My 2gal nano - with new improved video link

[Fish]

Here is what the tank looks like now:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185latestfull.jpg



My bicolor blenny jumped one day so I replaced it with this yellow clown goby:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185ycg.jpg



I think this guy is a much better choice for a little tank like this.

[Fish]

And my most favorite ever:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185sexyshrimp.jpg


Sexy shrimp!

My tank has the following livestock:

- assorted zoos
- pulsing xenia
- assorted mushrooms
- ricordia
- colt
- gsp
- devils hand (thanks Polo)
- candy cane

- yellow clown goby
- porcelin anemone crab
- three sexy shrimp
- five stomatella
- four cerith
- one margerita/nerite

(I did make an impulse purchase and bought a "candy cane goby" that was supposed to host in candycane coral. I now think that they are only called that because of their color and not because of what they host in. I have also read online that they might even be a brackish fish :frown: )

What do you think?

- Chad

[Ryan]

WOW Chad awsome love the sexy shrimp. Where do u get them?

[Fish]

Thanks Ryan. Big Als Calgary. $10/each!

[Ryan]

Holy that was a steal.

[christyf5]

Do you have any pics of the candy cane goby? I'm intrigued :biggrin:

Christy :)

[Fish]

Christy,

You bet, here she is:

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185ccg.jpg


Like I said, I made a mistake by purchasing it on the spot without researching first. Maybe I'll get lucky though...

- Chad

[christyf5]

:eek: What a beautiful fish. I'm jealous! :mrgreen: I hope it works out for you.

Christy :)

edit: found him :wink: Looks like Trimma cana to me

http://www.korallenriff.de/lexikon/index.php?kategorie_id=13&tier_id=392&sprache=eng&name=Trimma%20cana

Definitely marine
http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=62051&genusname=Trimma&speciesname=cana

Of course, if you're worried about him you can always send him to me :razz:

[Fish]

Christy,
Thanks for finding that for me! And if it diesn't work out in this tank I will let you know. :smile:

- Chad

[Willow]

when does the new light rig come in chad?

[Fish]

Haha, any day now...
Gotta start checking the thrift stores for a desklamp that I can put the retrofit into. I'll let you know as soon as it comes!

- Chad

[Ryan]

Lethbridge wal mart has some nice ones. You can use those mini rectangular flood light type too.

[Fish]

Finally found one and it's a beaut! Photos pending.

[Beermaster]

okay we are waiting for the pics now!!!!!!!!!!!


are they up yet?




how about now?



now?




?

[AndyL]

If you're that desperate, they are up on nano-reef.com in the lighting section :)

Andy

[Fish]

Haha sorry Mark. For some reason it isn't allowing me to upload photos, might be a bug with the new server...
Here is a link to some of them at nano-reef.com:
http://www.nano-reef.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=10857

- Chad

[Beermaster]

WOw that lighting really made a difference


Looks good

cant wait to see it IRL

[outtafocus]

How is that auto top off system working out?

[Fish]

It is awesome but I have decided to get a smaller version of the same pump. This one that I have is a bit of an overkill. I am planning on selling it and making a little money in the downsize. Something about having a dosing pump that's physically bigger than your tank... :razz:

- Chad

[Fish]

Here's the new lighting:

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185deskshot.jpg




http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050430_008.jpg





- Chad

[Fish]

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050430_020.jpg


And here is the tank progression so far:

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185progression-med.jpg



- Chad

[Fish]

Update:

Here is the system I am using for auto-topoff:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185newato.jpg


The tee is connected to the return line for my eheim and the metering pump injects fresh water from a 8 liter resivior directly into the line (so there is still no visible equipment in my tank). I have the dosing rate set so that it adds 0.75ml, eighteen times every hour, 24/7 - which is my evaporation rate.
I am pretty pleased with the results :biggrin: . I never would have thought that my nano would end up being my most stable tank in terms of salinity.

