Non-peninsula pico AIO? Has anyone made one of these?

[lkoechle]

Husband is debating on letting me turn our 5.5 gallon QT (don't worry, we have a 10, 20, and 50 too hospital/QT tanks a plenty) into a pico. We're possibly moving next year, so it will be good to have a tank we can run in the car for coral frags we plan on taking with us when we sell the 85 and all the inhabitants and mother colonies. (When he asked me why I needed another tank... That is what I told him).

 

I don't want a peninsula style tank, and for this tank to be run off an inverter in the car safely, it needs to be an AIO. I can't run the risk of water spilling from HOB or the HOB filter itself falling off. I have looked all over nano-reef for hours and have not found a DIY AIO tank under 20. Does anyone do these? I thought I saw a 5.5, but I cannot find it for the life of me.

 

Suggestions on designs?

[evilc66]

If you are just doing this for the transport of corals during a move, I wouldn't bother with a tank in the traditional sense. You would be better off with a 5g bucket or a cheap foam cooler (insulated, so less need for a heater) that you can seal to prevent splashes while moving (far less breakable too). Also, using DC equipment would be a better idea than an inverter, as the DC pumps and whatnot tend to be more efficient (less taxing on the car battery), and will be a lot happier than running an AC pump off an inverter.

 

As for a pico AIO for the mean time, it's been done that small, but making an off the shelf tank into a standard style AIO is a bit of a pain just due to the limited room front to back for the display. These smaller tanks lend themselves a lot better to peninsula style setups when converting to AIO.

[Dreichler]

http://advancedacrylics.com/collections/picos