Let me just start by saying that I purchased this tank a little over a year ago for 10 bucks. Yeah! The idea was to be a budget build tank for my office with bits and pieces I already had lying around. Well... the budget part kinda went out the window with the addition of a 70w viper hqi. So other than that it has been pretty cheep and easy build.
:up:
Here are a couple pics of the tank just after I drilled it to accept a 1" bulkhead that I am using for both the drain and return.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0149.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0148.jpg

lookin good so far. keep us posted wene you get it set up som more k.

Well thats about the smallest tank Ive seen drilled for a sump!

Will the Viper make you overheat on such a small tank? I am very curious on this build b/c my gf wants a very small tank for maybe a goby/pistol combo.

lookin good so far. keep us posted wene you get it set up som more k.

I am actually further along than just the drilling of the tank. I am working on a sump now.


Well thats about the smallest tank Ive seen drilled for a sump!

:D

Will the Viper make you overheat on such a small tank? I am very curious on this build b/c my gf wants a very small tank for maybe a goby/pistol combo.

I'm working on a 20g long for a sump and refugium so the little extra water volume should help maintain the heat issue.

Any planned livestock yet?

that would be a pretty sweet dwarf seahorse tank.

I was thinking a pistol/goby pair but the tank is going to be topless and shallow tanks make for carpet surfers.

that would be a pretty sweet dwarf seahorse tank.

Tooling with that idea as well but not too sure.

Tooling with that idea as well but not too sure.

just do it, get some info on them and look for a pair or two.

Next up on the list was the drain and return. I wanted to make this look as clean as possible so I used a drain large enough to incorporate the return into it without restricting the flow back to the sump.

I started with standerd piece if 1" pvc and a small piece of flexible tubing to fit inside the pvc for the return.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0151.jpg


I notched the end of the pvc with my long lost dremel. If you have ever seen my garage then you would know why it was lost.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0144.jpg

Then I drilled out a hole on the side to accept a small pvc elbow.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0145.jpg

I found the elbow in a box along with my dremel and some extra parts to an old rena canister filter. Just added some superglue to hold the snug fitting hose in place.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0146.jpg

I am using a return nozzle leftover from my last nano cube.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0147.jpg

All glued together now. Here is a top down shot.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0150.jpg

And installed in the tank with the bulkhead.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0152.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0153.jpg

I cannot see the pics that were just posted, is it just me?

No I was having a problem loading the page too. seems to be fixed now.

looks sweet dude, you should paint the overflow blizack

I agree with chris, it looks awsome! If you paint it black even better.
Yes the pics are now working.

looks sweet dude, you should paint the overflow blizack

Just a step or two ahead my friend.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0154.jpg

I thought the tank should be black as well.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0157.jpg

Here is a pic of the overflow/return in the bulkhead. I glued in a small piece of pvc and taperd the edge to help ease the installation of the drain hose. The return hose will run inside the entire lenght of the drain hose into the sump.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0158.jpg

And a side shot.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0159.jpg

Awesome idea with the overflow and return in one. Looking really clean...I like!

Awesome idea with the overflow and return in one. Looking really clean...I like!

Thanks Lee!:thumbs:

Another pic of the tank painting process.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Photo-0155.jpg

And yes I have since cleaned out the majority of junk and tanks from my garage

looks great, i am anxious to know how the overflow works.

Me too. I'm not planing on using a very large return pump. Maybe a mini jet or maxi jet 600

Wow Looks very clean. Nice job

looks like you got some skillz to pay some billz.....nice work bro.

I originally was planing on using a coralife 2 x 9w aqualight mini.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/ES0869.jpg

But decided against the puny little thing for a much better alternative.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/k2-viper.jpg

A nice 70w HQI JBJ Viper with a 20k bulb! As Borat would say "Very Nice!"

Jeff, I need one of those returns on mine! I need to bring my tank over :-)

Good choice on the light. I have the coralife and am going to upgrade.

Jeff...way cool dude..nice job!!!

killer light man, that will grow what ever you want in there :) I can't wait to see this thing running.

this is possibly the nicest mini tank i have seen.. Im loving the sump that is larger then the tank itself... I think this might be the only tank in the world with the sump being 6x larger then the tank

Wow, great little pico Jeff

Awesome! I'm impressed.

Thanks Guys!

My next little challange was mounting the light.

The light is just a little too heavy to clamp on the back of this tank though I did try it first. It just looked wrong... The clamp is big and ugly, the light would sit too high, and it just looked plain awkward.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image141.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image142.jpg

so insted I am going to using this. :unsure:

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image126.jpg

Well not exactly this but it is a diamond in the rough.

