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Do you own an Aquarium? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter BigTex
- Start date
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
How often do you clean it?
St. Louis Bob
Footballguy
29 Gallon, hasn't had fish in it for 14 years or so. My boys have been bugging me to get some fish though. Do they have better filters so it isn't a constant pain in the ###?
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
75 gallon tank? Wow, is it in your living room?
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
What type of fish are you considering?
TLEF316
Footballguy
Yup. It's the same size as a 55, just deeper
pittstownkiller
Footballguy
Hello Tex, how are you? I do not own an aquarium currently but I have had aquariums. I would like to have a large saltwater aquarium installed in my home but my installer seems cool on the idea. My previous tank was freshwater and I ended killing all my fish with the addition of a comet "won" at a carnival. The tank I am looking to install was a 200 gallon bowfront, that my friend (a professional aquarium guy) had from a job; he was concerned because the tank leaked and he did not want that quantity of water in my house on a repaired tank. I like taking care of fish but they die from a multitude of reason and it depresses me. I want saltwater because of the variety of life and corals that can be added. If another tank becomes available I will probably shoot for it.
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Abraham
Footballguy
Once every couple of months. Pleccos and Cory cats eat a lot of #### and goldfish are fairly robust.
St. Louis Bob
Footballguy
Nothing fancy. I had piranhas in college then an Oscar after that. I had a striped cichlid and a pink cichlid after the Oscar that actually mated and had babies. There were hundreds of them which of course they then ate. I managed to save a few of them but then something happened, honestly don't remember what, and all of the fish died. Just didn't feel like messing with it since then.So filters people?
spOOfy
Footballguy
this is something i have considered a few times. i had my mother-in-laws for a few weeks when she was moving and i liked having one and so did the kids. however, i felt like i had to keep putting bottled water in the damn thing as it was in a room with a decent amount of sunlight. i could never decide which i would prefer to have, saltwater or freshwater. what are some pros and cons of each? what is the usual upkeep for each kind (what do you need to do in terms of cleaning, water replenishment, frequency of these tasks, etc)?
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
Hello PK, I'm well thanks and you? 200 gallon is a serious sized aquarium. In particular reason why you are getting such a huge tank?
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
Lol, gotcha!
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
I see.
St. Louis Bob
Footballguy
That's why I was wondering about the filters these days. I had two top of the line Fluval filters and a big ### Plecostomus and the thing still seemed to get dirty all the time. Just a pain.
BigTex
Don't mess with Texas
I'm wondering if getting a reptile or exotic animal would be a better answer?!?!
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Ignoratio Elenchi
Footballguy
Yes, it's in Baltimore.
pittstownkiller
Footballguy
I have an oversized hall, between my kitchen and my dining room, that has a jog in it; I have never been able to figure out a piece of furniture for there. The tank was also free and I would get all the other pieces like fish and coral at cost.
Mr Capicollo
Footballguy
I don't?
I thought of getting this jellyfish deal to be a unique feature of my apartment to impress the ladies but decided it would be too much work: http://www.jellyfishart.com/shop/3-jelly-kit
Ned
Footballguy
We have a 90gal african cichlid tank. I was against putting it back up after we bought the new house because of the work. But my wife insisted - its for the kids.
African cichlids are pretty aggressive little fish (like Abe found), so you have to be careful on which ones you put together. Overstocking the tank is the key. It helps to spread out the agression so they don't gang up on a single fish. An all male tank is even better, but its hard to sex them. Build a lot of rock work so they have caves to hide in.
This pic is a little old, but gives you an idea - My link
That unfinished box to the left of the tank is a siphon system we built. We do 50% water changes every few weeks and I got sick of doing it one 5gal bucket at a time. So we set up some 1" PVC to run out of the house and tied into our drainage system outside. The box holds all the cleaning tools and hides all of the plumbing work. My brother is pretty good with a router, so all of the woodwork was done from scratch. Now we siphon continuously and it just runs right out with the drainage water outside. We took some pics of the project - My link
Save yourself a ton of grief and get a solid canister filter. Forget the stupid hang on filters. We have the Fluval FX5. Don't be afraid to overfilter the tank, but they do make smaller ones for smaller tanks. They'll fit underneath/inside any decent tank stand.
African cichlids are pretty aggressive little fish (like Abe found), so you have to be careful on which ones you put together. Overstocking the tank is the key. It helps to spread out the agression so they don't gang up on a single fish. An all male tank is even better, but its hard to sex them. Build a lot of rock work so they have caves to hide in.
This pic is a little old, but gives you an idea - My link
That unfinished box to the left of the tank is a siphon system we built. We do 50% water changes every few weeks and I got sick of doing it one 5gal bucket at a time. So we set up some 1" PVC to run out of the house and tied into our drainage system outside. The box holds all the cleaning tools and hides all of the plumbing work. My brother is pretty good with a router, so all of the woodwork was done from scratch. Now we siphon continuously and it just runs right out with the drainage water outside. We took some pics of the project - My link
Save yourself a ton of grief and get a solid canister filter. Forget the stupid hang on filters. We have the Fluval FX5. Don't be afraid to overfilter the tank, but they do make smaller ones for smaller tanks. They'll fit underneath/inside any decent tank stand.
