The budget pico build

[fn8uup]

Ok so this will be my first attempt at a pico and i thought id document the step by step process as I build this thing with a small budget not so much going with cheap equiptment but with parts that are readily avalible to most people and can get locally for a fair price if they dont want to dive into this hobby wallet first.

 

This post will be on the tank

 

so step one

I went out and purchased the aquarium at a local lfs for 13.99 its the large size and by outer dimensions its a 3 but i counted the fluid oz i put in and it takes 2.5 gal to get the water 1 inch from the rim with the live rock ive got in their and will be just right once my sand bed is in place

 

step two

taped it up with some free paper courtasy of drs foster and smith and a roll of .79 tape from HD

 

step three

sprayed it with a 4.97 can of gloss black krylon also from HD

 

step four added my rock from a previous FOWLR i had a year ago so for me atleast 0.00

[fn8uup]

This post will be on my filter

 

Ive only been on this site a few weeks and every one loves the AC70 w mods but I want to do a budget build and im DIY through and through so I started looking around and saw a cheap aqua tech filter I got for my breeder tanks when i was breeding cichlids and it just clicked

 

the model im using is the 30-60 and is to big to fit on a 12 inch wide tank

 

so here comes the dremel I went and got some dimond blades at harbor freight for 3.50

these are great because they can cut tile and glass so they wont explode like the cheap cutting disks that come with most dremel kits

 

so next i cut off the side of the filter that wont show while the tank is being displayed if you cant se this from the side it doesnt matter which side you take off

 

now your thinkin what about that huge hole in the side well heres the answer cut the size piece you need out of the half of the filter lid you just removed

 

and bam...works perfectly just silicone it right in there

[fn8uup]

Ok now that the filter fits on a pico sized tank its time to take on the same principle of the moded AC 70

 

so remember that ugly green lid

 

time to put it to use

busted out the dremel again and cut out a partition

 

then cut out another to keep the cheato in the filter box

 

once these were in place i siliconed the partitions and the side to the filter

 

thats it for now my silicone is drying and once it does i will start moding the propeller blades to reduce the flow since this does 320 or so GPH like the AC but it doesn't have a way to adjust the flow like the AC

[Toothpik]

its looking good! keep it up and like the improvision on the filter but uh ..is the left side like smashed open?

[fn8uup]

thats the opening from the factory to let the water flow from the center to each side to exit the filter

 

look at the last pic in my second post.....the pic your looking at is before i siliconed in the side and partitions

[Toothpik]

ahh...i kinda missed that side lol sorry

[fn8uup]

I took a new top shot see if this helps any

 

I hate not having a digital camera my pics look like crap and now that the silicone has tacked up I need to go clean the filter and get that salt creep off it now that im done assembling it

 

 

thanks for looking

[Toothpik]

no problem ill be following along..it gives me something to do while i wait for my tank to sotp cycling

[el fabuloso]

This tank is ghetto fabulous. I love it!

[Jamo]

There is nothing budget about pico's I didnt pay for anything apart from rock, substrate and corals but i guess i've spent about $300 and my tank leaves alot to be desired...

[bananahands]

Interesting concept, but you could have gone with a 10g tank. My lfs sells them for $7. Then you could have used the filter as it was. Just my $0.02. But it is different, I like it!

Good luck!

[fn8uup]

thanks for all the positive comments.

 

While it is true I could have just used the 29 i kept my fowlr or one of the many 10 gal or 20 longs i had while breeding cichlids in but I wanted to jump in on the 3 gal bandwagon

 

also with a small tank the frags will grow out and fill the rock scape sooner than a larger tank (the only thing I dont want to be paitent on )

 

 

Hopefully I will get to put my hood together today and ill get that posted up

[MGDMIRAGE]

Good start, careful with the creature container i believe they scratch way easier than even acrylic.

[fn8uup]

Good start, careful with the creature container i believe they scratch way easier than even acrylic.

thanks for the heads up....ive bumped the sides a few times before i busted up my rock but so far so good..... worst case scenario im out another 14 bucks

[ulver982]

Interesting concept, but you could have gone with a 10g tank. My lfs sells them for $7. Then you could have used the filter as it was. Just my $0.02. But it is different, I like it!

Good luck!

 

Or if you wanted to keep it around the 3 gallon range, you could of gotten a 2.5 AGA for less than you payed for the plastic kritter keeper.

 

On another note, I like the mods you did with what you have, good work

[TheUnfocusedLove]

Very creative. I'll be tagging along. What are your stocking plans so far?

[fn8uup]

Thanks for the positive comments guys

 

I've never seen a 2.5 aga locally ive only got 5 shops (only one with salt ) within 30 miles I do like glass tanks (except my 300 gal that thing is to heavy )

 

I was going to go with a jbj but when i saw the critter keeper and the lid it just clicked I cant get enough DIY

 

Anyways I have not planed that far ahead I'm caught up in building the tank I'll think of stock while cycling but i can tell you i will have some pulsing xzenia and zoas right now my lighting is good enough for some hardy softies and I'm not going to make any final decisions till i see which lighting fixture i get I'm leaning heavily to a MH but if i find a good deal on a good T5 set up or some leds I may go that way but none the less I will not skimp on the lighting

[fn8uup]

Almost forgot I've got a small update.... I've decided to go with a pendant so no hood..... I did however get a lid made to help with evaporation out of some old 1/4 inch plexi I had lying around although I'm going to cut it out of another piece this one is pretty scratched and i dont feel like buffing it out its faster to just cut another piece and the new one will be a one piece lid instead of a two piece which was needed with the hood....less work for me

 

Also I've busted my rock up some more so its not so close to the top of the tank so I've got room to add some new live rock (hope my filter floss takes care of all the debris by morning so i can get some better pics)

 

Again thanks to everyone for following along with my first reef attempt

[THEEGRIMREEFER]

good job, making good use of what youve already got .

[PIPS]

I now pronounce you the macgyver of the pico world !!!

[r3dph03n1x]

Budget, pico.

 

 

Oxymoron no more!

[fn8uup]

ok another small update i finally got around to finishing my lid.... i had a busted allglass aquarium lid from a 29 gal so i busted out the dremel and

 

 

TA DA!!!! new lid half plexi and half glass

 

in this pic you can see where i cut the glass and then took a sanding stone to the sharp edge (dont want anyone geting cut)

 

and now a full tank shot after its cleared up still only using floss so once i get some chemi pure elite in there itll look better

 

my next project is to get a pre filter on the intake tube and then ill get some live sand and once the sand has cycled ill start stocking a clean up crew

[badfish816]

dude, that's amazing!!! tank of the month right there. so much thought process.

[fn8uup]

not tank of the month by a long shot thanks for the comment though I just wanted to show that with a little creativity people can litterally use stuff they have lying in their closet to set up a successful tank

 

 

on a side note i did mod the impeller by removing three of the six blades and it really didnt make a difference so im running a stock impeller with one of the compartments stuffed full of floss its slowing the flow down just right so im happy with this filter

[badfish816]

what do you have lighting the tank right now?