17g (70L) "Filterless" nano cube build.

[Uzair Aiman]

20/9/22; 1 week(kinda) update!
Tested the parameters of the tank with my salifert testers and I got:
Ammonia - <0.15
Nitrate - 50-100ppm
Phosphate - 0.03ppm

I'd give it a few more days before I add some inverts into the tank maybe.
I will give it a relatively large water change before adding in any livestock.


Quick question: If I wanted to add inverts first (ie snails or hermits), how do I keep them alive? From what I udnerstand, they eat leftovers or fish poop. Since Im not adding fish first (like I always do, I want to add things super slow sicne I dont have a filter), how do I make sure theyre alive and healthy?

 

[Uzair Aiman]

Coraline came from my live rock. It was Dr fosters and Smith Fiji live rock. I don't think they import them anymore.
The cycle was really fast. Almost no cycling from what I can remember.. in about 3-4 months .. everything was covered with Coraline. The Fiji rocks I bought came from my friend's mature tank who owned an lfs called rare fish back in the day located next to cal poly Pomona. Anyone remember that store??!!?? He carried the most exotic freshwater fish! His reef selection wasn't bad either!
Best alternative is Solomon island rocks or Gulf rock these days. But beware... Esp Gulf rock comes with a lot of awesome life but also pests...
I've never done dry rock setup... So no feedback on my end.

Nice! Ill try and find some small live rubble from my trusted LFS store since it looked so quick and stable so fast!

 

[Uzair Aiman]

Yes, this is a FijiCube 10 it is a AIO. Mechanical filtration is some floss and a nano skimmer. Yes I have one of those magnet glass cleaners in there that I use every couple of days. But I clean the glass no more than most of my tanks. Except for one nano 6g I never clean the glass on that anymore, maybe once a month. I guess my point is, you are not going to get any more or less algae in a properly balanced system because it gets hit by the sun. What you do have to watch out for is temperature fluctuations if the sun is too intense for too long of a period of time. Also with any tank but especially with a Nano, an ATO is your best friend, it will go a long way toward the stability of your system.
You have to tell me which Toadstool you are talking about. The big one has a mushroom next to it. The two on the frag rack the tiny one has the Toxic hammer net to it and the one in the middle has some clove polyps on the end, unless you mean my lawnmower Blenny who is sitting up there also.

Its a Blenny!?! It looks like a slug or something in that picture! hahaha. Maybe algae will be a problem with mine since its not an AIO and does not have any export methods. But it also might vary from tank to tank, as usual. Temperature is also one of my concerns but from what I observe, with lights off, the tanks temperature stay stable throughout the day. I have the "ATO" thing hung on the back for now to see if its enough to ease me. If not, I will upgrade to an automatic one.

 

[Uzair Aiman]

24/9/22- small update

hmmm , a shift in colour in the sand??? Are those… are those diatoms I see??

well hopefully they are. I think I’m coming to a complete cycle now diatoms are starting to appear I think. Nitrates are up, ammonia bottoming out and a trace of nitrite left.
I’m planning to add clownfish next week. Or should I wait a lil bit longer?

 

[Uzair Aiman]

1/10/22- Update!
Added a turbo snail and also a hermit crab.

I also uploaded the set up video in youtube if you guys wanna check it out.
Diatoms starting to grow, Nitrite and ammonia is zero. Did a water change before adding them.

Youtube Link:

 

[i cant think]

The tank seems to be ageing well then

 

[Mr Fishface]

Looking really good! I saw a sale of some smaller cube tanks and have thought that might be fun to try. IMO you are doing a great job with everything. I've had fish tanks, both fresh and salt, near windows for years without any issues.

I saw your question about invert and feeding them. It depends on the type of course, a turbo I think primarily eats algae and the crab would eat any leftovers. I would drop a couple of pellets down for the crab from time to time to ensure it has some food. Ive also taken real small rubble rock and rubber band a strip of nori to it, dropped in the tank. Leaves the nori on the bottom so things can get it without it flying around the water. I would imagine feeding the crab will be enough to really get some small algae blooms going for your snail.

 

[Uzair Aiman]

Looking really good! I saw a sale of some smaller cube tanks and have thought that might be fun to try. IMO you are doing a great job with everything. I've had fish tanks, both fresh and salt, near windows for years without any issues.

I saw your question about invert and feeding them. It depends on the type of course, a turbo I think primarily eats algae and the crab would eat any leftovers. I would drop a couple of pellets down for the crab from time to time to ensure it has some food. Ive also taken real small rubble rock and rubber band a strip of nori to it, dropped in the tank. Leaves the nori on the bottom so things can get it without it flying around the water. I would imagine feeding the crab will be enough to really get some small algae blooms going for your snail.

Thanks! You should try it so we can compare! haha
I think theres a small benefit that its at the window, algae can grow from time to time so I wont be worried about my snails getting hungry haha.
That rock and rubber band trick is smart, never thought of that. I've always soaked a small piece of nori and fed it to my crabs manually with thongs hahahah I feel so dumb now. Ill feed the crab pellets too and hope for the mini algae bloom to happen. And if things get out of hand then I'll just add a few more snails to combat it

 

[besskurz]

How is the tank looking? Any new additions?

Not sure if you consider macroalgaes, but this would certainly help to minimize nitrates and eventually wc's if you dedice to go with kalk or any other method.