is it hard to maintain a nano-sw aquarium?

psariandras

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May 18, 2007
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how difficult is it to have a 10 or 15 gallon SW aquarium?
I understand how to filter a larger tank with LR and/or LS, but I do not know how to take care of a small SW tank?

Do you have to use very high quality expensive filtration equipment along with frequent water changes, and can correct stocking reduce the difficutly?

I wouldn't mind setting up a 15 but all the kits I have found for small tanks seem to cost about as much as setting up a large one. Is it possible to DIY and save money and still have a good working nanotank?

I could use LR/LS but I only have some pengium mini-filters and four 200gph powerheads atm. I do not own any protein skimmers or canister filters. I am curious about how much it would cost to set up a small SW tank and how I would do it.

... Thanks for any help.
 
I have a grand into my 10 gallon, but that includes coral, rock, sump, skimmer, halide light. The whole 9 yards.
 
i spend about 350 on my nano.... most expensive thing was lighting, i got some really cheap zoos and shrooms, and they basically filled the 18 gallons 8).

You dont need a skimmer, if you stay small enoguh imo, so that saves money... 20 or so lbs of LR isnt to pricey, probably like 60 bucks.

my lighting is a 24" halide/PC light, that sits on the tank itself. hole fixture was like 170 bucks or so, with 280 total watts (which may even be overkill)

So you can do it for cheaper, just depends on what your looking for.

-Jay
 
Yeah but I haven't seen him in a while. It will look better with the new light a few more frags and some time, as soon as the contest is over I will be moving it all to a 30 gallon long and adding more rock/coral.
 
yeah, cool stuff joe....

where did you get the 70 watt HQI ballast if you dont mind me asking?
 
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