Pico reef! Lifegard Aquatics Crystal AIO 4.1!

[Daniel92481]

Hey reef peeps! Just thought I would share my new project here. I’ve always wanted a pico reef and now, here I am!

-Lifegard Aquatics crystal AIO 4.1 gallon aquarium with stock pump

-Ecotech MP10

-Kessil A360X

-LA 25 watt heater

I shut down my Nuvo 40 yesterday and placed my remaining corals in the new pico. I am very happy with my livestock in the tank, and plan on keeping things as simple as possible.

-Variety of zoas including nirvanas, bowsers, pink constellations, sonic flares, playboy bunnies, and some others

-fire shrimp

-trochus snail

-blue legged hermit

-white morph RFA

I have attached a few pics! Thanks for looking!

 

[Daniel92481]

Pico is running nicely, I have attached a few more pics! Added a few sticks to the back upper portion of the main rock. Hard to see in the pics, but looking nice!

 

[count krunk]

Looks nice!

Lol an mp10 on this tank is like the 150 hp outboards you see on 21' bass boats.

 

[Daniel92481]

Hey reefers, things were going so smooth until...GHA! Ugh. Gotta love it. It had been progressively getting worse for a few weeks before I decided to scrub the back wall and main rock with a toothbrush. I managed to get the majority of it with scrubbing, cleaned my filter sock a couple times, and added one chemi pure blue nano packet. So far, things seem to be improving. I am now doing 80% water changes bi weekly. I was able to lower my phosphates from 0.06 to 0.03 with the chemi pure packet, although I’m not sure how accurate those readings are because of the algae. I was also able to pluck some small bubble algae off the main rock. After cleaning up the tank, along with the sand, things are looking better. My zoa polyps are slowly starting to come back to life, which I’m really happy about. I did lose my three recent sticks due to STN. It is definitely discouraging to lose corals from poor maintenance/water quality. Hopefully things will continue to improve from here on though. My fire shrimp, trochus, RFA, and hermit are all still doing well. I would also like to mention that my jawbreaker mushroom is also doing well and never fails to impress me with its vibrant colors! With the sticks gone, I also removed the MP10 and am now only running off my return pump. I am really liking the simplicity of this. Especially since the coral I have now have lower flow demands. I recently added a baby purple firefish and a single head duncan. Both additions seem to be doing well, and are adjusting nicely to the tank. I will also be adding a torch coral to the tank this week. I am thinking somewhere in the sand vs. the main rock. Any suggestions on this? The other torches I had before were all on the rock vs. the sand. I am thinking it should do fine either place.

I think that’s about it with the tank, just wanting to keep things as simple as possible while continuing to enjoy this amazing hobby, and the ups and downs associated with it.

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for another update soon!

 

[Daniel92481]

Looks nice!

Lol an mp10 on this tank is like the 150 hp outboards you see on 21' bass boats.

Haha thanks, yea just updated my thread. I recently removed the MP10. Just a little overkill for this little tank lol.

 

[Daniel92481]

Ok, one more update for 2020 I recently cleaned up the pico tank and was able to give some extra TLC between work shifts. So far, so good! Things are continuing to improve, zoas opening, other corals looking nice. I added a torch coral from a fellow reefer, along with an utter chaos frag and 2 turbo snails from the LFS. The turbo snails have managed to lawnmow the rest of the remaining GHA and have things looking really clean now. Hopefully with these new additions, along with keeping nutrients under control, I can keep the GHA at bay and continue to enjoy this tiny little slice of the ocean. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for another update in 2021!

Happy New Year everyone! Party like it’s 1999!

12/29/20

salinity 1.026
Temp 77.0
ALK 7.7
Phosphates 0.06
Nitrates <20

I haven’t been testing Mg or Ca, but might get some readings in the future

 

[count krunk]

You may want to remove one of the turbos, not sure a 4g can sustain both of them longer than a couple of months

 

[Daniel92481]

Yea, I’ll keep an eye on them for sure. I need them to keep chowing down for the time being lol.

 

[Daniel92481]

Hey reefers!

First update of 2021!

Things are really improving with the tank, bouncing back from a GHA outbreak I had about a month ago. I was able to dial in my feeding schedule, helping to keep my nutrients under control. I’ve been managing to test most major parameters once a week, usually on Sunday. I have also been performing 80% water changes biweekly with good results. I am going to continue this WC schedule, and see if there needs to be any tweaking to it in the future. All corals and inverts are doing good, as well as Flash, my firefish. As many of you already know, a fellow member (RDA), made me a media basket for the back chamber. I love this thing! It really accomplishes everything I wanted from it, plus the design is really cool. I am really loving the UV reactive orange that he used for parts of it. Love it!☺Another cool piece for the pico that I just got was my custom lid made by Kraken Reef. This thing is super well made, and fits perfect on the tank. Although I ultimately got this lid so that my fish doesn’t jump out, turns out it’s for the snails too. On three different occasions, I have come home to one of the snails on the floor, trying to escape. One time, about 2am, I heard a crack on the hardwood floor. Sounded like an egg! Sure enough, Mexican turbo snail on the floor. Hey! Mexico is that way! Fortunately, they are all ok. I had just picked him up and dropped him back in the tank. Seems like they’re pretty resilient critters. As far as my corals go, I added some gobstoppers from a fellow reefer, UC pepto pink goni, UC limearitas, and UC papaya clove polyps. Now, I don’t want to kid myself and say I won’t buy anymore corals lol, but as of now, I would like to sit back and watch things settle in. As for flow, I recently purchased the LA Quiet 400 pump, but haven’t installed it yet. I believe it’s 103gph vs. the 87gph that the 200 delivers. After doing more research, I found that I might actually end up ordering the Cobalt Aquatics/Newa 606 or the Sicce Micra plus. Either one of these pumps will give me about 150gph turnover. With the removal of the MP10, I think this upgrade will be sufficient for any LPS/SPS corals that I add in the future, without having to add a powerhead.

