# My wish list in the 800 gal....



## TheFishGuy

So after going to the OCA extravaganza this past weekend I'm all excited about the hobby once again. I've got four more fish to adopt out then the 800 will be mine again and I plan to do a rather large mix of CA/SA cichlids in it making it "my" tank again and not MFR's...

So far this is what's going to go in:

Oscars (three)
Green severums (five)
Green Terrors (six)
Blue Acaras (six)
Pikes (five)
Chocolates (two)
Geophagus Balzani (two)
Geophagus Jurupari (one)
Keyholes (four)
Uaru (one)
Robertsoni (one)
Synspilum (one)
Vieja hybreds (two)
Midas (six)
Jaguar (two)
Convicts (ten thousand)
 Nics (ten)
Festae (nine)
Hatiensis (six) 

I've got all those so far, the ones in red will need to grow a bit before being added though...

I'd like to add:
Jack dempseys (six)
Black belts (six)
Bocourti (six)
Regans (six)
Texas (six) (possibly)

The idea is as they grow and pair off, and they will in the 800 ,to remove the pairs and give them their own tanks. Then leave only one male of all the other species and all the Convicts and Nics in the 800 as dithers....

What do you think? 
Am I nuts? 
Think it'll be over stocked?
Think it'll work?
I want thoughts and opinions :thumb:

Keep in mind the tank is 14'x3'x30"tall

TFG


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## hslee

ah, the famous 800 

i think since you're taking all the pairs out it should work.. but it's hard for me to picture a tank that large. how will you be docorating it? will it end up with a pike, jag and midas claiming their own portions and the rest kind of swimming around those regions?

lol, sorry, i have more questions than answers (since i don't have any answers :wink: ) but any thread involving your famous tank i wanna be a part of


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## TheFishGuy

:lol: Well, in the past I've had vieja and midas spawn within three feet of each other. In fact, I've got about 50-60 of the midas from that spawn growing out in a custom 50 gal... only thing is two of the midas fry are viejas :lol: They were adopted. The male midas was about 11"...

The thing is... (and this is my theory) When the fish have more than six or eight feet to run from one another they kind of give up the chase. I've yet to see a dispute in the tank last more than a few minutes and the chase never makes half the length of the tank. I used to siphon fry out of the tank because as soon as some foriegn object appeared the parents would ball up the fry into a tight knot making it easier for me to suck em out. Fry from any spawn always go eaten in under two weeks though... Too many other predators to contend with...

As far as decor goes... it'll be something like this again:


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## hslee

i am so jealous of your tank it's not even funny. and here i was being all excited with my new 180g 

but yeah, i really think it should work, especially with your experience in keeping cichlids if anything's wrong you'll be able to stay on top of it. all i can say is make sure to put up some pics when it happens :thumb:


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## TheFishGuy

Most definately, I'm all about posting pictures :thumb:


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## Big Vine

Sounds fantastic!
I'll be looking forward to lots of pics too. 

BV


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## illy-d

Personally I think you should try to do a more natural decor... I've heard you mention a background before - My Vision would be to do the back ground like a mud bank with very little 3d relief (as opposed to a rocky BG), but with wood protruding to represent mangrove roots or what have you - something like Chefkieth's island but just epoxying in real wood 'branches'so to speak...

As for stocking do you really have the space to house 24 different species of pairs? Or would you only remove the heavy hitters? 'Cause to be honest it is my experience that a pair of Keyholes would not disrupt the chemistry of the tank with the listed tankmates one iota...

What about non-cichlids dithers instead of convicts? 100 Congo Tetras would be less of a handful then a a dozen or so convict pairs! Of course they may also be lunch...

All in all though I kind of like the stocking... My concern is that I would be torn on whether to keep the prime male of each species in the 800 or have them as part of a breeding pair?

Tough call - but I wish I had the gallonage to be the one having to make it...


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## TheFishGuy

I think once pairs are removed another male will rise in each group as the alfa male, he's the one who'll stay in the 800....

I always forget about the keyholes.... they're actually supposed to get their own tank, but after observing how they stand up to everyone in the 240 I was thinking they'd be fine in the 800.

These are in the 240 at the moment:

Oscars (one) 
Green severums (five) 
Green Terrors (six) 
Blue Acaras (six) 
Pikes (five) 
Chocolates (two) 
Geophagus Balzani (two) 
Geophagus Jurupari (one) 
Keyholes (four) 
Uaru (one) 
Robertsoni (one)

The largest of the fish is the robertsoni at about 9", all the rest average about 3-5 inches, maybe a bit bigger then that but you get the idea...

