Pico 2 Gallon Reef in a Jar Build by XxZILLAxX

[XxZILLAxX]

Update
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Rock & Sand

I went to Petco the other day and picked up the cheapest bag of aquarium sand they had and a rock for the pico jar. The sand is by CaribSea and is dry agronite sand. I picked up a 10lb bag of it and used about half the bag in order to achieve a nice sandbed about 2-3 inches thick. The 10lb bag cost me $10. As for the rock it is a dry medium base life rock. The rock cost me $32. Funny enough the rock has been the single most expensive item of this whole build. But I am super happy with it. It is the perfect size for the jar, and I really like the shape/look of the rock. The sand definitely needed a lot of rinsing. For the little bit of sand I used it took me about 15 mins of just straight rinsing to make the run off water run somewhat clear. But I am also pretty happy with it as well. It's more coarse and has tiny pebbles throughout which I like rather than other bags of sand that are super fine grain. Plus Petco was running an online sale so I got 20% off my order! (Pictures of build so far and bag of sand below)

I am officially another step closer to actually adding some water, and starting the nitrogen cycle. I just ordered two 25w submersible preset heaters, (one for tank and one for mixing salt) and a bag of salt mix. So another update is coming soon. Stay tuned! ​

 

[StripeCore]

Bri

Hello everybody tuning in on my build thread!​

I am new to the reef2reef forums, and I am going to be building a 2 Gallon pico reef in a Jar. Follow along as I slowly but surely bring this ordinary Jar to life!

Why?

There are a few reasons on why I am looking to build a reef in a 2 Gallon Jar from Walmart. The first reason is to keep cost down. Second reason is because I've always found small thriving ecosystems to just be super interesting. Third because I like a good challenge. Final reason is because I live in super small studio apartment, and I just simply do not have enough space for anything besides a pico or nano tank.

My Goals

My main goal with this build is to have a reef ecosystem that can thrive for years to come. And not only that but also to accomplish this while on a budget!

The Tank

The Jar that I am using is a 2 Gallon all glass Jar purchased from my local Walmart. The Jar itself cost me about $14! I also picked up a rubber mat that is actually a door mat to place the glass Jar on. This is to keep it from sliding around and to keep my two crazy cats from knocking it over. The rubber door mat cost me about $5. I went with this Jar in particular mostly because of it's simple design and shape. The glass is fairly thick which will help with temperature stability. So that's a plus. Also I wanted something that had a good fitting lid so my cats could not mess with what's inside. (Picture of Jar below)

More updates will be coming soon! My future posts will most likely all be broken down like this one so stay tuned and thanks for stopping by!!! ​

Bring it on

 

[Ben's Pico Reefing]

Update
​

Rock & Sand

I went to Petco the other day and picked up the cheapest bag of aquarium sand they had and a rock for the pico jar. The sand is by CaribSea and is dry agronite sand. I picked up a 10lb bag of it and used about half the bag in order to achieve a nice sandbed about 2-3 inches thick. The 10lb bag cost me $10. As for the rock it is a dry medium base life rock. The rock cost me $32. Funny enough the rock has been the single most expensive item of this whole build. But I am super happy with it. It is the perfect size for the jar, and I really like the shape/look of the rock. The sand definitely needed a lot of rinsing. For the little bit of sand I used it took me about 15 mins of just straight rinsing to make the run off water run somewhat clear. But I am also pretty happy with it as well. It's more coarse and has tiny pebbles throughout which I like rather than other bags of sand that are super fine grain. Plus Petco was running an online sale so I got 20% off my order! (Pictures of build so far and bag of sand below)

I am officially another step closer to actually adding some water, and starting the nitrogen cycle. I just ordered two 25w submersible preset heaters, (one for tank and one for mixing salt) and a bag of salt mix. So another update is coming soon. Stay tuned! ​

When you rinsed the sand, did you use treated tap water, rodi, or just staight from tap. If you used untreated tap water, meaning no chlorine type removal, then you will want to rinse again with treated. If you can ise RODI, even better. Either way if tap was untreated, you will need to add and stir sand to ensure no chlorine is there. Even them some tap not all can still be narly lol. Depends on area and water source.

There is multiple forms of chlorine as well for those thatll want to add that as well lol.

