What's the basics to know with setting up a nano reef tank?

[drewdavis]

I'm planning to start a nano reef as my first adventure into caring for saltwater / brackish marine life, my two size options are 120l and 60l.

What would be the best stock, coral and basic knowledge needed to go about this. Anything helps!

 

[orryasleep]

I'm planning to start a nano reef as my first adventure into caring for saltwater / brackish marine life, my two size options are 120l and 60l.

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What would be the best stock, coral and basic knowledge needed to go about this. Anything helps!

For beginners, stick to common and easy-to-care-for species like mushrooms, zoas, toadstools, xenia, Kenya trees, GSP, and Favias.

 

[jackson6745]

If you want to have an easier time cycling and keeping livestock get live rock from Marco rocks. This is extremely important unless you are going to to wait for dry rock to go through its ugly phases over the first year.

 

[shinylights]

i got a 20g super basic super budget setup, ill attach a pic later for reference. What I learned is that HOB filters are super underrated. I was able to keep acros, LPS, nems, zoas, basically every kind of coral in my 20g by using a HOB filter, jebao pumps, and a SMATFARM light, which i got for 150 on amazon. I recently upgraded so I moved most stony corals to my larger tank, and left the nems and such in my 20g. when I did have a larger coral load in the 20g, I would just do larger waterchanges and not dose anything until it got to the point were I was losing 1 DKH every couple days, in which i just dosed baking soda. your pretty limited with fish options, so I stuck with clownfish, lawnmower blennies, firefish, dragonets, chromies, and inverts.
As for cycling and such, you only need a small piece of liverock from someone elses tank to seed your tank with bacteria, the cycle would take a week or so if you were to add in a fist sized chunk of aged liverock from someone elses tank.
dont just throw rocks in there, you wanna actually enjoy your rockscape and consider the coral growth and leave space for the glass to be cleaned.
ATO is extremely important in such a small tank, dont skip waterchanges down the line or water testing, because you got such a small volume of water its easier for things to go bad.

In short for coral you can basically get anything as long as you go with the natural progression of your tank,
as for fish:
your super limited but you can get
PJ or banggai cardinals
clowns
baby fish such as engineering gobies, some types of angels, some super small baby tangs like tomini or mimic while they are young but eventually you need to sell/trade/upgrade
lawnmower blennies
small blennies and gobies
dragonets

 

[shinylights]

ignore the dirty parts of the tank, these are te only pics I could find:

 

[Valentine]

I'm planning to start a nano reef as my first adventure into caring for saltwater / brackish marine life, my two size options are 120l and 60l.

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What would be the best stock, coral and basic knowledge needed to go about this. Anything helps!

Starting a nano reef is an exciting venture! 120L offers more stability in water parameters (salinity, pH, temperature) due to a larger water volume, which is important for beginners. It also gives you more space for fish, corals, and equipment.

 

[nimbus]

would highly recommend starting with a 40 breeder tank

 

[BeckettRussell]

Thank you so much for the suggestion.

 

[Reefingainteasy]

would highly recommend starting with a 40 breeder tank

Thanks for sharing this.

 

[Valentine]

I'm planning to start a nano reef as my first adventure into caring for saltwater / brackish marine life, my two size options are 120l and 60l.

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What would be the best stock, coral and basic knowledge needed to go about this. Anything helps!

120L tank more stable water parameters due to larger volume, greater stocking flexibility, more room for aquascaping and coral growth. Best for beginners who want a less risky start and room to grow.

 

[Josh]

20-40 gallons is much easier than a smaller tank. The main things to focus on are regular and consistent water changes, rather than dosing or filtration. Make sure the water is topped off regularly, and try to get the water to the right temperature before doing water changes.

 

[jcdeng]

The appeal of a nano is you basically can skip the filtration and 2 part dosing, WC can take care of everything, ie 5 gallon twice a week on a 20g is all that you need for upkeep.

If I were to do it, I'd get a 20g aio and a good light, and get a big rodi top off container and call it a day. Innovative Marine's hydrofill reservoirs look pretty good.

 

[LunaPowell]

Thank you so much for the information.

 

[Josh]

Hold up. There are a few prior comments that I disagree with.

First off, doing 2x 5G water changes on a 20g each week is WAY too much IMO. You really don't need to change more than 5g per month unless you are doing something crazy (i.e. too much livestock or overfeeding).

Start with soft corals and some LPS. Do not buy SPS for this size tank until you are able to keep the easier stuff. Soft corals and LPS will tolerate (and actually like) imperfect conditions (nitrates/nitrites/phosphates).

I don't think you need to dose this size tank at all if you are doing regular water changes. The only dosing I would even consider is a 2 part like ESV B-Ionic, and I wouldn't dose too much until you see the results.

Really, the best advice is to do regular water changes, regular top off with RODI, make sure both of these are done slowly and the water should ideally be the same temperature as the tank if possible.

Go slow with adding fish. Patience is key.

 

[OliviaWildson]

For beginners, stick to common and easy-to-care-for species like mushrooms, zoas, toadstools, xenia, Kenya trees, GSP, and Favias.

I agree with you!