I like natural set ups but you don't get nearly the amount of hiding spots as you do when using the clay pipes. Rocks tend to get real real heavy and I'm not going to go out and buy 10,000lbs of lava rock :lol:

I could cut a tree down in the back and lay it in the tank :lol:


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## Burtle

Sounds like lots of fun but that is a lot of fish to handle I'm not going to lie.  
When does the store open?


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## TheFishGuy

:lol: Yes, it will be a handful and not fun catching fish out of the 800...

The store will open for adults when pairs start to form


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## Frameshift

The Geophagus (actually Gymnogeophagus) balzani need a couple months cool down (temps in the mid 60's) to survive. If not given the cool down time they don't last more than a year or two and just waste away.

If you downsize on the GT's, let me know. I tried to bring some to Wa when I moved from Hawaii, and the airline wouldn't let me.


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## TheFishGuy

I will definately let you know.... I've got 8 or so left, all doing great, one has two spots on it's side... We like that one, he's got an attitude already too :lol:

I'm aware of the cool down period, They're actually going to be getting a tank of their own in my daughters room for a few months over winter. She keeps her heat register shut and it's the coldes room in the house. Should work perfect. They'll get their cool down before going into the 800, then every winter I'll net em out and she'll get a tank in her room 

I was out today with the kids and got 6 JD's about an inch long for $.60 a piece and (I know I'm going to regret this) I also got 5 green texas :roll: These things are NUTS even at 2" they are aggressive! Should be interesting!

I've got three fish left in the 800.... as soon as they're re-homed I'll start introducing the smallest fish first.

JD's:









Green Texas:


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## cole

This is probably going to be a little off topic, but I have been watching this thread and just wanted to spit something out here. I had been thinking over the past weekend what I would do with a tank this big, or one close to it. I like what TFG has done with this tank, and some had mentioned how they would go about aquascaping it. I'm not the most experienced on here to be giving advice on this sort of thing, but I had a pretty good idea I thought I would share.

I've been looking at different shaped concrete pavers commonly found at lowes and home depot. They got some pretty neat designs these days, and I am curious how they would look in a tank this large. I wonder if you could take some pavers, and mount them to the background to kind of mock the shape of pillars. I was thinking perhaps you could mount a series of them across the bottom of the back wall, to sort of resemble an ancient stage. Then on either side of the back, and in the middle, I would do pillars going from the bottom, all the way up the background to the surface of the water. You may even be able to find nice end caps to mimick the tops of the pillars.

Anyway, I thought it was a good idea, and could help you contrast the difference between natural and sureal. My only question is, do concrete pavers contain dangerous chemicals that may leach? Just curious, incase I should take this approach in the future.

Cheers,
Cole~

BTW- Very nice carpinitis Escondido you have there kind sir...can't wait to see them critters grown out!


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## cole

Oh yeah, I tried to find clay pipes in my area the other day. I called everyone in my state that deals with plumbing supplies. Noone carries them around here anymore. Where in the heck did you find those awesome peices?

Cole~


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## TheFishGuy

Those pipes are from job sites, they've been buried under ground for many many years!

One of those Texas died last nite :? The pet store's 45 minutes away... :?

Good idea cole, but I can't glue anything to sanitred :x I HATE SANITRED!!!!


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## sick_lids

TFG, if i was you, i would NEVER leave my basement, my fiance' already says i stare at my 120 gallon too much! i am always cleaning, decorating, or just messing with one of my tanks. gets on her nerves honestly! haha! once again, you are truly my hero!! LOL!!!!


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## BlackShark11k

Sounds interesting. Be wary of the knife though, I've seen some 48 inchers gobble up 12'' bala sharks...the dempseys, roberstoni and severums may be gone before you know it. You do still have the knife, right?

Cheers,
Art


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## TheFishGuy

I do still have the knife, but once he's the last one left in the 800 he'll get put in the 240 since all those fish will be in the 800 

ALSO.... I just ordered six black belts today  I'm excited. I hope I don't get a stinkin hybrid like last time.... I'm still kind of P.O'd about that......

so all that's left for the wish list are the ones that won't be that easy for me to find:

Vieja Regani and Bocourti.... And know, I'm not taking out a loan to order from rapps... I'm a cheapskate :lol:


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## Frameshift

Good deal with the balzinii. Going to be fun times catching them every 8 months or so from the 800 I bet.


