Humble 5 Gallon Pico Tank

[Poison Dart Frog]

Just thought I would show my Fluval 5.5 gallon setup. I am now on month 2 (around 5 weeks since setup). I have the Fluval Sea 20 watt LED light. I have been buying Pacific Ocean water from Petco and doing a 1 gallon water change each week. So far I just got a few frags from a friend's tank and I bought a GSP frag and a gorgonia. I have a yellow tail damsel and a fire shrimp and a few hermits and a snail. It is going good so far. This is my first saltwater tank in years. I've had a few over the years including when I was a kid and we thought undergravel filters and crushed coral substrates were the best method. Times have changed lol. Long term I want to add more easy corals. I know how addictive this hobby and similar ones are. I have so many other pets (chameleons, dart frogs, geckos etc) that it seems to be hard not to keep buying new setups. Hopefully I can control that urge this time. Thanks for reading. 

Both of my pico tanks: a 7 gallon bow front and a 5.5 gallon Fluval.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[debbeach13]

Welcome to NR. Looks like a nice little set up. I bet your friend can answer a lot of your questions but if not a lot of members here are happy to help.

[Poison Dart Frog]

Thanks. Yeah, I've been lurking here for a while before making an account. I love the wealth of info here.

 

I think I'm going through the "ugly stage" for my aquarium, with quite a bit of algae growth. I am working on removing as much as possible each week when I do the water change. Also, changing one gallon seems to drain out about 1/3 of the water volume since I have quite a bit of rock and gravel. I get the impression that it takes several months for a tank to start looking really nice. Getting past the ugly stage and giving corals time to grow in and so on. 

 

 

[billygoat]

Cool little tank you've got here! I'll be following along. And welcome to N-R! 😊

[Poison Dart Frog]

1 hour ago, billygoat said:

Cool little tank you've got here! I'll be following along. And welcome to N-R! 😊

Thanks. I really like your macro algae tank.

[billygoat]

9 hours ago, Poison Dart Frog said:

Thanks. I really like your macro algae tank.

Thank you! Do you have any plans to add macros to your pico? There are some good, cheap choices that would look very nice in here. 😊

[Poison Dart Frog]

I would like to for sure. I love the look of the Dragons breath and others like that. 

[Poison Dart Frog]

I added a pom pom crab today. 

 

[Poison Dart Frog]

I upgraded the stock pump. The new one is 103 gph so a slight upgrade. I'm sure a small powerhead would be better but there is so little room for one. The pump was just $13.

[Wonderboy]

Good luck controlling the urge   Looking good so far - loving the videography! 

[Poison Dart Frog]

My Pom Pom Crab is carrying an egg sac. I usually just see the crab shortly after the lights dim. Pretty interesting critter.

 

[Poison Dart Frog]

I figure it will be a few months before this tank grows in and matures enough to start looking good. I have added a couple more frags and my pom pom crab is still doing well. Still dealing with a lot of algae which I work on every Sunday when I do a water change. 

[Poison Dart Frog]

For filming it seems to work best with the lights dimmed by a lot and keeping the phone farther away. 

 

[billygoat]

2 hours ago, Poison Dart Frog said:

I figure it will be a few months before this tank grows in and matures enough to start looking good. I have added a couple more frags and my pom pom crab is still doing well. Still dealing with a lot of algae which I work on every Sunday when I do a water change. 

What kind of clean-up crew do you have going in here? A few hermit crabs would probably go to town on all that hair algae!

 

Tank looks great though. Very nice. 😁

[Poison Dart Frog]

Thanks a lot! I have 2 hermits and 1 snail. I think I may start turning my white light down to 50% or so during the peak hours. The little guys help with the algae but it just grows back so fast. The next thing I want to add is a frag of Dragon's breath macro algae. None of the fish stores near me have it so I will have to order it. 

[kimdawg]

You have a great start to your tank.  I love the pom pom crab.  I never see mine unless I take all of the rock out to clean the bottom of the tank.  The uglies will pass soon and then you can enjoy adding slowly to the corals.

[Poison Dart Frog]

One of the hermit crabs has long hair algae on its shell. Reminds me of Eddie, the mascot for Iron Maiden. 

[Poison Dart Frog]

The pom pom crab is pretty active right after the lights go out. And for mo reason, here's a frog pic which would get me in trouble on Dendroboard for mixing 2 different morphs.

[Tired]

Nice critters!

 

I used to have those same two morphs together, actually, or at least something similar. I certainly understand why it's recommended that people don't mix morphs (dissuades beginners, helps prevent crossbreeding, etc) but IMO, if they're the same size as adults and you have some way to prevent breeding, it's possible. Just need some observation to make sure everything is going well, like with any other venture in live animals. It's probably best to err on the side of discouraging it, though- helps keep people from coming into the hobby, getting 1 month of experience, seeing a mixed morph viv, going "I'm gonna chuck 3 different species together, because that's not much more different!", and winding up with dead frogs. 

[Poison Dart Frog]

1 minute ago, Tired said:

Nice critters!

 

I used to have those same two morphs together, actually, or at least something similar. I certainly understand why it's recommended that people don't mix morphs (dissuades beginners, helps prevent crossbreeding, etc) but IMO, if they're the same size as adults and you have some way to prevent breeding, it's possible. Just need some observation to make sure everything is going well, like with any other venture in live animals. It's probably best to err on the side of discouraging it, though- helps keep people from coming into the hobby, getting 1 month of experience, seeing a mixed morph viv, going "I'm gonna chuck 3 different species together, because that's not much more different!", and winding up with dead frogs. 

Thanks! Yeah, I have 2 citronellas and one green sip (which turned blue almost immediately) in that tank and they've always gotten along fine, and they're all adults now. I have a few other kinds but those are the only ones where I mixed the morphs like that, but thankfully it's been trouble free. On Dendroboard I guess it's kind of like the "tang police" where people really frown on doing certain things. There is an equivalent to that on a chameleon message board I frequent too, usually concerning lighting and cage size, lol. 

[kimdawg]

The frogs are so colorful.  I don't know anything about them but I love the picture of them.  Thanks for posting

[Poison Dart Frog]

2 minutes ago, kimdawg said:

The frogs are so colorful.  I don't know anything about them but I love the picture of them.  Thanks for posting

Thanks! They are easier than keeping saltwater critters IMO. The main task is culturing fruit flies since they have to eat live prey. Here is another variety. 

[kimdawg]

Beautiful colors again.  How long do they live?

[Poison Dart Frog]

Just now, kimdawg said:

Beautiful colors again.  How long do they live?

Most things I've read say 5 to 10 years, but there are examples of dart frogs over 20 years old. 

[Tired]

Yeah, it is a lot like the tang police, isn't it? They're both acting off of valid points (i.e. not something that should be done by beginners, has potential to go wrong depending on species and even individual, should always be done with the possibility of immediate or eventual failure in mind and some idea of what to do if it it fails), but some things are more doable than they're made out to be. Some rules are stretchable. Not all of them, mind you! But some. 

 

Have you ever showed them your reef tank? I had my pair trained to hop into a cup for fruit flies, and I could then put the lid on and slowly move it to other areas of the room without scaring them. I don't know how far they can see, but they'd certainly stare intently at any fish I showed them, I suppose at all the motion.