Planning My Pico Jar

[Ticoreefer]

Hello! All the awesome tanks here have inspired me to start a 2 gallon pico in an Anchor Hocking jar. I have one of the Reefsmart PicoPro lights on order after seeing how awesome it looks on Chris's tank. I have been thinking about drilling  my jar to a 1/2 gallon Anchor Hocking, which would sit so the tops of the jars are the same height, in order to keep my heater and a powerhead (probably the Hydor Pico Evo, unless there are better options?) in it to un-clutter my display, and with the belief that the powerhead will be less noisy than a pump and bubbles. 

 

My main concern is evaporation, will it be increased with this setup, would I have to topoff more than once a week? My main reason initially for this setup was the lack of evaporation, I do not want to setup an ATO. I will keep the 1/2 gallon as sealed as possible with its lid. How much quieter will this powerhead be than a pump and bubbles? I have zero experience with either as I have only used HOB filters in the past. Finally does anyone know the diameter of the outlet on the Hydor Pico Evo? 

 

Thanks, I am very excited about this tank and keeping you all updated on it!

[Clown79]

I kept the lid on my jar and never had to top up. 

 

I first used a hydor powerhead which kept my temp on spot but I got better response a flow movement with the hose/air pump.

 

I then had to use a heater. Chose the tetra 50w preset and it kept my jar 78/79.

 

 

Check out the pico jar contest in the pico section

Tons of ideas available. Some use an air hose with no stone.

[seabass]

to Nano-Reef.com!  Starting a new pico jar, that's exciting.

 

I'm not sure you'll be able to pull off plumbing a sump.  And I think that would take away the simplicity of keeping a jar.  Remarkably, you can keep a heater, temp probe, and airline in the jar and never really notice it (due to the refraction of the curved glass).

 

As Clown stated, check out the jars in the Creative Container Contest for ideas:

 

[Ticoreefer]

Thanks for the info Clown and Seabass.  I had not thought of the optics of the curved glass keeping things hidden, that's awesome! I shall be going sumpless for sure now. 

 

Does anyone have experience with this style of pump? Are they really that much quieter than traditional pumps?

 

https://www.amazon.com/Mylivell-Aquarium-Silent-Energy-Silicone/dp/B07BKQQKZQ/ref=asc_df_B07BKQQKZQ/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=241886436424&hvpos=1o4&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16003779420133917944&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001999&hvtargid=pla-451736200720&psc=1

 

 

[Coinee]

Just one thought I'd like to add:

 

If you're going to use a jar, try really hard to find a clear one. A lot of jars are clear at the bottom but get hazy near the middle/top so it is impossible to take pictures or get a clear view of your coral. None of the stores near me had good jars but you could be lucky, but generally I think the glass clarity/quality is low since it's not meant to be an aquarium. It's mostly because of this that I kind of regret having the jar.

 

To be honest, it's an easy thing to do if you're on top of your params. I top mine off by hand every 4 days or so since I keep the lid partially on but off when I have my light on. 

[Ticoreefer]

Thanks for the tip Coinee. I plan on going to multiple stores if needed to find the perfect jar. 

 

 

[Clown79]

The anchor jars at walmart are clear.

[Coinee]

1 minute ago, Clown79 said:

The anchor jars at walmart are clear.

I got mine at Walmart and the jars are not clear completely. Some of them have aberrations and the glass is a little fuzzy near the middle of mine. You can still see through them but you're not going to see good detail, it's like someone applied a blur filter. 

[Ticoreefer]

I have a few Targets near me that I was planning on checking out, hopefully they have some clear ones.... Walmart's are not very convenient to where I live, but I will make the drive if the Targets fail me!

[Clown79]

9 hours ago, Coinee said:

I got mine at Walmart and the jars are not clear completely. Some of them have aberrations and the glass is a little fuzzy near the middle of mine. You can still see through them but you're not going to see good detail, it's like someone applied a blur filter. 

There is always distortion with jars, it's the shape and thickness of the glass.

[MainelyReefer]

18 hours ago, Ticoreefer said:

Does anyone have experience with this style of pump? Are they really that much quieter than traditional pumps?

I run the phantom which is similar to the pump you showed.  I also have this backup pump.

Cobalt Aquatics DC Air Pumps (DC... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GRDJ3TG?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

if starting from scratch I would use this pump alone, super quiet and 24hr battery backup built in. The only thing you will hear are bubbles popping

in the search for a jar check out apothecary jars, some neat options and maybe better clarity than a cookie jar?

[Ticoreefer]

Thanks Granite, I ordered the Hygger, if it performs poorly I will check the one you recommended.

I am going to use one of the Reefsmart Picopro lights, which are made to fit on the 2 gallon Anchor Hocking Heritage jars, so I will be using one of those. If things go well I may try and retrofit the lid to fit a slightly larger container. 

I am in Boston, are there any LFS up your way that would be worth making the drive to?

 

General question, are all you Pico owners making a mouth siphon with airline tubing for water changes?