Is that blood on your table saw? ....

HAhahahaha! no not this time Steve :D.

HAHAHa


But for real that is a super clever drain/return. THat will be a lil' gem of a tank.

Can't wait to see how the light is going to attach. Looking great so far.

Just making sure Jeff... hahaha

one, two, skip a few... I forgot to take pics during the build of the stand but I do have some from just after.

First I traced the bottom of tank and the drain hole onto a plain old 2x12. Then using my trusty jigsaw and holesaw I trimmed the edges and drilled a hole just large enough for the bulkhead to fit in.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image131.jpg

After that I belt sanded and routed the edge, and attached the light mount to the back with a frame nailer and adhesive, and then stained it to match my desk.

So the ugly block of wood turned into this in about 30 seconds.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image127.jpg

not really but it woulda been cool.

A couple more pics.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image128.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image129.jpg

ohhhhhh very neat!

I still think that's blood on the table saw... Look good though, gonna keep SPS in that? A frag would be a large colony!

ohhhhhh very neat!

Thanks Lee.

I still think that's blood on the table saw... Look good though, gonna keep SPS in that? A frag would be a large colony!

I'll put a few small pieces in there for sure Steve. The saw is just painted that wat so it is harder to tell if you acually made a mistake. This makes it a little easier to finish your projects before you head to the emergency room.

The incorporated overflow/return makes the tank look very clean. Very nice job. I think I might have to do something like this myself.

Here is the light attached to the stand on my desk.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image137.jpg

I drilled a hole in the corner of mt desk and glued in a plastic port hold that "Could" be used for computer wires, power cords, and cell phone chargers. But we are not doing that here now are we?. No. Thats just what the nosey people lurking around the door to my office are thinking. :D

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image133.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image132.jpg

and another pic of the light and stand

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image135.jpg

this is going to look so cool once done :)

GJ Jeff. Very clean. :)

You still need to pick up that plastic piece for the viper and the new bulb!

I still think that's blood on the table saw... Look good though, gonna keep SPS in that? A frag would be a large colony!LOL my table saw does have blood on it. I keep it there to remind me to pay attention:eek:

WOW!~ That is pretty cool!

LOL my table saw does have blood on it. I keep it there to remind me to pay attention:eek:


It's the miter saw for me.

If I were you I would put a lion fish in there.

Are you going to run a closed loop system for flow ???

Yes I might be crazy. I would put some sort of goby in there or maybe a dwarf clown.

I picked out a few inverts for the tank today and I am still trying to decide on a sump. I have both a 20 and 30 long available but I am leaning a little more towards the 30L :D

the more water the better :)

Ive got a harlequin shrimp that would look pretty sweet in that thing.

Im pretty sure I am going with a blue coral banded shrimp, some sexy shrimp, a two spot blenny and a barnacle blenny.

Tank on the stand and ready for sand!

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image139.jpg

Pair of harlequins would be cool. You don't see those very often at all. And you could have a couple starfish in the sump for meals...

dude neon and citron goby's are great in tanks that size.

Pair of harlequins would be cool. You don't see those very often at all. And you could have a couple starfish in the sump for meals...

Nah. too much work! I'm good on livestock.

dude neon and citron goby's are great in tanks that size.

Yeah I am thinking a small clown goby will be cool.

I got it Jeff, perfect inhabitants right here, a Green Moral Eel and a small Hippo Tang.

and a shark.. just as long as it's a baby

I got it Jeff, perfect inhabitants right here, a Green Moral Eel and a small Hippo Tang.

I don't think so.

and a shark.. just as long as it's a baby

I could acclimate a blackfin shark(catfish):D

pretty nice mcphail. I didnt read this thread until today. Can't wait to see it complete.

This is a great build thread....can't wait to see it come together. Nice work.

Yeah Jeff! I like those blackfins myself. I use them in my saltwater setups as a major asset to my clean up crew. (those little buggers get all the leftovers up and love it)

A shot of my now SUPER COOL desk :up:

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image120.jpg

your desk would be cooler if you had the ARC homepage on your computer in the pic...

I'll remember that for a future shot.

Someone should use there computer graffix wits and come up with an official ARC desktop background.

Do I smell a contest?:yes:

And let there be light!

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image123.jpg

I love my pictures on your computer in that shot... lol

I did that just for you Steve. Now let me buy that tank!

Can't do it man. Sorry. It's going home with me.

Just ordered a new 70w 14k Astralux bulb!

