Nano Reef Set up help [Archive]

derekjmd

07-07-2011, 05:27 PM

My friend was talking about setting up a 5 gallon tank as a nano tank (i believe they are called) and I want to help him get started for his birthday by buying some things he might need.. what is a good recommended Lighting and filter for a tank this small? i know he said something about soft corals to put in it.. I dont know a lot about these types of tanks but he currently has a 75 gallon salt water tank.. Any recommendations of things I might be able to buy to get him started?

MizTanks

07-07-2011, 06:52 PM

What kind of budget are you working with? There's a lot of options out there for you....it all depends on what your willing/wanting to spend. There are all-in-one tanks, or you could build your own. You could go used. Check with some peoples here. I know jolson had a nice little nano for sale...not sure if he sold it or not yet but you could save some money...

derekjmd

07-07-2011, 07:15 PM

What kind of budget are you working with? There's a lot of options out there for you....it all depends on what your willing/wanting to spend. There are all-in-one tanks, or you could build your own. You could go used. Check with some peoples here. I know jolson had a nice little nano for sale...not sure if he sold it or not yet but you could save some money...
My friend already has a Glass 5 gallon tank he wants to use.. I was hoping to get a nice light and filter for him for his birthday.. i would want to stay under $300 for both.. lower is better but dont want to get crap either

MyNemesis

07-07-2011, 09:15 PM

Get him a small LED light fixture and skip the filter. If he already has a tank, he'd probably rather do the filter stuff on his own anyway. LED lighting is the bomb and the prices have started to come down. In addition, most of what he will likely put in a 5 gallon nano will look super under the LEDs. You could get a very cool LED light fixture for a small tank well within your budget and it would be a most thoughtful gift.

MizTanks

07-07-2011, 09:52 PM

Get him a small LED light fixture and skip the filter. If he already has a tank, he'd probably rather do the filter stuff on his own anyway. LED lighting is the bomb and the prices have started to come down. In addition, most of what he will likely put in a 5 gallon nano will look super under the LEDs. You could get a very cool LED light fixture for a small tank well within your budget and it would be a most thoughtful gift.

+1 what he said :)

thepanfish

07-08-2011, 08:40 AM

I'd do a PAR type bulb, either PAR38 or PAR30. PAR30 sounds better if he mentioned softies though. You can get them with a fixture for about 90$ on BoostLED (http://www.boostled.com)