- Chad

[Fish]

This past weekend I was away from the tank for 4days (the longest I've ever been able to do that). The system worked awesome but the water level did creep up a little bit (~4mm) so I have dialled down the pump to 15strokes/hour. The pump sits on top of a bucket which holds over 20days' worth of filtered topoff water. Now I do a 2 liter water change on my first day back to work, feed the tank with 'reef chili' each day I am working, and clean the glass on the last day of my work week. When I am on days off I don't worry about a thing. The ritual repeats again the next week. I was a little worried about the anemone crab going over a weekend without being fed but I have 3 pairs of stomatella snails in the tank and between them spawning and the pods on my chaeto, I figure the tank produces a fair amount of live food. So far so good!

- Chad

[Fish]

Hi all. Here is a very! low quality video clip of the tank. I am working on putting something better together.

http://www.studioonline.com/playvideos.asp?MediaTypeID=1&crypt=AE100F246CF2BEB8

- Chad

[Fish]

I don't know if anyone is still interested but here are some recent pics:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050619_047.jpg




http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050619_052.jpg



http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050619_037.jpg



http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050619_016.jpg


Any thoughts?
- Chad

[Fish]

Updated stocking list:

zoanthids (six of my best colors)
button polyp
colt
pulsing xenia (two kinds)
devils's hand
gorgonia
candycane
frogspawn
green monti digitata
purple monti digitata
orange monti caps
purple monti caps
pink bird's nest
riccordia (green and orange)
mushrooms (1 green, 1 blue, 1 red and 1 fuzzy)
green star polyp
2 sexy shrimp (2 more planned)
1 nerite snail
4 cerith
6 stomatella

- Chad

[Funky_Fish14]

That looks awesome!

Damn, that is more stocked(coral wise) than my 33g tank! :lol: Hahaha.

Chris

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Chad,

You're doing a great job on that nano. Love how it looks.

BTW, how was the flooding where you live. I heard that area was inundated.

Anthony

[Fish]

That looks awesome!

Damn, that is more stocked(coral wise) than my 33g tank! :lol: Hahaha.

Chris

Haha, thanks Chris. It is fine right now but I think it's going to take some major pruning to keep things from getting out of hand...



Chad,

You're doing a great job on that nano. Love how it looks.

BTW, how was the flooding where you live. I heard that area was inundated.

Anthony


Thanks Anthony. Okotoks was hit pretty hard, especially the homes and businesses along main street. I live up on a hill so I was lucky and didn't have any problems.

Chad

[Fish]

Hi gang,
My buddy hooked me up with an ftp site and helped me post a better quality video. I found that it worked best if I opened it in windows media player (not the browser) and used the skin mode to stretch it out to a decent size. (I hope that makes sense).
And yes, I know the music is lame but I don't have anything that went with the "nano theme" as well as this. Enjoy!

http://www.102tech.com/fish/PicoMovie.wmv


- Chad

[Jack]

Wow, that thing is sweet!

What lighting did you retro into that lamp? (Sorry if you mentioned it earlier or somewhere else, I'm not much of a nano guy :lol: )

[Fish]

Thanks Jack. I put in a 70w de mh with a 20k bulb. It is a lot of light of light for a little tank but you can see from the footage that the 20k isn't too bright. Also, because I was able to mount it in a desklamp and not a hood, there is no issue with heat!

And don't spend too much time in the nano forum... it's contagious :cool:

- Chad

[Jack]

Ah, cool. It looked like 70w range.

Nice tank Chad!

[Fish]

The color does mess with my camcorder a bit because the tank doesn't look quite as blue as it does in the movie. The most accurate representation of the color is the last picture in my set called 'tank progression' on the second page. And thanks again.

- Chad

[Beverly]

Love the movie :cool: Tank is very cool :cool: Can only think about the upgrade you will have to make once the corals grow :biggrin:

[Fish]

Haha, no kidding. The plan right now is just to prune things heavily. The size of corals that people sell as frags are the perfect size for the tank so it isn't very expensive to restock.

