I had a ten gallon freshwater tank for several years. I had the idea that I’d upgrade it and use the 10 gal tank as a nanoreef, just experimentally dip my toe into marine aquarium keeping. The upgrade for the freshwater tank was delayed, so in the fall 2005 I went ahead with a 2.5 gallon picoreef. This is documented in the category First Attempt. After less than a year I upgraded the nanoreef to a new 10 gallon tank. See Nanoreef Journal. It lasted nearly a year and a half. The 29 gallon freshwater tank was never fully populated, so I moved those fish back into a 10 gallon tank in the fall of 2007. At that time I began the “mini-reef” in the 29 gallon tank, adding more live rock and eventually moving the contents of the nanoreef into that tank.I’m not a dedicated aquarium enthusiast in the sense that aquariums are my only or primary hobby. They’re not. That doesn’t mean I’m any less dedicated in terms of maintaining my tanks and the creatures that inhabit them. 
My Fish History I had fish bowls as a pre-teen, tried a 10 gallon tank many years ago in a small rural town with really bad water that no amount of husbandry or chemistry on my part could correct or keep stable. (Our last year there it had gotten so bad we were drinking bottled water.) It was a very frustrating experience, but I understood that it was the water there, not me, not my tank. We moved here in the summer of 2000 and in the summer of 2001 I set up the 10 gallon aquarium again. I’ve currently got only three freshwater fish: a cory named Louie and two young panda corys (as yet unsexed) optimistically named Maurice and Giselle in the hope of them turning out to be a mated pair. I have had both male and female bettas in addition to the corys. Although I’ve had other types of fish, I like bettas and corys; they’re more interesting than any other fish I’ve had.
The mini-reef It’s a natural curiosity that drives me toward a marine aquarium. Before setting up a nanoreef I had to do research; I enjoyed reading about marine systems, invertebrates and fish. I’d read articles about marine livestock for years before ever considering setting up a saltwater tank. A big saltwater tank—which is the only size recommended by anyone until the recent nanoreef explosion—seemed too daunting. Besides, I like small tanks. I had no trouble keeping my 10 gal freshwater tank stable. Water changes were weekly and took about 15 minutes. I saw no reason I couldn’t do the same for a marine tank of the same size. Unfortunately, the first picoreef was smaller, and it was a lot more difficult to keep stable and healthy. This just pushed me more quickly back to my original plan of a ten gallon nanoreef. I kept the bioload low, did regular water changes. Water changes are quick and easy. The amount of time I spent maintaining the 10 gallon nanoreef tank was only slightly more than than I spent on the ten gallon freshwater tank. In fall of 2007 I moved the nanoreef up to a 29 gallon tank. (See Mini-reef Journal.)You can read about my original idea for the nanoreef (which became the mini-reef) in The Plan, as well as how I’ve deviated from the original plan in Phase 1 and Phase 2.I hope you enjoy reading this blog. Please, feel free to comment.
