3 gal jbj cubey

David Ramirez · Feb 19, 2019

so im setting up a 3 gallon jbj cubey. Ive never dealt with a tank size this small before and ive heard that even the slightest changes can have a dramatic effect on the tank. I want to do an all anemone tank with a clown or two, what are my best options for upgradinbg the internals as well as general tips for being as successful as possible?

Hemmdog · Feb 19, 2019

David Ramirez said:
so im setting up a 3 gallon jbj cubey. Ive never dealt with a tank size this small before and ive heard that even the slightest changes can have a dramatic effect on the tank. I want to do an all anemone tank with a clown or two, what are my best options for upgradinbg the internals as well as general tips for being as successful as possible?

Hey welcome, have you already set it up? If your looking for a clownfish pair and nem tank they are going to need more space unfortunately. A 3g is definitely challenging all around due to evaporation messing with the salt concentration and other macro elements that are vital to coral health. They have ATO’s or automatic top off systems for nano tanks, but I’m not sure if they make them for pico tanks. This tops off your tank with fresh RODI water to keep your salinity stable with evaporation. You must use RODI water.
If possible I would suggest trying to get a larger tank to have a better chance at success. I know this isn’t what you wanted to hear :( but there is a lot of good options out there for nano tanks 20-40gallons. If you could go 40+ gallons it will make your life easier, 120+ gallons much much easier. Budget is always a concern for most of us, so if your just trying to see if reefing is your thing grab another jbj or something similar, but get one at least 20+ gallons so you can have the fish and corals that you are looking for. Save a few hundred bucks in your budget for a decent light.

A 3 gallon your pretty much going to be able to have a shrimp and a small goby. Which is cool in its own way, but I’m not sure that’s what your looking for.

Here to help anytime boss man

David Ramirez · Feb 19, 2019

I actually do have another tank that im using to just kinda get whatever I want in terms of coral and fish, its a 30 gal, unfortunately the tank is already set up for the 3 gal

Hemmdog · Feb 19, 2019

David Ramirez said:
I actually do have another tank that im using to just kinda get whatever I want in terms of coral and fish, its a 30 gal, unfortunately the tank is already set up for the 3 gal

Oh sweet my bad! Yea I’m not sure on pico tanks. I’ve wanted to try one but it seems super hard lol.

David Ramirez · Feb 19, 2019

yeah hopefully it works out!

Hemmdog · Feb 19, 2019

David Ramirez said:
yeah hopefully it works out!

For sure. You could do rock flower nems if your set on nems. Rainford gobys stay pretty small but still swim around. If it gets to big put him in your 30 :) the fish options are limited. Lol

Katrina71 · Feb 19, 2019

My son got the same tank for Christmas. We have not set it up yet. He hasn't decided what he wants to do with it. We started Reefing in an 8 gallon Biocube. Picos are not hard. I know for sure. 1.5 gallon water change per week should be great. First, are you going rimless or keeping the hood?