[Clown79]

53 minutes ago, Ticoreefer said:

Thanks Granite, I ordered the Hygger, if it performs poorly I will check the one you recommended.

I am going to use one of the Reefsmart Picopro lights, which are made to fit on the 2 gallon Anchor Hocking Heritage jars, so I will be using one of those. If things go well I may try and retrofit the lid to fit a slightly larger container. 

I am in Boston, are there any LFS up your way that would be worth making the drive to?

 

General question, are all you Pico owners making a mouth siphon with airline tubing for water changes?

I used the tube from my gravel vacuum to do 100% weekly waterchanges. 

 

I would use 2 little fishes magnet scraper to clean the glass, Turkey baster to blow off rocks and stir up the sand, then used the tubing to suck out all the nasties.

 

 

[MainelyReefer]

2 hours ago, Ticoreefer said:

am in Boston, are there any LFS up your way that would be worth making the drive to?

A Local!  You should 100% go to frag farmers market March 2nd in CT it’s the best event all year for corals locally.  Not really any LFS in NH to warrant a road trip but if your in NH aquatic creations is great for special orders and CUC.  Plymouth NH pet store has a surprisingly nice selection of coral and fish if you find yourself in the mountain/lakes region.  Jays if you must, but watch out for syringes and cigarette butts.  Love the reef if you want to pay sales tax in MA!

For draining during a WC I use a 1’ length of 3/8” RO tubing for rigidity attached to a few feet of 3/8” drain line.  To start the siphon I fill the line with RO by holding both ends up, I then place the rigid side of the tube in the tank and lower the other side into my bucket, No salty mouth!

[seabass]

2 hours ago, Ticoreefer said:

General question, are all you Pico owners making a mouth siphon with airline tubing for water changes?

I often just use a plastic cup to scoop out old water; and the same cup to add back new water.

[Ticoreefer]

I picked up a Tetrapump siphon just now from amazon, it should work well! 

 

Granite, not sure if I can make the CT market just yet, I need to ski too! The plan is to hopefully get water and LR in on the 22nd, If I cycle quick getting some coral in a week later should'nt be a big deal. Are you also active on BRS? I plan on updating there as well. 

[Ticoreefer]

I have been thinking about an idea and Im curious if anyone has tried something similar.

 

My tank is going to be on a table, which is flush to a wall, that sits directly above a furnace vent. I was thinking of rigging up some vent extenders up the wall to terminate at the bottom of my jar. This would place the back end of my jar  over a gap between the table and wall, a gap of about 1.5", and would put it in the airflow when the heat or A/C kicks on. Im hoping this may eliminate the need for a heater in the winter, and help keep it cool in the summer. Will this do anything?

[seabass]

The air from the duct can be up to 18 degrees hotter or colder than the surrounding air.  You might find that it gets too hot, and too cool.  Plus, control would probably be difficult.

[Ticoreefer]

Thanks seabass.

 

I am thinking of running one of these as a moonlight for my jar but can't find any details about it , does this look ok? 

https://www.marinedepot.com/Reef_Brite_Flat_LED_Moonlight_Moon_Light_Fixtures_for_Aquariums-Reef_Brite-3M01048-FILTFIML-vi.html

 

 

[seabass]

It looks perfectly fine.  Although a moonlight certainly isn't required.  At $40+, it might be considered a pricey addition for a pico.

[Ticoreefer]

I am running! I will start a full thread on the Pico page later but have a question before then. I got established live rock and as soon as the lights went out I counted at least 7 decent sized bristle stars, bodies about dime size with maybe 2” legs. Should I be concerned about this in a 2 gallon jar? Also, 4-5 of them went to the top of my rock work and a couple of them started releasing eggs/spawning!! This can not be normal behavior for the first night, right??  The first pic shows one of the beasts, the second one is a is a full tank shot, and the last is a terrible pic of the spawning, it’s the best I could get though. Please let me know if  these guys are ok in my jar!

[seabass]

Sweet!  Those brittle stars are cool. I'm not anticipating an issue with them.  Generally they would be considered a great hitchhiker to get.  I'm assuming they are a dwarf variety, as some species grow to a foot (and obviously there isn't room for that species of sea star).

 

Looks good.  I can't really tell how much open water there is; the refraction makes it look packed full of rock.  If you think it's a little much, you can remove it and try to break it up with a hammer and chisel (use safety glasses).  Now would be a good time to make any adjustments, if you want.  Again, I think it looks nice, just not sure how full it actually is (and you need a little room for your coral and whatnot).

[Ticoreefer]

Thanks Seabass, good to know they are beneficial! My worry is bio-load, I plan on nothing but coral in the jar, but looks like I will be hosting a bunch of these guys and a very large bristle worm!

 

I re-aquascaped yesterday as it was a bit crowded, I think it looks better and I have more space for coral now. 

[Reefjunkye]

@Ticoreefer any update? I am planning to order the picopro 

[Ticoreefer]

The jar is still doing great! Dealing with a bit of algea at the moment but all the coral are growing.