10 Gal. DIY Nano.

steve · Apr 14, 2011

This is my 10 Gal. Nano system. Everything here is DIY and is also my first attempt to a Saltwater system. The sump was built using a 10 gallon tank from walmart and acrylic sheets purchased at LOWE'S. The sand bed in the "Fuge" area is made up of crushed coral to maintain calcium levels for my snails, shrimp, and future coralline algae. The PVC overflow is made up of 1" PVC with a PVC cap with multiple holes drilled for surface skimming. The return pump is a 528 GPH powerhead connected to 1/2" PVC and is dialed down to around 300 GPH. In addition, i have a Koralia Nano 250 GPH powerhead for movement. In total i am pushing around 500 GPH around my tank. Lighting in my tank consists of 2 Mini Compact Fluorescent Coralife 50/50 bubls protected by a acrylic sealing the hood. As far as animals consist, i house: 1 Percula Clown, 1 Firefish Goby, 1 Coral Banded Shrimp, 2 Turbo Snails, and 3 Margarita Snails.
I have a 55 Gallon Freshwater system with 2 Tinfoil Barbs, 5 Rosie Barbs, 1 Clown Loach and 1 Rainbow Shark. I am looking to transition this system to a saltwater system in the near future.
Hope you enjoy, i will try to make a video sometime soon and will share ASAP.:^:

buddy08 · Apr 14, 2011

nice simple setup steve, fair warning...saltwater is addicting. I had 3 cichlid tanks (not including nursery and holding tanks) and bred them in 2.... transformed my 75g into a reef and now am seriously considering transforming the 30gallon, 46gallon, and 10 gallon into reef systems.

little_fish · Apr 14, 2011

Looks good!

But i would remove that crushed coral. Just plain agronite sand will do the same job and wont trap poop, uneaten food, and detrius. Crushed coral will do all those thing, and let that stuff rot, release nitrates back into the water. In a small tank you like yours, that is going to be a nightmare to keep control of. I would just remove it.

Rufio808 · Apr 15, 2011

How is the PVC overflow treating you? I've been debating on making one. I just need to find a sump large enough.

steve · Apr 15, 2011

little_fish said:
Looks good!

But i would remove that crushed coral. Just plain agronite sand will do the same job and wont trap poop, uneaten food, and detrius. Crushed coral will do all those thing, and let that stuff rot, release nitrates back into the water. In a small tank you like yours, that is going to be a nightmare to keep control of. I would just remove it.

Thanks, I have been considering doing that for about a month now. I dont like the way it looks and would like something easier to maintain. I am also looking to add a Jawfish Goby and cant add it with the small amount of crushed coral in the display. However, the last water change i have done has been about 2 weeks ago, my nitrates are at zero and all parameters are positive. I have a filter sock with carbon that traps most debris and i clean it out about once every other day. The biggest mistake i have made was buying carbon from walmart, its full of dust that seems to be impossible to get rid of and has turned alot of the sand in my display tank black no matter how many times i rinse it. Haha, Word of Wisdom, "Never Buy Carbon From Wally World!" Haha

Do you have any recommendations on how to remove the crushed coral from the display without drastically stressing my fish or completely removing the sand bed?

steve · Apr 15, 2011

Rufio808 said:
How is the PVC overflow treating you? I've been debating on making one. I just need to find a sump large enough.

The PVC overflow has been a pain in the rear. I started out with 3/4 inch pvc fully submerged (Not skimming the surface, just a full siphon) and found it very difficult to keep the flow even between the siphon and return pump with ball vavles. I then started surface skimming until my yellow tail damsel was swallowed. I upgraded to 1" pvc with the cap, allow surface skimming and it works out great. It does lose the siphon every once in a while, i have overflowed my tank once or twice but for a DIY project that i am really enjoying, it is totally worth it.:mrgreen:
What size tank do you have?

steve · Apr 15, 2011

buddy08 said:
nice simple setup steve, fair warning...saltwater is addicting. I had 3 cichlid tanks (not including nursery and holding tanks) and bred them in 2.... transformed my 75g into a reef and now am seriously considering transforming the 30gallon, 46gallon, and 10 gallon into reef systems.

Thanks,
I am loving it, I wish i could go bigger than 10 gallons but coming home from Iraq and living off unemployment doesnt make it easy.

Smitty · Apr 15, 2011

Looks good Steve...to get rid of the crushed coral without stirring nothing up or upsetting the bio-load, just syphon some 1/4 of it out during your water changes until it's all out.

d2mini · Apr 15, 2011

Looks good!

I see a 150g in your future. :mrgreen:

little_fish · Apr 15, 2011

I would not recommend adding another fish. In saltwater, you only want about one fish every 10 gallons and you are already double that.

Also, that fish needs a larger tank to be happy and healthy, and their chances of jumping out which is basically guaranteed already, go up exponentially in a smaller tank.

Just enjoy the two fish that you have, that is plenty of fish for that tank.

steve · Apr 15, 2011

d2mini said:
Looks good!

I see a 150g in your future. :mrgreen:

Yea, approval from the wife is a MUST. hah

Grassman · Apr 15, 2011

steve said:
Yea, approval from the wife is a MUST. hah

Just have something really bad happen to your tank, get all pissed off and say your done with it, and if she's anything like mine she'll tell you to go buy another one. :)

Bifferwine · Apr 19, 2011

Great job putting that together!

10 Gal. DIY Nano.

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