUT, you must be very careful to avoid the newbie mistake of adding too many fish, and you must do regular water changes.

 

[HavinPhun]

I am prepared to do regular water changes. There is a store right down the street that sells premixed saltwater for .80 per gallon, so that makes it pretty easy. I am more concerned about the lighting on this unit. Is this going to be good enough lighting to keep an anemone? Can I just ditch the filtration system? My thinkig is that I am going to spend so much on lighting that I might as well buy this tank that is going to give me a little more room and look a lot better. As far as fish go, I was just going to try to transplant my current fish - 1 false perc, 1 yellow tail damsel, 1 sixline wrasse and 1 jeweled blenny. Not a huge deal if I lose one or two of them, except for the perc, he is my buddy.

 

[Anonymous]

Well, that is a pretty little nano. http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/ ... 1108197807

I think the light would probably only be appropriate for a bubble tip anemone, and there would be other people who would say it is not enough.

I know they show in those pictures big fluffy carpet anemones, but I am going to get those pics are photo shopped.

 

[HavinPhun]

Could I just change the bulbs, or would I have to pull together a whole new kind of setup? Also is this the top package for a 24g Nano, or is there some super deluxe setup or something?

This is the light setup I was looking at if I were to just keep my 20h tank
http://www.hellolights.com/201xcoaqpcho.html

Is this a better light setup than that of the Nano that I am looking at?

Again thank you all for the help.

 

[HavinPhun]

This may be a stupid question, but what is the deal with moonlighting? Do you have to have a different light source during the day or is this some kind of dual light thing?

 

[Anonymous]

Moonlighting isnt necessary for your tank..most keepers use it for evening viewing to allow the more shy nocturnal critters to come out...other reefkeepers use it for spawning purposes in corals by immating certain phases of the moon...To what success if any they have with this I think is limited but Im not sure...but moonlighting for the average keeper is for pure esthetics...To answer your question..Moonlights are typically seperate...you can however with certain fixtures get an add on when you purchase the fixture..Or you can DIY...

 

[HavinPhun]

I didn't think that I needed it. I was just curious looking when I was look at moonlighting hoods if you had to change the hood everynight or if it was a combo or something.

Anyways back to the original question about the light I mentioned earlier. Just wondering how it compared with the nano lights.

 

[HavinPhun]

Just looking at the watts it is 72 vs. 96, is this the best way to compare? Is 24 watts going to make or break my tank?

 

[Anonymous]

Just looking at the watts it is 72 vs. 96, is this the best way to compare? Is 24 watts going to make or break my tank?

No but it will limit what you can keep...72W over a 20H is actually weak if you want to keep any LPS or SPS corals..