30 Gallons, Shmerty-Gallons.....

Well, the tank build idea has fizzled, since it seems that the effort and expense for the components alone are costly. Now I'm more certain than ever that people are getting WAY too little for their large tanks when they unload them. The small ones have thin glass and actually could be built DIY pretty easily, but these large ones, with the necessarily thicker glass, are much more expensive. It is no longer a $1 per gallon proposition, that's for sure. 

When you factor in the cost of all of the materials, glass cut to fit for the panels as well as center bracing, silicone, straps to hold things together as it cures, the wood, paneling and molding plus paint to build a stand and canopy, much less the filters, lighting, substrate, etc. it gets very expensive (not to mention the beer and pizza you'll need for the guys helping you balance giant sheets of glass!).

So, its back to Craig's List. Not that I mind - it is a fun place to go to peruse the listing of people's castaways and treasures. Sometimes you stumble upon some very interesting things. Just from an aquarium standpoint I saw listings for a 130-gallon cube tank, which is a unique dimension, as well as a 200-gallon cube (sort-of), which would also make a stunning centerpiece. Then there's the acrylic wonders in cylindrical shapes and curved shapes, plus the truly monster tanks of 600 gallons and more that are for sale out there, supposedly meant for the lobby of a building or a restaurant. There are "man cave" bar tanks, retail counter top tanks, and on and on. I also saw some ridiculous prices being asked for very small tanks, like $350 for a 10-gallon tank and stand, for instance. When you consider the people selling 55-gallon tanks for $35, it is hard to justify! That's the other thing I noticed: there is a glut of 55-gallon tanks out there. This must be the universally most popular tank size. 

I saw some serious candidates for my purposes in the form of 110-gallon tanks that are 4', which seems to be the most common length for a 110-gallon tank. Other large tanks are more likely NOT 4' in length, so I have to be sure to check, but 110's seem to be 4' more often than not. I did see a 110 that appeared to be like two 55-gallons placed end-to-end, in that it was a very long but narrow tank. I'd love to have a 6' or 7' tank someday, but not this time.

One of the 110's looks to be in pristine condition, and comes with a stand and a hood, at a very reasonable price (again, really a steal when you break down what everything cost new) but it has nothing but the tank and the stand/canopy - I'd have to save more money for lighting and filtration. The rest of the stuff I already have, but I need decent filters, or build a sump if it is drilled. 

Aside:  That is the other issue when contemplating a large tank - a sump type filtration method is the most practical and efficient way to filter, but you've got to be very careful with your bulkhead seals and your overflows, and rig up a siphon break mechanism so if the power goes out your tank doesn't drain into your sump and onto your floor. They also tend to be noisy, and this may or may not be a factor depending on where you put it. For me, I would not mind if I heard some splashing or bubbling in my living room, but I've never had a sump and I'd have to take a crash course. I wound up siliconing thick glass panels over the drilled holes in my 150 for this reason - I just went with canister filtration. This would not be a deal-breaker for this current tank search, but must be considered. Always ask if the tank is drilled when buying second-hand. As a freshwater fishkeeper I have the luxury of going either way with filtration.

The other 110-gallon tank I was looking at has an excellent Eheim Professionel III filter, which is worth A LOT of money all by itself (more than what was being asked for the entire setup), plus a canopy and lighting, but no stand. I'd have to either build one or find one. I was doing some research on finding a 110-gallon tank stand, but I had zero luck even finding one for sale that would fit. Building it would not be a problem, since we could use the model of the stand for my 150, which is an excellent design and we certainly have the tools and the skills, but it would mean time and effort and money for quality lumber, paneling and molding, then primer and paint. I'm not really interested in a DIY project like that now, especially since we nixed the idea of building our own tank. 

So I kept looking. I figured at some point someone would be practically giving away a complete setup, or if it was only the tank/stand/canopy for super cheap then I'd just leave it empty until I could afford the filtration and lighting. I was not in a rush, for once! I had seen some filters and light fixtures being offered on Craig's List as well, so I could get the components piece meal.