- Chad

[bluetang]

Great little vid.. Great tank... You did a great job :biggrin:
I dont think the music is lame at all. Who is the artist behind the voice??

[Fish]

Thanks! I believe the actual song title is :"shallow water" by Sylver.
um... used without permission :redface:

While I'm giving credit where it is due, I would like to thank Deb (EmilyB) for selling me the pink birdsnest frag you see in the video. It is perfect for the tank!


- Chad

[Delphinus]

Hahaha, that video is GREAT! You've clearly put a lot of effort into this little tank (and to put together a video with a soundtrack to boot), I tip my hat to you, sir.

[muck]

Awesome little tank vid Chad!!
Must have been fun to make..

*added Video Cam to list of stuff I need to buy. :rolleyes: :mrgreen:

[Fish]

Hahaha, that video is GREAT! You've clearly put a lot of effort into this little tank (and to put together a video with a soundtrack to boot), I tip my hat to you, sir.

Ha, thanks Tony. I should have mentioned that this was really episode 4. Just wait till the prequel comes out :razz:

- Chad

[Fish]

Awesome little tank vid Chad!!
Must have been fun to make..

*added Video Cam to list of stuff I need to buy. :rolleyes: :mrgreen:

Thanks Ryan. Ya, it was a good time. Let me know if you ever want to get into video editing. The program I use is really good and isn't too expensive.

- Chad

[BillyPrefect]

And the Juno for best video with a nano reef aquarium goes to... the envelope please Shania...

Sweet vid, awesome tank. Where is the intake/nozzles for the filter in the tank?

[Fish]

LOL Thanks! The plumbing is on the "ugly side" of the tank. You can see the bulkhead for the return line in my avatar. You can't make it out in the photo, but the intake bulkhead is to the right of that and is covered by a plastic screen that the rockwork is sitting on.


- Chad

[Fish]

Update:

I have changed the nano to a species-tank for a small mantis shrimp named "Google". I removed the sexy shrimp and added some hermits and snails for food. The corals are all still doing really well and so far, Google hasn't knocked anything over :neutral: ...

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185050812_019.jpg


I will get a better picture once he works up the courage to leave his cave :razz: .

What do you think?

= Chad

[Veng68]

Awesome little tank vid Chad!!
Must have been fun to make..

*added Video Cam to list of stuff I need to buy. :rolleyes: :mrgreen:

Thanks Ryan. Ya, it was a good time. Let me know if you ever want to get into video editing. The program I use is really good and isn't too expensive.

- Chad

Hey Chad,

Awesome tank & video. What video editing software did you use? I've got a pile of home videos that I have been meaning to put together.

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

[Fish]

Thanks man!
I use a program called Studio8 by Pinnacle. It is quite affordable, has a ton of features, and is really easy to use. You baisically have different tracks that you drag video, music, sound effects, titles, transitions, etc onto. I think the current program is Studio0 or even 10. I bought it to do home movies with but I have probably done more fish videos than family ones :redface: ....

- Chad

[Fish]

Here is a couple photos of the new owner of the cube:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185majesty.jpg



and



http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185profile.jpg



What do you think? I think that this little guy is the coolest thing that's ever happened to me in saltwater...

- Chad

[Beverly]

Beautiful colours on the mantis and corals :cool: Do you have a full tank shot?

[Fish]

Thanks Bev! I'm glad you like it :biggrin: .

I have a bunch of pictures and even a video of the tank if you click the links in my signture line. You're the second person who doesn't seem to have seen my tank before - I didn't think that Canreef was that big of a site :razz:

- Chad

[Beverly]

Chad,

I've seen the video a few times now :cool: I was just wondering if you have updated pics of the tank. Looks like stuff is growing :biggrin:

[Fish]

Oh, I see :redface: . You are right... I will need to take some more tank shots. The sps in particular has grown quite well. I think that my frogspawn might have actually decreased a little in size because the sexy shimp used it as their "cool kids' hangout" - and it wan't able to open up fully. Now that they have been moved, it is getting back to normal. Some people have warned me that a mantis might start redecorating its home and level some corals. So far, no problems though...
Thanks,

- Chad

[OCDP]

Looks great Chad :cool:

At work right now but once I am home I will definitely check out your vid... keep up the good work !

