Custom 1.75 Gallon Shallow Pico

[Frugal Aquarist]

It's really such a lovely tank.
Your tank is so young, if it were my tank I would leave the sandbed as is and let the tank mature more.
It's unusual for Discoma to have an issue though. Goniopora I can understand.
You didn't mention chemistry? Are you doing any water changes?

Again it is a fantastic looking little tank.


EDIT: Yup you're doing water changes.

Thank you so much for the kind words and feedback!

I’m curious—how do you define a ‘mature’ tank? Is it based on the biome, or something else? I’ve been using live rock since the beginning, so I was wondering—are six months enough to consider it mature?

As for the sandbed, my plan is to switch to a faux sand layer. I’m thinking of gluing PVC foamboard to the bottom and sprinkling cleaned sand onto it so it stays permanently in place. I love the natural look, so this feels like a good way to achieve that while technically going bare-bottomed.

 

[Frugal Aquarist]

Awesome little tank, I’m always amazed at what can be done in such a small volume of water. My oldest son is cycling a 1.5g that he set up a couple of days ago. I’m going to share this thread with him for inspiration.

Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoyed it, and I hope your son’s tank thrives and flourishes.

 

[Frugal Aquarist]

Checking back in, looking really great man!

Thank you so much!

 

[*GAREEF*]

Welcome to my thread on my custom 1.75-gallon shallow pico reef tank! This project has been a labor of love, and I’m excited to share the journey and the unique setup that makes this small aquarium thrive.

The 1.75-gallon tank is designed to be shallow, allowing for a beautiful aquascape and easy maintenance. The shallow depth creates a stunning visual effect, perfect for showcasing small coral frags and colorful inhabitants.

The aquascape features a mix of live rock and sand to create a natural habitat. I opted for a minimalist approach, focusing on a few key pieces of rockwork to provide hiding spots for inhabitants while maximizing swimming space (if i want to add a fish in the future…)

Tank Specs

• Custom glass tank: 25x20x15 cm
• Hang-on-back filter
• 4-watt DIY LED light (no adjustable features)
• Computer fan and ceiling fan for temperature control

Setup Overview

• The tank is 1 month old
• Weekly water changes: 50-100%
• Only tested salinity.

Current Livestock

• Couple of heads of zoanthids
• Frag of NPS gorgonian
• Mushrooms
• “Baby” frogspawn
• Mainstream clove polyp

Here are some photos of the setup and a link to my YouTube video for a closer look at the tank:

This tank is a work in progress, and I’m excited to share updates as I go along!

And here is my youtube video link:

That’s awesome!!

 

[Frugal Aquarist]

That’s awesome!!

Thank you!!

 

[*GAREEF*]

Welcome to my thread on my custom 1.75-gallon shallow pico reef tank! This project has been a labor of love, and I’m excited to share the journey and the unique setup that makes this small aquarium thrive.

The 1.75-gallon tank is designed to be shallow, allowing for a beautiful aquascape and easy maintenance. The shallow depth creates a stunning visual effect, perfect for showcasing small coral frags and colorful inhabitants.

The aquascape features a mix of live rock and sand to create a natural habitat. I opted for a minimalist approach, focusing on a few key pieces of rockwork to provide hiding spots for inhabitants while maximizing swimming space (if i want to add a fish in the future…)

Tank Specs

• Custom glass tank: 25x20x15 cm
• Hang-on-back filter
• 4-watt DIY LED light (no adjustable features)
• Computer fan and ceiling fan for temperature control

Setup Overview

• The tank is 1 month old
• Weekly water changes: 50-100%
• Only tested salinity.

Current Livestock

• Couple of heads of zoanthids
• Frag of NPS gorgonian
• Mushrooms
• “Baby” frogspawn
• Mainstream clove polyp

Here are some photos of the setup and a link to my YouTube video for a closer look at the tank:

This tank is a work in progress, and I’m excited to share updates as I go along!

And here is my youtube video link:

I definitely want to follow along here your tank looks amazing but so small it’s awesome!

 

[Tahoe61]

Thank you so much for the kind words and feedback!

I’m curious—how do you define a ‘mature’ tank? Is it based on the biome, or something else? I’ve been using live rock since the beginning, so I was wondering—are six months enough to consider it mature?

As for the sandbed, my plan is to switch to a faux sand layer. I’m thinking of gluing PVC foamboard to the bottom and sprinkling cleaned sand onto it so it stays permanently in place. I love the natural look, so this feels like a good way to achieve that while technically going bare-bottomed.

It's so subjective. Using actual live rock is the best route imo. Personally I don't consider a tank under a yr or so mature, but there is no science behind my opinion. I do feel it's the biome and chemistry stability.
Looking forward to seeing what you do with the faux sandbed medium.

 

[Tahoe61]

How is this delightful Pico doing?

 

[keepingfishwithnoidea]

yeah so nice

 

[Frugal Aquarist]

How is this delightful Pico doing?

I had an incident during the move to a quarantine tank while curing and gluing my tank for the swap to a faux sand layer. I used an aquascape LED light, which unfortunately caused most of my corals to get fried. I lost my toxic torch and baby hammer, and my fluffy hammer and frogspawn (the one at the front) have shrunken. I’ll post pictures once everything stabilizes. I hope it won’t take too long.

 

[Frugal Aquarist]

yeah so nice

Thank you so much.