Hello Everyone!

[Azreil13]

So, I'm the worst! I just realized this was a section lol. I have posted a couple times already, but this is my formal introduction. 

 

I'm Chris, in case anyone was curious! I've had freshwater tanks on and off for about 17 years. I currently have a 10 gallon filter-less planted tank. It has a Betta and a school of Albino Corys. I've always wanted a reef tank, but have constantly been warned about their upkeep. 

 

Now I have a better budget and have decided to take the plunge! I'm actually planning on starting my shopping on Friday! I'm currently debating on either grabbing an EVO kit, or possibles trying my hand in the pico reef contest. I know I'll have a late start, but having to update monthly might help me keep on track! Plus all your pico tanks are freaking amazing!

 

Everyone I've talked to has already been super helpful and you guys are awesome. I look forward to interacting more with the community!

[WV Reefer]

2 minutes ago, Azreil13 said:

So, I'm the worst! I just realized this was a section lol. I have posted a couple times already, but this is my formal introduction. 

 

I'm Chris, in case anyone was curious! I've had freshwater tanks on and off for about 17 years. I currently have a 10 gallon filter-less planted tank. It has a Betta and a school of Albino Corys. I've always wanted a reef tank, but have constantly been warned about their upkeep. 

 

Now I have a better budget and have decided to take the plunge! I'm actually planning on starting my shopping on Friday! I'm currently debating on either grabbing an EVO kit, or possibles trying my hand in the pico reef contest. I know I'll have a late start, but having to update monthly might help me keep on track! Plus all your pico tanks are freaking amazing!

 

Everyone I've talked to has already been super helpful and you guys are awesome. I look forward to interacting more with the community!

 

Welcome Chris! 😊

[Azreil13]

@WV Reefer

Thank you! I was told to check out your post on my first post! Your low tech long reef is absolutely stunning!

[WV Reefer]

1 minute ago, Azreil13 said:

@WV Reefer

Thank you! I was told to check out your post on my first post! Your low tech long reef is absolutely stunning!

 

Thank you. 😊

 

what are are you thinking for your pico? There are some really creative entries in the contest. 

[Azreil13]

Just now, WV Reefer said:

 

Thank you. 😊

 

what are are you thinking for your pico? There are some really creative entries in the contest. 

Oh man. So many ideas on here. I really like to go with the flow, so to speak 😉

 

I was thinking about picking up a 2.5 aqueon Betta tank, a HOB filter that I'll try modding and some lights I saw recommended on another's post. I live in Arizona, so I doubt I'll need a heater, at least for the summer. My FW tank hovers around 79, with no heater at 10 gallons. 

 

I was was thinking about setting it up Friday morning and then just going to my LFS and just picking some rocks that look good. I'm really into the idea of hitchhikers and getting some cool surprises! Being in a huge metropolis I actually have around six saltwater fish stores in driving distance, so too many choices haha. 

 

I'd I'd like to go piece by piece and just see where it takes me! I'm honestly more into inverts and coral than fish, so a nano tank seems like it would be the best to "dip my toes"!

[WV Reefer]

1 minute ago, Azreil13 said:

Oh man. So many ideas on here. I really like to go with the flow, so to speak 😉

 

I was thinking about picking up a 2.5 aqueon Betta tank, a HOB filter that I'll try modding and some lights I saw recommended on another's post. I live in Arizona, so I doubt I'll need a heater, at least for the summer. My FW tank hovers around 79, with no heater at 10 gallons. 

 

I was was thinking about setting it up Friday morning and then just going to my LFS and just picking some rocks that look good. I'm really into the idea of hitchhikers and getting some cool surprises! Being in a huge metropolis I actually have around six saltwater fish stores in driving distance, so too many choices haha. 

 

I'd I'd like to go piece by piece and just see where it takes me! I'm honestly more into inverts and coral than fish, so a nano tank seems like it would be the best to "dip my toes"!

 

Well at least you have choices...... there isn’t much around here so I mostly order online. 

 

I agree with with you on the inverts..... they are much more interesting than fish. 😀

[Azreil13]

4 minutes ago, WV Reefer said:

 

Well at least you have choices...... there isn’t much around here so I mostly order online. 

 

I agree with with you on the inverts..... they are much more interesting than fish. 😀

I guess too many is better than to little! They have better stuff online though I think most of the time anyways. 

 

The picos do just make me slightly nervouse because I know that they are much more sensitive. Being in the desert, it's the evaporation I worry most about!