The 20k ebay bulb will be going in the trash unless someone here wants it.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/AMH150W14KK.jpg

Beautiful!

so jeff,........when are you going to find time to work at your desk?




lol.

looks great!

Man Jeff that little thing turned out great. The computer wir port worked out perfect for placement. Great clean install.

A shot of my now SUPER COOL desk :up:

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image120.jpg
Jeff,
Great looking nano! I'm not sure I would doc the pda in the tank though. :D

Wow! I have to admit, I saw 3 gallon build and thought, "Seriously? What's there to build using a 3 gallon?" Man, was I wrong! Very COOL!! Can wait to see it filled with water and livestock.

agreed. although the closed circuit spy cam of your family is a bit creepy. Let them live their life man, they'll be fine.

There are SO many cool nano fish that would go great in there. I love the symbiotic relationship of pistols and watchmen gobies, and the risk of jumping would be less if/when they paired, so I think that would be the way to go, myself.

Awesome! How many tangs will you be putting in there? :D

looks awesome! Cant wait to see it filled up :)

Wow that looks great. I agree that a pistol watchman pair would be great.

I have decided to go with the 20 long as my sump. The 30 just took up too much room under my desk and I really didn't want to relocate my paper shredder.;)

The blank is just a standard 20L 30x12x12

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image177.jpg

I wanted to build the sump with a display style refugium in mind so I divided the sump in half using the entire front portion for the fuge.

Here is a pic of the initial mock up.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image162.jpg

Lookin good!

with skimmer.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image163.jpg

I know the skimmer is a little bit overkill for a pico but isn't that what this whole build has kinda turned into?!?:yes:

Very nice setup. Keep the pics and posts coming!

You got it Bob!

Here are a few more pics of the sump going together.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image176.jpg

I only had one clamp so i had to get crafty with the sponge and wrench to help hold things together whild the silicone set up overnight.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image180.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image178.jpg



Great. Now I'll have the beastie boys stuck in my head for the rest of the day.

What kind of paint did you use of the plexiglass?

Krylon

Here is what I came up with for the other end of the drain.

The slits are to release air and reduce the noise and the hole is for the return line.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image173.jpg

And painted black to blend in with the background.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image174.jpg

Drain and ATO float valve

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image132-1.jpg

Top Down

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image133-1.jpg

And painted black to blend in with the background.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image174.jpg

your dog looks like he wants to steal my soul....

um unless you want a flood situation, might want to put that float switch a bit lower

This is going to be a great tank!

um unless you want a flood situation, might want to put that float switch a bit lower

I purpously possioned the float valve high for maximum water volume and to give me just a little more time refill my top off container. It cuts the water off when the last compartment is 3/4 full, thus leaving plenty of room for the 3/4 gallon back siphon that will occur when my return pump is off.

By far the coolest 3g tank build ever.

What are you going to put in the display?

Do you mean the fuge display? I don't really know yet but I was thinking of sea horses or pipefish

Added some sand to the refugium today.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image142-1.jpg

It's getting there!

Lookin good man, lookin good.

if you wind up doing a foam/rock wall for the tank, this just might be the sweetest pico ever!

One of the best Nano's I've seen. I vote this one NotM. (Nano of the Month) LOL Nicely done!! Looking forward to seeing what ya end up putting in it.

The live rock is in the tank.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/tankwithrock.jpg

I planned on filling the system up completely this morning but I forgot the drain hose. :doh:

Just about everything in this tank and fuge has come from an already established system in an effort to get this one stabilized with a quickness. I am very anctious to put my critters and coral in.

nice scape.

Looks great. I like the rockwork!

That is looking awesome!!!

Outstanding - I want one....

Seriously, Nano of the month is a good idea....

Can't wait to see this grow. Nice work!

I finished the drain/return yesterday :yay:

Here are som pics.


Made a trip to home depot and purchased 4 feet of 1-1/4" ID PVC drain hose and two hose ends. The ends just twist on and with a little pvc primer and glue they are good to go!

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image001.jpg

The return line pulled through the drain.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image1612.jpg

Then through the bulkhead and drain spout.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image1622.jpg

Add hose clamps and connect to the pump.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image165.jpg

I am usine an aqua-via 480 for the return pump. The pump is rated for 200gph with no head pressure. I've got about 3' of head. not really sure what that comes out two.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image164.jpg

And just in case you are wondering... The answer is no, the return line is not kinked.

wow. jeff.....I mean wow. You've really thought this thru. thats really looking fantastic.

Looking good. I like the sump idea.

