JBJ 24 Nano Cube

[jainy]

My first saltwater tank if many years. I decided to go with the JBJ Nano Cube for its all in one design and aesthetics to please my wife.

23 lbs of live rock
20 lbs of live sand
removed the bio balls and ceramic rings
Stock power compact fluorescent bulbs
Visi-Therm Deluxe 100watt heater
1 Koralia Water Circulation Pumps Nano
I use one sponge in the middle chamber with a bag of Chemi-Pure

After one month some nice algae growth

 

[jainy]

2 new mates

2 new tank mates 12/06/2008

 

[marki24]

Nice :tank: i think its nice to see dead coral mix matched with your live rock collection.

 

[ocholoco]

hey

Cant wait to see this tank stocked up. Good Start.

 

[JJSBLM]

looks good....

cant wait to see your other stocking plans

 

[jainy]

Nice :tank: i think its nice to see dead coral mix matched with your live rock collection.

Thanks. I found in in my parent's basement. My brother had it in a 55 fish only tank many years ago. Hopefully it will become partially live in time.

 

[jainy]

First coral a Green Star Polyp. I don't have metal halide lights (as yet) so I'm relegated to soft corals. I also added 2 very nice pieces of Fiji live rock from aquatic express.

 

[DrCooper]

great start!

 

[jainy]

New Photos

New photos. Thanks ocholoco for the corals.

 

[ocholoco]

hey

Nice Looking good, can we get a full tank shot.

 

[jainy]

New Photos

 

[jainy]

Recent Mods and Upgrades

I wanted to install protein skimmer in my JBJ 24DX and decided to go with a AquaticLife Mini 115. This skimmer got some very good reviews on Marine Depot and you can't beat the price. I initially installed the skimmer in the front part of the tank's display area but that quickly became an eyesore. I decided to install it in the rear filter's middle chamber. I fabricated a shelf out of plastic egg crate and placed the skimmer on top. I had to remove the top clip and left the bottom clip in place but removed the suction cups. It's basically being held in place on it's own. I reversed the hood while I tested the new skimmer placement. The skimmer works very well but requires constant adjustments to compensate for water level changes. It can be loud but that just means it needs tweaking.


My next mod was cutting the front of the JBJ stock hood so I can slide it forward leaving the back chambers exposed. This wasn't too bad except for feeding which required moving the entire hood up and over the skimmer. The mod also placed the light in the front of the tank leaving areas of the back a little dark. I enjoyed the effect, but my corals in the back probably did not like the lack of light.

Next upgrade, new light fixture. After doing some research I decided to upgrade my lighting to a T5 unit. I settled on a WavePoint 24" T5 HO. The WavePoint light has adjustable legs to accommodate the JBJ's 18" width. It has no fans and runs very cool. I would have gone with the Currents 20" fixture but then I would be locked into buying their bulbs. The standard 24" width also give me more tank upgrade possibilities. A little foil and duct tape solve the light bleeding from the sides. I'm working on a more elegant fix.