dougellefson Posted February 7, 2012 Posted February 7, 2012 I've been caring for a 28gallon nano cube reef for about 5 years. My 7 year old son has always been mesmerized with the beauty, and I have had him involved with every aspect of the hobby since he was just a wee one. Well he's started asking about his own tank now. My first thought is a pico. I'm looking for advice on a 3 or 5 gallon set up. I understand all the cons to the "smaller" system, and I have no plan to just turn over the reigns and have him handle it. I will be helping with every aspect of the new tank's care. It will likely he heavy on "easy to care for" soft corals and maybe one small fish. I just want to help him feel like he has his "own". In reality the only way it will be "his" will be because it will be in "his" room. I guess when I think about it now, I own that too... I've done a bit of looking here at set ups other members have, I was hoping for some input, maybe a short shopping list of tank, filter, light, etc... to help me along. Thanks. I really find being a member here at nano reef to be an invaluable resource to keep my continually improving my care for my little corner of the ocean.
philaquatics Posted February 7, 2012 Posted February 7, 2012 I think setting up a tank for your kid is a great idea to keep him involved in the hobby! I have a 3g JBJ Picotope which you can check out. I haven't updated in a while but plan on doing so soon considering I just added a bunch of frags. Here was my shopping list when I set it up: 3g JBJ Picotope (obviously) AC30 (which I modded the El Fab way) - I do wish I had gone with the AC50 Elite Submersible Preset Heater Mini, 25-Watt Koralia 240 gph powerhead Underwater Halogen Lights 10-Watt - for the refug. Petco Bottle - I use this as a gravity ATO to keep my water level even. When and if you buy one of these I highly recommend you pick one and then go one size bigger because I need to refill mine around 1-2 times daily. That's about it for hardware. It came to around 140 dollars with some deal hunting online. I got LR and LS from a tank I help maintain at my school so that didn't factor into it but of course as you know you'll need that. I love the 3g gallon its small enough for my room and great to fill up with frags. I do wish it had a lid... that that is the one draw back that i'm trying to remedy with a custom acrylic top. Hope this helps keep me posted and best of luck!
picOnly Posted February 7, 2012 Posted February 7, 2012 Hahahaha. Your son has great taste in hobbies! My 7 year old sister's the same, she asks me every other day if it's time to trim the plants in my FW tanks. "No Ella, they have to grow first". Always love watching the fish and shrimp with her. I say let your son pick the tank. Give him some options that you like, let him choose one, and you can find appropriate lighting and filtration from there. If you want to go pico, I see plenty of successful JBJ 3g/modded AC70 combos on here, seems to be a great option for both new and experienced reefers. Regardless, make a thread for "his" tank, i'm sure we'd all love to see it. Good luck!
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted February 7, 2012 Posted February 7, 2012 I've been caring for a 28gallon nano cube reef for about 5 years. My 7 year old son has always been mesmerized with the beauty, and I have had him involved with every aspect of the hobby since he was just a wee one.Well he's started asking about his own tank now. My first thought is a pico. I'm looking for advice on a 3 or 5 gallon set up. I understand all the cons to the "smaller" system, and I have no plan to just turn over the reigns and have him handle it. I will be helping with every aspect of the new tank's care. It will likely he heavy on "easy to care for" soft corals and maybe one small fish. I just want to help him feel like he has his "own". In reality the only way it will be "his" will be because it will be in "his" room. I guess when I think about it now, I own that too... I've done a bit of looking here at set ups other members have, I was hoping for some input, maybe a short shopping list of tank, filter, light, etc... to help me along. Thanks. I really find being a member here at nano reef to be an invaluable resource to keep my continually improving my care for my little corner of the ocean. Our website on Pico's is like a nice blog that teaches you the basics on being successful! Please take a look as many have valued our site. If you have any questions not covered by out site, please hit me up with a PM or post it here, I will be sure to reply. Sincerely, Mike G
Salty_Snack Posted February 8, 2012 Posted February 8, 2012 I would split the difference and go with the innovative marine 4 gallon nuvo. Really nice looking little tank IMO.
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