My 24gallon nano cube

Amritroy2003 · Aug 15, 2007

Here are the pics from my nano cube... Its just been a few month..

I need some corals or something.. but don't know what should I put in with my stock lights.. :

Jf2381 · Aug 15, 2007

Those rocks look very nice together. Can't wait to see them covered with corals.

mynd · Aug 15, 2007

wow... you are even more simplistic then me. You need to get a piece of coralline encrusted rock in there to seed the tank. It looks like it might even be coming in. Have you even cycled yet. I think I see remnants of a diatom. You have the right idea. Keep it simple and have less problem, but you really need to get some more stuff in there. Looks a little empty right now, but hey $$$$ does not grow on trees either. I believe in your way. Slow and steady. For what you have in there with the simplicity at hand. I think it looks nice but you need more color.

Good job keep the pictures coming as things change. We all want to see the progress. I wish this was in the nano section. I would have seen it sooner..

Welcome to NJRC also! Any questions please don't hesitate to ask. We are here for ya!

Amritroy2003 · Aug 16, 2007

Yeah basically I think the tank is still cycling.. ??? one day like 3 weeks ago,, I saw green and brown things on the glass and got really excited that my tank was maturing.. and then few days later I saw it every where on my tank.. on the sand and on the aquarium.. I was so shocked.. My tank looked like such a mess.. and now.. its little less on the glass but if don't do a quick scrub it builds up quickly.. Thank god I got my starfish.. he does a good job on the sand.. it mixes it up so the diatom so they don't bunch up..

I do need color.. but I am not sure that my lighting will be sufficient enough for corals. I think instead of upgrading to a 120 gallon.. that I stick with this one and get a 150w MH... the K2 Viper? but I am worried about the evaporation, and my fish carpet surfing... and if get the lid for it. .then I think that the water will get to hot..

mynd · Aug 16, 2007

With the lighting you have you are more then capable of keeping some nice shrooms, zoo, and certain lps, even acans. Plenty of color to go around. Now granted the colors might not POP as much under PC's as they would with 70 or 150w MH, but enjoy the tank for what it offers and if you upgrade later on spend the money on lighting for the new tank. Just a suggestion. I am keeping my tank stock for now. Maybe some MH later on. We shall see.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Amritroy2003 · Aug 28, 2007

Re: NEW PICS _ WITH CORALS (bought from Malulu)

HI Guys here are some updated pics.. enjoy.. comments and advice will be helpfull!

PS - The Rocks are turning purple.. about time..

jazzsam · Aug 28, 2007

That tang may outgrow that tank fast. Keep an eye on his growth.

Amritroy2003 · Aug 28, 2007

yeah.. I know.. I'll be getting a bigger tank hopefull soon, If not, I am going to have to donate it.. he is quite small still.. but he does eat all the food I put in..

mladencovic · Aug 28, 2007

Just a few observations, if you don't mind me butting in

Assuming that the coral in the middle-right is Monti Cap, it will shade the corals and anemone below as it grows. Montis usually grow faster then other corals so it will easily outpace them for space and light. On the other hand, that red softie on the right side is dangerously close to it. Specially since the outflow is located right behind it. So the growth, movement in the flow might encroach it on that Monti. And the flow from the return washes over it directly. Also, if this is one of those nonphotosynthetic softies (as the red color indicates) then it is to high and toomuch exposed (assuming you have enough light to maintain anemone and those hard corals). If it is not, is it allways so slumped? Maybe being in the direct flow is not the best place for it and being stressed by the flow, it might even release chemicals that would wash over Monty. And, then, did that trumpet (?) coral come with ricordea (?) like that? In my experience, ricordeas can grow very much and are very powerfull stingers and will easily burn corals around. Maybe you could put it somewhere else on the rock where it will not encroach on anything else.

;D just a few things you could watch for as your tank grows.

Amritroy2003 · Aug 28, 2007

mladencovic said:
Just a few observations, if you don't mind me butting in

Assuming that the coral in the middle-right is Monti Cap, it will shade the corals and anemone below as it grows. Montis usually grow faster then other corals so it will easily outpace them for space and light. On the other hand, that red softie on the right side is dangerously close to it. Specially since the outflow is located right behind it. So the growth, movement in the flow might encroach it on that Monti. And the flow from the return washes over it directly. Also, if this is one of those nonphotosynthetic softies (as the red color indicates) then it is to high and toomuch exposed (assuming you have enough light to maintain anemone and those hard corals). If it is not, is it allways so slumped? Maybe being in the direct flow is not the best place for it and being stressed by the flow, it might even release chemicals that would wash over Monty. And, then, did that trumpet (?) coral come with ricordea (?) like that? In my experience, ricordeas can grow very much and are very powerfull stingers and will easily burn corals around. Maybe you could put it somewhere else on the rock where it will not encroach on anything else.

;D just a few things you could watch for as your tank grows.

Thanks so much for ur input.. as far as the chilli coral goes, I am not sure where a good position is to place it. The monti cap isn't glued on, the one that is on the top of the rock, actually i had a hard time sticking it to the rock on the bottom... so I left it there b/c it stayed put there, I will move it in due time. As far as the trumpet and ricodea, yes they actually came together. Actually all the corals I got were from Malulu (thanks again!) Could you advise as to how to seperate those two? Thanks for ur input...!!! ;D

mladencovic · Aug 28, 2007

Amritroy2003 said:
...
As far as the trumpet and ricodea, yes they actually came together. Actually all the corals I got were from Malulu (thanks again!) Could you advise as to how to seperate those two?

Well, in that case, I would definitively first check with him to find how those two species got together, how much will they grow, what is possibility of their conflict and wether or not you should separate them. If you decide to do that, the best way would be to, using the bone cutters, remove only smallest posible piece of the trumpet's branch that lays directly beneath the foot of ricordea. In any case, you do not need to do it right now, rather you let them grow and watch how and in what direction they will grow or move. Right now they are aesthetically pleasing so you should act only if there is a conflict or if you like to rearange the scene.