Mark Teitelman
Active Member
Hello all...been a few months with this IM NUVO 20 gallon Drop Off...pretty happy so far with the progress. Got 5 fish in there, 2 Ocellaris (tank bred), a pair of Banggais and a royal gramma. All get along...the larger of the clowns has taken to treating this huge hairy mushroom I have on the left side of the tank like an anemone. Never seen that before...pretty interesting.
There is also a Pistol Shrimp paired with a goby...haven't seen the goby in a couple weeks, but the pistol I hear multiple times every day and I see his impressive tunnel work.
Corals are mostly on the smaller side with a couple of exceptions...but the basic population is:
1. Various Zoanthids (mostly on middle and top, plus one nice rock on the back left)
2. Medium Branching Hammer
3. Small two headed Frogspawn
4. Giant Hairy Mushroom (he was much smaller 4 months ago, was first coral in the tank)
5. Cup Coral
6. Green finger leather
7. Toadstool leather
8. Devil's Hand Leather
9. Kenya Tree (back of tank to fill out as he grows up)
10. Blue Cespalaria
11. Trumpet coral (2)
12. Blasto (2 heads)
13. Green Mushroom colony rock (top)
14. 2 small orange mushrooms (top)
15. 1 green mushroom (right side)
16.1 small frag war coral
17. Red lobo
Got some various CUC in there as well. Roughly half of the coral is Aquacultured. I do weekly water changes of 15-20%, and have the AI Prime LED light over it since the beginning. Currently using the IM Desktop Ghost Skimmer...I don't love it but none of the nano skimmers are beasts...it is a very wet skim but it does seem to pull some bad stuff out. Also using the desktop caddy and I have some phosgard, chemipure blue and purigen in there. Also lots of floss in the back chamber to help cut down on micro bubbles from the skimmer...got a poly filter pad in there as well as some other floss to help cut down on particulate. Using the 2 filter socks that come with the tank, they have been very good. Easy to wash, and I have 2 other pair that I alternate.
I know people are split on bacteria, I don't dose much but I do put in Special Blend after every water change. Also mid week I use Dr. Tim's Eco Balance as per instructions. so far I have been very fortunate and not really faced any algae issues. Some very, very minor cyano in week 2, but I try to be careful with nutrients and water changes. I do feed every day, and Phyto 4 times a week...also have some of Rod's Food for coral that I broadcast feed once a week or so. I do travel a lot so that is my big challenge with this tank...but my wife has been awesome about topping off the RO water, and she feeds exactly the portions I leave in baggies when I'm gone so we don't go overboard.
Anyway, this is certainly nowhere near the level of what most of you guys have done...but while we are renting this house I didn't want to be without a little slice of the ocean...so I thought a nano was a good compromise. Hard to fathom setting up a huge system in a place you know you won't be in for too long...anyway, hopefully things will keep going rather smoothly...although I am REALLY not tempting the Reef Gods when I say that!
There is also a Pistol Shrimp paired with a goby...haven't seen the goby in a couple weeks, but the pistol I hear multiple times every day and I see his impressive tunnel work.
Corals are mostly on the smaller side with a couple of exceptions...but the basic population is:
1. Various Zoanthids (mostly on middle and top, plus one nice rock on the back left)
2. Medium Branching Hammer
3. Small two headed Frogspawn
4. Giant Hairy Mushroom (he was much smaller 4 months ago, was first coral in the tank)
5. Cup Coral
6. Green finger leather
7. Toadstool leather
8. Devil's Hand Leather
9. Kenya Tree (back of tank to fill out as he grows up)
10. Blue Cespalaria
11. Trumpet coral (2)
12. Blasto (2 heads)
13. Green Mushroom colony rock (top)
14. 2 small orange mushrooms (top)
15. 1 green mushroom (right side)
16.1 small frag war coral
17. Red lobo
Got some various CUC in there as well. Roughly half of the coral is Aquacultured. I do weekly water changes of 15-20%, and have the AI Prime LED light over it since the beginning. Currently using the IM Desktop Ghost Skimmer...I don't love it but none of the nano skimmers are beasts...it is a very wet skim but it does seem to pull some bad stuff out. Also using the desktop caddy and I have some phosgard, chemipure blue and purigen in there. Also lots of floss in the back chamber to help cut down on micro bubbles from the skimmer...got a poly filter pad in there as well as some other floss to help cut down on particulate. Using the 2 filter socks that come with the tank, they have been very good. Easy to wash, and I have 2 other pair that I alternate.
I know people are split on bacteria, I don't dose much but I do put in Special Blend after every water change. Also mid week I use Dr. Tim's Eco Balance as per instructions. so far I have been very fortunate and not really faced any algae issues. Some very, very minor cyano in week 2, but I try to be careful with nutrients and water changes. I do feed every day, and Phyto 4 times a week...also have some of Rod's Food for coral that I broadcast feed once a week or so. I do travel a lot so that is my big challenge with this tank...but my wife has been awesome about topping off the RO water, and she feeds exactly the portions I leave in baggies when I'm gone so we don't go overboard.
Anyway, this is certainly nowhere near the level of what most of you guys have done...but while we are renting this house I didn't want to be without a little slice of the ocean...so I thought a nano was a good compromise. Hard to fathom setting up a huge system in a place you know you won't be in for too long...anyway, hopefully things will keep going rather smoothly...although I am REALLY not tempting the Reef Gods when I say that!