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for another update!

 

[DDenny]

Currently buying this exact tank for a similar setup. Which return pump did you go with? Mine will mainly be a favite species tank (my favorite) also realize they will out grow this tank but could upgrade down the road possibly.

 

[Daniel92481]

Awesome! You’ll be happy with it. As far as return pumps go, I still have the stock QuietOne 200 pump running, which puts out about 87gph. Works well, pretty quiet. The Kessil A360X fan is actually louder than the pump. I have the upgraded QuietOne 400, but haven’t felt the need to install it yet. This one puts out 103gph. I have also looked into the Newa 606 vs. Sicce Micra plus pumps. Both put out about 159gph. I might upgrade to one of these if I want to give SPS another go around in the future. If I needed an upgraded pump now, I would choose the Newa 606.

 

[Bahura-Living]

Hi.
you do have a beautiful tank. do you dose something? how do you maintain it? hope mine get beautiful as that. where did you get that RDA sign and the neon stick? I've inquired with kraken reef earlier for lid cover and they send your tank to me as a sample of 4.14g Lifegard lid cover. can you pm me how much you paid for that lid cover? (if you dont mind)

 

[Daniel92481]

Hi.
you do have a beautiful tank. do you dose something? how do you maintain it? hope mine get beautiful as that. where did you get that RDA sign and the neon stick? I've inquired with kraken reef earlier for lid cover and they send your tank to me as a sample of 4.14g Lifegard lid cover. can you pm me how much you paid for that lid cover? (if you dont mind)

Hey there, thank you for your kind words! I do not dose anything for this tank. The corals I have are soft/LPS corals that are not as demanding as SPS. Biweekly water changes are enough to keep things stable. For filtration, I am running one chemi pure blue nano packet and a filter sock. As far as maintenance goes, water changes, along with filter sock cleaning also done biweekly. The neon glow stick is popular at reef trade shows (remember those?) I am hoping we can get back to those at some point! Anyways, the glow sticks are used for pointing at different corals when viewing them. I typically use it to move things around, or stir the sand bed. They have different colors. I got this one at Bulk Reef Supply. The custom media basket is a product from a 3D printing machine/fellow reefer. I’m not sure if he plans to make more and sell them or not. This one is a prototype, so to speak. The reason why it glows is because of the UV acrylic he used when making it. The RDA stands for rainy day aquarium. That is his screen name on a different forum. Nanoreef.com to be exact! I love this media basket. Super functional and well made. The lid is another product that I am very happy with. The Kraken Reef had some really fast turn around speeds at the time. I received my custom lid 2 weeks from my order date. Crazy fast! I believe this one was $85 which includes a feeding lid. Very reasonable price for a custom lid. I am 100% satisfied with it. You can also order a cool UV feed cup from them to accommodate your new lid. I chose not to get a feed cup due to the small size of the tank. I didn’t want to interfere with the already small footprint inside the tank. Thank you again for showing interest in my setup.

 

[Willz]

Hi Daniel, my wife wanted to set up a nano tank, so we bought the same tank as your except the 8.3g model. I’ve been encouraged looking at your thread that there is so much possible. I have a full-blown 170g reef (4’x4’x16”) and a 33gL tank attached to my main system. She is wanting to do a zoa and rock nem dominate tank. We bought the AI Prime HD16 lighting and BRS says you can support SPS with the lights. We are having trouble finding a skimmer that will fit in the 2” rear chamber. I see you are not running a skimmer. Do you think SPS is possible without a skimmer? We plan to add a controller and dosing once the tank is cycled. Thanks for your inspiration and insight!

 

[Daniel92481]

Hi Daniel, my wife wanted to set up a nano tank, so we bought the same tank as your except the 8.3g model. I’ve been encouraged looking at your thread that there is so much possible. I have a full-blown 170g reef (4’x4’x16”) and a 33gL tank attached to my main system. She is wanting to do a zoa and rock nem dominate tank. We bought the AI Prime HD16 lighting and BRS says you can support SPS with the lights. We are having trouble finding a skimmer that will fit in the 2” rear chamber. I see you are not running a skimmer. Do you think SPS is possible without a skimmer? We plan to add a controller and dosing once the tank is cycled. Thanks for your inspiration and insight!