It is very cool! Coming along great. Do you think there will be enough flow in the nano with just the small return pump? Seems like you may need more water movement.

It is very cool! Coming along great. Do you think there will be enough flow in the nano with just the small return pump? Seems like you may need more water movement.

The flow looks good at this point but just in case i've got this little bugger :D

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image1613.jpg

Cool! Where did you get all the baffles for your sump?

I added a few extra pounds of LR in the back of the sump for just a bit more overkill.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image167.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image168.jpg

Then topped the system off with half new/half reef water out of my 120.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image1623.jpg

But before i clouded up all the water I filled the last chamber in the sump with some clear water and fired up the return pump for a little test run with the new Astralux 14k!

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/Image1702.jpg

and the elCheapo ebay 20k again. What a waist of someone elses money.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/tankwithrock.jpg

Cheers everyone! It's Friday! :cheers:

Looks good Jeff!

I can't get over the difference in the 2 bulbs!!! That is one sweet nano Jeff!!!

Thanks Chris. Yours was pretty cool too.

I added some livestock today.
A pair of blue coral banded shrimp,
A few different types of snails,
The first of my trio of sexy shrimp,
And a two spot blenny.

All in all everything is looking great!

i need to see your tanks soon, you seem to be doing everything perfect.

Looking great man! Can't wait to see pics of the new inhabitants.

wow, just came acros this. Wonderfull setup! Too many pages to look over, did you say what you plan on puting in the tank.

anything new developing here? I have been watching and waiting to see if new pics were being posted. hope its going well

I have had a couple little problems. First I used a little culapera in my fuge but didn't get a light over it for about a week. It all died off, nuked the tank and killed most of the starter corals. :doh:

Atleast all the inverts including the deresa clam survived.

Second, Everything I have put in the tank except the blue coral banded shrimp, crabs and snails has went desk surfing. The list of fatilities include three sexy shrimp, a peperment shrimp, two spot goby, neon goby, and a very small clown. just a little bummed about all that. Things are picking up though. I recived my Ushio 20K from hellolights.com today and should have my XM 20K by mid next week. I plan to run all three bulbs including the Astralux 14K for about two weeks each and then take comparison shots to post and decide which lamp I am going to use.

I'll update again soon.

Cheers :cheers: It's Friday!

Sorry for the losses and Please keep us updated. More pics please.

Jeff you might want to make a mesh screen for the top of it. Ive had big problems with smaller tanks and jumpers.

Jeff you might want to make a mesh screen for the top of it. Ive had big problems with smaller tanks and jumpers.

That just wouldn't look right on this tank. I think I'll go with some less active fish like clown gobies.

Any suggestions of not so active and not likely to jump fish?

I think anything can and will jump from a tank that size... Clown gobies might not, but I'm not sure.

I would scrap fish and just make it a coral invert tank.

My 6g nanocube was topless and never had a jumper,:confused2:

And I find that amazing! haha But really, you can make it look really good with cool inverts and maybe one of those star fish that I have. Throw some nice zoas along the bottom and put some acro's at the top. I'll have to come test the PAR on it in a few weeks.

First, awesome tank! Love the idea and build out of it!!

Second thought, on livestock, I'm thinking the CBS may be chasing the fish out of the tank personally. I know they will go after fish, and in a tank that small, I'm guessing they did. Possibly got the sexy's too. I would either keep an invert only tank, or put the CBS in the sump and try fish again.

Good luck whatever you decide!!

Added some Mangroves to the fuge the other day. Thanks Jin!

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/1046.jpg

New pics??

Added some Mangroves to the fuge the other day. Thanks Jin!

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d103/nutty9100/1046.jpg

i had the same light from hd worked gret over my old fuge.

I just ordered that pico.

Jeff, how loud/quiet is that drain?

Any updates?

Jeff, how loud/quiet is that drain?

It's pretty quiet

Any updates?

I got kinda sick of the black sand as it seems to drown out the color in the tank as well as it makes it a little harder to see my super sweet blue coral banded shrimp pair in there little cave. So I put all the liverock and livestock in the sump and took down the display to clean and replace the sand.

cool, more pics!

I worked on the tank a little bit today, Changed out the sand, did a large water change and repaired a leak in the drain hose. The display will be back up and running in no time now.

do you ever get any of your steele work done.....lol

what was the easiest way to install your auto shut off valve? looks great by the way!

sweet build

Jeff,

How about an update?

ummmm.... Wow what a tank man that is sweet. I wish I could just have one like that and get back to a normal life. When you get ready to sell let me know.
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The OP is not on the Forums.

jeff, :goodjob: