The live rock came from J&L aquatics in burnaby, I have purchased everything except the skimmer (used) there. I had read some negative reviews about the real reef rock, but figured I would try it out as the rock at King Ed and Aquariums west looked gross. I just grabbed 3 big pieces without thinking about how they may fit together... doh! Went back and picked up a couple pounds of small pieces to make a more "natural" look.
I did a 6g water change last week, but aiming for 4g weekly which is 20% and see how it goes.
I'd really like to keep frogspawn, torch, bubble, polyp, or brain coral - love the way the torch and frogspawn sway in the water. The tank has a POS aqueon light hood that came with the tank lol. I don't have any experience with T5. How does the look compare to an LED like the AI prime? I kind of like the idea of being able to customize the colors/look to my taste. With a T5 I know you can get different bulbs, but no idea how it would look. The aquatic life/ATI combo is really reasonable though!!
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Originally Posted by Myka
Your tank looks great!! I love that you used live rock instead of dry rock! Where did you find such nice live rock?
I think you're on the right road by planning bigger water changes. I own an aquarium servicing company, and the smaller the tank, the bigger (percent-wise) the water change depending on bio-load. Most nano tanks are overstocked compared to the equipment running them though. In-sump skimmers are vastly better than nano skimmers, so you are always limited. What the equipment can't do, you must do manually. On 10-gallon tanks I do 40-50% per week. In the beginning you don't have to, but as the tank progresses and you stock it more, larger water changes will definitely help.
With a nano tank, make sure you're topping it up EVERYDAY, better yet is top it up in the morning and in the evening. Fluctuating salinity makes all the parameters fluctuate (they concentrate with evaporation, then dilute when you add RO).
Which light are you using now? The Prime is a nice option, but at 24" you also have the option of using a T5 fixture which would be my first choice, especially someone new to the hobby. A 2-bulb fixture over that tank would be great. Aquatic Life makes one with a built-in timer. The included bulbs kinda suck - I'd replace them with ATI bulbs.
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