3.8 Gallon stocking suggestions

[jmcdaniel0]

I have ordered a small tank for my office, and I am putting together a stocking list.

 

I know I want a Yellow Watchmen and Shrimp pair.

 

Emerald crab (maybe)

Sally Lightfoot(maybe)

 

Assorted hermits and snails

 

What other fish could fit and be happy in this tank?

 

Could a pajama card. pair be happy in there?

 

or a single clown with a RFA? 

 

I have only ever had big tanks, the smallest in my house right now it a 50g cube, so this is all new territory for me.  I really  care about my animals of all types so I dont want them to be unhappy.

[debbeach13]

5 minutes ago, jmcdaniel0 said:

Could a pajama card. pair be happy in there?

 

or a single clown with a RFA? 

IMO - No and No

[aclman88]

I would recommend a smaller shrimp goby, such as a yasha goby, since watchmen goby would be too big long term.  That or I would look into a single clown goby.  Either way, in a tank that size, you will be limited to a single fish unless you go really small like trimma gobies.

[Jakesaw]

1 hour ago, jmcdaniel0 said:

I have only ever had big tanks, the smallest in my house right now it a 50g cube, so this is all new territory for me.  I really  care about my animals of all types so I dont want them to be unhappy.

SW fish live in the ocean, in a 3.5 gallon pico tank you're going to be pretty limited for fish selection and quantity if 1,  

 

 

[InAtTheDeepEnd]

a watchman goby gets way too big, if you want a goby/shrimp pair how about a randall's and a pistol shrimp (the randalls do get 9cm though so it depends on the dimensions of your tank)? Or another small species of quite sedentary shrimp goby and its symbiotic companion. 

In a 3.8g I think a shrimp/goby pair and some hermits and snails, maybe a coral goby or another nano  species. (A yasha is a good shout but there's LOADS of INCREDIBLE gobies out there! 😍)

[debbeach13]

If you do go for a shrimp goby combo, try and find a candy cane shrimp. I think they might be the smallest shrimp that will pair up with a goby. I agree a watchman probably gets too large but other suggestions listed above should work.

[fenderchamp]

why not get the tank well cycled with a small cleanup crew and some live rock and some corals, and wait a year or so until it is somewhat stable and you have a good routine down to take care of it before you put any fish in it.  3.8 gallons really is tiny.  I have a 3.5 and an a 5, but I haven't had the heart to put a fish in either of them yet.  I put a pom pom crab in the 3.5 but I think it died.  I feel kind of bad about it too.  I have had pretty luck with hermits and snails so far, and the corals are doing fine of course.  With the frequent, high volume water changes that seem to be needed to keep the corals happy, I'm not sure how well a fish would manage in there, even if I can get the solitary confinement cell aspect of keeping one out of my mind. 

[fenderchamp]

I can't think of any pico thread on here, which a fish has lasted a reasonable amount of time in yet.  

 

If anybody has one that has survived for a year or more, post it here and let's see it, and let's hear how you did it. 

[aclman88]

I had a yellowtail damsel in my 5.5 gallon for a year with no problems.  It is definitely doable, but the fish chosen needs to be appropriate for the setting.  In my opinion, a small fish in a pico is more manageable than many types of coral.  Algae and other pests generally won't bother a fish like it would for corals and water changes to replace nutrients is less important.

[Jakesaw]

1 hour ago, aclman88 said:

I had a yellowtail damsel in my 5.5 gallon for a year with no problems. 

Not sure if you asked the fish, he would agree.

 

 

[Tired]

19 hours ago, fenderchamp said:

I can't think of any pico thread on here, which a fish has lasted a reasonable amount of time in yet.  

 

If anybody has one that has survived for a year or more, post it here and let's see it, and let's hear how you did it. 

I had a trimma goby in my pico for over 2 years, and a roughhead blenny for about a year. They died because they reacted poorly to a hyposalinity treatment that was meant to get rid of ich. Teeny-tiny fish in a 4.5gal, fed a couple times a week at most. They both stayed fat off of copepods and amphipods, eating multiple meals a day from things that had grown in the tank. If not for the treatment, they'd still be in there today.

I have a journal thread on here somewhere, but it's long and hasn't been updated in awhile, and none of it is particularly interesting. The only unusual bit is that I have a 1-gallon canister filter on the tank, with no filter media in it. The filter adds a bit more water volume, and it means there's no pump vibrations in the tank.

 

Pico tanks work for fish, but you have to pick pico fish. Gobies that barely pass an inch long, blennies the size of a tall toothpick that sit in holes and never leave. Fish that would stay in a shoebox-sized portion of their world, regardless of the amount of space available, as long as that space had plenty of food and hiding places. There's a few picos running around on here that have been up for awhile.

 

One thing to note when looking at pico tanks is that pico gobies only live a few years anyway. A clown goby purchased as an adult may very well die of old age in under a year, regardless of the size of tank it's in. 

 

A standard 5.5gal would be fine as a temporary housing for juvenile nano fish, but it's still a pico, and should only house pico fish long-term. 

