2.5 Gallon Tanks - What does yours look like? (2.5 Gallon Tanks ONLY)

PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
I was just curious if anyone here has 2.5 gallon tanks set up, and was curious how they look like.
I've had this 2.5 gallon tank with me for a while now (given to me by jrmakawoody) and I'm trying to get some ideas on how to scape it.

I was thinking of placing torn up Marimo Balls as the base, and skipping substrate (sand/gravel) all together. Maybe a seiryu stone or manza driftwood... I don't know yet. We'll see. Anyway... show off your 2.5 gallon tanks! :D
 
DMD123

DMD123

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I sadly have got away from the small tanks... but here was one that I had going for a little while:


It was posted here: http://www.wafishbox.com/t3932-my-betta-s-little-home

I was shooting for simplicity. I used a simple calender picture for the background and then kept the decor to a minimum.
 
DMD123

DMD123

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Thanks, I love nano tanks but have never really embraced the challenge of a full blown planted tank. I find them beautiful looking but just more than I think I can handle. That of course seems funny when you think of the work of a 2.5g vs the tanks in my signature. Yes Im afraid of the hard work 2.5g of plant life would be but have no problem caring for a 210g and a 72g . :laughhard: 
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
I like to think of it this way... bigger tanks tend to be more of a "set it and forget it" type of deal... where as the smaller you get, the more human intervention it needs.

hehehe
 
DMD123

DMD123

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Big tanks require a lot of human intervention too! Big fish = big poop removal!
 
K

KaraWolf

Member
Working on a 2 gallon one :D but no pics yet...just found the last plant I needed yesterday! Finally>> it had dwarf grass, Anubis Nana and moneywort. And it will have shrimp. Debating if I want tto spend money on a branch to put moss on or not because it will have cherry shrimp but leaning towards no because when the plants finally fill in a lot of the space will look like it dissapears it just all...so tiny right now!! Like the Anubis is thumb nail size >>
I wish I could show you the massive amount of BEAUTIFUL nano tanks the wet spot tropical fish has set up right now absoutly stunning!!
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
KaraWolf, OOOH neat!!! I kinda have a similar aquascape planned out in my head, and was on the fence about using some sort of driftwood in the tank, and I think I'm going to decide against it... I will want to try and see if I can get it set up so that it looks more Iwagumi-inspired... we'll see if I can pull something off like that. XD

oh man, I've always wanted to go to the Wet Spot for the longest time. One of these days... one of these days. :)
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
Here's what I have so far. I decided to just use the torn up marimo ball I already had in my 10 gallon tank... figured it'd look nicer in here, than it does in the 10 gallon, heh.

Water is a bit cloudy, because I added a SUUUUUPER SUPER SUPER miniscule amount of dirt, like, less than half an inch, and only off to one corner where the crypt is growing. I'm just going to do some water changes here and there to clear the tank up a bit.

Stupid me, I realized AFTER I finished setting things up, that I didn't have room for any filter, I just might use a sponge filter, if I can find one, or a HOB filter... or I will just leave it as is, WITHOUT any filters. We'll see.

I will plant in some microswords here and there when I get the chance, but here's how it looks as of now.

 
DMD123

DMD123

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Looking good! :spoton:  NANO-might! (lame attempt at humor, like the saying 'dynomight!' from the show Good Times - Wow really dated myself there)

What are you doing for filtration? I was using the Azoo palm filter in mine with the custom AC20 sponge mod. Worked great on that size tank.
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
Watchu talkin' bout dmd123? =P

Y'know...I'm still unsure what I will do for filtration, I just might leave it unfiltered... (most likely not) . . . I'm still trying to look for a filter that's small enough to fit in that 2.5 gallon tank without it sticking out like a sore thumb. hehehe

A sponge filer might work, although I might want something smaller than an AC20, if such a thing exists. hahahaha
 
pbmax

pbmax

Active Member
The real question: why do you need a filter?  

The substrate should have enough surface area for nitrogen cycle bacteria.  You're not heating it, so there isn't a huge need for circulation.  As long as you keep the bio load low you can avoid filtration all together.  My 2.5g, while not exactly looking fantastic these days, supports a healthy, breeding population of RCS with no filter or heater.

Edit: plus, your plants will thank you for lower CO2 off-gassing.
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
pbmax, yes, and based off of that, is why I'm leaning towards not having a filter. And since I'm only going to keep shrimp in the tank, the bioload will definitely stay low... I assume that the plants will soak up whatever nutrients and nitrates that are in there. With that said, I'm just worried about the water becoming stagnant, or is that something I shouldn't worry about?
 
pbmax

pbmax

Active Member
You could put an air-stone in and run it a few minutes a day on a timer if you're worried about that. I don't know what would cause "stagnant" water in such a tank or if it's even a problem. I have green water in mine, but that's because of a combination of dirt and sun (it gets morning direct sun and some indirect early on).
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
Definitely don't want any green water in mine, although it is beneficial for shrimp (I s'pose) . . . . I wouldn't want to display it if it were infested with green water hahaha...

I'll see how things develope. If anything, I'll just add a tiny sponge filter, if I can find one.
 
pbmax

pbmax

Active Member
Green water doesn't do anything positive for shrimp, as far as I know. If you have too much of it they say it can reduce O2 in the water, though my shrimp don't seem to mind.

Still water in and of itself does not cause green water. I have another window-sill container that has amazonia 2 and marsilea minuta in it that goes months between changes and there's no green water in it.

Still water can encourage the growth of certain types of algae and floating plants, I believe.
 
PokeSephiroth

PokeSephiroth

Member
Hmm.. dang, I always thought that green water is basically free floating algae in the water column, and since shrimp feed on algae.... well, yeah. lol

Sad. Well, I guess the best I can do is just hope for no green water =P

I've added an Aqueon Quietflow 10 HOB filter for now, just to clarify the water. So far it's working. But I'm pretty sure a water change is the best option still, to clarify the water. Alas...

 
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