Pickupman's Dos Pescados Nano Build

OK OK, so Matt told me I had to do a build thread. I have always wanted to do a nano or pico tank so when I was awarded third place in the beer label contest Beer Label Contest i was ecstatic and i got to choose the Sunbrite slimline nano led light fixture. Perfect! Hopefully it gets here this weekend.. I have a standard 10 g tank with a 6 bulb current t-5 fixture over it i was plannign to use as a frag tank. well, three bulbs are burned out and i didnt know how i was going to tie it into my main system. but oh well..
then a fluval chi just sort of fell into my lap (i traded a small bta and some zoas for it). PERFECT!!! 5 gallons of nano goodness.

so last night i cut off the mount for the fluval center piece. i plan to steal the leds out of it and use them in the filtration to light a mini fuge. I then went digging in a pile of rocks I had beside the house and came up with what I think is the perfect rock layout.

Plans for this are to be a zoa garden. I hope to find two small fish I can put in it. may end up with a pair of cardinals so I can keep it flowing along the dos pescados Theme.

the 3rd place label:


Here is the view from the front. I wanted to have a good piece of rockwork yet it remain fairly open


View from the top down. Front is at the bottom. (well unless the photo didnt get rotated properly) Oh and the rock does not touch the sides or back.


now here is the rest of the details:
next week I think i will be able to order some black sand (or if I can find locally) an Aquaclear 20 filter and the skimmer attachment. I have an extra heater or three laying around so i just need a thermometer. Since I have a BIG OLE sump, this pretty piece of rock is resting there until it is time to add water to the new system. this way I can avoid much of a cycle at all. the rock was formerly used in a friends tank, and has been pressure washed and then dried out for several months. hopefully it can restore itself quickly in my sump. I put another piece twice this size in for the 10 gallon and I didnt see any ill effects in the 180 so... hopefully this will be a quick process and I can get it wet very soon.

this system will be stand alone right next to the 180. I plan to do a monthly exchange of 3 or 4 gallons of water with the big tank. if it works well, the tank will move to the office so i can enjoy it there. Unfortunately it seems i spend more time at the office than at home.

 

Looks really good! I like how you're going to carry your winning theme into your new tank Love the plan to help it cycle through more quickly - sounds like a great plan! Congrats again on your win in the contest!

 

Following.

When you cut that centerpiece - is the remainder glued to the back wall? What is the total thickness? The SunBrite mount is pretty wide, but I want to make sure you can mount it cleanly.

matt

 

Matt, on the Chi's the center piece that "floats" actually slips over a piece of black plastic that is siliconed or adhered to the exterior of the tank. this piece then covers teh lip of the glass and the floating filtration and light slip over this for a tight fit so no cutting involved...yet (light extraction).

what I did was take piece of fishing string and slipped it between the lip of the glass and the plastic. worked it back and forth and then down between the plastic and the glass. i wore gloved cause it was pretty stiff. this basically cut the plastic free from its bond. I then took a razor blade and scraped the remainder of the silicone off. I sorta wish I took photos of this, but like normal, I forgot. I removed this piece because the sunbrite lamp is at least 8" wide, and this would have interfered. the glass here is about the same as a standard 10g tank. once I get the fixture tomorrow, I will evaluate its sturdyness on the glass and such and if i need to put a piece of plastic or wood to make the mount wider, i will. If i feel the lamp is too long and is not centered over the tank, i will build a custom platform/light mount that the tank will rest on and will extend up a bit so the light mounts to that and lowers it a bit and extends a bit back from the walls of the tank.

 

Looks great! I'd do 2 small gobies instead of cards

 

I went back and looked at the artwork for the beer label. if only I could find a way to incorporate the two fish in a small corner logo. Either on the back in a corner or front in the bottom corner.. any ideas? I have a color laser printer.

 

Maybe have them on either side of the "Mexican Ale" part of the label?

 

bottom front corner

 

I need to fund water proof adhesive paper that I can laser print on.

 

Have access to a laminator? or know a teacher? They laminate everything Then you can just tape it on.....