[debbeach13]

On 8/15/2022 at 10:30 AM, jmcdaniel0 said:

I have only ever had big tanks,

Have you checked out any Pico journals or threads? Some fabulous tanks. LOL

[LazyFish]

I curently have have a black belly eviota goby in my 3g and some snails for clean up crew. Stomatella snails colonista snails narcissus snails dwarf cerith snail. I only have a couple of each in there. Theres micro brittle stars too. It's been going a few months and is doing quite well.

[joshthebox]

Personally I wouldn't put any fish in a tank that small. 

[Snow_Phoenix]

3 hours ago, joshthebox said:

Personally I wouldn't put any fish in a tank that small. 

I'm curious though - could a lone GBG (green banded goby) work? They stay extremely small and have minimal bioload. Another two options would be the white cap or flaming prawn goby, but those are quite rare and extremely expensive. 🤔

[Ratvan]

57 minutes ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

I'm curious though - could a lone GBG (green banded goby) work? They stay extremely small and have minimal bioload. Another two options would be the white cap or flaming prawn goby, but those are quite rare and extremely expensive. 🤔

I think that it could work- similar with a Red Headed Goby, I did have a Trimma Cana (Firecracker) Goby in my 2.5G Pico. Awesome little fish, not very active though.

 

@jmcdaniel0, what are the dimensions of the tank?  

[InAtTheDeepEnd]

Panda goby or warty goby could be options too 

[jmcdaniel0]

17 hours ago, debbeach13 said:

Have you checked out any Pico journals or threads? Some fabulous tanks. LOL

I have thats what gave me the bug!!

4 hours ago, InAtTheDeepEnd said:

Panda goby or warty goby could be options too 

I will look them up!

[jmcdaniel0]

5 hours ago, Ratvan said:

I think that it could work- similar with a Red Headed Goby, I did have a Trimma Cana (Firecracker) Goby in my 2.5G Pico. Awesome little fish, not very active though.

 

@jmcdaniel0, what are the dimensions of the tank?  

It is 11" x 12" x 10"

 

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/deskmate-3-8-gallon-aio-aquarium-w-led-light-eshopps.html

[jmcdaniel0]

17 hours ago, Tired said:

I had a trimma goby in my pico for over 2 years, and a roughhead blenny for about a year. They died because they reacted poorly to a hyposalinity treatment that was meant to get rid of ich. Teeny-tiny fish in a 4.5gal, fed a couple times a week at most. They both stayed fat off of copepods and amphipods, eating multiple meals a day from things that had grown in the tank. If not for the treatment, they'd still be in there today.

I have a journal thread on here somewhere, but it's long and hasn't been updated in awhile, and none of it is particularly interesting. The only unusual bit is that I have a 1-gallon canister filter on the tank, with no filter media in it. The filter adds a bit more water volume, and it means there's no pump vibrations in the tank.

 

Pico tanks work for fish, but you have to pick pico fish. Gobies that barely pass an inch long, blennies the size of a tall toothpick that sit in holes and never leave. Fish that would stay in a shoebox-sized portion of their world, regardless of the amount of space available, as long as that space had plenty of food and hiding places. There's a few picos running around on here that have been up for awhile.

 

One thing to note when looking at pico tanks is that pico gobies only live a few years anyway. A clown goby purchased as an adult may very well die of old age in under a year, regardless of the size of tank it's in. 

 

A standard 5.5gal would be fine as a temporary housing for juvenile nano fish, but it's still a pico, and should only house pico fish long-term. 

This is great info!   Once the tank arrives ill start a build journal.

[Tired]

My advice for a tank that's going to hold well under 4 gallons of water when the rock is in (possibly under 3 gallons of water) is: one very tiny fish, ONE, only after the tank has been up for a few months, and closely watch your parameters. Not a watchman goby, probably not any sort of shrimpgoby. Probably not a clown goby, either, they're actually somewhat active sometimes.

 

A canister filter to increase water volume is probably a good idea, as is encouraging pods for the fish to eat. Most reef fish absolutely must eat a minimum of once daily, but they don't necessarily need to be fed daily, if there are a lot of pods available. You should assume you'll need to feed the fish daily, though. 

[jmcdaniel0]

17 hours ago, Tired said:

My advice for a tank that's going to hold well under 4 gallons of water when the rock is in (possibly under 3 gallons of water) is: one very tiny fish, ONE, only after the tank has been up for a few months, and closely watch your parameters. Not a watchman goby, probably not any sort of shrimpgoby. Probably not a clown goby, either, they're actually somewhat active sometimes.

 

A canister filter to increase water volume is probably a good idea, as is encouraging pods for the fish to eat. Most reef fish absolutely must eat a minimum of once daily, but they don't necessarily need to be fed daily, if there are a lot of pods available. You should assume you'll need to feed the fish daily, though. 

I plan on dedication some space in the back for macro algae, and I will be stocking multiple pods.    I think the consensus has been a yasha goby would be fine in there.

[Tired]

A yasha may work, with enough space left in the scape and enough rock for the biofilter. That'd definitely need to be the only fish, though. 

[jmcdaniel0]

1 hour ago, Tired said:

A yasha may work, with enough space left in the scape and enough rock for the biofilter. That'd definitely need to be the only fish, though. 

yea, thats my thoughts.   Im also putting rock rubble in the back of the tank for some extra bio filter.    I plan on just him and a shrimp with a few snails and a hermit or three.   other than that, mainly zoas and mushrooms.