G
Guest
Guest
My son has one of these, and it is very cool. He has about a dozen shrimp and an orange crawdad that keeps growing and growing. The crawdad comes up to the front glass to fight when you approach the aquarium. He has it stocked with live plants and the shrimp are very entertaining to watch.
I don't currently have one running now, but have had both fresh and saltwater aquariums over the years. The bigger the saltwater aquarium the easier they are to take care of as they become somewhat self filtering.
Most people put too many fish in an aquarium too soon. When first setting up, if you must have fish right away, put a couple cheap "disposable" fish in and give the nitrogen cycle a chance to get going. Live plants also help a great deal with water quality.
I don't currently have one running now, but have had both fresh and saltwater aquariums over the years. The bigger the saltwater aquarium the easier they are to take care of as they become somewhat self filtering.
Most people put too many fish in an aquarium too soon. When first setting up, if you must have fish right away, put a couple cheap "disposable" fish in and give the nitrogen cycle a chance to get going. Live plants also help a great deal with water quality.
G
Guest
Guest
The fish may not like it very much.
Ned
Footballguy
the fish wouldn't stand a chance. You'd have to leave it 1/2 to 2/3 full and have rockwork or wood setup so the turtle can come out. Needs a heater lamp too. Turtles can be filthy, too.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
I have a 45-gallon half cylinder tank that has not been set up for about 5-6 years. It was a freshwater tank at the time but when I set it up again I would like a saltwater tank (nothing fancy -- a couple of clown fish, an anemone, and maybe a damselfish or tang or two).I had a saltwater tank back in the early 80s and had no problems but it seems now they frown upon the filtration I was using (undergravel and hang-on filter). Apparently now you should have a combination of biological filters, protein skimmers, sumps, etc. -- I guess fish are a lot pickier than they were 25 years ago.I am just not sure I want to go through the cost and effort ...
G
Guest
Guest
Exactly. I had an undergravel filter with a power head and never had a problem with fish health or water quality in my salt water aquarium.
Maddenf
Footballguy
Do the turtles have a good amount of room in that size tank? How often do you have to clean? I like turtles, but have been hesitant to get some due to concerns over cost (heard you need 10 gallons per turtle inch) and cleaning (seem they would be much dirtier than fish). Thanks
Treynwreck3
Footballguy
I had saltwater aquariums for years, a 75G FOWLR, a 58G Invertebrate, and a 10G Nano. Once my kids got old enough for youth sports, I got rid of them. I didn't have enough time to deal with them. To properly care for mine took about an hour a day and up to four hours one day a week. The plumbing for the big tanks was extensive. I had Dolphin pumps running under-stand sumps, supplemented with Fluval canister filters. Proper temperature was always a challenge because of the climate (TX) and the heat generated by the high intensity lights (fans). They were impressive, but alot of work.My pride and joy was the 10G. I got a perfect mini-ecosystem going in that tank and went 18 months without a water change. No filtration at all. Just a hang on filter (empty) for circulation, small powerhead and a Coralife 200W light. All I did was top off the water, clean the glass and harvest coral frags. It was beautiful. I sold it complete to another aquarist for $500.I now have a 7 gallon freshwater tank that my daughter claims is hers. After about 6 months, I finally got a decent ecosystem going in it and all I do to it is top off with fresh RO water, clean the sponge filter medium once every two weeks, and that's it. It has three guppies, three neon tetras, a golden zebra, and some kind of hybrid catfish. Snails do the housekeeping. No heater, one fluorescent fixture.If you are going to do it, start with nothing smaller than a 20G. The more water you have, the easier it is to maintain chemistry. To get started, find a good fish shop. Buy good equipment. Go slow. You can't be up and running overnight. It takes time to build an ecosystem. Steer clear of the chain stores, all they want to do is sell you fish and most of the people working there are good at killing fish. Another thing to keep in mind: fish die. Sometimes it's nothing that you are doing wrong. They just die.
Treynwreck3
Footballguy
Protein skimmers were designed to compensate for poor water quality.
BroncoFreak_2K3
sucker for Orange
post of the threadsnails are awesome cleaners.
