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newbie needing some help

Jlnune07

Cuttlefish
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Joined
Feb 27, 2008
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21
Hey all,

I would post in the "introduce myself" forum but I dind't wanna repeat myself.

So anyways my name is John and I've been keeping marine tanks for almost a year. Ive got a 24g AP and a 12g jbj. 24g has been a standard reef tank since day one and the jbj was my seahorse tank. Ive decided I want to switch it up a bit, broke both down, turned the 12 into my reef and want to get an octo for the 24. Been doing some research and talked to my local fish store guys and ive been re-directed here :smile:

So I guess its an open floor for any and all who would like to give me some startup advice. What are some good starter octos? live rock setup? sand bed? do i need that extra powerhead?

I've taken my 150w HQI's off and put the hood back on for safety reasons (which also meant removing my custom sump I was so proud of :cry: ) and I know I must secure it down as well as makeshift a way to block off entry to the overflow compartments in the back. Blue moonlights only? Ive also heard some ppl say adding red LCDs is works.

Thanks all. Hope to join the ranks soon...and sucessfully.
 
My hummelincki (Carribean 2-spot) octopus is very happy in his 28 gallon nano cube. I have about 22 pounds of live rock and some corals near the top also, which he never bothers. He is always within sight and visible, eats very well, and is very active during the day...not to mention they dont grow large at all and require temp around 76 since they come from the Carribean. It is my first octo, and I think considering your tank size and it being your first octo...this would be an excellent choice if you can find one.
 
ok so instead ill save some time and effort...i read a lot of the articles and answered some of my own questions. However there are still some to be asked.

Bimacs seem to be a good species to keep. My LFS sells "atlantic octos." They have given me no more info and I'm not sure if they can get others. With that said, any suggestions for a good online store? where have/do you all purchase yours if online?

All lighting comments have pushed me towards no light except LEDs but the articles say PCs and the actinics in the hoods are fine for a normal day cycle like any other reef tank. I'll go with the latter. But how about those LEDs for night time? white/blue/red?

Finally will my 24g nano be sufficient? A lot of ppl ive talked to and met have all kept theirs in nanos, and my LFS actually kept one of their "atlantics" in a 12g AP for about 6 months (i would come in a watch/feed it daily). The articles all call for 50g or bigger but actual observation tells me i'm O.K. with my 24 and religious water changes. ???
 
:welcome: to TONMO. The octos we recommend the most, bimacs and briareus, would be too large for your tank, but as Octavarium says, hummelincki has become popular recently, and the jury may be out on their requirements at full adult size. Other than that, though, you'd probably only be able to keep a dwarf species like mercatoris. The main issue with cephs is water quality, since they produce a huge amount of waste for their size, so adding more water volume via a sump and making sure you have a whole lot of filtration would be very helpful. The recommended tank size for bimacs and briareus is 55-75gal, since we see a lot more deaths from water going bad rapidly in smaller tanks.
 
well for the night time lights use red because it makes a great viewing light and octopus can't see red. you can keep 1-2 mercatoris octos in your tank maybe 3 but they are nocturnal. i also have a hummelincki at the moment. i got mine from saltwaterfish.com but you can never be sure what kind of octo your getting. my lfs can get octos which are usually hummelincki and i can possibly ship one to you. not sure how much this would stress out the octo so i'm not sure.
 
Monty- is the 55-75 minimum for spacial requirements or just for water volumepurposes? For some odd reason I thought it would be fun to set up a sump on my 24g so I did. I have a 12g "igloo" sump (yes as in igloo the cooler company :razz: ) that has worked perfectly since setup and theres always the possibility of going bigger.

But if not then I'll still keep the sump on if I end up getting a Hummelincki, Ive just been brainstorming on how to keep the back compartments open for the overflow tube and return nozzle, but close off the top of the tank. If i can cut them to exact size, what are thoughts on a plexiglass or chicken-wire type of covering that are secured down, and fit to block off octo-access to the overflow areas? Then I could just rest the hood and lights on top and presto! I don't think the actinics would get too hot for plexiglass.

Fishguy- If you don't mind me asking where in CT you live or the name of your lfs? I'm in NY near Danbury so that might be worth a drive if it will mean I get what I'm looking for.

Hummel sounds like the way to go for me. Anybody else with good sites to purchase from?

Thanks guys, for the info and the welcoming
 
Water quality is certainly the most important reason big tanks are recommended, but some octos seem to get overcrowded, too. Nancy has mentioned that part of the reason that the minimum recommended size for a bimac tank was that in 40 gallon tanks, there were some incidents of the octo bumping into walls a lot, or seeming to "pace anxiously" or similar. Like I said, though, hummelincki is a species that's really only been available in two batches, one very recently, and the previous one apparently with some sort of health problem (all the octos died within a month, many going blind) so we haven't seen how large they grow in captivity yet, really.

