15G nano with a 10g sump

[revkev6]

hey guys, I'm posting this for my brother. He has had a 15 gallon FOWLR for about 3 years. he has a HOB filter, about 15lbs of LR, LS. He has three fish in it right now, 2 clowns and a dottyback. He just recently added a 10G sump with a protein skimmer. the sump pickup in the 15 also has a surface skimmer. He has about 8 lbs of LR in the the sump now and will be getting some more soon. He just got a coralife 24" CF 2x65 watt hood for it. 1 actinic and 1 10k I believe. He would like to start getting some corals for it. He has loads of questions for you guys so I'll start off with some of them.

1. is there anything else that should be added to the system?
2. what is a good inexpensive test kit?
3. what are a good group of beginner corals, mushrooms etc that could be kept in this setup.
4. how much flow should there be for these corals?
5. how much flow should there be in the sump tank? should he add another powerhead to push more water through his LR?
6. should he add some Macroalgae to his sump tank?
7. what special feeding requirements do different corals have?
8. how often should he be feeding the tank
9. what is a good general book to pick up to learn more?


I think that more than overwhelmed everyone for now. sorry for the length and I hope you guys can help him out. sometime after I move into my new place this weekend I will be starting my own nano tank, so these questions will be helping me as well! thanks again!

 

[ricky1414]

1. is there anything else that should be added to the system?
2. what is a good inexpensive test kit?
3. what are a good group of beginner corals, mushrooms etc that could be kept in this setup.
4. how much flow should there be for these corals?
5. how much flow should there be in the sump tank? should he add another powerhead to push more water through his LR?
6. should he add some Macroalgae to his sump tank?
7. what special feeding requirements do different corals have?
8. how often should he be feeding the tank
9. what is a good general book to pick up to learn more?

These are just my opinions, so take them with a grain of salt (no pun intended)
1. Maybe some powerheads to get random flow. I don't see a need for the hob filter with a sump.
2. I have had problems with inexpensive test kits being innaccurate or hard to read, maybe someone else could chime in.
3. I would start with shrooms and zoas. Generally easy to keep, and they have plenty of color morphs for added attraction.
4. Light/medium flow would be best, for a 15 gallon, maybe a maxijet 900 and 1 or 2 maxijet 600's.
5. People here say sump turnover should be about 10-15x over. For a 15 galon, that's like 150-225 gph.
6. Only if he wants to. Lights of America fixtures from walmart would suffice for macro growth in my opinion. I think most people are using chaeto in their refugiums.
7. Depends on the coral. Sorry for the lack of a better answer, but research is needed to determine that. There is no blanket answer.
8. Again, depends on the species.
9. Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert Fenner, Natural Reef Aquariums by John H. Tullock to name 2.

Oh, and yeah, we here at RDO love pictures. So post 'em if you got 'em.

 

[revkev6]

okay, so in reference to questions 4 and 5:

he is using a maxijet 900 to pump 3' up from the sump tank to the display tank, this seems a little insufficient so we are planning on replacing that powerhead with something a little larger.

you state turnover in the sump should be 10-15x tank volume, does that mean he should add a seperate powerhead to the sump tank?

thanks for the reply!

 

[ricky1414]

No, turn over to the tank. You want a return pump thats rated for about 250 gph after the head loss for the height of the return. Hope that helps.

 

[aweeks95]

hey ricky thanks for the replies, that is my tank you guys are talking about! Revkev is my brother. heres a couple shots of the tank the way it is right now. i'm sitting in front of it so if you want any specific pics let me know and I will take them.

 

[aweeks95]

side view of tank with protien skimmer hanging on the sump.

 

[aweeks95]

front view close up, shows the macro algae growth and the clear surface skimmer in the back.

 

[aweeks95]

I do have a ricordia which I have had for about 9 months. he's doing pretty good and is starting to split, it has two, possibly three mouths. I got this guy for practically nothing and added him to my FOWLR tank but would like to start going more towards reefing