Thank you for the kind words! I definitely think it’s possible to have SPS without a skimmer. I would start with the easier varieties, such as montiporas and monitor their progress over the course of a few months to see if they not only survive, but thrive. Although we don’t want to chase numbers, frequent testing (once per week) of all parameters using quality test kits would be key here.

 

[Daniel92481]

Hey reefers!

It’s been a while since my last update and boy things sure have been crazy. First off, as many of you know, Texas was frozen for a few days. Some reefers lost everything! All the time, effort, and money spent! Gone.I did end up losing one turbo snail, most of the polyps of my whammin’ watermelons, and a few polyps of my utter chaos. Flash, my firefish and my fire shrimp thankfully both survived the ordeal. Although upsetting to have some losses, I feel very fortunate to have not lost it all. Seemed like it sure came close though. My power was out for 2 days. I woke up to the tank temp at 68.5°F and scrambled to find a solution. I was able to plug my tank into my trucks inverter for 17 hours while waiting for things to thaw out so I could go pick up the generator. My poor Lifegard Aquatics 25W heater wasn’t able to keep up the the freezing temps so I had to place my 75W Eheim heater (normally used for mixing my saltwater) in the tank. I cranked it up to 90°F and things started warming up gradually.

Long story short, thankfully my tank pulled through and seems to be doing well.

I have continued following my bi-weekly maintenance routine of 80% water changes with good results. The water changes along with my chemipure blue nano packet have managed to keep my nutrient levels within a healthy range. My phosphate is normally <0.05 with nitrates between 1-2. Other than the chemipure packet, I’m only using filter floss that I change out weekly.

I have added some frags, snails, a squamosa clam, and another fish recently. I ordered some snails online from one of the best places ever. They got lost in the mail thanks to USPS. When I finally received them, they were all DRT (dead right there). I managed to find some replacements from my LFS. 2 Turbos and 2 Trochus.

As far as frags go, I have added a mystic montipora, meteor shower cyphastrea, Superman rhodactis mushroom, and some teal Kandy Kane’s. All the frags are acclimating well. The newly added squamosa clam is about 3-4 inches in length and really seems to like his new spot. He really expands throughout the day.

Although all of these new additions are exciting, my new fish is probably the most exciting here. I recently added a captive bred blue mandarin. He’s so tiny! Only about 3/4 inch. I have had him for about two weeks now. He is responding well in his new home and plays well with flash and my fire shrimp. Being captive bred, he has been raised on TDO chroma boost pellets. I was already feeding flash and my fire shrimp these pellets so it has really seemed to work out for all three of them. Of course the mandarin, named Blu, never passes up a fat pod. He cruises around pecking at the rocks, glass, and sand. He is so cool to watch!

I have one more piece of exciting reefing news to share within this update...

As many of you know, this tank was started after the break down of my Nuvo 40 that was running for a year. After some consideration, I have decided to start another tank! So exciting! I recently purchased the Nuvo Fusion 30L with APS stand scheduled for end of April delivery! I have already started acquiring equipment for the new tank and plan to start another build thread soon. Although more time consuming, I have grown to love this little 4.1 gallon slice of the ocean and plan to keep it running. Truth be told, I have never had two tanks running at once, so this will be a new experience for me.

Well, I think that should cover things for now. Thanks for reading! I have attached a few pics! Until next time

 

[DDenny]

Wow tank filled up fast. It looks great. I was wondering when a big tank was coming. I will have to start working on my wife to get a bigger one in the future lol. Good luck on the new tank.

 

[Daniel92481]

Wow tank filled up fast. It looks great. I was wondering when a big tank was coming. I will have to start working on my wife to get a bigger one in the future lol. Good luck on the new tank.

Hey, thanks Denny! Ever since I shut down the 40 I’ve been itching for a new build. I figured I’d do a 30L because I like the viewing dimensions and I have the perfect spot for it, so why not!?

 

[Daniel92481]

Hey reefers! Just wanted to give a quick monthly update. In anticipation of receiving my new 30L, I’ve been acquiring some additional pieces for grow out in the pico. After my last update, I realized that my biweekly water changes alone were not enough to keep up with the ALK and Ca demand of my new additions, especially the squamosa! I swear that thing drinks ALK and Ca with a straw! Anyways, I’ve been testing and adding Kent Marine part A&B nano accordingly. I figured I would rather add these supplements vs. trying to stabilize with additional weekly water changes. The Kent Marine A&B two part is almost effortless and works well with me adding to the tank after I manually top off RODI every night. So far, so good.

*New additions*

-Cespitularia

-Sunny D zoas

-Radioactive dragon eyes zoas

-Bird of paradise

-Rainbow stylophora

-Ahh-mazing ricordea

-Hellfire torch (2 head)

-Dragon soul torch

-Glitter bomb goniopora

ALK has been from 6.5-7.5 since my last update, adjusting accordingly with two part. The goal is to continue with this plan until my new 30L settles in and I can start moving some corals over. Until next time reefers!

 

[DDenny]

Tank is looking awesome going to sad day when you move it all over to the 30L.