New to saltwater tank, starting with Fluval Evo 13.5. Thoughts on this setup?

[Derrick0580]

I have two evos! Both pretty much identical upgrades. Intank media racks in chamber 1 with floss, carbon, purigen, and matrix. Heaters in chamber 2, eheim compacton 1000 return pumps, innovative marine diy mesh lid, and ai prime lights. The only difference is one has a tunze nano ato and a nero 3, and the other has an auto aqua mini ato with a hydor nano power head. These tanks are soo much fun!

 

[JK2]

Skimmer would be nice
With almost same upgrades

 

[islandstonashville]

Skimmer would be nice
With almost same upgrades

I’m thinking about it getting a skimmer but not really sure if that’s really a necessity at this time.

btw your tank looks nice. what’s your livestock?

 

[islandstonashville]

I have two evos! Both pretty much identical upgrades. Intank media racks in chamber 1 with floss, carbon, purigen, and matrix. Heaters in chamber 2, eheim compacton 1000 return pumps, innovative marine diy mesh lid, and ai prime lights. The only difference is one has a tunze nano ato and a nero 3, and the other has an auto aqua mini ato with a hydor nano power head. These tanks are soo much fun!

hahahah excited already where this hobby will take me.

 

[tydeck]

I have a Evo V and the Evo 13. Love them. Using the 5 gallon as my holding tank for now.
great tanksthat can be as simple or as complex as you want.

 

[tydeck]

Deleted double post

 

[OfficeReefer]

@islandstonashville, all the upgrades, updates, etc., are acceptable. This tank has many a thread on the Nano Reef forums. I used to have one of these tanks ago. Upgrades are fine, but they are not the issue, rather than the AIO design itself, and the peninsula design doesn't suit me due to viewing angles. The included light is an excellent light to start with, but it doesn't include much for control. I recommend keeping your temps on the lower side in this tank if possible, as the surface will get warm. Many have added fans, and the like as the hood prevents evaporation.

While one could keep some great corals in this tank, I'd recommend sticking with softies, zoos, and lps. While I have seen some SPS, with the space available for aquascaping that's more accommodating to your fish, you'll want to reserve this for your premium and PAR intensive corals.

ATO is a must for the SPS, but I've done softies and zoas with manual top-offs every other day. The ATO is a worthy upgrade because you'll eventually want to upgrade the tank. So I would get one that will support your future needs and this tank.

 

[OfficeReefer]

I have a Evo V and the Evo 13. Love them. Using the 5 gallon as my holding tank for now.
great tanksthat can be as simple or as complex as you want.

^^^ this ^^^

 

[FreshCoastReef]

I’m new to saltwater tank, I’ll be starting with Fluval Evo 13.5 running on these upgrades. Thoughts? What else do I need?
Lights - AI Prime 16HD
Pump - Sicce 1.0 Pump
Wavemaker - Hygger Mini 1600gph
Heater - Hygger 100w Titanium Heater
inTank media baskets
VCA Random flow generator.
ATO?

Thoughts? Recommendations? What else do I need? Thanks

For ATO I'm running the Tunze Osmolator 3152 Nano and it's been working great and reliably. Would recommend.

Also, I picked up a BN Link wifi power strip from Amazon and really like it - allows me to control all electrical equipment at the touch of a button. Not a need to have, but it's been a nice addition.

 

[JK2]

I’m thinking about it getting a skimmer but not really sure if that’s really a necessity at this time.

btw your tank looks nice. what’s your livestock?

Yeh guess it will depend on how often you will change water and the livestock. Mines quite heavy with picasso pair, royal gramma, fire shrimp, acan, acros, bubble gum (monti) etc. Also, oxygenation would be important for ph stability. Skimmer helps with that if your room is well ventilated

 

[frizzayyyyreef]

Nanos aren't too complicated and a real joy!
Not too much equipment required...

Idk I’ve had a 75 gallon reef run itself but now I have a 36 gallon and I can’t keep stable parameters if my life depended on it….I’ll never do a small reef tank again it’s imo very tough a nano I couldn’t imagine

 

[jfoahs04]

I’m thinking about it getting a skimmer but not really sure if that’s really a necessity at this time.

btw your tank looks nice. what’s your livestock?

There are some who swear by the skimmer in this tank, but I don’t think they’re necessarily worth it in most instances on the EVO. I run a pretty heavy bioload - occelaris pair, yellow watchman goby, tailspot blenny, 5 trochus, 3 nassarius, 4 blue leg hermits, skunk cleaner, peppermint shrimp, 2 pom pom crabs, 2 sexy shrimp, a pistol shrimp, and a ton of coral (including some pretty sensitive acropora) - and I’m still able to easily keep nutrients under control with weekly water changes (vacuuming the sandbed and blasting off the rocks with a turkey baster when I drain the old water) and chemipure blue nano packets (2 at a time). There’s plenty of oxygen exchange with one return nozzle pointed toward the surface and a small cascade/waterfall from the overflow into the chamber 1 media basket.

The skimmer certainly wouldn’t hurt. And for some people who REALLY overfeed (I overfeed a bit) and have a heavy bioload, it might actually be necessary. But for me, it’s an unnecessary expense and can sometimes be an added maintenance headache (they’re finicky to dial in at first and can struggle with water level changes). I’d wait until you really think you need it before getting one. Or pick a used one up so it’s not a big deal if you end up not using it.

 

[islandstonashville]

My pump and heater should arrive today. I’ll be adding sand and water then I’ll start cycling tomorrow.

 

[eag]

Heater - Hygger 100w Titanium Heater

It's way too powerful. If it fails into the on position, which is a common failure mode, your tank will cook quickly.

Two undersized heaters is best if you want safety. Inkbird is good too.

Flow is high but others have noted already.

 

[islandstonashville]

It's way too powerful. If it fails into the on position, which is a common failure mode, your tank will cook quickly.

Two undersized heaters is best if you want safety. Inkbird is good too.

Flow is high but others have noted already.

I went with Cobalt Neotherm Pro 75w

 

[OfficeReefer]

My pump and heater should arrive today. I’ll be adding sand and water then I’ll start cycling tomorrow.

Nice arrangement! I do agree with the others on the heater size. Also, consider your ambient temperature as well. I think I had a much smaller heater, possibly 20w cobalt. I think you'll have decent flow in this tank anyway, so even a tiny powerhead would be more than enough towards the bottom of the tank.

Will you be planning on keeping this a sandless bottom?

 

[islandstonashville]

Nice arrangement! I do agree with the others on the heater size. Also, consider your ambient temperature as well. I think I had a much smaller heater, possibly 20w cobalt. I think you'll have decent flow in this tank anyway, so even a tiny powerhead would be more than enough towards the bottom of the tank.

Will you be planning on keeping this a sandless bottom?

I did put some live sand in it.

 

[lubeck]

Scape looks great. Can’t tell from the pics but be sure to leave room between the glass and the rock for cleaning

 

[islandstonashville]

Here’s the tank now.

 

[islandstonashville]

This is the tank now.