Jump to content
ReefCleaners.org

1.5 gallon pico *New Tank*


edd29

Recommended Posts

Greetings everyone,

 

I am completely new to reef tanks. That being said, I'm am sure you are asking why am I setting myself for failure starting with a 1g tank. That's because I love the challenge and I like to be hands on. I understand that I will make many mistakes with this hobby, but luckily I learn from my mistakes. I have always liked the Idea of capturing a small piece of nature and displaying in a corner of a room. With small tanks everything looks large. I have been looking for months for the first person that has successfully set up a 1g (or less) tank, and finally found dafil's thread and been trying to emulate his experiment. Here is the link for those interested. Big shout out to dafil for answering my questions!

 

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2333078&highlight=pico

 

My plans are to start small. I'm going to place 3-4 pieces of coral of all sorts of types. My mission is to maintain the tank with only these 4 corals for a 2-4 months before I place two more. And wait another two months for the next set of coral. The idea is to make sure that I get confident that I am doing everything right. That way, If i do loose coral, it does not break the bank. My filtration is going to consist of Live rock and air stone, and that's its! Weekly 90-100% water change, Followed up by Red Sea ABC Foundation. Pretty much following dafils method to a T. Well anyways, here is what I got so far.

 

Tank - Michaels 7x7x7 glass "vase" 20$ haha (painted rear and bottom with black paint)

Rapids Mini Canister - modded

Master Liquid Test kit - Calcium Test (got for free) - Cabonate Test (got for free)

Boost LED Par30

Sand - (Got free)

Hydor 25w heater.

th_37e1a207-0587-444f-b212-477d64316565_

 

Put some water and random plastic decoration to see how it looked.

 

20140411_010255_zpse24e3d10.jpg

 

Hopefully I will have everything up and running by the weekend.

 

Edd.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FTS042814_zpsd7f562c1.jpg

 

________________________________________________________

5-27

FTS-5-27-14_zps7b7d4209.jpg

 

_________________________________________________________

 

6-23

FTSLeBron6-23-14_zps4df476ac.jpg

_________________________________________________________

7/9/14

FTS_zpsa281d7f3.jpg
7/31/14______________________________________________________

14774543066_9c99dd5917_z.jpg

8/29/14______________________________________________________

14872547807_ae74cedd1b_z.jpg

Link to comment
  • Replies 61
  • Created
  • Last Reply
Steensj2004

Here is the modded canister. Made for more volume for LR. Yes, my had does fit inside if i need to clean in... :)

20140416_202649_zps3fb6a28b.jpg

20140416_143159_zpsfd057e0e.jpg

 

20140416_202846_zps8f12064e.jpg

 

th_20140416_210421_zps654938fb.jpg

 

20140417_124427_zpsc8adb4ce.jpg

This^ is awesome!!! Like a mini-fuge deal! I love it, Well done!

Link to comment

Good luck Edd :)

In this modded canister-be sure that there are no death spots(no flow) in the corners!

 

Thanks for catching that! I am trying to figure out how to fix that issue. :(

Holy smokes.

 

Nice job, I really like the stand.

Thank you! Trying to go for a "zen" look :D

 

Checking for leaks right now for the canister. Found 3 tiny ones so far, but quickly fixed. I placed it over a drying rack filled with water to see if any drops start to build up. Ill give it the rest of the day and hopefully there aren't any surprises.

Link to comment

Did you use aquarium grade silicone on that modified canister filter? Thing looks awesome and I might copy it in the future.

Link to comment

Did you use aquarium grade silicone on that modified canister filter? Thing looks awesome and I might copy it in the future.

Yes sir i did, In combination of epoxy then cover with silicone.

Link to comment

Good luck Edd :)

In this modded canister-be sure that there are no death spots(no flow) in the corners!

I wonder if adding some tubing to the entry and exit hoses, routed to opposite sides of the box would improve flow through the larger chamber. They could be terminated in spray bar like pieces.

Link to comment

Yes sir i did, In combination of epoxy then cover with silicone.

Awesome! Keep us updated on how well it works! I will be following.

Link to comment

I wonder if adding some tubing to the entry and exit hoses, routed to opposite sides of the box would improve flow through the larger chamber. They could be terminated in spray bar like pieces.

 

That's actually a good idea! I'm going to see how things run and see if there are any problems. If these death spots do occur, I will probably do exactly this. Hopefully the Output is strong enough to manage that.

 

So far the canister box has been giving me massive headaches. I keep getting leaks in random spots, and adding more epoxy all around. If I was to do this again, I would get a acrylic welder that is sold in plastic stores. I personally didn't think the internal pressure from this size box would be so great to have this issue. The box looks like a blob of epoxy now haha. Oh well, gotta learn some how! :P

 

The good news is that the pump is working and circulating, so at least I got that going for me. ;)

Link to comment

wow i would even be nervous to do a 1g pico with 2 years experience. I admire your ambition and wish you luck! with daily maintenence im sure it isn't that hard at all but i just hate the idea of possibly making a mistake big enough to crash a tank. keep a colse eye on your parameters to make sure everything remains stable, especially the first half year - year. I'll be following as i'm starting to really love pico tanks!