Then I found it, though it is 30 gallons smaller than I had originally intended for this space. A 4' 120-gallon setup, with stand, canopy, CF lighting (with brand new bulbs, they were careful to point out), two Rena Filstar XP3 filters plus a Penguin 330 double HOB filter, driftwood and substrate (likely won't use the substrate - I already have sand). This tank measures 48 x 24 x 25 or thereabouts, and this is a perfect dimension for my 58" wall space. Everything I need is included, which means I don't have to purchase anything. I have rocks, tons of rocks, plus extra driftwood in the Gambusia (mosquito eater) tub that sits on the deck. 

I also have fish to go in it, which will be some of my baby angelfish that are growing rapidly in my 45, plus some black neons and rosy tetras. I have heaters and everything I might need.

I made arrangements to pick up the tank Saturday. It is in the Lynchburg area, which means a 2-hour drive, but it is worth it for what I'm getting for the price. He insists the tank and stand are "pristine" and worth a lot more than he's asking, which is definitely true based on what he's listed. This tank ought to weigh about 200 pounds empty, as I think it has thinner glass than what was used in my 150 (1/2" glass for the larger tank) so it won't weigh near as much, and the seller is confident we'll be able to move it. 

Since I have the 150 overfiltered with a Fluval FX5 and a Rena Filstar XP4, I can take the XP4 off the 150 and put it on the 120, plus one of the XP3's, and put the extra XP3 on the 150 with the FX5. This is a lot of X's and numbers, but you get the idea. 

I definitely could filter the 150 with the FX5 alone, but I'm nervous about having all my eggs in one basket, so to speak, and I like to have 2 filters on my larger tanks. I've got an XP1 and an Eheim Classic 2215 on the 45, which seems to be barely enough filtration, for some reason, though technically the Eheim ought to do the job by itself. I like to have my biobugs spread out, especially if there is a tank crash somewhere I can take a filter off one tank and use it in an emergency, leaving the other filter running. Or, if a filter fails (I have never really had this happen in 20+ years) there'll still be another one on there to do the job. 

That said, I could technically filter the 120 with the XP4 alone, but I don't consider that to be adequate by any means, or maybe its just my skewed idea about how to filter a tank. This method has worked very well for me so far, though, so I'll continue to overfilter! 

Here is a handy link to AqAdvisor, a site that calculates the filtration you have/need based on the size of the tank, the type of filter(s) you have running (it can accept up to 2 filters) and the stock you have in the tank, including a way to account for juvenile fish and their smaller size. They utilize drop-down menus and you select the species and how many of each fish, what filter you're using, and it tells you if you have adequate filtration for your setup. It also notifies you of incompatible species, and special requirements of certain species. The database is quite large, so you are bound to find your exact species or a close approximation for the calculator. 

What I like is that when they factor in the type of filter(s) you're using, they base the calculations on 65% of the manufacturer's recommendation for tank size. This takes into account the real life applications with filter media, etc., and is a more realistic view of what a filter can do for a certain size tank. I've always felt the manufacturers were extremely generous when rating their filters, so this reassures me that the estimate you get on AqAdvisor is closer to an accurate estimation.

Sooooooo...... according to that site, even with just the FX5 on the 150-gallon I'm something like 300% of the recommended filtration! Lol! I guess I should not worry about putting the XP4 on the 120 then, huh? That is a fun, fun, fun calculator, and you ought to try it out, even for a future fantasy setup. It is very helpful. 

I will cross my fingers that everything goes well with this tank move and I'll post pics and provide updates once I've got it up and running. 

There is one other important factor that may have gone unnoticed unless you read the previous post. My dogs, a bullmastiff named Major and a Great Dane mix named Sirius, are fixin to be displaced! There is a very large crate in the room, about the size of a refrigerator turned on its side, which is used daily when we're gone (Sirius), and the door is always open so one or the other of the dogs goes in there to use it like a cozy den when we're home. I need to find a place for the general purpose dog bed, though, and I could get away with a smaller one. They don't spend a lot of time on that bed but they DO use it, and I feel a bit guilty taking their spot right by the door. I'll come up with something....

All right, all right, I'll build it MYSELF!

I have an area of my living room that needs an aquarium. I have a 50" TV on one side of a very large stone fireplace, and another space on the other side of the fireplace that begs to be filled. Right now I have shelving on the wall and the very large dog bed on the floor for my Great Dane and Bullmastiff. 

When I got my 150-gallon aquarium (if you read way back in my posts I'm sure I mention this issue) I had planned on putting it next to the fireplace, but that is a 5' tank and the space between the wall and the hearth is about 58.5". Doh! I found another place for it in the next room, no biggie, but I have ever since wanted a tank for that spot, and not a small tank. 

