Well, I just impulse bought a Biocube 14. Need ideas on what to do with it.

[gio28]

So I happened to stumble upon a biocube 14 today for $50 (heater, lights, and pump included). First thing in my mind was

.....I MUST HAVE IT!!!
now that I fought off 2 other people to get it, I need some cool ideas on what to do with it. anybody have some cool ideas?
(just for reference, I already have reef tank and a small pico reef...so something new would be nice)
Thanks!

 

[btldreef]

One of my favorite little all in one's. I'm actually selling mine tomorrow :-( I almost always had a reef of some sort, but just kept interesting little critters, ones that I usually couldn't keep in my main reef, in the 14.
non photosynthetic reef
pistol shrimp/goby pair
reef lobster
pair of pom pom crabs w/ some small fish
coral banded shrimp
I had a baby Fu Manchu in it while training it onto frozen at one point
I had an orange spotted filefish in it for a long time, miss that fish :-(
Most recently I was using it to grow out my H. Kuda baby seahorses, but now that I know they're good, I moved them to the 30T, and hubby said I have to get rid of the 14G before I set it up with something else, LOL

 

[gio28]

Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/386920/well-i-just-impulse-bought-a-biocube-14-need-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-it#post_3400789
One of my favorite little all in one's. I'm actually selling mine tomorrow :-( I almost always had a reef of some sort, but just kept interesting little critters, ones that I usually couldn't keep in my main reef, in the 14.
non photosynthetic reef
pistol shrimp/goby pair
reef lobster
pair of pom pom crabs w/ some small fish
coral banded shrimp
I had a baby Fu Manchu in it while training it onto frozen at one point
I had an orange spotted filefish in it for a long time, miss that fish :-(
Most recently I was using it to grow out my H. Kuda baby seahorses, but now that I know they're good, I moved them to the 30T, and hubby said I have to get rid of the 14G before I set it up with something else, LOL
thank you for all the ideas! I'm liking the pistol shrimp/goby pair idea the best. I used to have one in my larger tank but they went unnoticed because they were drowned out by the other inhabitants who drew more attention.
I can see why your husband wants you to sell yours, but it's much harder than it sounds lol. this hobby is just too addictive.

 

[btldreef]

Quote:
Originally Posted by gio28 http:///forum/thread/386920/well-i-just-impulse-bought-a-biocube-14-need-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-it#post_3400801
thank you for all the ideas! I'm liking the pistol shrimp/goby pair idea the best. I used to have one in my larger tank but they went unnoticed because they were drowned out by the other inhabitants who drew more attention.
I can see why your husband wants you to sell yours, but it's much harder than it sounds lol. this hobby is just too addictive.

He's just as addicted as I am, but I really do need to focus on my seahorse/pipefish/filefish tank right now and it will get neglected if I find a nice fish for the 14G again, LOL It's already sold, he's lucky, the guy is coming tomorrow to pick it up.
I miss having my pistol/goby in my biocube. I moved them to my refugium a while back, and really should have put them back in this tank, because I hardly see them anymore.
One word of caution about the pistol shrimp in the 14G:
There is an overflow grate at the bottom as well as the top on this tank. Two times I've had pistols go in there and not come out. Finally, the second time, I cut out the grate, and glued a smaller grate to it that he couldn't fit through. Both my pistols were ridiculously small and had no issue fitting through the original grates, but my darn goby couldn't fit through it and would panic and kept trying to jump into the back overflow boxes, and actually succeeded! I have a Randalli pistol with a Yasha Goby.
When I broke down the tank and went to move them, I realized that the original pistol that I was certain was dead inside the overflow after I glued on the grate showed up again. Unfortunately I couldn't even get him out and I think he finally did die in there :-(

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/386920/well-i-just-impulse-bought-a-biocube-14-need-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-it#post_3400789
One of my favorite little all in one's. I'm actually selling mine tomorrow :-( I almost always had a reef of some sort, but just kept interesting little critters, ones that I usually couldn't keep in my main reef, in the 14.
non photosynthetic reef
pistol shrimp/goby pair
reef lobster
pair of pom pom crabs w/ some small fish
coral banded shrimp
I had a baby Fu Manchu in it while training it onto frozen at one point
I had an orange spotted filefish in it for a long time, miss that fish :-(
Most recently I was using it to grow out my H. Kuda baby seahorses, but now that I know they're good, I moved them to the 30T, and hubby said I have to get rid of the 14G before I set it up with something else, LOL
Won't you still get baby seahorses and will need the 14g for them?

