# My new Nano reef



## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

Well i am in the midst of starting a nano reef. It is still in the midst of going through a cycle so there is no livestock yet. Enjoy them anyway! 





















Kyle


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## Steve Hampton (Jul 22, 2002)

Kyle, is that a Lava Lamp behind the Gatorade?

The tank is lookin good...I'm considering a return to Salt myself.


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

LOL. Yeah it is a lava lamp baby! But it doesn't work!

The Gatorade bottle is my auto top off system. Pretty easy and simple.

Just today I bought 8 lbs. more lr and 3 turbo snails and it is finally getting started. I Just recently got through my cycle and plan on adding some polyps and maybe a mushroom or two in a few weeks!


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## GulfCoastAquarian (Jul 30, 2002)

I kept a 55g reef for 2 years. Shut it down 3 years ago and can't wait to start another one. I've thought about nano, but worried about maintenence. I like the topoff setup you got going. My guess is the air pump pressurizes the bottle which feed water into the tank? Do you just plug in the air pump when it needs topping off or does the air pump stay on all the time, adjusted to make up for evaporation?


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

> _Originally posted by GulfCoastAquarian_
> I kept a 55g reef for 2 years. Shut it down 3 years ago and can't wait to start another one. I've thought about nano, but worried about maintenence. I like the topoff setup you got going. My guess is the air pump pressurizes the bottle which feed water into the tank? Do you just plug in the air pump when it needs topping off or does the air pump stay on all the time, adjusted to make up for evaporation?


Yep that is exactly how it works! 

I currently have it on a digital timer and it comes on 4 times a week for a minute. IT works out to be just right and I only have to refill the bottle ever week when I plan to do my water changes. So it isn't that bad! 

Kyle


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## Steve (Jul 31, 2002)

Quite inventive. Love the idea, I will be using it myself now =)


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Steve_
> Quite inventive. Love the idea, I will be using it myself now =)


Glad to be of some help!!!


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

Just some more pictures for everyone. These are after I added more rock and the three turbo snails. 











one of the turbo snails hard at work!









Kyle


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## mr hyde (Sep 7, 2002)

Kyle
What brand of digital timer is that and where did you get it? I've never been able to find one that can kick on for only a minute. The ones I've always used are the mechanical dial type. The one you have would be great to have.
Thanks


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

> _Originally posted by mr hyde_
> Kyle
> What brand of digital timer is that and where did you get it? I've never been able to find one that can kick on for only a minute. The ones I've always used are the mechanical dial type. The one you have would be great to have.
> Thanks


Mr Hyde, the digital timer I am using is made by Intermatic. I found it at two places: Home Depot and Wal Mart. It was 24.99 at Home Depot and 19.99 at Wal mart. It is pretty easy to program however don't lose the manual like I did. It is really, really hard to remember how to do it as you have to do it in a certain order. 

Kyle


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## 2la (Aug 18, 2002)

Kyle, now for a *BACKGROUND*!!


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

> _Originally posted by 2la_
> Kyle, now for a *BACKGROUND*!!


:hehe::flick:

Haha I know 2la. I have one on now. No worries. When I get home I'll take some more current photos. You'll be surprised how much it has changed. 

Kyle


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## GulfCoastAquarian (Jul 30, 2002)

I'm going to have to check out that digital timer. Cool.

I just started a 20g High reef tank 2 weeks ago. Still cycling with 20lbs live sand and 20 lbs of dried out old Fiji rock I had in the attic. In two weeks, I'm going to add another 20lbs of reef sand and fresh, uncured Live Rock, and re-cycle. Deep Sand Bed, no skimmer, no filter.

What kind of light are you using? I'm just going to use two 15watt NO for now, but in six months, when the tank has settled, I'm going to put a 250w MH and use the NO for actinics.


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

Yeah I also am not using a skimmer or filter. The HOB filter is just for flow and surface aggitation. 

I have a 50/50 35 watt Compact Flourescent bulb on my tank right now. I would be careful and do a lot of research on Metal Halides before adding them to a small reef tank. 

Check out Nano-reef.com's message board and search for metal halides. Many people have had overheating and huge water loss due to metal halides on small reefs. 

Also try and instant message the user *Sahin*. he tried to Metal Halides and they were worse for his tank than they did good. HIs corals could never adjust to the lighting as they were never kept in such high intensity before at the store etc.....

Hope this helps!
Kyle


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## GulfCoastAquarian (Jul 30, 2002)

Yeah, I've been reading quite a bit about the water evap rates and elevated temps with nano reefs and Metal Halides. But I want to grow Acropora, and they just never do well enough under PC's so I'm going to give it a try. Both the tank and the sump in the closet will be open top with a good deal of surface agitation so I hope to keep the tank relatively cool. Also, I'm going to hang the Halide about 10"-12" above the surface, since intensity won't be an issue with that small tank, so that should help keep heat from convection low. 

I just bought some float switches on Ebay, though, and I'm going to set up a topoff system with limewater to keep water levels up while supplementing Ca. 

Some 20g-30g reefers with MH's have reported evaporation rates as high as 2-3 gallons a DAY! wow


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## Volitan (Aug 27, 2002)

How Many gallon is that? I have a 20 gallon FOWLR tank setup..


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## KyleT (Jul 22, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Volitan_
> How Many gallon is that? I have a 20 gallon FOWLR tank setup..


It is a 10 gallon. What kind of fish do you have in it??? How bout some pictures and specs??? :hehe:


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

omg this is old......
update?


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