Looks good so far.

 

[XxZILLAxX]

When you rinsed the sand, did you use treated tap water, rodi, or just staight from tap. If you used untreated tap water, meaning no chlorine type removal, then you will want to rinse again with treated. If you can ise RODI, even better. Either way if tap was untreated, you will need to add and stir sand to ensure no chlorine is there. Even them some tap not all can still be narly lol. Depends on area and water source.

There is multiple forms of chlorine as well for those thatll want to add that as well lol.

Looks good so far.

I rinsed with tap. Then when it ran clear I rinsed with distilled water for a while. And thanks.

 

[Mr. Roboto]

When you rinsed the sand, did you use treated tap water, rodi, or just staight from tap. If you used untreated tap water, meaning no chlorine type removal, then you will want to rinse again with treated. If you can ise RODI, even better. Either way if tap was untreated, you will need to add and stir sand to ensure no chlorine is there. Even them some tap not all can still be narly lol. Depends on area and water source.

There is multiple forms of chlorine as well for those thatll want to add that as well lol.

Looks good so far.

This tank is going to take so long to cycle it isn't going to matter if a little tap comes through.

 

[Ben's Pico Reefing]

You can add a bottle of fritz or certain other bacteria and not worry about a cycle. with that small tank you can also find piece of live rock to seed with for a couple days then pull out. Either is quicker. good thing is any chlorine in tank will off gas with good aeration in 24 to 48 hours. If there is any trapped in sand bed might be different or take longer. @Randy Holmes-Farley knows quite a bit about reef chemistry, you can ask him with questions and probably can point to threads already. but can stir, wait a day or 2, add bacteria and be good to go.

But how are you planning to cycle since there are quite a few methods. My idea was only a thought for you in case you wanted to speed along a bit.

 

[larryl]

Super cool, cant wait to see it thrive.

 

[XxZILLAxX]

You can add a bottle of fritz or certain other bacteria and not worry about a cycle. with that small tank you can also find piece of live rock to seed with for a couple days then pull out. Either is quicker. good thing is any chlorine in tank will off gas with good aeration in 24 to 48 hours. If there is any trapped in sand bed might be different or take longer. @Randy Holmes-Farley knows quite a bit about reef chemistry, you can ask him with questions and probably can point to threads already. but can stir, wait a day or 2, add bacteria and be good to go.

But how are you planning to cycle since there are quite a few methods. My idea was only a thought for you in case you wanted to speed along a bit.

To cycle the tank I'm going to add a bottle of nitrifying bacteria. Such as Dr Tim's, but I got a different brand that was cheaper. Then I got a bottle of Dr Tim's ammonia chloride. And I'm not worried about any chlorine in the sand. I rinsed it good with distilled water. Plus the salt mix I'm going with has a dechlorinator in the salt so should be fine.

 

[XxZILLAxX]

Update!
​

What's new?

I officially have water in my tank now! And it is in the beginning stages of the nitrogen cycle.
(Pictures of complete setup below)

Heating

For the heating of my tank I have a 50w compact preset 78°F heater. I have been monitoring the temperature for a couple days now and the 50w heater keeps my tank at a constant 78°F 24/7. Which is awesome because I was concerned about being able to keep the tanks temperature stable. The heater I got at Petco and cost me about $15.

Nitrogen Cycling

To kick off the nitrogen cycle I got two products. The first thing I got was a bottle of Dr Tim's ammonia chloride in order to feed the new bacteria. The second product I bought was a bottle of nitrifying bacteria by ATM. Both of those bottles cost me almost $20.

Salt Mix

As for the saltwater itself I decided to mix my own. I was debating going with premixed but that's too boring lol. The salt mix I went with is by coralife and is specifically designed for nano reefs and the biocube. Honestly the main reason why I got this salt mix was it's price. I might switch it if I run into lack of elements when adding corals. But for now it will do just fine I believe.

Thank y'all for stopping by my build thread! I'm super excited for the tank to be cycled. I will probably make a separate post just about what I plan to stock it with so stay tuned! ​

 

[Polymate3D]

Hello

Looks like your build is going well. My build is much further behind and smaller, but watching now to see how yours goes!

Whats your plans for fish / inverts, or strictly corals?

- Paul