Fluval 2.6 Pico Reef

[BamboozleBean]

Alright, I’m going to start off and say I know the parameter swings will be crazy, and there will be a lot of evaporation and temp changes.
But I have always wanted to use the Fluval Evo 5 or Fluval 2.6, it would just be an invert only tank. But I’ve always found pico reefs super cool.
Anybody have one in a Spec or have any thoughts on it? I also ask this because my LFS is having a 40% off all tanks deal next weekend so I could get a good deal on it.

 

[brandon429]

Sure you can do it, today’s topoff options are good to go. Temp swings are np, a tetra preset heater to 78 runs our half gallon reefs, yours is giant

with a square topped tank, and typical evaporation, you should invest more in the topoff mechanism than you would the tank. People use hamster bottle setups but those can fail and dump

the right way is exacting control topoff then the rest is easy weekly water changes and good stability. If you are in it for a small reef, a vase will beat any reef on this forum in salinity stability and it uses no topoff, it’s evap restriction vs topoff.
Source out a five gallon vase, source a simple inverted lid that sits on the inner diameter, best of both worlds.

 

[Iván Olalla]

my pico reef is 8 gallons, you can visit my build thread if you like to see how i aproached the issues you mentioned, but a temp controller with fan/heater attached to it and a reliable auto top off are a must in my opinion. Fun tanks, easy to keep sharp looking if you are on top of your checks and routine, also you can keep very interesting critters and observe their behavior in a way is not possible in bigger tanks!