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Three Gallon Tank Difficulty -Tips?


Patrick_G
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I have huge respect for those of you that keep are able to maintain nice looking pico tanks of three gallons or less. The little three gallon display tank at Aquarium Coop is a good example. It always looks absolutely perfect. 

My three gallon snail only tank is about a month old and I’m not sure how to keep it looking good. It’s currently filter and heater free with a little Nicrew clip light. I can tell it’s at the stage where it needs a little care. What are your secrets? 

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Edited by Patrick_G
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Personally I really dig it.   That piece of wood is gorgeous.  

One tiny thing I've learned in my smaller tanks is for my preferences, I stopped using white or really light substrate.   We switched to Pisces Midnight Pearl and it has a great natural look without showing every algae spot and fish turd 😉

I've been pondering using hornwort (is that what I see in yours?) but I get scared when I hear about how it gets out of control lol

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On 7/4/2021 at 6:36 PM, Patrick_G said:

For instance, how do you clean the glass without messing up the scape? 

For cleaning decor and hardscape, compact cleaning brushes for teeth/braces work pretty well for small places that won’t accommodate an entire hand. Search for “tuft” or “end tuft” toothbrushes on Amazon/Google. Toothbrushes in general make excellent cleaning tools for planted tanks. Electric toothbrushes can make very quick work of cleaning stubborn green algae from hardscape. An electric brush also works well for cleaning the glass if you have the time to do it. I have a 3gallon bowfront and that’s how I usually clean the glass. Electrics are great for getting algae off of the silicone seams too. You don’t have to push and scrub with a sponge or anything, just let the brush do the work.

Stainless steel algae scrapers also work well for tiny tanks. These also allow you to scrape algae away from the glass below the substrate so that inevitable “algae line” isn’t always there. Really any thin flat piece of plastic would work too.

When it comes to not messing up the scape, well….. that will probably happen no matter what you do to prevent it lol. Eventually, you’re going to knock into something and jostle something around. This can be prevented during the hardscape stage buy attaching all of your hardscape to each other either by (always make sure whatever you use is aquarium safe!!) superglue, the appropriate epoxy, silicone, or even zip-ties. The more stable you create your scape, the more forces it will be able to take. Sometimes, I’ll move things just by trying to brush algae away. I’ve learned to deal with little things like this and adjust my maintenance routine accordingly.

With tiny scapes, you have to pay much more attention to what you’re doing inside of it than you would in a much larger tank. As with anything involved with tiny tanks, you just have so much less room for error. That includes routing around in your tank with hands and tools. Just pay attention to what you’re doing and try to think ahead to what your going to do next so you’re aware of the layout of the scape. Eventually you’ll learn where everything is at and you’ll be able to maneuver around easier. It also helps, that during the hardscape process, to anticipate your cleaning routine. Place your hardscape in ways to make it easier to clean everything. Don’t put a whole bunch of wood along the side glass then get frustrated when it’s impossible to clean. A good rule of thumb is to leave about an inch between the glass and the hardscape. That should ensure enough room for at least a toothbrush or something similar to get in between the glass and the hardscape. 
 

By the way, what you have going on looks great! Keep it up. 

Edited by Ryan W
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On 7/4/2021 at 3:36 PM, GameCzar said:

Personally I really dig it.   That piece of wood is gorgeous.  

One tiny thing I've learned in my smaller tanks is for my preferences, I stopped using white or really light substrate.   We switched to Pisces Midnight Pearl and it has a great natural look without showing every algae spot and fish turd 😉

I've been pondering using hornwort (is that what I see in yours?) but I get scared when I hear about how it gets out of control lol

The hornwort look-alike is Mayaca. I’m really happy with it. It has the fluffy look but doesn’t spread as fast as hornwort. Aquarium Coop sells it. 

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Edited by Patrick_G
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With the tank only a month or so old,  you're still in the "seasoning" stage with your tank's entire biome still trying to figure out where it's natural equilibrium is.  I'd clean with caution as you want the things you do in/to the tank to compliment what the biome is already working towards (albeit on a much different schedule and sequence).

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I have this algae scraper in my 2.1 gallon cube.  This one came with my used 6G cube, but I like the MagFloat Nano for that size.  Just ordered another Nano MagFloat for the new 6G cube.  This little thing has a very small magnet that fits almost anywhere.  The only problem with it is the inside magnet is curling a little bit.  I just saw on Amazon that you can get a replacement inside magnet.  This doesn’t float like the MagFloats do if the inside separates from the glass.  It may, or may not, fall close enough to the glass to retrieve without reaching in with something.  If it falls face down you have to clean the surface before you start to use it again.

 

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@Patrick_G It’s very handy for my tiny cube.  I just set it up about 2 weeks ago and moved this to it from my older 6G cube.  The inside magnet is only about 1” square and a little over 1/8” thick.

 

Edit to add I checked dates and it’s been set up 4 weeks.  Time flies when you’re old, lol!

Edited by Odd Duck
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I’m known as the family’s worst photographer 🤣, but I’m starting to realize one needs to keep the camera level. 
I have some extra Amanos I could add but for now I’m happy with the snails. 

Edited by Patrick_G
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