Link to comment

if any component of that rock is live, with living coralline or any pods or benthic life, start the full water changes now. take out all the clouding with as many full water changes as needed, unless this is dry base rock then it can look as messy as needed until it settles.

Link to comment

if any component of that rock is live, with living coralline or any pods or benthic life, start the full water changes now. take out all the clouding with as many full water changes as needed, unless this is dry base rock then it can look as messy as needed until it settles.

I've never heard of this advice given before. why do you say he should do a full water change to take out the clouding. Won't it settle eventually? Not disagreeing at all, just curious.

Link to comment

that is a totally fair question

 

my rationale is this

 

break through the initial barrier to do full water changes. the quicker you start, the more you can let go of how wierd and hesitant it feels to expose things to the air. its a hereditary no no for us :) yet nothing else actually works for gallon reefing. not long term anyway, lots of things work for 12 mos and thats where 99% of your reference thread for gallon reefs come from. finding a gallon reef thread older than 12 mos is hard, but when you do it will be doing full water changes. most of your old tanks, over 3 yrs, are more than one gallon.

 

you are removing silt, that the next wc will kick up

 

this silting above should be totally removed for both reasons, its great habit. Its like joining a gym, and then from that day on you swear off twinkies. some aspect of discipline needs an early seed, and the most important discipline a gallon reef can have is full water changes ergo get to luggin!

dafil has a great chance, look at the growth, can't see any reason it would stop. he's got nutrients under control and the feeding balance

 

thread from smallerthebetter has a great chance, he's been doing a long time of focus on one gallon setups it takes that kind of eccentricity :)

Link to comment

that is a totally fair question

 

my rationale is this

 

break through the initial barrier to do full water changes. the quicker you start, the more you can let go of how wierd and hesitant it feels to expose things to the air. its a hereditary no no for us :) yet nothing else actually works for gallon reefing. not long term anyway, lots of things work for 12 mos and thats where 99% of your reference thread for gallon reefs come from. finding a gallon reef thread older than 12 mos is hard, but when you do it will be doing full water changes. most of your old tanks, over 3 yrs, are more than one gallon.

 

you are removing silt, that the next wc will kick up

 

this silting above should be totally removed for both reasons, its great habit. Its like joining a gym, and then from that day on you swear off twinkies. some aspect of discipline needs an early seed, and the most important discipline a gallon reef can have is full water changes ergo get to luggin!

 

one day, a new method will come around where a gallon reef does partial water changes and lasts longer than 12 mos. one day :)

interesting. So you suggest the best way to maintain a gallon pico would be doing (maybe bi weekly or weekly) large water changes (75-100%)? and by starting now it builds habit and reduces the risk of the silt re-entering the water column?

Link to comment

only the initial benefit is silt removal so its not kicked up again

 

 

never bi weekly, weekly at minimum 100%

 

the time you change 100% of the water is when you feed...and you feed based on the corals you choose. feeding and water changes are hand in hand, start splitting them up, and the tank wont be here in 18 mos a convenient size upgrade will have occurred

 

 

one of the benefits of reefing in 2014 is instead of toiling over what might work, or sound good on paper, only to have it fail after fail after fail at 18mos~ any new keeper can just start with what has been proven to work.

 

There are no examples on the internet, or in print, no proof vids or pics, that show a gallon tank running for over 18 mos (12 usually) using any other method than full water changes paired with blast feeding. Seen alot of good tries though heh

 

if it is to be done, I think phosphate adsorbtion will be part of the design, but still thats been attempted a few times we can find here and the tank still isn't here in 18 mos. others may make a different correlation, I say its lax changes then they give up on total algae invasion.

 

there will always be a better way to do what we do and waste less water. watching people repeat past threads from 2004 methodologies is what I spend a lot of time doing. not much changes, so most picos are temporary setups even after a decade now of watching new tank submissions come and go.

 

Take AndrewK's super old 2 gallon reef, your closest alternative for a true documented long term tank using partial changes. (4 yrs)

 

he's doing something extra to manage phosphate exposure to his substrate, since he also feeds sparingly and when he does its not timed to a big wc

 

to do anything less than weekly 100% changes, with no extra po4 measures, means a repeat of 2004 is coming and the tank wont be around long, it will be taken down every year and started over due to algae wrecking. just a prediction, I could be wrong for sure. I like to go off examples though..Andrews is the oldest 2 gallon you'll find, and for one gallon tank even less proof exists. I claim its also possible for someone to do partial changes in a gallon reef for more than a year and just directly treat the algae, its just I cant find any threads of it being done yet.