Nancy, Corw314, or Colin can probably give a lot more details, since they're the ceph care staff, and the decision to raise the recommendation to raise the recommended bimac tank size to 55gal was before I was around.
 
We used plexiglass for our cover on Octane's 45 gallon. The 50/50 compacts are 18" away and still warp the plexiglass. There is no burning or obvious heat but the difference in air and water temp keep trying to give the tank wings. The cover is secured with clips but we will be adding extras because of the warping.
 
Jl I got mine at my LFS, which I really wasnt expecting to see an octo there. Needless to say I got the credit card out and took the 100 dollar hit. Its called All Pets Club in Branford, CT. You can call up and see if they're getting more. They had 2, and I bought one and checked back week later, the other was gone. But maybe they can hook you up with the same wholesaler. I love my guy. Good luck, let us know what you decide.
 
oct- thanks! i checked them out on the web and its a trek to drive out there for me to either location but ill definitely be giving them a call. fishkid led me to another store where he got a hummel so thats worth a shot too. hopefully i'll luck out somewhere. but ill def. let you guys know.

dw- wow, you still got that much water/air temperature diff? well thats good to know I guess. I've been thinking non-stop for almost 3 days now about how to fix my cover problem. I've got my 24ap on a 29g stand with my 12g sump underneath. I really liked the sump and its consistently given me better water quality and would, without question, be perfect if/when i get my octo. the only problem is i can't keep the hood that comes with the ap b/c of the u-tube for the overflow and the return nozzle take up the back, and therefore i can't close the hood securely. Thats when i started playing around with the idea of the plexiglass or mesh w/ access and just resting the hood on top. I would keep the sump, but it would be a pain in the ass, almost a 4 in overhang in front of the tank no less, and now you say even the pcs can cause warping.

O.K. how bout this? gonna swing by my store today and ask about drilling my tank. i think its possible, and ive heard them talk about ppl doing it before so maybe its an option for me. this way I can still keep the sump and have a secure/proper top on the tank. ive given up hope trying to use my 150w somehow. too much watt/gal and its been boiling my temp on the 12g. and theres just no way for the octo tank. guess ill just bite it for now and hold on to em. Nevertheless I would still have a drilled nano tank with a sump half its size....its got a napoleon complex what can i say lol. ::fingers crossed::
 
Jlnune07;111717 said:
Nevertheless I would still have a drilled nano tank with a sump half its size....its got a napoleon complex what can i say lol. ::fingers crossed::

Actually, I have seen several experienced reefers keep sumps equal to or double the size of the display (and a couple of them were very large displays!). In these cases, the display tank was a center piece in a room but the sumps were piped into a garage, closet, basement or elsewhere out of site. I like the idea but don't have the appropriate home environment unless I lost my laundry room :razz:. (I wouldn't mind loosing the laundry chore but if I have to do it then I need a decent area close to the closet :roll:).

One of the things we are thinking about trying it adding a second layer of plexiglass strips placed in the opposite direction of the warping. We don't know if it will help but it is under consideration.
 
Yea I hear that. I don't have the room, or the $$ at this point! I just think its funny that all the time/effort/money used on a nano when I could have used it all early on if I had just bought a bigger drilled tank to begin with. HQIs, powerheads, sump/fuge, stand etc...kinda funny but hey, can't beat good water quality and a tanks a tank right :grad: ? And that would have taken some of the fun out of all this, its been a blast so far.

Anyways, Ive decided not to go the drilling route. Some of the guys at my lfs were kinda aprehensive about it. Seen a couple of nanos crack, one one guy saw his buddy do it sucessfully. They said they weren't sure how the nano glass was tempered blah blah blah. Maybe a glass shop? But I don't want to risk it.

I'll just stick to a plexiglass covering, current actually makes a glass top for the 24ap...and it comes with the HQI setup which doesn't make sense. I didn't get one w/ mine :evil:

At the moment they're all sold out online...anyone have an extra lying around? know someone?

I'll head out to home depot or somewhere to get some plexiglass and cut it. Then I think I'm gonna hang a pc overhead actually. Like the new current solana setup (not the HQI pendant). I think it looks nice.
 
We did the same thing to our first nano (DIY upgrade on the lights, added stuff, tried to drill, added an overflow etc). We bought it thinking it could be a sump when we upgraded - naive. It sat unused for a couple of years but Neal decided to reactivate it last year so I went looking for a stand (its old place was already taken). I found a glass front stereo cabinet on eBay ($35 SHIPPED) and Neal custom cut a wood top to the exact shape of the aquarium so now there are two in the dining room :wink: (we won't discuss the living room and the breakfast room - hint there are no octos in the dining room ... yet). I think it bothered him that we put so much money into it and were not using it. You will soon learn the meaning of the term MTS :wink:
 

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