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## BlackShark11k

TheFishGuy said:


> I do still have the knife, but once he's the last one left in the 800 he'll get put in the 240 since all those fish will be in the 800


Good, but do realize he will outgrow that tank quite soon, and moving him will be difficult. Once he's back in the 800(unless you find a home for him) he'll eat everything that moves...my 7'' knife took down three 2-3'' convicts in less than a week :?

BTW, blackbelts rock!!! 

Cheers,
Art


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## jefejt

Impressive. Good luck and keep those pictures coming.


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## FiremouthShogun

Hey are all the cons because of supply because I think you can have an amazing variety of the 6-7 inchers. I'm sure the cons probably stand up better to the big aggressive types than say the Thor. species'.

Did you ever get any hybrids in that setup ?


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## TheFishGuy

The set up is not set up yet... And no hybrids for me... I understand that the viejas can hybridize but if that occures the fry will be left in the tank and not siphoned out.

And art... did you forget who you were talking to? The knife is a rescue and I hope to find him a home soon... Not to mention I have methods for slowing growth 

The cons are going to be in there for entertainment purposes only :lol: They tend to turn a tank into a soap opera :lol:

I'll try and get betters shots of the green texas tonite... The Jd's are in with a TON of other 1" fish, they're too small to keep with anything else at the moment....


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## BlackShark11k

TheFishGuy said:


> And art... did you forget who you were talking to? The knife is a rescue and I hope to find him a home soon... Not to mention I have methods for slowing growth


No, i did not :lol: You never know when you can't find a home for an animal though.

BTW, the JD's aggressiveness makes up for their small size...i had a 2'' one kill a mating pair of cons...i've had a lot of fish kill cons...i have way too many of them :lol:

Cheers,
Art


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## TheFishGuy

:lol: I can't even bigin to tell you how many convicts have met their maker in this house! :lol:


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## Notrevo

TheFishGuy said:


> The cons are going to be in there for entertainment purposes only :lol: They tend to turn a tank into a soap opera :lol: ....


So true...I truly see pandemonium in the future for you...but it should be very interesting indeed. I have 5 convicts in my tank and a pair seems to be forming...the humour seeing them flex at the Neets and pick at fish so much bigger than they are. I'll have to check back with you TheFishGuy in about 6 months to a year and see how the party is going


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## TheFishGuy

I plan to keep this thread active giving at a minimum weekly updates... So far nothing new to report... just a lot of small fish in tanks all over the place waiting for three fish to find a home....


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## TheFishGuy

Sorry about the inactivity, work has been crazy, that's my excuse.... I have good news and bad news. The good news is the RTC has been re-homed, the knife has been moved to another tank and the oscars have been moved to another tank. The bad news is I had to euthanize Tigger. 

When netting the one of the oscars he got spooked and took off the entire distance of the tank, jumped and hit a block wall. He fell back into the tank but was seizing so I didn't want him to suffer any longer... 

So now the tank is empty and will be deep cleaned, re-decorated and stocked with most everything on the list. I'll also be pointing everyone that's involved with threads about this tank to this thread.


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## BlackShark11k

That sucks. Poor tigger.


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## TheFishGuy

I know... I'm really bumbed, he was a cool fish....


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## BigJagLover

That really sux. I lost two red devils that way. One spooked him self the other saw the net and halled butt the othe way and up, took the glass top of my 125 with him. Sorry man that really sux .  I remember watching her grow thruogh the other thread. Sorry


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## TheFishGuy

Well, thank you for understanding and for the kind words. I'm movin' on though. I made an adaption to the end of one of my siphon hoses in order to suck up poo on the bottom of this tank, and I'm also using it to deep jet the sand. Check it out:

It's about a 3' section of 3/4 pvc with a few fittings attatched in order to get it to screw onto standard hose fittings:









Before:









After:









And jetting the sand:









Then since I had drained 1/3 of the tank water I used the jet to move the sand around to cover up the ugj's pipes:









The end result is 800 sum gallons of cloudy water :lol: 









I'll decorate and stock tomorrow.... or tonite :lol:


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## BigJagLover

awsome ! don't you just love a good deep cleaned sand bed :wink: . I can only hope to have the chance to have 800 sum gallons of cloudy water some day.

For the decor you are going to use the pots and teracota look again right? I think it gives a lot more hiding for a lot less weight is why I asked.

Keep the pics coming, I love Living my big tank dreams through you.


