5 gallon bow front

[Gouramiman]

i am thinking of setting up a 5 gallon mini bow. instead of using the hob filter i am going to get some plexy glass at home depot and some aqaurium silicone and make a wet/dry filter to go on the back. for lighting i am going to get two 25 wat screw in pc and the fixtures and cram them in the hood. i will have llive rock and live sand. for fish i would like some kind of small gobies and a small fire fish, along with some snails and a cleaner shrimp. my only problem is that my mom can not stand the look of the hood on the mini bow, but likes the look of canopies better. is there any way of making a canopie for a mini bow?

any suggestions would help

 

[1979camaro]

for fish you need a fire fish at the most...its really hard to keep anything in such a small volume of water, not to mention more than one. As for the lighting, I don't know if I would go that way, its going to be had to direct enough of that light into the tank for any coral to really do well...maybe you should try a PC retrofit kit instead...as for making a hood, i dont know about that...i wouldnt try it, but I am confident a good carpenter could make you something to match the curve (i am not a good carpenter)

 

[S.Reef]

Only one small fish for an aquarium of this size. For a 5 gallon aquarium a canopy is a little bit unnecessary. I would look into DIY sites and other forus.

Sam Reef

 

[S.Reef]

Only one small fish for an aquarium of this size. For a 5 gallon aquarium a canopy is a little bit unnecessary. I would look into DIY sites and other forus.

Sam Reef

 

[Gouramiman]

can i only put a fire fish in because of biological capacity or because of space in the tank????????

 

[1979camaro]

both

 

[Gouramiman]

the wet/dry filter that i am putting on should add another gallon or two to the tank. what about a small gobie like a Catalina Goby along with the fire fish????. i am going to put some of the oak vaneer stuff on the hood to make it look much better than the black one.

thanx for the help

 

[1979camaro]

i still would stick with just one fish...a rough rule for reefs is 1in of fish for every 5 gallons, but like the FW axiom, it doesn't always apply. I would say in a system this small you are still limited to one fish. I would reccomend at least ten gallons before you even began to consider adding a second fish, and even then you would be pushing the limits i think

 

[vicious]

A Catalina Goby raises other issues, they like cooler water than a Firefish. Not a good combination, due to environmental reasons as well. The following is a quote from LiveAquaria.com

"Although it will tolerate a tropical water temperature, (76 to 78ºF), the Catalina Goby prefers the cooler temperatures associated with the island where found, Catalina Island, off the coast of Los Angeles, California. Temperatures there range from 60 to 72ºF."

The key to successful reefkeeping is the desire not for fish to survive, but for them to thrive.


That being said, how about a Goby Pistol Shrimp combination? They're pretty fun to watch, and you would have no problem with room.

Vicious

 

[S.Reef]

Vicious raises a good point.

Sam Reef

 

[method]

for the canopy go over to nano-reef.com, there's a guy on there that builds custom canopies for mini-bows etc.

speaking of a goby and pistol shrimp combo, can i put a yellow watchman goby and a pistol shrimp in a 5?

 

[S.Reef]

I think you could. Just monitor water paremeters closely.

Sam Reef