I'm looking for a 4' 150-gallon, or something similar that can fit in that spot. I've seen a few of these on Craigslist but they want way more than I can spend for them. Considering I paid $300 for my 150-gallon, including a very solid stand and matching hinged hood, I am expecting a real steal for my next big tank.

My husband and I are talking now about building the tank ourselves. There are some issues, of course, and one is the material we'll use. Glass is easy to maintain but a tank that size will be pushing 400 pounds empty. My current 150 is a beast to move so acrylic has appeal. However, acrylic scratches, and I'm assuming I'll be wiping the algae off it (I always have a little bit in my tanks) on the inside. 

One of the members of my club, Central Virginia Aquarium Society, is trying to get started in the acrylic tank building business, and I'm going to join forces, I think, and see if we can get a custom tank built for me. It is really going to depend on cost, for sure, but I'm determined to make this happen!

Foiled Again!

Today I had a buyer for my Geophagus red-head "Tapajos" (orange head, red head? I don't know!) and last time I sold fish from this group I snatched them up in the dark early in the morning. I caught 4 on one occasion and another 4 the next week when I had another buyer.

I plan on keeping most of the rest of them since I want to grow them out and see what I get in terms of pairs, but I promised 4 more to a Central Virginia Aquarium Society club member, Alleykat (thanks, Chris!) but I was able to catch only 3. They really got wise to me this time and dove for the rocks. The group was getting really stressed so I had to stop trying.

This is the problem with selling fish out of a display, but I don't really have anything but display tanks, so that's how it will have to be. :-/

Once they get 6-7 inches it will be harder for them to hide, though, and I can thin the group out more then.

A Banner Day!

Here's some pics of Peckoltia L147, which is a species that is often accidentally caught with Clown Plecos (Panaque maccus), so they are often sold as such. I received the fish from a member of my fish club, the  Central Virginia Aquarium Society (thanks, Donald!).

My daughter named her (we're pretty sure this is a female) Banner, because of the flag-like tail fin extension. She's now in my 150 gallon with lots of hiding places, and she's staked out a cave for herself. I don't expect to see her out and about much, but I can drop food into her vicinity easily. This is not a pleco that is going to suck on the glass and scrape algae, but will dine on sinking veggie/catfish tablets for the most part.

She's about 6" long with the tail (as you can see she barely fits into the fish transfer box) and is full grown.

*Cue the Choir Singing*

Only a matter of HOURS after adding the Tetra SafeStart, I am measuring zero nitrite and 5 ppm nitrate, zero ammonia. This is a wonderful product. I think my little issue was temporary anyway, and likely would have resolved in the coming days anyway, but I don't like to have any measurable nitrite in my tank and this was easy enough to resolve. I'm very impressed and relieved!

I shut down the bubbles and all the fish are acting like the greedy little pigs they are! My lil' Angels.....

You Can't Win for Losing (what does that even MEAN?)

I had a bit of an issue today. Yesterday I got a plant assortment ("low light") that included 12 species of plant, but I got extras of some species. These plants came in looking wonderful, and I have to give a shoutout to Mike's Wet Pets  on Aquabid. What a load of wonderful healthy plants it was! 

Cabomba purple (really purple) and green; hornwort (a bit the worse for wear, but anyone who has shipped this plant knows to expect this); three varieties of java fern, with the regular M. pteropus, the lace windelov, and then a third variety that I can't for the life of me remember the name of - the leaves are large and long with a single split on each leaf, like the thumb on a mitten; two Crypt species, the wendtii and spiralis; several pots of anubias, coffeefolia and I don't know what else, valisneria (at least 10 separate plants) and several of those large and clumsy-looking jungle vals. All of the plants are very healthy so I'm thrilled. 

I put the cabomba and hornwort in the snail tank (I removed the Gambusia from this tank previously - definitely eating the snails!) and put some extra valisneria in there as well, along with a pot of Anubias for safekeeping until I know what to do with them. I'll definitely have too much so I'll share with friends.