[Fish]

Awesome! Just so everyone knows, I made the video before I got the Mantis so don't expect it to be very exciting. On the plus side though, it is work friendly :razz:

- Chad

[Beverly]

Maybe you can make another video :biggrin: I loved the last one :cool:



EDIT: I know this song might be too long for a video, but it comes to mind when thinking of your new mantis...

http://www.lostmymarblz.com/03%20-%20Sympathy%20For%20The%20Devil.mp3

[Fish]

Bev,
Thanks for the tip... as I was listening I could see the mantis dancing along with a shaky little jig :razz: .

And I can lower the volume and cut the soundtrack at any spot to make the song length match the video length. Infact, in my current video, what sounds like the end of the song is really just a pause before breaking into another chorus.

[Beverly]

Chad,

I can't listen to that song without dancing my butt off :biggrin: :eek: :razz:

Honestly, though, I'd love to see another video. In it, I'd like to see lots of macro stills of your manits as well as of your individual corals. You could also use a tripod and get some footage of the mantis moving around/feeding as well as of your corals moving with the water flow. That would be fabulous :smilecol:

Too bad I'm so far away. I could be the video's director :razz:

[Fish]

Beverly,

I don't know if I'm inspired by your video, or compelled to pull up my socks :neutral: , but I am starting another one with some footage of the mantis shrimp. If I run into any problems, I will definitely call you for some advise :biggrin: .

- Chad

[Beverly]

Chad,

What a wonderful compliment :redface: :biggrin:

I'm very interested in your mantis (spelled it correctly!) video. I can't wait to see it :biggrin: Have you picked out a song for it?

I doubt I have more experience than you running Pinnacle Studio, but PM me for my phone number if you run into trouble :lol: :razz:

Am currently working on another reef video project as I type. Converting some secret .mov files to .avi. Would love to tell you about it, but I don't quite know how I'm going to pull it off. The song I have for it is over three minutes and I'm not sure I can create an interesting video with my subject for that long. My song is "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by the Proclaimers. Okay, you got it out of me.... the subject is snails :mrgreen:

Good luck with you mantis video :biggrin: I'm gonna want to see it for sure :exclaim:

BTW, was on RC today and ran across someone referring to the song in a video about a 2g. You're famous, man :cool:

[Fish]

Beverly,

Thanks! I am working on my video as I speak :rolleyes: . I am going to try and use a song called "The Stand" by an Albertan band called "The Jack Union". I was at a 10year high school reunion over the weekend and ran into an old classmate who is one of the co-writers of the song. It is pretty hard to make it fit into the theme of the movie but, oh well. I have footage of the mantis breaking open the shell of a small hermit crab and eating it but I am still trying to decide if I will include it in the movie. It is actually really sad... especially since the hermit makes a desperate attempt to abandon its shell and run... poor little guy :cry: . I don't want to get any one too depressed.
Hopefully the video will be ready in a day or so.

- Chad

ps - I think that you picked the perfect song for a snail video :razz:

[Beverly]

Chad,

Maybe use only part of the footage of the mantis and the hermit shell to keep the gross out factor to a minimum.

A few things I found out about working with Studio:

- make my own titles in a graphics program so I can use transitions on them
- put pics and titles on the same timeline as the videos
- right click on a video, title, pic, or transition to micro manage the time each is played. That way, you can get pic transitions into the rhythm of the song if you fiddle with it long enough.