 

[saltwaterdud3]

how about a non-photosynthetic reef tank? sponges, gorgs, yellow and black sun corals etc etc?
How about a shallow water reef tank with mangroves, hermits and other types of algaes and a couple of fish thrown in?

 

[btldreef]

Won't you still get baby seahorses and will need the 14g for them?
I have someone who will buy the babies from me and raise them herself. I'm working on my clowns breeding before I attempt seahorses. Kuda's don't hitch at birth and I've heard they can be really, really hard when they're first born. They intimidate me

 

[meowzer]

Hey GIO....Look into the green banded gobies....they are a neat fun to watch fish (once they come out of hiding)

 

[novahobbies]

Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/386920/well-i-just-impulse-bought-a-biocube-14-need-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-it#post_3400803
He's just as addicted as I am, but I really do need to focus on my seahorse/pipefish/filefish tank right now and it will get neglected if I find a nice fish for the 14G again, LOL It's already sold, he's lucky, the guy is coming tomorrow to pick it up.

......and exactly WHY have we not seen pics of this over in the seahorse forums???
Get thy hindquarters over there and let's see some shots!! FTS, individual kiddies, whatever!

 

[btldreef]

Quote:
Originally Posted by novahobbies http:///forum/thread/386920/well-i-just-impulse-bought-a-biocube-14-need-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-it#post_3400907

......and exactly WHY have we not seen pics of this over in the seahorse forums???
Get thy hindquarters over there and let's see some shots!! FTS, individual kiddies, whatever!

I will move the thread to the seahorse section now. I initially didn't put it in the seahorse section because the title kept people guess so they had to read. I haven't gotten pics of my pipefish yet.

 

[gio28]

thanks for all the replies and advice everyone.
I actually happened to run into a random thread over on nanoreef about jawfish. Some people have built them cool homes out of 3/4" or 1" PVC. I thought this would be cool since my other two tanks can't have lids on them, and I've always wanted one/a pair. I figure that I can just make the sand level 1 1/2 - 2" because they will have the PVC...this way the sand won't be high enough to get into the bottom grate of the biocube.
oh and meowzer...I looked at the green banded gobies online. I definitely have to add one if my bioload will allow it. They look really cool and some people said they acted like puppies hahaha. (apparently jawfish do too)

 

[gio28]

I also figured out that the customer service dept. for oceanic is super cool and will send replacement parts without even asking for a receipt or if the warranty is still valid. This is perfect because one of the fans is super noisy. Theres also a crack in the splash protector and a broken transformer for the moonlights. hopefully all goes well when I call tomorrow.

 

[gio28]

well I decided to go ahead and mod the tank quite a bit. In the first chamber, I took out the false floor so I can put my heater all the way in so it's 100% submerged. I cut the tab for when the water spills over to the 2nd chamber for increased flow. Then I took out both false floors in the second chamber and replaced the bottom one with eggcrate so the flow can be maximized. I plan to use the first chamber to store all equipment, the 2nd chamber as a fuge/media chamber (chaeto, rubble, maybe carbon), and the 3rd for return.
Now the tank is being tested for leaks. I'm gonna keep it full until I get the new parts (if they send them to me for free

).
I'll have to start a new thread to document the tank soon in the nano section.

 

[btldreef]

The fans just get noisy overtime. I have to take mine apart every so often and put a few drops of vegetable oil on it.

 

[gio28]

good idea with the veg oil. I should definitely try that with the fans on my DIY canopy I have. As for the biocube fan, Oceanic said they would send me a new one along with a new LED driver...so I got lucky.
And just to let everyone know who owns a biocube, Oceanic, or Central Pets or whatever they are called now, have really great customer service. I was able to have them send me the parts I needed despite not having a receipt or any info in their system. I just told them I lost the receipt and my LFS closed down so they couldnt contact them for me. muahaha

 

[btldreefisaman]

AHHHH BA DAAAAAAAA DURRR HEEE DURRRRRRRRR MURRRRRRRRR DUHH LEEE
BIO CUBES ARE FOR IDIOTS