# Nano cube or Bio cube? Tell me which is better.



## ckeiling (May 27, 2011)

I am going to buy either a Nano cube or Bio cube, about 29 gallons. Which is generally preferred? Pros/cons...help me decide please!!!! :angler_fish:


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## giddetm (Apr 30, 2011)

You did not say what size the cube is or what you plan to keep in it. Either way I would go with the 29 since the more water you have the easier it is to keep your parameters in check. Which you probably already know from your saltwater tank.


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## Alaizabelle (Mar 4, 2011)

They said that they were planning on the 29 gallon size 

As for which to get... I have no idea at all! I only recently got my first saltwater tank (a 12 gallon Nano Cube) 

Good luck!


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

go with whichever has the best lighting.. i hear a lot of people upgrade the biocube's lighting for coral.. so get the one that would have the least amount of stuff you'd need to upgrade for what you want to get.


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## giddetm (Apr 30, 2011)

Alaizabelle said:


> They said that they were planning on the 29 gallon size
> 
> As for which to get... I have no idea at all! I only recently got my first saltwater tank (a 12 gallon Nano Cube)
> 
> Good luck!


I thought a nano tank was under a certain amount of gal.(hence the name nano)but I could be wrong.


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## Kaiden32 (Sep 4, 2010)

I have a nano cube and I love it, but I haven't had experience with bio cubes. You can get a 28 gallon nano cube with an HQI light in it, but I think you can get a biocube like that too. I think that the biocube is set up a little different than the nano cube. With a nano cube the entrance to the back is on the left, and with a biocube it is on the right. This doesn't really make a difference though. If you just get the regular biocube 29 you are probably going to want to upgrade your lighting if you want more than some softies and low light LPS. With the 28 gallon nano cube HQI you aren't going to have to worry about upgrading your lighting. You can pretty much put anything including SPS in there with that lighting. Also, with the 28 gallon nano cube HQI, it comes with a wave maker. There are actually two pumps in the back on opposite sides and it alternates between the two. If you want SPS though, you will probably want to add a powerhead, but you would have to with a biocube also. The only thing with the 28 nano cube HQI is that with it all enclosed like that, you could have heat problems, so you might have to get a chiller. If you don't want metal halides, you could try a nano cube dx. I think they have that in the 24 gallon as well as the 12 gallon (which is what I have and love it.) The dx comes with 2x the lighting as the regular (i think) and in my 12 I have acans, candy canes, frogspawn, etc. I even had montipora in there (until it got these bugs on it and died). It didn't grow as fast as it would in higher lighting, but I think it would have done fine. You can actually go to nanotuners.com and look at their LED mods for the nano cubes if you are into DIY stuff. You can convert a nano cube (any size I believe) into LED, if you want to try your hand at that. I personally don't think I would do it, but it depends on the person. I am happy with the way it is. The regular nano cubes, the nano cube dx, and the regular biocubes come with PCs. The nano cube HQI and the biocube HQI obviously come with HQIs. Here are the watts of lighting in them:

Nano cube 12 dx: 2x 18 watt PC= 36 watts
Nano cube 24 dx: 2x 36 watt PC= 72 watts
Bio cube 29: 2x 36 watt PC= 72 watts
Nano cube 28 HQI: 150 watt 14 k HQI
Bio cube 29 HQI: 150 watt HQI

Anyways, I hope this helped!
Kaiden


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## Alaizabelle (Mar 4, 2011)

giddetm said:


> I thought a nano tank was under a certain amount of gal.(hence the name nano)but I could be wrong.


Hehe, the name Nano cube is the brand of the tank  I'm not exactly sure where people draw the line for actual nano size, though!



My Nano cube 12 dx has 2x24 watt bulbs o.0 
Is that normal? Or is mine weird?


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## ckeiling (May 27, 2011)

Kaiden, wow, thanks for the reply. You really did a great summary for me. I hadn't thought about needing a chiller, that can get pricey. I will have to do some more homework here. Again, thanks for the post, you helped alot!


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## Kaiden32 (Sep 4, 2010)

no problem. Woops...it is actually 2x24 watts for the nano cube 12 dx. Sorry about that.


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

If you do the LED setup as was mentioned, it decreases your need to get a chiller. They produce a significantly less amount of heat as the MH would.


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## Kaiden32 (Sep 4, 2010)

yes. with LEDs that would take away the need of a chiller and still give you around the same amount of output as a MH.


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## Scuff (Aug 10, 2010)

I've always been a huge fan of the Red Sea 130D tanks, as well. They're all-inclusive, and they're pretty trick little things. You pay a little more, but you definitely get what you pay for.


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## Kaiden32 (Sep 4, 2010)

It depends on the size you want. Red Sea Max makes significantly larger tanks than nano cube and biocube. They have one thats like 35 and one thats like 70. Right?


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## cidly24 (Sep 9, 2011)

Nano cube,and then use some led aquarium light let the reef brow


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## Arackna (Oct 12, 2011)

Ok friends, I am a huge aquarium fan and in the '80's managed to keep a 20 gal tall Marine tank going for several years, but no live rock or the technology they have now. Anyway I am going to buy some sort of Bio/Nano/Red Sea all in one reef tank. The main question I have is regarding the lighting. LED vs HQI metal halide lighting, do both types produce the necessary lvls of artificial light for all corrals to thrive? If that is the case, it seems to me the LED option is better/safter due to the significantly less heat output of the LED, am I thinking correctly about it? 

*Thanks for your expertise!*


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## cidly24 (Sep 9, 2011)

Arackna said:


> Ok friends, I am a huge aquarium fan and in the '80's managed to keep a 20 gal tall Marine tank going for several years, but no live rock or the technology they have now. Anyway I am going to buy some sort of Bio/Nano/Red Sea all in one reef tank. The main question I have is regarding the lighting. LED vs HQI metal halide lighting, do both types produce the necessary lvls of artificial light for all corrals to thrive? If that is the case, it seems to me the LED option is better/safter due to the significantly less heat output of the LED, am I thinking correctly about it?
> 
> *Thanks for your expertise!*


The led lights are the trend now, they economical. save energy and money,friendly environment,i suggest you use led aquarium light,a hight power led aquarium light.


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## Herbieace (Nov 21, 2011)

Just filled my 28g nano cube Friday 11/18. I have no experience with anything else in the all-in-one space, but I am very happy with the 89w LED advanced set-up. I think I have way more than my experience set requires, and I love the idea of being basically set up from the start. I added a korilina 240gph and with the included wavemaker on the cube, my flow looks awesome. The dual outputs are a major plus and the channels in the back are set up for a heater on one side and a skimmer on the other (I am going all live rock for now). The other plus is that the filter basket is clear as is that section of the back of the tank. JBJ sells a magnetic LED that snaps right there to easily convert to a refugium. I barely understand half of these fricking terms, but The nano got thumbs up at my LFS for sure and I think the LED advanced has to be the way to go if you don't want to avoid having to build skynet in your basement like I do. 
(for full disclosure and so I don't look like I work for JBJ; I did have a complete disintegration of the right lifter pump tubing about 4 hours in ((very hard to get elbow out from under filter basket chamber at first)), but it was probably my fault and zip ties all around fixed that right up. 

I'll post a pic once I figure out this system. . . Either way, if you are as excited as I have been, have a martini and just get one!(if you're 21 of course)


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