Captivating_Reef Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 Hey everyone, I built a shallow pico that is going to be a desktop pico reef. I posted some of the DIY for the tank build in the DIY forum if anyone wants to check it out. I already have a 5 gallon running on my desk but it's not the greatest looking tank with those black plastic rims on it. So I built this to replace that. That one has been running for over a year so I am going to just transfer the rock and livestock. I have the new tank filled with water and the sand just going to wait till it settles before I transfer. Some of the sand is from the current tank to seed the new stuff. I'm transferring over 1 blood shrimp, 1 hermit, 1 nassarius snail and 2 Okinawae coral gobies. I am going to run this tank filterless with a Korallia nano 240, a small heater and a LEDTRIC Truepop that was ordered a few days ago and has shipped! With no filter I will be doing daily water changes using a turkey baster to blow up any leftover detritus and plan on maybe adding another CUC member. If I have to I'll add a filter if it seems to be needed. The tank is shallow though being only 6 inches tall so it might be hard to find one that works. Any questions or comments are welcomed I will try to keep up with posts and pics on this build. For now here is a shot with the tank empty after the leak test was done with the equipment thats being used minus the light. Link to comment
anjay Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 How many gallons? Just a note of caution, monitor your temps for a few weeks, I have the same heater and it sometimes heats my tank up to 84ish for no apparent reason...(I have an ecopico) But otherwise looks cool Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 18, 2012 Author Share Posted July 18, 2012 Thanks anjay! It's 3.75G I will definitely watch the temps thanks for telling me about the heater. Right now where I live the heat is insane and with the heaters in my other tanks not even being turned on they are at 84! I hope the heat wave dies down. Link to comment
x3thelast Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 i recommend a controller w/ any heater just incase it fails. looking forward to your tank Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 18, 2012 Author Share Posted July 18, 2012 I was a little unsure about the heater for that reason when I bought it but it fits the tank so well and will be hidden nicely. I'll just have to monitor it and if it's bad just replace it. Since I have no filter for this it seems like the water is not gonna clear up. Anyone think it will eventually or should I somehow get a filter in there at least to clean it up? Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 23, 2012 Author Share Posted July 23, 2012 So it's been about a week and heres the tank after transferring from my old 5G. It will look a lot better when the light comes in and is hooked up. Link to comment
JR! Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 Man no filter..... an ac30 would be perfect for this build. The heater could even be hidden in there. Looks awesome none the less Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 23, 2012 Author Share Posted July 23, 2012 Man no filter..... an ac30 would be perfect for this build. The heater could even be hidden in there. Looks awesome none the less LOL thanks. I might add a filter later I just wanted to keep the look of it as less cluttered as possible. I don't think the pic is justifying it enough. It looks more shallow in person. Link to comment
porkchop-rob Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 I really like this tank. im diggin the shallws. also, how many gallons is the tank? How much water are you planning to change each day? (daily seems excessive to me, but i am still a newbie!) I do water changes on my 6 gallon weekly, and all i have is an AC20 with foam in it for added flow. my lfs has a 2-3 gallon (no fish in it tho) that they run filterless and also do weekly water changes. Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 24, 2012 Author Share Posted July 24, 2012 It is 3.75 gallons. The daily water changes are a very small amount. I only take out a few cups of water right now. I have a 4L jug that I mix up the saltwater to replace what I take out. I am expecting the amount to change and increase as I go along (as corals and other livestock are added). I plan on using my observations to determine the changes with the maintenance of it. I also want to note that for the problem with clearing up the water I had a few pieces of a phosphate pad that I had for the filter in the old pico and I wedged them in between the glass and rock right in front of the current. This cleared up the water really nice. So in a way I am kinda using a filter but only a floss pad when needed to help take out the fine particles. I am anxiously waiting for my light and will post pics as soon as it is installed! Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 27, 2012 Author Share Posted July 27, 2012 So I got my light today! I just have to pick up a lamp for it though which will not be until tomorrow some time. Once it is all set up I will post some pics. Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 Well I wanted to post a FTS with the light but I am having troubles posting it. For some reason when I try to upload the file it says it failed cause it was to large. I don't understand cause I have resized the pic and have tried a bunch of times trying different cameras and changing the image size on the camera itself but it still wont work. I have clearly posted pics already and have done the same thing just now it will not work. Any help is great right now thanks! Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 Ok I opened a photo bucket account and put it on there then copied the Img code seems to have worked so check it out! Link to comment
