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Weetie's 4 Gallons of Simplicity


Weetabix7

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Weetabix7

April 30 FTS
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May 30 FTS
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June 30 FTS
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July 30 FTS
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August 31 FTS
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November FTS
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I have 2 goals for this tank:
1.) To create a a beautiful, lush Pico Reef showcasing Soft Corals, Macroalgaes, and a few small but unique livestock items.
I will be stocking mostly with Soft Corals and Macroalgaes to show that a beautiful Reef can be created without using expensive, high-end corals.
Since the size of this tank limits livestock options, I will be trying to add a few unique inverts to keep it interesting.
2.) To explore Leng Sy's Ecosystem method of filtration.
This is something I have been interested in and wanted to try for a while now.
Put simply, this method utilizes barebottom tanks and an attached refugium with a mud-bottom and macroalgae, no skimmers, and no chemical filtration to achieve a very healthy and diverse Reef Tank with prolific microfauna and filter feeders.
For more detailed information, see here: http://www.athiel.com/lib7/lengsy.htm

Equipment
10" cube tank, approx 3.5g actual water volume
DIY Food Storage Container Refugium, approx 1.75g actual water volume
18w Tom Deco PC Perchlight for Display
Underwater Halogen light for Refugium
Tunze 5024 Universal Mini Pump
Mini HOB filter
25w Hydor Theo heater

Inverts
Money Cowrie
Several Stomatellas
Cerith
Dove Snail
Periwinkle Snails
Mini Brittlestars
Micro Porcelain Crab
1 Sexy Shrimp
2 Pedersons Anemone Shrimp
White Finger Sponges (died)
Red Ball Sponge
Purple Gorgonian


Corals & Anemones
Anemone from an Anemone Hermit Crab
Mini Carpet Anemone
2 Maxi Mini Carpet Anemones
2 types of Xenia
White Star Polyps
Encrusting Green Gorgonian
Various Mushrooms
Bam-Bam Zoas
Nuclear Green Palys
Tubbs Blue Zoas
EvilMels Green Skirts Zoas (died)
Tiny Orange & Yellow Encrusting Gorgonian
AA Pink Palys
Red & Black Zoa Frag (died)
Green Blasto Merletti
Very Small Green Nepthea frag
Blue Cloves

Macroalgaes
Codium
Red Botrycladia
Blue Distromia Scrolling Algae
Cactus Caulerpa (refugium)
Caulerpa Prolifera (refugium)
Blue Ochtodes
Red Graciliara
Fire Fern
Stypodium Zonale
Nemastoma (died)
UnIDed Red Spotted Ruffly Macro
Red Titan
UnIDed Fleshy Rose Macro
Red Graciliara
Carpeting form of Chaetomorpha

  • Like 7
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c_k_kuehne
IMG_5240.jpg

 

Not going into a lot of explanations atm, title tells you all you need to know. :)

Next pictorial update should have cool stuff in it.

 

Best part of this picture .............. It got submitted in time B)

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  • 5 weeks later...

I have updated the first post of this thread with an explanation of my goals for this tank and with a current equipment and livestock list.

A thread describing how I built my DIY Food Container Refugium can be found here: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=238317

 

One of the focuses I wanted to have for this tank was small but unique critters.

I spoke with johnmaloney of Reefcleaners.org about what I wanted to do with this tank, and he found me a really awesome Decorator Crab that just happened to have decorated itself with the shell and Anemone from an Anemone Hermit Crab.

Here's how they looked during acclimation:

IMG_5399.jpg

 

Unfortunately, the Decorator Crab died late that night. :(

After it died, I noticed that it was an egg-carrying female, and I wondered if maybe the double stresses of shipping and pregnancy were too much for her.

IMG_5406.jpg

 

I do still have the Shell and Anemone that used to be her home.

The anemone is one of the coolest looking things in my tank atm.

I fed it a piece of PE Mysis earlier today.

IMG_5412.jpg

 

IMG_5429.jpg

 

Another of my Interesting Inverts is a Fuzzy Chiton.

He's pretty funky looking and likes to park where the two viewing panes of glass converge.

I have decided to call him Fuzzy Wuzzy. :P

IMG_5473.jpg

 

Here's another shot of the tank from a different angle: IMG_5455.jpg

 

More to come....

  • Like 1
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Weetie this tank is incredible. I can't wait to see it fully stocked :happy:

 

You like? :happydance:

Hey, you're good at this, if you run across any interesting inverts that you think would work in this tank, would you let me know?

I need to come up with something different since the Decorator Crab died.

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animalmaster6
You like? :happydance:

Hey, you're good at this, if you run across any interesting inverts that you think would work in this tank, would you let me know?

I need to come up with something different since the Decorator Crab died.

I sure will! :happy:

 

 

 

 

YGPM

Edited by animalmaster6
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Nice! Would an AC70 fuge mod with the Miracle Mud work as well?

 

I'm honestly not sure.

I've never tried anything like this before.

Def. never heard of anyone trying it on a Pico.

One of my concerns with the AC70-- and also one of the reasons that I build the fuge instead of using an AC--is that the volume wouldn't be big enough to function as intended in the Ecosystem method.

But again, this is very experimental on my part, so that's conjecture.

I'm sure I'll be able to comment on it more once I've had this running for a month or two.

In doing research on this, it seems like this was a popular thing in the early 90's but it's not really done much anymore.

Don't entirely know why.

I looked up reviews on the Ecosystem Method and didn't really find anything negative.

I know that it's possible for the Mud to develop Red Slime in the early days, esp. if flow isn't high enough, but that's supposed to be a new tank thing that runs it's course.

I may upgrade my pump to a MJ400 to increase flow for that reason though.

I've alrdy noticed one positive thing that may be a result of using the Mud, I will try to get pics to show what I mean later.

 

Thanks everyone for the very nice comments! :flower:

Edited by Weetabix7
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