I have had only a thin layer of sand in the 45 because I had plans to put Geos in there, so I needed more sand for the rooted plants. The 150 has too much sand, though the geos really do enjoy digging around in it and when they are larger they'll move more of it around. However, I could spare about 4-6 cups out of there no problem, and it is the same type of sand in both tanks. I scooped it out and gently poured it into target areas of the 45 where the plants would be placed, along the back and left side, and in the middle in a hollow made by a driftwood branch. I planted the jungle vals and the regular valisneria along the back, where tall narrow plants are needed, and the spiralis crypt on the left next to the C. walkeri that I brought home from Rufus' tank (the red betta) at work. I planted the C. wendti in the middle of the tank where the driftwood branch splits. That piece of driftwood is just a narrow split branch so it frames the plant beautifully.

I placed the java fern and Anubias pieces around here and there and got things like I wanted. The fish were out and absolutely loving the plants, poking around in them and enjoying the cover they provide. I stayed up to 2:00 am watching the tank. It was a tiny bit cloudy initially from adding that fine dusty sand (I rinsed it outside on the deck prior to putting it in since it had not been properly rinsed when it went into the 150 originally) but cleared by the time I went to bed. I got video for my YouTube channel.

This morning the angelfish looked odd, not acting ill or gasping at the surface but all clustered around the driftwood in a way they don't usually do. The rams were begging for food and the single cardinal and the bentosi tetras were skittering around like they do when they know I'm going to feed them. I decided to test the water and found low levels of NITRITE! Yikes. The tank is cycling. Lawd-a-Mercy.

The key to this mystery, however, is something I found when I planted the new plants: anaerobic pockets in the existing sand. I could not believe it. I could smell the rotten egg smell and saw that the old sand was darker when I planted. WHAT??? There was scarcely a 1/4" of it in that tank! Most of the bottom had rocks on it anyway, and the underside of the rocks were black. No actual bubbles came up when I did the planting, so I didn't think it was too bad. 

I did a very large water change last night after that discovery but I'm sure that is why the tank cycled, or I'm guessing so. I had not messed with the filters or removed anything from the tank - only added heavily rinsed sand and a ton of plants. I also put 2wpg on the tank to get the plants going - I have a pair of Coralife double-bulb strips from the 40-gallon I recently took down, with each strip having 2 21-watt T5 bulbs, and that is very nice lighting, so I'm hopeful the plants will be able to get rolling and oxygenate the water. I left the lights on all night to give the plants a boost, since the lights are off all day.

This morning after discovering the issue (no ammonia and low nitrate) I cranked up the bubbles big time, since I had cut them back to a mere trickle and may eliminate them altogether if the plants suffer from it, and added SafeStart, that Biospira additive from Tetra that I've kept on hand for emergencies. I started using BioSpira when it first came out as a Marineland product, one that had to be kept refrigerated, and it gradually became unavailable. It was sold to Tetra, and either Marineland developed it into a bottled additive that could be stored at room temperature on the shelf, or Tetra did after buying it. At any rate, I saw it advertised and have been pleased with how it helps to cycle a new tank.

I also went over to the 150 and scrounged around for some trumpet snails, and added them to the sand in the 45. I know the rooted plants are going to travel through the sand but I have zero problems with anaerobic sand in the 150, since I stir that pretty vigorously once every couple of weeks and never find any discoloration at all - looks pristine. The geos are too small right now to really get all through the sand that's there and I know the snails help. I will just deal with any overpopulation in the 45 by picking them out by hand - that is better than anaerobic pockets. The 45 hasn't even been set up for that long! I'm baffled as to why such a thin layer of sand in the tank for only a few months would go anaerobic on me.

The angels are very young, still dime to nickel sized, and I'm hoping they'll get through this okay, especially since it has not been like this for long, and I've taken action. I may add a bit of Otis' marine saltwater solution if they look to be suffering. I'm sure by tonight this will be resolved, but YIKES.

The annoying thing is that I was due to take a Panaque changae from a club member who wants to rehome it, and that would mean catching the bristlenose Ancistrus from the 45 and move her out to the 150 with the other BNs I have there. This Panaque is territorial and would really appreciate having this little woodpile all to himself. Now I think it will be a bad idea to tear up the tank to catch the BN, and also a bad idea to add this Panaque to an unstable tank. We'll shelve that for now, and I'll see if the guy in my club is willing to hold onto the catfish a bit longer for me. Here are pics of the tank this morning when I discovered the nitrite, after planting everything last night: