Reefs.org Forums

[John Kh]

Can someone tell me how to build a Nano Reef tank!! I have a tank with 25/20G size and I am not really using. Plus i am interested to make it a Nano Reef. Can someone tell me what do I need? Heater? Skimmer? Lights? Anyone can tell me some details about this, please!!

J,

[The Escaped Ape]

Oooh, well there as many ways as there are reefkeepers, almost.

But, to be a little bit more helpful ( ), there are a few options. One is to go for the ready-made nano. There are various options out there, including the JBJ cube, the Red Sea Max etc.

Another is to go for a custom nano, as made by people like Nano Tuners.

http://www.nanotuners.com/

Another is to put the components together yourself. The advantage is that you can do so for rather less money than a ready-made version and the limit is only your own creativity!

Here's a thread I have logged in my favorites from a British board, in case I ever decide to set one up myself.

http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/showthread.php?p=2048216#post2048216

Remember, this is only one way to do it and apologies in advance if some of the materials he uses are UK specific...

[The Escaped Ape]

Oh, and don't forget to check out Matt's stickied threads at the top of the Nano forum about suitable fish for a nano. That's a good source of info.

[John Kh]

Well I do have a small tank of about 20G that I am planning to use. I am not intending to buy a ready one. I am thinking of doing it myself. I was using this small tank as a QT. I am getting a big tank and the main current one I have will be used as a QT. So the little tank will be useless. That's why I decided to use it as a NanoReef

J,

[ElMonoCalvo]

Are you going to plumb it or go the hang-on route? I had a 30 gal reef tank for a couple years and did the hang-on thing which worked fine but I caught a lot of flack from the wife about the "science project" look and feel of the whole thing.

[John Kh]

I guess I will go for the hang on. I am already busy setting a big tank. So I prefer something easy, just to make use of the small tank. Do I need a skimmer?

J,

[ElMonoCalvo]

I had an AquaC Remora on mine which pulled a fair amount of waste. However, I was a little lax on water changes so if you're on top of that then you might be ok without one.

[John Kh]

Got your point

J,