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8G Biocube with pics!! Also some questions plz . . .

41K views 111 replies 12 participants last post by  MattD 
#1 ·
Hi!

Well, I just set up my new 8 Gallon Biocube. Here are some pics of it. Nothing too exciting but I want to start recording it from day 1 - setup all the way until when I'm done stocking my tank. Expect many photos from here on. I haven't filled it with water yet, because I still need salt mix.

And we're off:



Just the setup from the outside with flash.



A picture of the stock lighting. 1 18-watt 10000k Daylight, and 1 18-watt True Actinic Blue. It also came with two .75 watt Lunar Blue Moon Glow LEDs. There are also 2 50mm cooling fans in the hood.



The stock filtration system. Here's one of my questions: should I keep the stock media (plenty of bio-balls), or convert the large compartment to a refugium (in which case I'd need to makeshift some sort of lighting)? I think for now I'll need to stick to the bio-balls because I don't see how I could modify the hood to fit a palmlight in it. I'll definitely be stuffing crazy media into the first compartment which is large enough to fit all kinds of stuff in there. I think that in conjunction with the natural filtration my idea will work just fine. Opinions needed though, please. Thanks. edit - actually upon further investigation, I've discovered that the light encompasses even the filtration system! I suppose I will combine the two then. I will put plenty of bioballs and media in the first compartment, and then convert the second compartment into a refugium! Awesome! :D :D :D



Just a shot of the uncleaned tank with the lights on (mighty bright!), and of the pump. The flow rate is 106 gph, will this be enough for my tank, or should I consider purchasing a submersible pump in the future? I dp fear dead spots, particularly in the far right corner.



Just an overall shot of the tank. I'm VERY excited about this and can't wait to begin stocking the live sand and live rock. I'll be posting more pics within the next little while. In the meantime, research, research, and more research will follow.

Also, another focus of this thread is to get feedback on the livestock I plan on putting in the tank. I'm not sure which species of coral to put in here yet, however I have had my eye on Zoanthids, Pulsing Xenia (although my lfs says they spread like wildfire), and the beginner's choice: mushrooms. I'd appreciate any suggestions that are suitable for my tank.

Regarding fish, I've decided to go with an Ocellaris, and a Firefish Goby. My CUC will consist of several snails (species recommendation needed please), and possibly 1 Cleaner Shrimp or a
Blood Shrimp. Again, any suggestions regarding livestock are needed and much appreciated.

Opinions, ideas, and advice are very valuable to me at this time, seeing as I haven't started anything yet. Thanks!!

:D :D :D[/list]
 
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#52 ·
much better. first i would buy the live rock and live sand. if you want to save a little money you can seed aragonite with live sand. do half live half dead. if you can use RO/DI water, you may be abl to get this at you lfs. then test regularly. with nothing but lr and sand in the tank it should take about a month to cycle. a little long but well worth the wait because of the time and aggravation it will save you. and never add too much livestock too soon. let your system catch up to the stress from the waste the fish will produce. again the thing you need most of all with sw is patience
 
#53 ·
You must also remember that a small tank can only support so much life. In an 8G, I wouldn't even put a fish tbh. At least not until it's mature (there's a difference between cycled and matured, btw) enough.

A 10G is the minimum imo. On another note, if you do plan on using the Biocubes/Nanocubes/Aquapods, remember that the false wall removes approx 1 - 2 gallons of water from the display, so you're really dealing with like 7 or 6 with an 8G 'cube/'pod - even less room for an active fish. :cry:
 
#54 ·
SeaSerpant said:
Ok thanks. So it would be better to start from scratch?
:? Have you done any research on salt water tanks yet? ... You should really get some books or use the web... Just because you have salt water from the fish store doesn't mean it will help your tank cycle at all :| Please do way more research before you buy anything... I think you might find your not up for the challenge.... Sorry. By the way MattD hurry with that tank already!!(Kidding obviously) I can't wait to see it done, it looks great.
 
#56 ·
MattD said:
I'm trying to. I'm going to do a large water change soon, to hopefully drop the nitrates to 0, or below 5 at least. They seem to be hovering between 5 and 10, annoyingly.

My b-day just ended, I have gift certificates and $$. It's going down soon. :lol: :lol:

Stay tuned.
Yeah that sounds like what my tank did. One water change did a world of difference. Happy belated birthday!! I can't wait til christmas so I can get the cash flow and save my live plants :cry: Fertilizer costs more then the freaking plants...
 
#57 ·
same happy belated birthday. ya i have done alot of research. soon i'm going to get a 10 gal saltwater tank with the filters i need and when i'm ready to switch to sw i'm going to use what i have for the fw. but first i'm gonna run it under hot water. But i'm gonna get the tank when my mollies and glass fish and other fish start to get beat up. (might be a while before sw, maybe a year. don't have job but can work for my family for 4bucks an hour.)
 
#65 ·
Little-Fizz said:
Yayyy! You should get a mandarin fish :wink: Those are my favorite!!
Not for a nano unless the owner is specific about the mandarin and the tank is designed for only the mandarin. At that it would tak specialized daily feedings.

As an ALERT I will always add to any "I want a mandarin" response.... These poor creatures do not fare well in captivity. They need tanks that are generally larger than 100g full of live rock, fully established and brimming with pods. There can be no other fish in the tank that might consume the pods as well or the small fish will quickly starve to death.
 
#67 ·
Well, I went to my lfs the last few days and picked up some more coral. My nitrates are still at 0ppm, so all is well as far as params go.

Here are some pics. Originally the two gsp frags were one rock, but it cracked into two, so I have two pieces now. The smaller frag I will be giving to my friend when his saltwater tank is cycled. I'll just keep it in my tank for now. :D



And the smaller piece:


I also bought a small frag of a torch coral. I know it's LPS but I think I will be able to raise it well in my tank. It is up high away from my other corals, receives generous current and light, and looks great.





I'm very satisfied with my purchases, spent just under $80.00 for the gsp rock and the torch coral. I'm looking for some pulsing xenia, then I'll officially call my tank complete. w00t!
 
#69 ·
I like it matt d.....looks good man......cant wait to get my live rock and then coral :D going to be so cool when i get it......ill need your help though :)

What are you going to get next.......is it that stuff you asked that guy for in the store......its the stuff in the showcase tank that is not for sale.....whats it called again?
 
#71 ·
Your tank is looking great. :)

I would like to start my own SW aquarium soon. I plan on buying a 12 Gallon Nano Tank that I will place in my room. I want to buy 10-20lbs of live rock, and about 10-15lbs of live sand. I want to know some information about this before I start. My dad has had some SW tanks before, but I want my own. So I will probably be asking a decent amount of Questions the nrxt few days.
 
#73 ·
@Cody

Thanks for the comments. I'll be following your setup closely, and ask all the q's you need. :D

@SS

Thanks, and no I haven't run into any troubles yet, except maybe placement. : / The rocks that the corals come in on are so large, they're beginning to disturb the aesthetics. Although I think I've settled on it tonight, these are only the temporary positions of the gsp btw:

 
#75 ·
Ya i'm thinking of starting a 20g SW tank. I'm going to start a new topic all about what i want because now i have specific questions and have more knowledge. Just from reading you posts i have learned alot thanks.
 
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