Nano skimmer or uv

[carnut]

Hi everyone,

I have a five gallon eclipse mini bow, it has been running since April. It has about five pounds live rock or so, one inch sugar sized argonite crushed coral base. The occupants are two o clowns, one bumble bee snail, two cone snails and a cerith snail. Two ricordia, one regular mushroom, three xenia. Currently using stock filter as circulation, occasionally run carbon. Tanks has lot of bugs running around, fish are healthy and growing fine. :hurray: Light is a coralife 20 watt 50/50. I would like to remove the stock filter, blocking light from back of tank and replace it with something else. Should i look at a micro skimmer or would a uv filter do the same? Thinking both would provide the water circulation the current pump does!!

[jtremblay]

For a five gallon tank, it's probably easier, cheaper, and better just to do large, weekly water changes (like 50 or 75%).

Jason

[NanoReefaholic]

Welcome to the world of nano reefs!

Two clowns on a 5g is really pushing it. One maybe but I don't think two is a good idea, especially when they get to be full grown.

As for UV vs skimmer, get the skimmer. You'll benefit more from the skimmer. I'd try to add a bit more base rock to up your filter. As you know the base will become alive and it won't give you the new tank syndrome that adding live rock would.

[reefer madness]

two cone snails


I thought cone snails were highly venemous! If it's the ones i am thinking of they kill fish and eat them whole. I saw video of one shooting a dart into a goby and then sucked him up like a vacuum cleaner. They collect these around the great barrier reef for medical research.

More on the subject, I would deffinately go with a skimmer!
Gary

[carnut]

as far as the clown go there is lots of room in the 120 for them if they out grow the nano.What type of skimmer, was looking at the fusion micro skimmer, don't want anything too big the tank sits on a bar top.

[NanoReefaholic]

Gary, your right about some cone snails being very toxic. The toxin is used in human medicine. There are alot of different types of cone snails and without the full name (hopefully it's not mislabelled) we'll never know. I also saw a program on the discovery network where the conch snail was considered one of the 10 most deadly but they're in alot of home reefs, granted a different type.

Do not buy a fission, you'll regret it. They look nice but, IMO, they're not worth the plastic they're made out of. I'd look into the AquaC nano skimmer, Tunze nano skimmer, or Deltec MCE300 nano skimmer.

[carnut]

The cones came from BA, Have had them since march in my other tanks and have never had a problem, though they are preety small never got much bigger than an inch, do quite the number keeping the glass algae free.

Thanks for the skimmer info