You've Got...Plants!

So, little known fact about me, I am an avid aquarist. Ever since seeing Chris' very stellar Nano-Cube when I started going to Life Group at his house, I wanted one. Nano's are amazing because the entire filtration system is in the back of the tank behind a built-in wall so you don't have any ugly filter sitting on top. Also, the lights are built into the hood which comes attached to the tank, so you don't have ugly light fixtures sticking out. And to top it off, all the cords from the filter, lights and ballast fit through holes in the hood and are hidden behind the stand. This makes the Nano a very sleek-looking operation and then you can store any miscellaneous meters or siphons or fish food in the cupboard door on the stand.

So after much lusting, in May Chris took me shopping and I finally got my very own 12 gallon Nano-Cube! It takes about 2-3 weeks after you set it up with sand, saltwater and rocks for the water and the organisms in the live sand to get "established". That means the nitrates and the salt levels are all kosher to support live fish. (I prefer my fish live, unless they're on my plate.)

And then I got Buddy. Buddy is a percula clownfish, and looks similar to Nemo from the movie. However, since Buddy lives with me in a spacious Nano-Cube condo, he does not require an anemone for symbiosis. I do notice however, that he mostly stays in one place in the tank, which is a characteristic of clownfish. When they are in a symbiotic relationship with a chosen anemone, some never go farther than 5 inches away from it for their entire lives. I made an addition a few months ago of some snails (I got 4, but one died).

Even more exciting is that today I got PLANTS! Chris gave me some pieces of his flora to start growing some plants in my tank. This should help keep my algae growth down. And this is significant because, while fish are the fun part of keeping an aquarium, you'll know truly dedicated aquarists by their excitement over rocks and plants. When I got my live rock, I was so excited I lost all interest in getting fish. Watching all the little organisms grow out of the rock was awesome. So I feel the same way about the plants. I can't wait for them to get hooked into the rocks and start growing away. They will keep the water cleaner (helpful for when I take trips away, like to New Orleans) and especially helpful with filtering all of Buddy's waste out of the tank. I am getting more diligent now in doing water changes, which also helps keep the water clearer. Overall, I do love saltwater for the lower maintenance. Basically, you're creating a mini-ocean that supports itself, as long as you keep screening enough fish wastewater out and putting enough fresh saltwater in.

I knew I was in love with my Nano the first time I turned off the TV because it was distracting me from watching Buddy swim around my tank.