Ah, but you probably already know that stuff :biggrin:

Yeah, my song and subject matter are kind of ironic :razz: Back to previewing videos clips before I convert them :neutral:

[muck]

I am going to try and use a song called "The Stand" by an Albertan band called "The Jack Union".
Good song!! :cool:

[Fish]

I just finished the video and am posting it here first!

I hope you enjoy it...

http://www.102tech.com/fish/mantis.wmv


- Chad

[muck]

Sweetness!! Ike rocks... :mrgreen:
Great job on the vid Chad. Song is killer too.

[Fish]

Haha thanks Ryan :cool: !
I'm pretty pleased with it too. I wish I could turn up the quality on the video but it is already a pretty huge file :redface:

- Chad

[Beverly]

Outstanding :cool: Great choice of music. Great choice of video clips. The macro shots of the tank's inhabitants are amazing :cool: Watched it twice just now :biggrin:

Do you have another tank at home to make another video? Can't wait to see what you do with that, if you do :smilecol:

[Fish]

Beverly,
Thanks. I'm glad you like it!
Unfortunately, this is now my only aquarium :cry: - and I'm running out of things to film in it!
A member on the board was kind enough to offer me some nuissance crabs that she has and I have been thinking about setting up a little 5gal holding tank for them.

- Chad

[Beverly]

Chad,

If you set up another tank, go for a 20g over a 5g. Takes up a bit more space, but you will be able to get frags easy enough from all those generous Calgarians to give it a good start. Plus, a 20g will give you more subjects to shoot :biggrin: You could even have fish in a 20g :biggrin:

[Fish]

Haha thanks Beverly - Actually I saw a really nice acrylic 12" cube on Nano-reef the other day and have been thinking about upgrading from this 8". If I do, you can bet there will be a movie involved!
Cheers,

- Chad

[Fish]

Hi all, after the amazing support and interst that people are showing for my tank in the lounge. I wanted to post some updated pictures.

Here I am drilling a eheim 2128 cannister filter to use instead of the 2222:

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185modified.jpg


Once I thread the electrical cord for the submersible pond lights through the hole, I will seal it with silicone. The main advantage to this filter will be the increase in water volume and more space for LR and chaeto. Also, it has a bit heftier hose connections than the 2222.

- Chad

[Fish]

The output of the 2128 is more than twice the output of the 2222 and would turn my tank into a desk-top fountain if not reduced. Fortunately, I was able to fit the impellor blades from the 2222 to the 2128 impellor!


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185impellor.jpg


After 5 gallon bucket flow tests, I am anticipating the flow to be roughly the same as it is currently. I am also wondering if the reduced load on the pump will increase its life...



And finally here is a picture of Ike laying on his back with one of the xanthid crabs that Kelly sent me (it looks like he is saying 'thank you Kelly').

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185lunch.jpg



- Chad

[Fish]

Well, I went in to work a couple hours early today and managed to swap over to the new filter. I put a bucket under the desk and as soon as I pulled the old hose off, I shoved the new one on. I only lost a little water and therefore was able to avoid draining the tank (and having to catch the mantis :eek: ).
I threaded the submersible lights through the hole that I drilled and sealed it with silicone. I also replaced the burned out bulb so now both are lit again. I put the LR rubble in the bottom compartment and the chaetomorpha in the middle compartment. I am currently curing some LR rubble that chrisd gave me which I plan on putting in the top compartment along with a bag of carbon once in a while.

Here is a picture of the new filter next to the one it replaced:

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185sidexside.jpg


The real test came when it came time to fire everything up. Sure enough, the moded impellor worked exactly how it was supposed to and despite the beefier filter, the flow in the tank is the same as it has always been!

[Fish]

Here is a shot of the two cannisters again, showing the submersible lights:



http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185inside.jpg



The media baskets on the new filter are dark plastic and don't allow the light to shine through the sides of the cannister like the last one - too bad, I always liked that glowing-reactor sort of look...

