Getting back into the hobby

[spamvicious]

Hi guys,

So a year ago I had to shut down my tank as I had to move into a much smaller property. I have gone without a tank for different reasons. One reason being is space which means that I’m going to have to get a nano tank possibly the fluval evo 13.5.

So just some questions,

I can’t plumb in my own rodi unit so I’m going to have to buy some rodi water and we don’t have many shops near so one of my thoughts was to buy a 120l barrel to store the rodi water (I have a small outbuilding connected to my house I could store it in). I can mix my own water and have spare for top ups. Does the barrel have to be food grade?.

How much rock would I need?. With my last tank I went to a local shop and he sold me loads of dry rock that I couldn’t do much with. I’m thinking of using dry rock and sand and using some media from a friends tank to seed.

I will only have a couple of clowns, shrimp and cuc and softies in the tank and hopefully a nem when the tank is mature enough so will the evo set up be enough? Just add a heater and a wave maker. Does it need a skimmer being only 52 litres?.

 

[Quietman]

Water storage for tank should be food safe yes. You can get RODI units that hook up to facets (common for folks in apartments).

I think two clowns is going to a bit much for 13.5 tank. I'd go with smaller fish (blennies, gobies for example) or perhaps just one clown.

Not much rock at all is needed. Getting dried rock from a friend can work but you do run the risk of pests/algae unless it's been dried and/or cured. Lots of info on here about rock curing.

Skimmer is never 'required' but can help. If small bio load (see above on fish), then you'll have much less nutrients to worry about and water change become feasible to control nutrients along with nano skimmer.

Lastly don't forget about minerals/trace elements. Water changes alone won't compensate for usage. TM All for Reef is excellent for nano tanks and it's a one-part you can easily add manually.

Good luck!

 

[Outlaw Corals]

I use tap water and some water conditioner, you don’t need ro water unless your water source is well water