Rp.McMurphy Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Typical story- had freshwater tanks but always looked on with envy at the saltwater world. The best fish. Corals. The chemistry and science. But mostly just how [language filter] pretty that water looks. Bought a used Nuvo 20 and got water in it last weekend. Now patiently waiting for it to cycle. Been to pretty much every LFS and have enjoyed meeting everyone. Looking to keep a low maintence tank with a few fish, softies and LPS. Going to rely on you all for advice. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exodus Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Welcome to the club! I'm sure you will enjoy the world of Saltwater, though a 20g Nuvo or any AIO aquarium is far from low maintenance as efficient nutrient export is extremely difficult with the limited options of filtration. If you stick to hardy lps & softies you should be just fine The best part is with all the additional challenges of an AIO you will get allot of experience you wouldn't have otherwise gotten, and when you decide to upgarde to a larger tank with a sump, things will go exceptionally smooth! Good Luck and be sure to post your build! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 13, 2018 Author Share Posted April 13, 2018 (edited) Ha. Low maintaince was a relative term- I know this is quite a commitment. I know small tanks require disciplined upkeep and don't have many of the benefits of larger tanks but as a renter with a landlord I have to work with what I can. Baby steps. Edited April 13, 2018 by Rp.McMurphy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Welcome! Congrats on getting your first saltwater tank wet - just the beginning of what will likely be a long, crazy but satisfying ride. This is a good place to start, however. Lots of great knowledge and expertise including quite a few talented small tank keepers. Good luck with the new adventure! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 13, 2018 Author Share Posted April 13, 2018 Thanks albertareef- glad to be here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exodus Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 22 minutes ago, Rp.McMurphy said: Ha. Low maintaince was a relative term- I know this is quite a commitment. I know small tanks require disciplined upkeep and don't have many of the benefits of larger tanks but as a renter with a landlord I have to work with what I can. Baby steps. You know I spent 6 years with AIO tanks and my best advice in keeping things running smoothly is keep with a weekly maintenance schedule religiously, use very little or no sand and be sure to vacuum it. Look into InTank media baskets, change the media regularly as needed, Always Always double check your salinity of your mix and the tank twice before doing the water change, and if you get to a point where you think you may need to dose, in that small of a tank Kalk is just a cheaper easier solution, Expanding on that an Auto Top Off system should be a priority 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 13, 2018 Author Share Posted April 13, 2018 Already got the ATO set up. Was pretty impressed to see how much water these little tanks can go through in a day. Thanks for the advice Any little bit of knowledge passed on that can save me from future missteps is much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 13, 2018 Author Share Posted April 13, 2018 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Welcome to the forum. I loved my Nuvo 20 and miss it but I ran out of room. It was pretty easy to maintain. I had softies lps and a few monties. i did weekly 4 to 5 gallon water changes , upgraded the pump for more flow, and occasional chemipure. I had a low bio load but had an awesome golden dwarf eel and has an mo10. I had no major issues other than my gold torch getting to big and killing a lot of my sps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 13, 2018 Author Share Posted April 13, 2018 Good to hear about your tank, Emerald525. Question, during water changes what did you find was the easiest way to get water back in? Did you use a pump? Just lift up the bucket and pour? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 5 minutes ago, Rp.McMurphy said: Good to hear about your tank, Emerald525. Question, during water changes what did you find was the easiest way to get water back in? Did you use a pump? Just lift up the bucket and pour? Ha ha those who know me , know I avoid anything mechanical so I just simply siphoned and lifted the bucket and poured. It’s one of the few tanks I didn’t have cyano issues and I suspect it’s because I had really good flow to the point sometimes the sand would be rearranged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisriverfisherman Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Welcome to the forum!! As others have stated there are lots of knowledgeable peeps here so don't be afraid to ask questions. I have a 20gal nuvo myself, ATO are good to have with these small tanks. My main challenge with my tank has been keeping my salinity stable. I have a ghost skimmer and it wet skins and this can effect my salinity for the week (start of the week .025, by the end of the week it's almost down to .024) looking forward to how your tank progresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wantanewtank Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 Typical story- had freshwater tanks but always looked on with envy at the saltwater world. The best fish. Corals. The chemistry and science. But mostly just how [language filter] pretty that water looks. Bought a used Nuvo 20 and got water in it last weekend. Now patiently waiting for it to cycle. Been to pretty much every LFS and have enjoyed meeting everyone. Looking to keep a low maintence tank with a few fish, softies and LPS. Going to rely on you all for advice. Do you have any questions?Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sailingeric Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 (edited) Like you I went from fresh water to saltwater. I started with a 29 gallon tank and after a month I moved everyone to my 75 gallon tank. I have found saltwater fish keeping is not that much harder than freshwater other than you just need stay on top of topping off with freshwater daily so the salinity stays in check. I am just now starting with some beginner corals so need to learn how to keep the elements and hardness in check. I would recommend checking the for sale forum, you can save a bundle that way. Edited April 17, 2018 by Sailingeric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 18, 2018 Author Share Posted April 18, 2018 On 4/13/2018 at 9:31 AM, lewisriverfisherman said: Welcome to the forum!! As others have stated there are lots of knowledgeable peeps here so don't be afraid to ask questions. I have a 20gal nuvo myself, ATO are good to have with these small tanks. My main challenge with my tank has been keeping my salinity stable. I have a ghost skimmer and it wet skins and this can effect my salinity for the week (start of the week .025, by the end of the week it's almost down to .024) looking forward to how your tank progresses. Thanks for the welcome. I have an ATO set up and yes, after a few days initially without one I don't know how I could really do without one. I bought float switches and a DC pump from autotopoff.com. It works really well- it's a solid step up from a DIY set up (I'm fairly handy but I hate electricity) but allowed me to save a few bucks. The only issue is fitting the switches in the return chamber- they'll only fit right in the middle so I had to offset my light to one side. I may just get another pump and split my return hose and see if it'll fit that way. My other question is about my media tray. I bought an aqua gadget custom caddy (would love inTank but you know, money...). Some of the water does seem to flow around the tray. Currently I'm only running floss but eventually will bag my own media. Will there be enough flow though the tray despite some of the water taking the easy way around? I'll have more questions but for now the tank is just cycling. Not much to do for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 18, 2018 Author Share Posted April 18, 2018 On 4/16/2018 at 5:15 PM, wantanewtank said: Do you have any questions? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk I'm going to have a ton of questions... but for now it's the calm before the storm while my tank cycles. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rp.McMurphy Posted April 18, 2018 Author Share Posted April 18, 2018 On 4/16/2018 at 6:11 PM, Sailingeric said: Like you I went from fresh water to saltwater. I started with a 29 gallon tank and after a month I moved everyone to my 75 gallon tank. I have found saltwater fish keeping is not that much harder than freshwater other than you just need stay on top of topping off with freshwater daily so the salinity stays in check. I am just now starting with some beginner corals so need to learn how to keep the elements and hardness in check. I would recommend checking the for sale forum, you can save a bundle that way. Thanks for the tip, Sailingeric. I'll be sure to keep an eye on the sale forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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