this would be completely nuts...

[TryinFishOut]

alright, first off, lemme say that Im a big fan of nano reefs... although i dont have one, I've always wanted one... now listen to this...

I have this cup, it's completely see-through, and is roughly the size of an average drinking cup. I've always joked around of having an aquarium in it (its like 3 years old, never been used, kept in plastic wrap) but seeing pico reefs that are like 1/2 gallons, I've decided to try making it into a mini aquarium...

What I'd do is put like a handful of live sand in it, as well as a piece of small live rock rubble in. For circulation, I'd get an air pump with a small airhead (it would also move the surface a bit to prevent scumming as well as oxygenate the water.) The LS and LR would be the filters. For lighting, due to evaporation issues, i'd have to have no lighting at all... meaning that the only corals I'd have would be none (or small hardy ones needing very little light) I'd place this pico besides my 10g one to provide some visibility. As for heating, I'd maybe get a reptile heating mat with an adjuster, or depend solely on room temperature (it stays fairly high and constant).

As for inhabitants, I'd maybe add a small hermit crab, but other then that I'd depend on what the LR/LS would bring me.

Hows this idea sound? I know its crazy, but just wanna see what ppl will say...

[Andy16]

Well, any tiny fluctuation in anything would mean disaster. Even though it would be a tiny disaster, it would still be a disaster. The hermit crab will be like half the size of any live rock. You could actually maybe keep like one zoanthid polyp, or a shroom. You might beable to get away with 2 hermit crabs. I dont think a snail would work, unless you prefer snails over hermit crabs.


Another alternative would be getting a 400w MH bulb over that sucker and show up all the other guys with there "intense lights". Dude, that would be like over 400 watts per gallon.

[TryinFishOut]

Yeah im gunna put this project on my to do list...

and yea, I guess 2 hermits would fit although the LR/LS would be so small, there would be enough natural food and i'd have to feed suplements.

[cpn_aaron]

I agree with andy...400 watt MH all the way. Imagine the corals you could grow! Or at least bleach. Heh heh heh.

Sounds like a kind of cool idea, but I'm a fan of larger aquariums because I'm a busy man and larger tanks are more forgiving with regards to fluctuations should I get behind in water changes and such. I say maybe try it out with a larger cup if possible to find and work your way down. Maybe you'll start a trend of a dixie cup reef

[TryinFishOut]

hehe true... if possible, i'll find out my cup's capacity and its dimensions (it's definetly biger than a dixie cup). As for the light, i'll see what I can find, it'll probably have to be a small bookwork light or of such.

As for fluctuations, Im gonna try to make sure they never happen.. im gonna premix all the SW im gonna use in a 5 gallon bucket (it'll last me a few months) to avoid salinity fluctuation. With little light, evaporation isnt a worry. Only thing Im biting my nails on now is temperature and keeping it stable.

Anyone out there have good experience with picos and advice/hints on keeping em? Thanks.

[Cearbhaill]

How will you top off less than one drop at a time ?? :D

[benjen]

Put an air-tight lid on it and drill two holes in the lid. Feed the air-line in with one put a crazy straw in the other to let excess air out. Wrap the crazy straw in something cold to make the evaporating water condensate and slide back into the 'tank'. I don't know what to use for cold offhand, but there are plenty of options depending on what you have handy. (Air conditioners, ice, cold water pipes, etc.)

If you want to keep an active population, put in one zoanthid and small colony of gammarus amphipods instead of a hermit. Or... use the 10 gallon as a sump. ;)

[Andy16]

A 5 gallon bucket of water changes would last you your lifetime.