aviator300 Posted June 9, 2014 Share Posted June 9, 2014 I have failed to start a thread about this little side project I've done because i've been busy doing a build thread on my 10 gal tank in beginners forum "Third times a charm I hope". I'ts already over 2 months old but I thought what the heck, better late than never so i'll go ahead and at least show what I did. I've always been a think out of the box kind of guy and when my wife brought home a little 1/2 gal Betta bowl and said "there! make a reef tank out of that" as a joke, I took it to heart and my wheels started turning. I read other posts about these micro-tanks but I needed to solve a couple problems. 1. what kind of filtration to use if any that would fit. 2. Lighting for this little 9" x 3.5" x 4" tall tank 3. How to heat this little guy. 4. How to keep the water level stable. First off, I suppose I could skip the filter and just do 100% water changes weekly but My goal was to have a totally functioning reef tank and the filter would mainly be for water movement anyway. I kept thinking about all the Fluval Spec 5s ive seen that are generally long and thin just like my little guy and decided to copy that design. Here are the specs (play on words LOL) TANK. 1/2 gal "Betta View" tank from Wally World. Bio Filtration .75 lb live rock + short layer of Arag-Alive sand Mech Filtration Pump from Fluval Spec 2 turned to 1/4 flow. Includes tubing and connectors from such. Only filter floss. Lighting 6" Wavepoint 8w LED super blu + 10k. mounted above tank under shelf. Heat Heat from light and pump keeps tank 80.0 dropping to 79.2 overnight. ATO ME for now. I took a black divider that came with the tank, drilled holes for skimming and return and silicone'd it in place. This is how it looked when my wife gave it to me. Just for size comparison Inner workings. If it looks like anyone is interested in this tanks progress, I will keep posting updates. Oh BTW, the only life in this tank is 2 ceriths and a Nassarius and I think i'll keep it that way. AVIATOR300. Link to comment
kylhcky Posted June 9, 2014 Share Posted June 9, 2014 im definitely following this one. Link to comment
aviator300 Posted June 9, 2014 Author Share Posted June 9, 2014 Thanks for looking guys. The cycle was kind of strange. I put the live rock and sand in and turned the thing on to percolate away. I didn't do the usual frequent testing to see how the cycle was going, I just kind of let it run for about 2 months and forgot about it other than adding h2o twice a day. I got busy with other things and just ignored my little guy. Well. about a week ago i thought i'd better test it and here's what i got. Ammonia zippo Nitrite Zippo Nitrate Zippo PO4 Zippo I figured it would have cycled in 2 months. But why no lingering Nitrates with no water changes. So i added 3 snails and waited 4 days and tested again, assuming i'd find increased Ammonia. BUT NOOO. All water parameters were still Zippo so i added some kind of yellow polyps and a green Zoa frag. The things growing on the rock on the right are some kind of macro-algae that grew there during the cycle. (maybe that is whats keeping my water good) do ya think? Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted June 9, 2014 Share Posted June 9, 2014 Really cool, I have that exact tank and I would love to do the same thing. Link to comment
aviator300 Posted June 9, 2014 Author Share Posted June 9, 2014 The hard part was finding a pump small enough for this application. I never would have thought of a Spec 2 pump if i didn't already have one. even the RIO 50 would have been too big and powerful. I'm certain you can get spec 2 replacement pumps from Hagen/Fluval. What ever pump is used, it must have the ability to turn the flow way down and not produce much heat. Link to comment
kylhcky Posted June 9, 2014 Share Posted June 9, 2014 i honestly think i might stop by walmart later today and pick one of these tanks up for myself for my desk Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted June 9, 2014 Share Posted June 9, 2014 This looks awesome! I really want a small pico for my desk at work (<2g) and this might be the tank that pushes me into it Link to comment
aviator300 Posted June 10, 2014 Author Share Posted June 10, 2014 It's a fun little tank but I dont figure it will be longlasting. If these mini tanks last a year they are considered old but they sure are fun to play with and Cheap. In fact at about 45.00, the light equals the expense of everything else (and i already had the light from another project). Link to comment
Tamberav Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Cool tank. I'm going pick one of these up. Hows evap with the hood on? Link to comment
aviator300 Posted June 14, 2014 Author Share Posted June 14, 2014 Actually, I had to cut the whole middle area of the hood out so the light can shine in and also to vent the heat buildup. I guess this makes it an "open top tank". To answer your question about evaporation, it needs about 1 pint of top off water a week. With such a small tank and a very tiny (allowable) variation in the water level at the intake grate (which is less than a half inch top to bottom), I adjust the water level twice a day. I'm not going to spend big bucks for a manufactured ATO (which cant be adjusted to a small enough tolerance anyway) or do a DIY one for the same reason. Link to comment
Tamberav Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 Ah gotcha, perhaps I can shine the light angled through the back or something. Link to comment
Tamberav Posted June 15, 2014 Share Posted June 15, 2014 I picked up this tank tonight. The dimensions are nice. Like a mini long tank. Can't beat 5 bucks. Found a cheap small pump: http://www.ebay.com/itm/110-220V-Submersible-Aquarium-Fountain-Mini-Fish-Water-Pump-2-5W-200L-H-53GPH-/181206398781?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item2a30be373d Also found an adorable betta filter for tiny tanks: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3579+9821&pcatid=9821 Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted June 15, 2014 Share Posted June 15, 2014 Hmm... The only thing I would need for it is the pump and light.. I already have the tank and such. But, would it be better as a pico FW planted with a desk lamp over it(13W 10000K spindly bulb), or as a pico reef I wonder. Will take some consideration, but man it would be pretty fun. Link to comment
aviator300 Posted June 18, 2014 Author Share Posted June 18, 2014 I picked up this tank tonight. The dimensions are nice. Like a mini long tank. Can't beat 5 bucks. Found a cheap small pump: http://www.ebay.com/itm/110-220V-Submersible-Aquarium-Fountain-Mini-Fish-Water-Pump-2-5W-200L-H-53GPH-/181206398781?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item2a30be373d Also found an adorable betta filter for tiny tanks: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3579+9821&pcatid=9821 I hope you start a build thread on yours. It would be kind of cool to think I may have started something here. Right now, mine is on cruise control while i'm concentrating on my Mr Aqua 17.1 build. I just change most of the water weekly on the little guy and then just let it ride. 2 coral frags and 3 snails seem happy as clams. Link to comment
Tamberav Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 I think you did start something, I am pretty sure a few other people bought them too. I have a few pics in my mantis thread. I am waiting for the pump to arrive at this point to finish the back wall. How do you clean the glass? will an acrylic scraper scratch it? Link to comment
aviator300 Posted June 19, 2014 Author Share Posted June 19, 2014 I havent had to do any "heavy duty" glass (plastic) cleaning yet but I go over it lightly with a small fabric type cleaner pad. (stuff doesnt seem to stick to the plastic like it does to glass). Link to comment
Tamberav Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Well here is where I am at, I used an eco pico strip and DIY acrylic splash guard to mount the light inside the hood. I am not going to make a dedicated thread yet. I posted some updated pics here: http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/329383-tamberavs-mantis-mayhem-45g-sps-cuboid-build/page-19 Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 I think I may do this as well. Looking at an EHEIM 300 compact pump and an EcoPico 12K+blue strip. Would that suffice or should I get the blue only strip as well? I was thinking of also getting these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/110911730589 Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.