 

hope I dont sound to be ill predicting in someones great build thread...Im more concerned w biology aspects

 

being able to make predictions about how a tank will go down is a huge aspect of successful pico reefing. as soon as I see a detail in someone's thread that addresses weaknesses of past temporary tiny reefs Im happy

Link to comment

only the initial benefit is silt removal so its not kicked up again

 

 

never bi weekly, weekly at minimum 100%

 

the time you change 100% of the water is when you feed...and you feed based on the corals you choose. feeding and water changes are hand in hand, start splitting them up, and the tank wont be here in 18 mos a convenient size upgrade will have occurred

 

 

one of the benefits of reefing in 2014 is instead of toiling over what might work, or sound good on paper, only to have it fail after fail after fail at 18mos~ any new keeper can just start with what has been proven to work.

 

There are no examples on the internet, or in print, no proof vids or pics, that show a gallon tank running for over 18 mos (12 usually) using any other method than full water changes paired with blast feeding. Seen alot of good tries though heh

 

if it is to be done, I think phosphate adsorbtion will be part of the design, but still thats been attempted a few times we can find here and the tank still isn't here in 18 mos. others may make a different correlation, I say its lax changes then they give up on total algae invasion.

 

there will always be a better way to do what we do and waste less water. watching people repeat past threads from 2004 methodologies is what I spend a lot of time doing. not much changes, so most picos are temporary setups even after a decade now of watching new tank submissions come and go.

 

Take AndrewK's super old 2 gallon reef, your closest alternative for a true documented long term tank using partial changes. (4 yrs)

 

he's doing something extra to manage phosphate exposure to his substrate, since he also feeds sparingly and when he does its not timed to a big wc

 

to do anything less than weekly 100% changes, with no extra po4 measures, means a repeat of 2004 is coming and the tank wont be around long, it will be taken down every year and started over due to algae wrecking. just a prediction, I could be wrong for sure. I like to go off examples though..Andrews is the oldest 2 gallon you'll find, and for one gallon tank even less proof exists. I claim its also possible for someone to do partial changes in a gallon reef for more than a year and just directly treat the algae, its just I cant find any threads of it being done yet.

 

hope I dont sound to be ill predicting in someones great build thread...Im more concerned w biology aspects

 

being able to make predictions about how a tank will go down is a huge aspect of successful pico reefing. as soon as I see a detail in someone's thread that addresses weaknesses of past temporary tiny reefs Im happy

gotcha. wow, taking care of a 1g seems like an entire other world of reef keeping. I'm sure the op will learn something from your post, as I most certainly have.

Link to comment

the ONLY thing that I know about pico reefs and 100% water changes-they work :)

 

And that's why I wont do anything less that 100% water changes! B)

 

Thanks brandon429 on the insight! BTW, are you recommending feeding then do the water change? or the other way around?

 

Well finally got everything working! Sadly I ran out of salt water to get the canister working haha. I will be doing my first water change tomorrow and clean the tank officially and wait for the upcoming ReefaPalooza this weekend. Hopefully get my first set of corral there.

 

Anyways here are some update pics!

 

http://s77.photobucket.com/user/eddrico29/media/DSC05719_zps6e9ad384.jpg.html'>DSC05719_zps6e9ad384.jpg

 

http://s77.photobucket.com/user/eddrico29/media/20140422_015019_zpsecbbac0f.jpg.html'>20140422_015019_zpsecbbac0f.jpg

 

http://s77.photobucket.com/user/eddrico29/media/20140422_015036_zps3ad2abec.jpg.html'>20140422_015036_zps3ad2abec.jpg

 

Box looks like its leaking water but its just epoxy. Not pretty, but it does the job, and its going to be hidden so no worries.

Link to comment

if you used good cured lr and do a couple full changes it w be ready for coral by then

 

it was my opinion to feed a couple hours before the water, the most hq frozen mixed reef feeds you choose to buy. I get by on cyclopeeze frozen bar chunks and rods food coral mix

 

a pico cant take a lot of feeding, so people starve it and they still slowly take on algae

 

so its an option to do opposite

 

put the amount of feed into a pico you wouldn't normally ever do

 

then wait two hours and change all the leftovers out, each coral is as full as it can be :)

 

 

repeat 800 times (weekly at min) and you've used 800 gallons of water but have a heck of a coral loading to show lol. and a rather clean tank, simply by cheating known reef protocols.

Link to comment

if you used good cured lr and do a couple full changes it w be ready for coral by then

 

it was my opinion to feed a couple hours before the water, the most hq frozen mixed reef feeds you choose to buy. I get by on cyclopeeze frozen bar chunks and rods food coral mix

 

a pico cant take a lot of feeding, so people starve it and they still slowly take on algae

 

so its an option to do opposite

 

put the amount of feed into a pico you wouldn't normally ever do

 

then wait two hours and change all the leftovers out, each coral is as full as it can be :)

 

 

repeat 800 times (weekly at min) and you've used 800 gallons of water but have a heck of a coral loading to show lol. and a rather clean tank, simply by cheating known reef protocols.

I just went to the LFS and they don't carry cyclopeeze frozen because the company is going through a shortage and the salinity of the water isn't the same. At least that's what they explained to me. Any alternatives?

 

Thanks for your help by the way! Your knowledge helps me avoid issues that would be inevitable in my future.

Link to comment

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recommended Discussions


×
×
  • Create New...