Need some help

[erosenlieb]

Ok i have done 300 gallon tanks. I have done 29 gallon tanks. Now i want to do a 2-3 gallon tank. It of course will not have any fish. It will be a reef only tank. So what i need to know is the good and the bad about a tank this small. Im sure there are things that you know that i don't know about tanks this small. So please fill me in on all the dues and do nots.

Thanks

[terrypercula]

Well the obvious bad is small water volume = small level of error. Quick swings of water parameters. Also small tanks limit you in size which means corals will get crowded quickly. There's something really cool about s super small reef though. If done right pico reefs are just so cool to see.

[zombiereefer]

i am in same boat i did large tanks not 300 but 180. and i just bought a 45 gal rimless cube not drilled. using a fluval. i would honestly use a canister just my opinion. It will allow you to clean you filtration and do a water change. also. no fish no skimmer again IMO. i actally wont use a skimmer on my 45 gal. i will be using just the canister. possiblly a fuge. and honestly the small tanks have been easier for me. until they mature. like a year into a pico/nano tank you get problems. but if you have had a large reef your in for a treat. they are easy. you can just dose once in a while.

NOW if your load it down with sps like some of these crazy reefers, thats another story i would think a sump and or dosing system setup. lots of cool crazy things you can do. and hey you screw it up???? how much $$$$ can you really have in coral in 3 gals :)

[erosenlieb]

Well im sitting here putting some thunk into it. I will most likely go with a 3 gallon. I would like to go rimless and it will have to have some kind of filter built in as i dont like hang ons. I will most likely use a clamp LED light. I will buy all my water.

[erosenlieb]

http://www.micro-reefs.com/aquariums.html

something like that

[zombiereefer]

do a canister filter for those. if you make a false wall it will take up a lot realestate i would use a canister or something. you can use and internal filter but thats basically a canister but inside your tank. idk what people use for those.

[Psittac]

I'm not an expert at all on reefs but have been doing freshwater for many years, from 5g-130g

I didn't consult anyone when I did this tank just made an impulse purchase while at the LFS because I had a pipe organ that I never could get rid of when I took most of my tanks down, it just kept saying to me "I need a tank for myself".

So I saw the LED fixture and the 3.4g rimless tank at the LFS and pulled the trigger. I had the idea in my head of a smaller tank for a refugium so I did a .5g refugium which turned into a 3.4g refugium.

I'm working on an auto-top off and I think that between the refugium and auto-top off a lot of problems will be solved.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2329600

It was just a bunch of ideas that had been in my head for a while so I made it up as I went, I like what it's shaping into.

[erosenlieb]

Yes after holding a 2.5 gallon in my hand today. I didnt know what i could even put into it. So i will either go with a 3 gallon AIO tanks or have a 2.5 and drill it.

[erosenlieb]

Anybody have any ideas for tanks

[terrypercula]

Did you ever consider a small AIO tank. Like aqueon 4 cube or even innovative marine makes a 4 gallon nuvo if your willing to spend that much.

[erosenlieb]

Yeah i saw some nice AIOs but they want 2-300 bucks for a 4 gallon tank

[terrypercula]

Yeah i saw some nice AIOs but they want 2-300 bucks for a 4 gallon tank

For 2-300 you could do a biocube. But I think the aqueon 4 gallon is like $50 or so the innovative marine 4 gallon is three times that but has better stock lighting. You could probably find something really nice used

[erosenlieb]

I hade a 29g biocube really didnt like the deep rounded front hard to keep clean for me it was anyways

Im just wondering if i want to do a sump or not. Its not going to have fish either. So im running equipment threw my head and seeing if i can fit them in the back of a tank that small

[terrypercula]

I'll tell you from experience it's a squeeze for my equipment in my 16 nuvo. And I have a jbj pictope floating around and I basically gave up on it. The light was garbage the filter is useless it's just not a good set up BUT the tank is well made and from what I've been told can be drilled. So I keep holding on to it in case one day I decide to drill it and sump it then turn like a par 38 or something over it.

[erosenlieb]

Well i have been looking around on here and so far ive not seen a AIO that is kept a AIO

[terrypercula]

Yea most people end up doing so many upgrades the only thing original is the glass lol

[erosenlieb]

I think im gonna do a corner over flow and a return on the other side into a sump

[Psittac]

This guy found a 7.5g tank for $50, looks like an excellent tank. Add a refugium to keep algae down and an ATO and it won't be to bad

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2330850

[erosenlieb]

Well now that i look i might change things up a bit and go with this tank

http://www.marinedepot.com/Mr._Aqua_Rectangle_Frameless_Glass_Aquarium_Tank_Rectangular-Azoo-AZ1119-FIAQRA-AZ1123-vi.html

[terrypercula]

Well now that i look i might change things up a bit and go with this tank

http://www.marinedepot.com/Mr._Aqua_Rectangle_Frameless_Glass_Aquarium_Tank_Rectangular-Azoo-AZ1119-FIAQRA-AZ1123-vi.html

I love the dimensions on that tank

[erosenlieb]

I was wanting to go a lot smaller but i just cant it will take me some time toget everything together for it then ill be back with a build thread