First SW a Pico...Good idea?

[kado9]

Hey all,

 

This is my first post. Long time reader. I want to try my hand on a 4g Pico. I have had good luck with a 80g and 37g FW.

 

I have a 4gal Finnex and sock lamp and filter from my LFS.

 

Where do I start. I want to keep it at my office but am afraid of leaving it for the weekend or when I am out of town. I also know that they turn the heat of at night. Is that going to be a problem up here in WI.

 

I would like to have some corals and maybe a fish.

 

Will post pics of the tank soon.

[snowlancer2720]

hey, IMO i think that having a pico as a first SW tank can be a bad idea, reason being, levels seem to swing a lot easier in smaller tanks an dmight actually crash it. Ultimately turning the reefer off to the hobby. I started with a 36g fish only (which i know cant be kept at the office) and it gave me the confidence to go smaller to a 29, then a 10, then a 2.5 , and now a 2g. Although, if you feel that you will be able to handle a small tank like that, more power to you. Just remember, you have to do top-offs everyday otherwise it will through the salinity all over the place.

 

On the other hand, with the heating problem. Id say get the smallest AC filter (mabye a 20?) and a 6" hydor heater, it fits right in the filter.

 

Good Luck with whatever you decide to do!

[j2me5ku]

ime, you should start off with a bigger tank. my reasons for a larger tank is because its your first tank. its easier to maintain a large tank than a smaller tank because of the swings that snowlancer mentioned. if you keep a larger tank at the office and go home for the weekend, the params wont change as drastically because there is more volume of water in the tank. if you plan to keep a 4 gal, seriously plan ahead. there is more to keeping a salt water tank than a freshwater tank. look into threads on people who have done exactly what you want to do, etc. ( i suggest Fish setup on NR. he also goes by ninjafish on RC).

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...threadid=707234

heres a thread to his tank at his office.

 

you dont want the 4 gal to add more stress, when work already provides enough

 

goodluck!

[Argent]

go for it - my first SW tank was a 3G Eclipse that I'd still have it the AC would have stayed on at work (or I had the tank at home)

 

since then I've moved to a 1.5G, a 5.5G and 6G reef tanks

[a1rabbit]

My first tank was a 10g and I love it, Im currently doing a 3-5g.

 

My thinking is any tank will crash if you don't research, research is the key to your tank having a chance at surviving or not. Yes, a huge tank might be easier to keep stable but no amount of water or stability will help someone who has no idea what they are doing.

 

That said, I think those who do research, have some brains and retain the information can start off small if they are willing to be very dilligent about it. If I had an office I'd seriously consider a super clean setup that the Nano Cube 6g can offer, if you can fit that size tank. Otherwise something like Ninjafish's Cube, that thing is one of the coolest I've seen.

 

http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_p...t_ID=AQ-JBJ006C

 

Just make sure you know what you'll have to do daily and be prepared to have an auto top off system for weekends and what not. Also you'll need a timer for the lighting.

[IPv6Freely]

While I do completely agree that it is MUCH easier for you to keep a large tank stable, unfortunately it is a huge investment (of money AND time!), especially considering it being your first tank and you don't even know if it will be a hobby you enjoy.

 

In MY personal opinion, I say start out with a small tank, because then you're forced to really work at keeping everything stable, and you're not tossing money out the window if you don't like it/don't like having to do work.

 

If you buy a small tank and can handle all the work it involves, then move to something bigger, and you can really enjoy and appreciate how much less work they are (as far as stable levels, salinity, etc).

[circusordie16]

i started in sw with a 2.5 gallon and it worked out very well. if youve had a lot of experience in salt water then i think youd be ok as long as you go slowly and make sure you understand everything youre doing. and i like smaller cuz its much cheaper and you can always transfer to a larger tank.

[Tentacles]

my first was a 2.5g too, went very well, later transfered it to my current 10g

 

maybe you could plumb a 2.5g to your 4g and put a heater and equipment and stuff in the 2.5 so it would stay warm, thatd be really sweet.......but i guess not at all work-desk worthy

 

either way get a heater for it

[Keaton]

BAD idea!

[kado9]

BAD idea!

 

 

Can you elaborate as to why it is a bad idea? I seem to be getting about a 50/50 split and I like those odds. I might just give it a try. What are we talking about for expenses for a tank of this size. I already have a Tank, a small HOB and Lighting.

 

Thanks for all the input.

 

"Malfunction. Need more input. " Johny 5 - Short Circuit

[DRoy1124]

bad idea.

 

the larger the tank, the easier it is to take care of

 

 

when you have a pico, one little mistake and your screwed. with a, lets say a 55 gal, you have a lot more leeway if something goes wrong.

 

just my $0.02

[circusordie16]

im thinking a pico would be fine as long as you go very slowly and understand what youre doing. im not really sure what mistakes people make besides overstocking and buying inappropriate inhabitants for their tanks. my pico is very low maintenance and im not sure what midtakes can occur as long as you cycle properly, change water regularly, top off regularly, and stock appropriately.