owlbassboy Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 What are the dimensions mate? 12x12x6? Looks amazing!! Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 What are the dimensions mate? 12x12x6? Looks amazing!! Yes it is 12x12x6. Thank you! Link to comment
owlbassboy Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 I've only been running my pico a few months but already considering closing my nano to have a pico with them dimensions and a sump. Now I've seen yours it makes me want to do it even more Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 Go for it! I have thought about later on building a stand and having a sump with a MAME overflow. Link to comment
owlbassboy Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 I have a Mame skimmer on my picOcean but the overflows look awesome too Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 31, 2012 Author Share Posted July 31, 2012 Just wanted to write a small little update. One of my little gobies looks like he's not gonna make it. I feel like it is totally my fault. I kinda bought them on impulse a week before I switched to this new tank. Having not that much knowledge on them, I realized after they do not take well to being moved to new tanks and have a tendency to refuse to eat. One of them has been eating and the other still will not. I have also noticed that both do not have much of their yellow pigments left in their scales. I do believe these guys were malnourished when I bought them I just didn't take the time to closely observe them. So I hope of course for both to pull through but I think I am lucky if the one does. That one is doing fairly well besides the discolouration. I currently am just feeding frozen mysis but will be getting cyclopeeze as well and plan to enrich the food with vitamins. The stress of being moved to this new tank was a clear indication of the cause of not eating. This fish would periodically push up and down against the glass trying to find a "way out," so to speak. This was observed from the time I got him until present and still he will not eat. The other one that does eat has adapted very well and never has shown the same behaviour of feeling trapped. Although a very sad situation that I feel totally responsible for, I have learned quite a bit from this. Link to comment
CrownOfficial Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Thats an awesome looking shallow! Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted July 31, 2012 Author Share Posted July 31, 2012 Thats an awesome looking shallow! Thank you! Link to comment
x3thelast Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 gah i love shallow tanks. big and small! Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted August 4, 2012 Author Share Posted August 4, 2012 So after running this filterless with the nano 240 I've decided to change my mind and add a filter. The flow in this little tank is just too much with this powerhead. So I've found this little filter that has some good reviews and I think I can position it nicely in there where the flo bar will run across the top on one side and look like a mini waterfall stream. Like I said with the one I have now it is just way to strong I have a lot of sand on my rock and the fish barely move. Once I shut off the powerhead they become really active so I think a little less flow will help them. The one is still hanging on but still not eating. I am getting some cyclopeeze today so maybe that will help. Heres the filter thats on it's way: http://www.bigalspets.ca/fish/filters/dive...nal-filter.html Link to comment
Captivating_Reef Posted August 11, 2012 Author Share Posted August 11, 2012 Hey! It's been a little while since I added an update. I have the filter installed and running now. This little filter is awesome!!! I just hope I can find the replacement carbon cartridges. I unfortunately lost my other gobie today. After observing their behaviour and watching these tiny little white spots appear on them, then loss of appetite, followed by death I am sure it was Ich that they had. I tried a freshwater dip for the first time on the one but it did not help. So I think I might wait a while before I decide to put any other fish in here. I will probably do a lot of research to find the best species to suit this small tank. Any suggestions would be great. Here are some pics of the filter, the tank with the filter in it and a top down shot showing the flow of the filter. The flow is a lot better in there now and I have the power at half so if I want more flow I can just adjust it. Check it out: Link to comment
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