Going from eheims stats, the change of filters increased my sump volume from two liters to six liters. I am looking forward to seeing how it works out.
Thanks,

- Chad

[Beverly]

Amazing what a little technical wizardry can do :cool: Hope it works as well as you hope. How much is 5 litres in gallons?

[Fish]

Thanks Beverly. 6 liters is 1.58 gallons. After checking a calculator, I realize that I over estimated my previous filter's volume - it was really only half a gallon.

- Chad

[Johnny Reefer]

...the music is lame...

http://www.102tech.com/fish/PicoMovie.wmv


:cool: tank!
:cool: video!
...and I guess I like lame music, 'cuz I think it's :cool: too!
Who is it?

Cheers, :smile:

[Fish]

Haha, the music in that movie is "shallow water" by Sylver.
Thanks for the complinents!

- Chad

[Fish]

Here is a recent shot if the tank:


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1185tankshot.jpg



This might be the last update on this setup. I have listed the tank for sale in the buy/sell/trade section so that I can raise some capital for a new system. I guess I could keep this tank if I could just find some investors... anyone want to go in with me on a new nano project? I can pretty much guarantee that we will all lose a lot of money in the endeavor :razz:

Cheers,

- Chad

[deacon hemp]

This tank will be still alive as im going to try and set it up as mint as fish had it! i'll keep a thread going here once its setup.

[Fish]

Deacon,

That is a great idea! No one's looking forward to it more than me!!!

- Chad

[deacon hemp]

i acually have a few questions... did any of your softies have to be light acclimated when entering this tank?,and when you had a clown goby did you notice the bioload any?(ie. algea on the glass?)ect. i usually only keep inverts in my reefs but ive had good sucsess with clown gobys in small tanks.

[Fish]

What are your plan for lighting? I acclimated my corals by lengthening the schedule each day for about a week. In this size tank I found that 20k mh is perfect but if you were going to try and run a 10k, I would suggest acclimating very slowly. I switched to a 10k and almost killed a couple corals and bleached a monti caps bone white. 10k is a lot more par than 20k...
As for bioload, a clown goby works great in this tank and I would say that this two inch mantis puts a much heavier strain on the filtration capacity than a clown goby would. Back when this tank was a more peaceful place, I had a yellow clown goby, three sexy shrimp, and a porcelain(sp) anemone crab. This tank is a great place to showcase small, cool, animals like those!

Cheers,
- Chad

[deacon hemp]

i think im gonna bite the bullet and get an aquaspace light 70MH 20K,or possibly a retro 70MH,and do the lamp mod. at first i'll just run some pc's,i also have 12 inch t-5's,a 96w pc,tons of 13watters. and im gonna look for the red version of the clown goby,there kinda hard to find but ive seen them a few times.

[deacon hemp]

hey chad it looks like no ones bid on my ATO pump! i might get to snatch it up for 50 bux!

[Fish]

Shhh... there might be someone lurking who comes to the same conclusion that we did :razz: .

- Chad

[deacon hemp]

LOL i missed out on it this time,but now i will keep my mouth shut from now on.

[Fish]

That's too bad. Looks like it wasn't anyone from Canada anyways so you don't have to worry too much.

Just so everyone knows, I have paid for the tank and it is being built as we speak (I hope...). Two weeks from now is the pick up date (I hope...)

- Chad

[Fish]

Update,
I have just started work on the new tank and would really like everyone to stop by and check it out:

http://www.canreef.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=163096#163096


I will be shipping the old tank to deacon hemp shortly and can't wait to see what he does with it...


I would also like to publicly thank AndyL for allowing me to use his Flat Worm Exit. Because of his generosity, hundreds of flatworms have quietly passed from this life to the next. Instead of taking it back, Andy just told me to pass it on to the next reefer who needed it. Contact me if you do, but make sure you also contact Andy to thank him :cool: .

- Chad

[Semi_xAsian]

I found you!! and you showed your top secret filter!!

=D :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin:

[Fish]

LOL. Nooooo the secret is out...
You are pretty darn resoursefull!

- Chad