My First Build ever...and need some direction

Jewel

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Joined
Oct 11, 2011
Location
Wingham Ontario
Well water will be fine as long as theres nothing else in the tank and as far a something under the tank, I'm not sure but what I'd do is ask on the question on the Nuvo Forum, I would hate to take that look away with a piece of styrafoam. Could be that the stand is built to absorb the weight of the tank. Check with others who have them.
 

Jewel

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Joined
Oct 11, 2011
Location
Wingham Ontario
Take a look at the instructions or check out your manual online. It states to put the tank on a Flat level surface. I would think it's much the same as a Bio-cube where as the stand is made to accept the tank. There fore I wouldn't put anything between them.
 

spyd

Super Active Member
Joined
Jan 31, 2011
Location
Kitchener, Ontario
Well water is much better than tap water anyways. No cholrine or chloramines to contend with. If you rtank has no brace on the bottom, I highly suggest a piece of 1/2" foam board underneath it. Make sure the stand is completely level as well in all directions. It will provide you with much more piece of mind.

You can definitely build a reef on a budget. It's all about being smart with your purchases. Buy the right equipment first time around so you are not having to upgrade equipment over and over again. The same can be said with corals and fish. Try not to impulse buy. Research what you want and stick to the plan as much as possible.

As for the rock. 1 lbs per gallon would be lots for you, as long as you are sticking with dry rock. When you buy live rock, it is highly saturated with water so your paying more per lbs of actual rock. Saying that, I do suggest getting 5 lbs or so of actual clean live rock to "seed" your dry rock. The live rock will contain all the necessary bacteria and it will then colonize on your dry rock. Just be sure the piece of live rock is pest free from an established tank.

You don't really need to worry too much regarding rock weight. It is all relative to your bio-load. If you are only planning a few fish and corals, you can get away with less rock. If you are thinking lots of fish and / or corals, then you have to add more rock to handle the nitrates.

I know Advanced Reef in Milton sells a lot of dry rock and ceramic pieces. Call Flavio and see what he has. That is somewhat local to you at least. I would buy a couple extra pieces and just talk to him to make sure it is okay to bring back the ones you don't use. Just makes it easier when you have some options for aquascaping.
 

Marz

Active Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Location
Orangeville, Ontario
Just a quick update:

Picked up ATO - I do believe that this is a critical component.
Will be jumping on the Jebao wagon only since I like that it is adjustable - only going to get one (yes it's a price thingy :))

Talked with Bill (thanks reeferkeeper420) and will be picking up DR, salt, refractometer, test kit while I am in London on the weekend. And I will need to get something to mix the salt in (may not be a tank right away) any suggestions are appreciated. I have read a lot on the forums about what people use, but something that I can get locally would be preferable.

Haven't had time to do leak test, but plan on doing it this week or when I get back on Saturday.
 

Jewel

Guest
Joined
Oct 11, 2011
Location
Wingham Ontario
ATO is very important, If you're looking at the Jebao for power heads you might want to look at the WP10 as I have the WP25 and it has tons of power, Maybe theres a You Tube video on both of them, Just a thought.
 

Marz

Active Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Location
Orangeville, Ontario
Jewel, absolutely agree with the wp10. I watched a bunch of videos and jumped on a few other forums. Wp10 will be more than sufficient. Would like to get another one as backup, but don't really need it for awhile.
 

Marz

Active Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Location
Orangeville, Ontario
Hahaha, now that would result in divorce.

I have a question as we just had a power failure - what is/are the most important things to keep running in a SW tank and how do people handle this (UPS, size)? I hadn't thought about this until tonight?
 

davesolo29

Super Active Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2012
Location
Kitchener, Ontario
I hug my tank to keep it warm and have all six kids blow in it with straws for circulation. 

I think most just have a battery powered air pump.  Or a backup that powers a heater and a power head. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Jewel

Guest
Joined
Oct 11, 2011
Location
Wingham Ontario
I use an MP40 with battery Back up, An Mp10 with battery back-up would be nice but they're a little pricey, You can also get a battery with an air pump and an air stone, I used to have one that was activated when the power went out. Probably not much if you can find one, then theres always a UPS, I should get one for a heater.
 

unibob

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Joined
Mar 15, 2012
Location
St Thomas
Jewel link said:
I use an MP40 with battery Back up, An Mp10 with battery back-up would be nice but they're a little pricey, You can also get a battery with an air pump and an air stone, I used to have one that was activated when the power went out. Probably not much if you can find one, then theres always a UPS, I should get one for a heater.

A heater will drain a UPS real quick. Better to use them for powerheads or air pumps.
 

Marz

Active Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Location
Orangeville, Ontario
Any thoughts on how I should place my DR in my tank - I was thinking about cutting some PVC up drilling holes and then placing the rock on that?

Still no leak test has been an insane week!
 

Duke

Distinguished Member
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Joined
Sep 20, 2011
Marz link said:
Any thoughts on how I should place my DR in my tank - I was thinking about cutting some PVC up drilling holes and then placing the rock on that?

Still no leak test has been an insane week!

Some people use egg crate aka fluorescent light diffuser and build on top of that because it's easy to cover with sand
 
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