Should i try a pico reef?

[Loading...]

I would appreciate ALL facts on this!
I was thinking the 3gallon pico tank?
9w light?
What fish/corals?
I have never had live plants/corals is SW?! Help!

 

[Loading...]

This was the set-up I was looking at http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3730+18534+15493&pcatid=15493&s=lh

 

[obscurereef]

I wouldn't recommend doing a pico if you're a beginner. Even hobbyists w/ experience can have a difficult time keeping a 10 gallon reef. Best advice is to research on your own. You won't need a skimmer and I think that like grows low light corals like zoas and mushrooms don't know if it's good enough for hard corals. Maybe start out with a larger tank. Why it's so hard is b/c the less water, the less "forgiving" the system is. Add too much salt and the salinity can get crazy high. Too much food and the phosphates and nitrates can jump up high. If you make an error for say a 70 gallon, the consequence will be very small and not magnified like it would in a pico. So I'd advise nothing less than 10 and if you have the money, 20 would be better. There are some helpful AA articles and forums where beginners have kept small tanks that you might want to look at.

Important Information for Those New to the Aquarium Hobby - Aquarium Advice

Cycle your salt tank - Aquarium Advice

You would only be able to get one fish really, with the size that it is. You could get a clown goby, but picos are more for the corals than fish.

 

[Loading...]

Thank you!

I would consider myself (intermediate) I have kept aquariums since I was 3 and now I'm 13 4 years I had SW but never coral.I have been researching but it looks to be to pricy to keep coral in a 20 g? Could I keep and clownfish/wrasse/fire fish/watchmen goby? I understand I could only have "soft corals"?

 

[Loading...]

Not all fish above just 1 of them could I have 2 fish?

 

[Loading...]

I wouldn't recommend doing a pico if you're a beginner. Even hobbyists w/ experience can have a difficult time keeping a 10 gallon reef. Best advice is to research on your own. You won't need a skimmer and I think that like grows low light corals like zoas and mushrooms don't know if it's good enough for hard corals. Maybe start out with a larger tank. Why it's so hard is b/c the less water, the less "forgiving" the system is. Add too much salt and the salinity can get crazy high. Too much food and the phosphates and nitrates can jump up high. If you make an error for say a 70 gallon, the consequence will be very small and not magnified like it would in a pico. So I'd advise nothing less than 10 and if you have the money, 20 would be better. There are some helpful AA articles and forums where beginners have kept small tanks that you might want to look at.

Important Information for Those New to the Aquarium Hobby - Aquarium Advice

Cycle your salt tank - Aquarium Advice

You would only be able to get one fish really, with the size that it is. You could get a clown goby, but picos are more for the corals than fish.

Do I have to quote for u to see it? I'm new sorry..

 

[Beengirl]

Thank you!

I would consider myself (intermediate) I have kept aquariums since I was 3 and now I'm 13 4 years I had SW but never coral.I have been researching but it looks to be to pricy to keep coral in a 20 g? Could I keep and clownfish/wrasse/fire fish/watchmen goby? I understand I could only have "soft corals"?

A clown is a 3g is not going to work, and neither will a wrasse or Firefish or watchman. Some watchman can get 5". A 3g is really tiny. Look at tiny fish, like a neon goby or panda goby. With that size tank, you will be extremely limited on choice of fish, and can really only do 1 very tiny fish. There's the catalina goby, but corals wouldn't tolerate the temp needed to keep the fish (60-70*F). As previously stated, those tanks in SW use are mainly for tiny reefs, not really fish. Sorry to be such a Buzz kill.

 

[obscurereef]

You don't have to quote it. A 20 gallon wouldn't be too expensive. The pico and light combo is about $54. Depending on your LFS, they might sell a brand aquarium like Visio, which I've found to be cheaper than an aqueon tank at Petco (same good quality). So the 20 gallon could be $20, a DIY stand wouldn't be too hard nor expensive. If you have furniture that can support 200-300 lbs than you can use that. 30 lb bag of aragonite sand usually costs $30. You can get 15 base rock ($2-3 per lb) and 5 lbs of LR (just an ex.). A filter that is rated twice the amount of water you have (rated up to 30 or 55), like aquaclear could cost $35-50. The light will be the most expensive and significant. Try finding a deal for a light on craigslist first. Like beengirl said, none of those fish would work for a pico, but some of them (not all) could live in a 20 g.

 

[Loading...]

A clown is a 3g is not going to work, and neither will a wrasse or Firefish or watchman. Some watchman can get 5". A 3g is really tiny. Look at tiny fish, like a neon goby or panda goby. With that size tank, you will be extremely limited on choice of fish, and can really only do 1 very tiny fish. There's the catalina goby, but corals wouldn't tolerate the temp needed to keep the fish (60-70*F). As previously stated, those tanks in SW use are mainly for tiny reefs, not really fish. Sorry to be such a Buzz kill.

So can u tell me all the fish I could keep?

 

[Loading...]

You don't have to quote it. A 20 gallon wouldn't be too expensive. The pico and light combo is about $54. Depending on your LFS, they might sell a brand aquarium like Visio, which I've found to be cheaper than an aqueon tank at Petco (same good quality). So the 20 gallon could be $20, a DIY stand wouldn't be too hard nor expensive. If you have furniture that can support 200-300 lbs than you can use that. 30 lb bag of aragonite sand usually costs $30. You can get 15 base rock ($2-3 per lb) and 5 lbs of LR (just an ex.). A filter that is rated twice the amount of water you have (rated up to 30 or 55), like aquaclear could cost $35-50. The light will be the most expensive and significant. Try finding a deal for a light on craigslist first. Like beengirl said, none of those fish would work for a pico, but some of them (not all) could live in a 20 g.

Aren't the lights like $2-300?

 

[Pufferlove]

If you look at aquatraders.com you can find some good deals