I've been planning on a small reef for a while now and had disided a 3 gallon JBJ aquarium would be the best out of others. Although most surface skimmers that lead to a sump aren't ment for a small tank like this and I wanted to know how you got yours. It's exactly the low profile but effective skimmer vie been trying to find!
Lyle's 3 gallon Pico
- Thread starter lpsouth1978
- Start date
lpsouth1978
New member
The whole system is custom built, including the surface skimmer. I purchased a small piece of ABS plastic from a local plastic shop. I then heated it and bent it into shape. Once it was the shape I wanted, I cut the slits in it using an piece of flat bar steel. I heated it up with a torch and melted through the plastic. I have also made them using an angle grinder with a cutting wheel. that is easier, but gives less of a custom look. Then I just siliconed it into the tank.
Nice tank, but I'm confused as to how you made the slots? Also have you experienced any bleaching with that many LEDs? How intense do you run them?
lpsouth1978
New member
Update!
There have been a few changes to the tank. Mostly just things that have been removed and others that have been added. I have had difficulty keeping monti's alive and healthy in this system. I think that the lights were too intense. I have since adjusted the lighting down, with the help of a PAR meter that I borrowed. Things seem to be doing VERY well now. I have purchased a few more acans and am working on an acan garden in one corner of the tank. Here are some updated pics.
There have been a few changes to the tank. Mostly just things that have been removed and others that have been added. I have had difficulty keeping monti's alive and healthy in this system. I think that the lights were too intense. I have since adjusted the lighting down, with the help of a PAR meter that I borrowed. Things seem to be doing VERY well now. I have purchased a few more acans and am working on an acan garden in one corner of the tank. Here are some updated pics.
small alien
The fungus is among us.
Looks awesome but I'd consider getting those yellow polyps out of there before this tank becomes "Lyle's Yellow Polyp Pico".
lpsouth1978
New member
I have two picks and a solana, but I have been doing this for many years.
Robbie Reefer
New member
Dude this is one of the coolest picos I've seen!
lpsouth1978
New member
Just a quick update. Things are going really good in the pico. Things are growing and everything seems VERY happy. Here is a new pic.
lpsouth1978
New member
It was given to me by another local reefer. He called it dragons breath. It is actually a deep red color with orange tips. Really cool! here is a better pic of some.
I've been considering plumbing my Ecoxotic Pico to my basement. Just curious, did you use 1" bulkheads? I was thinking about using 1/2" since the volume of water I need to move is so small. With sand and live rock in the display I only have a little over 3 gallons of water in the display. Was there a reason you created an overflow in the back of the tank instead of just drilling two bulkheads toward the top of the tank, using one as a return and the other as the overflow? This would mean drilling the rear glass, not the bottom. I was going to creat a mini surface skimming overflow by using a 90 degree black 1/2" elbow and cutting small teeth in a piece of 1/2 inch black pvc turned up toward the surface of the water so I can cut it to set the water level in the display as I like. Any thoughts on that idea. I thought if I kept the flow rate reasonable, I could avoid noise coming from the overflow.
lpsouth1978
New member
I chose to do the black wall overflow for a couple of reasons. The main reason was aesthetics. I think that having the wall gives the tank a much cleaner look. Without knowing that I built it, someone would look at it ind think that it came from the factory like that.
Second, I did not want to have pipes and hoses hanging off the back of the tank. With the custom built stand that this sits on you do not see any plumbing and again, it looks stock. I guess you could say that I am a perfectionist.
As for the plumbing, I used 1/2" bulkheads and things work well. I am pushing the upper limits of the flow the 1/2" drain can handle. I am running my return at about 350 gph, meaning I am turning over the water volume 100 times an hour. I can't imagine that you will be pushing more flow than that so you should be fine with 1/2".