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TLEF316
Footballguy
I'm running 2 eheim 2217 canisters on my tank. I do a 25 percent water change every week to 10 days. I don't need to do it for water quality purposes, but I need to clean the glass and trim the plants anyway, so whatever. I have a hose that hooks up to my faucet, so no buckets. I clean the filters every 4 or 5 months. Should probably do it a little more often, but it's a dirty pain in the ### job
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Treynwreck3
Footballguy
I did water changes on the 75G once a week. The big fish (angels, tangs, etc.) were impressive, but they made a mess. I found that using good water was the simplest single thing I could do to keep problems to a minimum. I would haul water from the little kiosk in the parking lot of the grocery store. PITA but worth the hassle.
jwb
Footballguy
I've had a 29g for the past decade. I had three fish that entire time - two pictus catfish, and a pleco (which grew to about 10"). I kept it moderately planted, and it was really easy to maintain. These fish (all bottom feeders) keep things very clean - very litle water changing/etc. Sometimes for years (I highly recommend planted tanks - it makes for a true ecosystem that's much easier to maintain.)
However, one catfish died last spring (old age - I read they live about 8 years, so mine had a good, long life), and the pleco died this past autumn. After the pleco died, I started getting that black, hairy algea. Ugh - it's completely overrun me now. The only way to get rid of it is to completely clean / start anew.... but I still have this last pictus catfish in there. Old as the hills, he'd never survive the transfer/cleaning. So I'm just waiting for him to die naturally. Then I'll clean it out and decide what to do next - maybe another aquarium, or maybe a lizard - always wanted one of those.
To the people asking about turtles... they're really dirty, and the tank stinks fairly quickly.
However, one catfish died last spring (old age - I read they live about 8 years, so mine had a good, long life), and the pleco died this past autumn. After the pleco died, I started getting that black, hairy algea. Ugh - it's completely overrun me now. The only way to get rid of it is to completely clean / start anew.... but I still have this last pictus catfish in there. Old as the hills, he'd never survive the transfer/cleaning. So I'm just waiting for him to die naturally. Then I'll clean it out and decide what to do next - maybe another aquarium, or maybe a lizard - always wanted one of those.
To the people asking about turtles... they're really dirty, and the tank stinks fairly quickly.
MikeIke
Footballguy
The turtles gobble up just about anything you put in there. Weird thing, though, I had feeder goldfish and 8 of them survived over a year. They were getting really big - 4-7 inches. Then over the course of about 2 weeks the turtles ate them all. It's like they rediscovered their taste for fish.I also have a big algae eater that they leave alone. And one fish (not sure what kind) that is dark, striped, and has two long straight things hanging down from his underside. For some reason the turtles let him live, too.
Yes, I agree they're kind of like dogs. Mine were never handled as babies so they don't let you handle them now. But they're fun to watch - they chase each other all the time and one will push the other off the dock so he can have the whole heat lamp. Their names are Nip and Tuck.
Yes, they have plenty of room. The tank is full to about 10 inches below the top and there's a dock for them to sun themselves.As for cleaning, I don't do it as often as I should. The filter seems to do a pretty good job. Sometimes crap from the bottom gets stirred up into the water when the turtles move too violently (which is often) and the water will be cloudy for a day. But it always comes back to "clean enough for me." I clean the filter about once a month.
MikeIke
Footballguy
Snake FTW. My snake is my second favorite pet (behind one of the cats and in front of the dog.) I just wish I'd gotten a larger species. Ball pythons only grow 3-4 feet long.
Cliff Clavin
Footballguy
20G freshwater. Been waiting a year for a replacement bulb. No fish yet.75G. Bearded Dragon. (Tank formally had 5 Piranha, a lobster and 6 Giant Danios They were bought for feeders but the Piranhas couldn't catch them)50G. Nigerian Uromastyx.
VA703
Footballguy
thats pretty cool.. pet jellies
Shane Falco
Footballguy
Its not the fish that need the filtration its the coral and micro algae (that some fish need to survive) that need the heavy filtration.I have a 180 gallon salt water reef tank. Its nice but can be a PITA at times'WhatDoIKnow said:
G
Guest
Guest
Makes sense. Other than a few crabs, I didn't keep any invertebrates.
Caesar
Footballguy
Anyone ever priced a custom aquarium? I am thinking about doing something in a couple of years and I was wondering what kind of prices I could expect.
I am thinking it would be fairly simplistic, a hexagon tank about 300-400 gallons depending on final dimensions I settle on.
Anyone?
I am thinking it would be fairly simplistic, a hexagon tank about 300-400 gallons depending on final dimensions I settle on.
Anyone?
Dan Lambskin
Footballguy
culdeus
Footballguy
I have a 4 gallon freshwater with a mix of stuff in it. I'm leaving for 8 days.
This tank has an always on filter with a switched light. My question is it better to leave the light on all the time and the filter or put the whole system on a timer where the filter and the light goes off periodically. I can get the tank sort of close to a window where there will be some natural light and just turn the light off and leave the filter running also as an option..
This tank has an always on filter with a switched light. My question is it better to leave the light on all the time and the filter or put the whole system on a timer where the filter and the light goes off periodically. I can get the tank sort of close to a window where there will be some natural light and just turn the light off and leave the filter running also as an option..
