my 1 gal pico

[xavier1]

hey i just got a one gallon tank from work and i set it up today!

its a hexagonal tank(the sucky part ) but hey its free

 

so i got about 3 pounds of pre cured live rock( it has been in the sump for abou 2 years) and about 1.5 pounds of live sand and i used water from my established 20 gal reef(its going bye bye ) and i was wondering if i have to wait for the cycle? i was planning on getting a 20 watt screw in power compact bulb(the fixture says 15 watts max. will it do anything?) a small filter(what kind?) and a 25 watt heater( to big?)also i would like to get a pistol shrimp(theres a really small one for sale at work) and a small goby

i should get the pictures up tommarrow but if not hopefully by thursday

 

let me know if you have any advice or questions or comments

[SplitSequence]

I would wait for a cycle, just in case. Mussing up the live sand that much can cause a bacterial dieoff. The shrimp should be fine, but I'd have to advise against the goby, the tank is just way too small.

[xavier1]

o.....k:( i guess ill wait then

 

thanks

 

any other advice?

[schaadrak]

Definately don't put a 20W in the 15W socket, you'd be known as the one who burnt down your office. They make 10W and 13W screw-in's that should be perfectly fine for your set up.

 

Also, wait to see how warm the tank runs without a heater. Sometimes the equipment generates enough heat to keep the smaller tanks warm.

 

GL

[brent-konieczny]

I would use the 20watt PC in the 15watt socket. The reason is that the manufacturer assumes the use of an incandescent bulb. These 15watt incandescent bulbs produce much more heat than say a 15watt PC. I would say that a 20watt PC should produce equal or maybe a little less heat than a 15watt incandescent. The only problem I forsee with the 20watt is will it fit under the hood?

[supersecretshinto]

I agree with brent-konieczny on the wattage issue. Having worked in lighting a number of years, I know that the wattage restriction is based on potential heat of the bulbs and not the ability of the socket to withstand the additional draw of electricity. If all it took to burn down a building was for someone to screw in a bulb that drew 5 watts too much, there would be alot fewer buildings! Many times I'd go out to service a cieling fan and I'd see people running four 100w's instead of the rated max of four 60w bulbs.

[xavier1]

ok so it is safe to put the 20 watts in(as lon as they fit?)

[brent-konieczny]

yep.

[skilter]

i think i know what kinda 1 gallon hex you have, and if i recall i used the Coralife 50/50 10watt bulb. i cant remember for sure, but i believe it could house the 20w. might have to do some cutting, but you should be able to squeeze it up in there.

[Ryan_H]

if its the tank i'm thinking of (like mine) the 20w wont fit. the 10 gives plenty of light though (i've got a very happy candy cane and a red open brain). go ahead and do the goby, especially with 3lbs live rock. shouldn't be any bioload problem (heh, i've got a yellow clown and a rose banded, and my nitrates stay at zero with 4 lbs live rock and 50mg of purigen).

[xavier1]

ok so i have pics but dont know how to post them so ill give u a link to my album

and if anyone knows how to post pics let me know

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/xmania524/al...m/ph//my_photos

[xavier1]

well i got back from crystal cove today and i got a couple of things

 

a 11 watt light(this thing is blue(6.5 k)

a hermit crab

a snail

a baby green chromis