So my 13.5 gallon reef tank started doing what reef tanks do… filling up with anemones. 
My wife actually had a great idea (yes, I said that out loud) and suggested I set up another tank. Of course, I was all for it.
I decided to move the rock from my 13.5 that had all the anemones over into a new 6 gallon Fluval Betta tank. I knew the stock light wasn’t going to cut it, so I ran it temporarily while waiting for my Kessil.
Since the 13.5 and the 6 gallon are pretty close in height, I started with similar light settings. After things settled, I moved my main clownfish Powder over and let everyone adjust for a couple weeks.
Now I’ve got a 3-year-old rock with about 6 anemones, a clownfish that has fully moved in, and honestly it’s been a really fun little setup to watch. The clown swimming around the anemones up close in such a small tank is pretty awesome.
I added some ceramic media balls from the 13.5 to help seed things and let the tank mature. After a couple weeks, during a small water change, I added a nano Chemipure Elite.
So far everything has been going great.
I also moved my sea urchin over to help clean up some caulerpa algae. He’s doing his job… just not exactly with the precision I would choose. He makes random little mowing paths through the algae in whatever direction he feels like. Definitely not driving me crazy at all.
The tank is about 2 months old now and still going strong. Weekly water changes are around 1 gallon or less depending on which cup I grab.
I know the equipment probably costs more than the tank itself, but I’ve never had a pico tank before and it’s been a blast.
If anyone has modded this style of Fluval to improve the filter flow, I’d love to hear what you did. Otherwise, the flow and lighting seem to be keeping the anemones and clownfish very happy.
Small tank, big personality.
My wife actually had a great idea (yes, I said that out loud) and suggested I set up another tank. Of course, I was all for it.
I decided to move the rock from my 13.5 that had all the anemones over into a new 6 gallon Fluval Betta tank. I knew the stock light wasn’t going to cut it, so I ran it temporarily while waiting for my Kessil.
Since the 13.5 and the 6 gallon are pretty close in height, I started with similar light settings. After things settled, I moved my main clownfish Powder over and let everyone adjust for a couple weeks.
Now I’ve got a 3-year-old rock with about 6 anemones, a clownfish that has fully moved in, and honestly it’s been a really fun little setup to watch. The clown swimming around the anemones up close in such a small tank is pretty awesome.
I added some ceramic media balls from the 13.5 to help seed things and let the tank mature. After a couple weeks, during a small water change, I added a nano Chemipure Elite.
So far everything has been going great.
I also moved my sea urchin over to help clean up some caulerpa algae. He’s doing his job… just not exactly with the precision I would choose. He makes random little mowing paths through the algae in whatever direction he feels like. Definitely not driving me crazy at all.
The tank is about 2 months old now and still going strong. Weekly water changes are around 1 gallon or less depending on which cup I grab.
I know the equipment probably costs more than the tank itself, but I’ve never had a pico tank before and it’s been a blast.
If anyone has modded this style of Fluval to improve the filter flow, I’d love to hear what you did. Otherwise, the flow and lighting seem to be keeping the anemones and clownfish very happy.
Small tank, big personality.
