[Justler]

Has anyone ever kept a single fish in a 5 or 10 gallon mini tank? I know this is done with seahorses and there a "nano reefs". I've owned stable 55 gallon tanks in the past and was curious if anyone has done this?

I'm looking for very little maintenance... DSB, live rock etc. Does anyone think this is a crazy goal?

Thanks for your suggestions!

[Bughead]

Not crazy at all! Well, almost not crazy. Having experience with a larger tank is a big advantage. My friend caught a mantis shrimp that came with a live rock shipment and has him in a 5 gal tank at her office. I think a five gal is a bit small for a fish, but they make nice "creature" tanks. A ten gal is OK for a small fish. I think it's too tight for a pair of clowns.

So lots of people have these tiny set-ups. Do an archive research of nano tanks. At one time some of the board members wanted a seperate catagory for nano tanks, so yes, they are popular, especially for experienced aquarists.

[Poseidon]

I think everything is the same regardless of the size of the tank EXCEPT make sure to top off for evaporation every day!!! with such a small volume of water the SG gravity will fluctuate quite a bit... Not a good place for a starfish to be!!

Mike

[Justler]

Well, from the sounds of it... a 5 gallon may be okay for 1 small clown fish. The purpose of this tank is very little maintenance (such as top offs). After two years of keeping a 55 gallon, I just got tired of the weekend teardown and clean. I'm planning on getting a bag of southdown and using maybe half of it and doing a DSB. I'll get activator from FFExpress, or somewhere that sells this kind of thing.

I'd like to just host some turbo snails and a clownfish with a small amount of live rock (Enough for the clown to hide in). On to the research!

[Reefland]

Justler,

Nano aquariums can be beautiful as well but require more persistent, less grueling maintanence. Obviously, it takes much less effort to clean the aquarium and perform other maintanence tasks but they need to be done more often to keep things good. Top off water needs to be added more routinely (as mentioned, an auto top-off would be nice) and the water conditions need to be monitored more closely to make sure nothing is getting out of control; less water volume means less dillution and can lead to quick problems.

Regards,
Scott Z.

[Justler]

Originally Posted by Reefland

Justler,

Nano aquariums can be beautiful as well but require more persistent, less grueling maintanence. Obviously, it takes much less effort to clean the aquarium and perform other maintanence tasks but they need to be done more often to keep things good. Top off water needs to be added more routinely (as mentioned, an auto top-off would be nice) and the water conditions need to be monitored more closely to make sure nothing is getting out of control; less water volume means less dillution and can lead to quick problems.

Regards,
Scott Z.

The less grueling maintenance is what I am looking for. I don't mind testing water more frequently and keeping a closer eye on the tank. Thanks everyone for all the suggestions and tips, they're helping me to decide if this tank can somewhat easily become a reality.