[Christopher Marks]

Welcome to the community @Azreil13! 👋

 

I'm in Phoenix, evaporation is definitely something you'll need to address. A good lid can really make a huge impact, allowing you to potentially top-off your tank by hand every 4-5 days depending on its surface area. Some lids can trap too much heat though. Investing in an automatic top-off of some kind will really save you a lot of headache and keep your system stable. Having an ATO system will also make it easier to cool your tank down this summer with a fan simply pointed at the tank, evaporative cooling works well combined with your air conditioning.

 

I like your plan of sticking to coral and inverts only, I just have a 2 gallon pico reef in a glass jar that is coral only, it's really enjoyable and low maintenance. Forgoing fish really helps simplify everything. 👍

[Azreil13]

Thank you @Christopher Marks!

 

I'm here in Glendale! Is there a LFS you prefer? I've been to Ocean Floor, but the employee when i went was kinda meh. Couldn't answer my questions and told me assasin snails didn't exist. Lol. The store itself I should beautiful though!

 

I suppose if your jar is easy to maintain I'll just have to go all in and try a pico! Do you have a heater on your jar? I assumed it wouldnt be necessary, but I'm usually wrong lol

[Tigahboy]

Welcome to N-R!  I think joining the contest would be a really fun way to start your first SW tank.  You can always upgrade down the road after the contest and use some of the equipment you will be getting for the pico.  

[Azreil13]

That's kind of what I was thinking. Start smaller, especially being in an apartment! You have the pico for your son with the volcano, correct? 

I was watching the updates and it looks really cool! 

[Christopher Marks]

Just now, Azreil13 said:

I'm here in Glendale! Is there a LFS you prefer? I've been to Ocean Floor, but the employee when i went was kinda meh. Couldn't answer my questions and told me assasin snails didn't exist. Lol. The store itself I should beautiful though!

 

I suppose if your jar is easy to maintain I'll just have to go all in and try a pico!

I like The Ocean Floor, I use their filtered Catalina seawater in my pico reef, I buy 5 gallons at a time, they have huge storage tanks in the store. I like the filtered ocean water because I can store it for weeks without issue, while pre-mixed synthetic saltwater isn't meant to sit around. They sell coral frags from community sponsor @World Wide Corals, there's usually a great selection in store. I bought two WWC frags just yesterday in fact, they had a fresh shipment. I like their invertebrate selection as well, lots of cleanup crew options. I bought my live sand and cultured 'life rock' from there when I started my pico jar, I even carried my jar into the shop and hand picked the rock for it.

 

You should check out Kona Reef next, they're on 32nd St & Shea. It's a beautiful shop with really nice equipment and lots of coral frags to choose from. They have a big selection of fish as well, if you ever upgrade your reef to a larger system some day.  

[Tigahboy]

1 minute ago, Azreil13 said:

That's kind of what I was thinking. Start smaller, especially being in an apartment! You have the pico for your son with the volcano, correct? 

I was watching the updates and it looks really cool! 

Yup!  The volcano pico!  Haha.  

 

Yeah starting smaller would be a good way to ease into it in terms of buying equipment and such, or you can be like @748S911 and start a pico AND an EVO pretty much at the same time.  LOL.

[Azreil13]

@Christopher Marks I'll have to go back and check em out this weekend. I was just looking for FW stuff, and I think they do more SW.  I have looked at their frags no they do have some beauties!

 

@Tigahboy if I could drop the money for both set ups at once I totally would! I plan tic get all my hardware, some premixed water and some live rock to start the cycle, so it may be a pretty penny. 

[Christopher Marks]

57 minutes ago, Azreil13 said:

Do you have a heater on your jar? I assumed it wouldnt be necessary, but I'm usually wrong lol

I sure do, just 7.5 watts. It's connected to an Inkbird ITC-308 temperature controller that keeps it from overheating. It's been necessary to heat it this winter, although I did run at room temp for awhile at first, many coral can handle the daily temperature swing, but some inverts are more sensitive. The Inkbird controller also has a cooling outlet, I have a tiny desktop fan plugged into it that turns on when my tank gets to 81F and helps cool it down. This will be my first summer with the pico jar, so it remains to be seen how well I can manage the coming heat. The fan has been super effective so far though, when it got to 97° outside last week. Lots more details in my tank journal: 

 

[Azreil13]

@Christopher Marks

 

Thank you! I'll have to check it out!