Need Advice Guys??

Reefer42O · 07/23/2007, 11:09 PM

Okay so Iâ€™m going to start a JbJ 3 gallon picotope tank and I have a few questions that I would like to share with you guys for your wisdom and opinionâ€™s. Will the mini heater they sell on dr foster and smith be good enough to keep the temp on the tank where it needs to be? Also what light upgrade do you guys recommend for this tank? Iâ€™m planning on having about give or take 4-6 pounds of live rock 1.5â€ sand bed and one small fish either a clown goby or neon maybe even a watchman not sure yet and a bumblebee shrimp. The idea that I have in mind for this tank is to do something out of the ordinary and keep only exceptional corals, a few I have in mind are a few sun polyps â€œafter tank has been well established of courseâ€ some real nice zooâ€™s and yumaâ€™s maybe get some star polyps for added color on the wall of the tank, some pulsing xenia, some green and orange PPEâ€™s from my other tank, and etc. I want to build virtually a small reef for my desk with real nice a variation of color and rare corals. Also would I need to add a small power head for more current and will the filter it comes with be sufficient or should I upgrade or add another one like the one it brings? All opinions and comments are welcome.
Thanks for your time,
Jeff

spanglish · 07/24/2007, 02:31 PM

Are you doing this by itself??? or in conjunction with a
"real" tank?

ACBlinky · 07/24/2007, 02:51 PM

The mini heaters are what most folks use TMK, they're usually around 25W or so.

I'd recommend going with a PC fixture - you should be able to find a 2x13W or 2x18W fixture with legs that will fit your tank, which I think would be adequate for the corals you mentioned.

I wouldn't try a watchman goby, much too large for a 3g - as a matter of fact I'd avoid fish all together. I can't imagine being able to keep parameters stable with fish in such a small tank, and I doubt a fish would be happy with that little room. Clown gobies are small in size, but IME they can use a lot of room - mine hosted a fox coral (see my avatar) but also roamed the rest of the 65g tank, hopping from coral to coral all day long. I'd stick with your shrimp, get some gorgeous frags and make a fishless pico tank.

As for circulation, you'll probably want more than what the tiny little HOB filter will provide. I'd convert an AquaClear 70 or 50 into a little HOB refugium (there are plans on www.nano-reef.com , it's easy to do) where you can hide chaeto, your heater, and have increased circulation all at the same time. One caveat - with a tank that small, I'd rest the filter on a block/brick behind the tank, rather than relying on the tank wall to support the weight.

have fun, post pictures in the nano section when you get it going

Reefer42O · 07/24/2007, 07:27 PM

Okay so I placed my order today at foster and smith and I bought the tank along with a 7" 25 watt heater I also bought a mini-jet 404 for added current and also bought a digital thermometer as for the filter I'm going to try and use a whisper 10 I believe itâ€™s called that I already have and if that doesn't work out I'm going to go for the aqua clear and convert it into a fuge. Lighting is going to stay stock for now until the tank cycles then I'm going to upgrade to the 12" 36 watt coral life kit with legs as for fish I'm going to keep one neon goby if that. Will post pics as soon as I receive the tank and get it up and running thanks for all the help and more knowledge is welcomed.
Thanks again,
Jeff

07/23/2007, 11:09 PM	#1
Reefer42O Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Miami,FL Posts: 11	Need Advice Guys?? Okay so Iâ€™m going to start a JbJ 3 gallon picotope tank and I have a few questions that I would like to share with you guys for your wisdom and opinionâ€™s. Will the mini heater they sell on dr foster and smith be good enough to keep the temp on the tank where it needs to be? Also what light upgrade do you guys recommend for this tank? Iâ€™m planning on having about give or take 4-6 pounds of live rock 1.5â€ sand bed and one small fish either a clown goby or neon maybe even a watchman not sure yet and a bumblebee shrimp. The idea that I have in mind for this tank is to do something out of the ordinary and keep only exceptional corals, a few I have in mind are a few sun polyps â€œafter tank has been well established of courseâ€ some real nice zooâ€™s and yumaâ€™s maybe get some star polyps for added color on the wall of the tank, some pulsing xenia, some green and orange PPEâ€™s from my other tank, and etc. I want to build virtually a small reef for my desk with real nice a variation of color and rare corals. Also would I need to add a small power head for more current and will the filter it comes with be sufficient or should I upgrade or add another one like the one it brings? All opinions and comments are welcome. Thanks for your time, Jeff

07/24/2007, 02:31 PM	#2
spanglish Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: DFW Texas Posts: 788	Are you doing this by itself??? or in conjunction with a "real" tank? __________________ " I quit drinking weeks ago! No one noticed, but I guess that's a pretty good indicator that I conducted myself quite well when I was drunk. " Current Tank Info: 90 G Bowfront, 30G refugium,T5's,Euroreef 100,1 true perc, 1false black, 1 ember blenny,Eight Line Flasher Wrasse, Mandarin,various LPS

07/24/2007, 02:51 PM	#3
ACBlinky Premium Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Peterborough, ON, Canada Posts: 4,954 Blog Entries: 20	The mini heaters are what most folks use TMK, they're usually around 25W or so. I'd recommend going with a PC fixture - you should be able to find a 2x13W or 2x18W fixture with legs that will fit your tank, which I think would be adequate for the corals you mentioned. I wouldn't try a watchman goby, much too large for a 3g - as a matter of fact I'd avoid fish all together. I can't imagine being able to keep parameters stable with fish in such a small tank, and I doubt a fish would be happy with that little room. Clown gobies are small in size, but IME they can use a lot of room - mine hosted a fox coral (see my avatar) but also roamed the rest of the 65g tank, hopping from coral to coral all day long. I'd stick with your shrimp, get some gorgeous frags and make a fishless pico tank. As for circulation, you'll probably want more than what the tiny little HOB filter will provide. I'd convert an AquaClear 70 or 50 into a little HOB refugium (there are plans on www.nano-reef.com , it's easy to do) where you can hide chaeto, your heater, and have increased circulation all at the same time. One caveat - with a tank that small, I'd rest the filter on a block/brick behind the tank, rather than relying on the tank wall to support the weight. have fun, post pictures in the nano section when you get it going __________________ "The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears, or the sea." - Isak Dinesen Current Tank Info: 150g mixed reef, 30g sump/refugium, LED lighting, 100lbs LR, coral beauty, flame angel, blue & yellow tangs, gobies, damsels, 6-line wrasse, lawnmower blenny, dottyback, clown pair, rabbitfish, shrimp, crabs, CUC.

07/24/2007, 07:27 PM	#4
Reefer42O Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Miami,FL Posts: 11	Okay so I placed my order today at foster and smith and I bought the tank along with a 7" 25 watt heater I also bought a mini-jet 404 for added current and also bought a digital thermometer as for the filter I'm going to try and use a whisper 10 I believe itâ€™s called that I already have and if that doesn't work out I'm going to go for the aqua clear and convert it into a fuge. Lighting is going to stay stock for now until the tank cycles then I'm going to upgrade to the 12" 36 watt coral life kit with legs as for fish I'm going to keep one neon goby if that. Will post pics as soon as I receive the tank and get it up and running thanks for all the help and more knowledge is welcomed. Thanks again, Jeff