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## TheFishGuy

This should answer you question on decor:




























Here's the current stock list:

5- Green Texas (1 1/2")
3- Jack Dempseys (1")
4- Hatiensis (odos, black nasties) (1 1/2")
5- Tilapia Mariae (exchange students) (1 1/2")
10- Nics, two of which are a pair. The other 8 are from a previous spawn. (1 1/2")
2- Chocolate Cichlids (3 1/2") M/F
2- Pikes (3")
1- Uaru (2 1/2")
6- Acara (2 1/2"-4")
6- Green Terrors (2 1/2"-4")
1- Robertsoni (9") (We've had Bob for four years)
1- Geophagus Jurupari (8") 
5- Green Severums (average 4 1/2") They're just now starting to mature :thumb: 
1- Firemouth (5") He's a jerk...
1- Synodontis? (6") He's 3 yrs old
9- Convicts, 2 of which are female :lol: They're all varieties. A couple are my blue strain, a few are pink and a couple are marble. Should make for some interesting drama :lol: 
1- Goldfish. Theses Goldfish were bought to feed turtles and this guy was in the bag, in the trash for over 24 hrs. He desreved to live so we've had him for over six months now :lol: Now he's livin' the good life 8) 
1- Stunted jaguar cichlid. This little thing is well over a year old and was purches at a box store because they were labeled as "rainbow cichlids" :lol: It's only about 3"

That's the list for now, the one Geophagus Balzani I have is in a cool down tank in the fish room for a couple months. Oscar de lahoya is still in the 240 along with Heckle and Jeckle (common oscars) until some of the smaller fish get some size on em. I'm not worried about Heckle and Jeckle eating any of the small fish but Oscar de lahoya sure would. Besides, those three need to get to know each other better. Heckle and Jeckle (both over 10") will be two years old this coming fathers day and Oscar de lahoya will be a year old (my wife buys me oscars for fathers day every year :lol: ). O.d.l. is only about 6" but packed with attitude for some reason...

The red terrors are on my 185 growing out. They're in with four Keyhole cichlids and some convict fry. The Terrors are about 3/4". once they hit 2" the group will go in the 800.

There's also two midas, one of which was wild caught in Hawaii that will go in the 800 along with a Jaguar cichlid cought on the same island and shipped here.

I'll get some shots of the fish when the water clears up.


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## TheFishGuy

Forgot to mention that there's actually about 20 clay pipes in the tank, most of which are behind the rocks and such...


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## BlackShark11k

Cool 8) So you gave the rest of the cats to the guy with the huge tank?


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## TheFishGuy

No, different person...


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## BlackShark11k

Who then? Just curious, but how big is his/her tank?

BTW, you should get some veija argenta to put in their 8)


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## sirdavidofdiscus

Is that synodontis the "dog tame" sailfin?


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## TheFishGuy

sirdavidofdiscus said:


> Is that synodontis the "dog tame" sailfin?


Oh no... the sailfin pleco is the one that I can reach in and pull out at will...

I went shopping today and came back with 3 G. brasiliensis 

Here's some pics of the fish:

The chocolates:









Bob:









Male Marble Con:









Bob and some severums:









I'll get pics of the brasiliensis later... I also got 6 feeder crayfish to put in the tank to help clean a bit....


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## BigJagLover

nice chocolates. keep the pics coming. :thumb:


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## TheFishGuy

OK 

The brasiliensis:









The male nic:









Group shot:









Female pink con:









Female (blue) con:









And Dominic playing with an rc car :lol:


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## BigJagLover

SSSSSSSSSSWWWWWWWWWWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT ! 

Love the nics and the blue con. :thumb:


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## bernie comeau

Looks like you got something like Satanoperca daemon instead of G. brasilliensis there.
http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=492


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## TheFishGuy

bernie comeau said:


> Looks like you got something like Satanoperca daemon instead of G. brasilliensis there.
> http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=492


Basically impossible for me to keep in this tank.... Great.... :?

Thanks Bernie


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## TheFishGuy

The tank's got ick... :?

The problem is the heater in the room is only getting the tank up to 76*.... I re-mounted the heater underneath the tank it's self to see if that helps... But whilst doing that I discovered a leak in one of the bulkheads :x

I can fix it without draining the tank but it'll be a pain in the rear :? :? :?


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## BlackShark11k

That's not good...what's up with the tank TFG, first tigger dies, and now all the other fish get ick? Have you walked past any black cats lately Jonathan? :lol:


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## TheFishGuy

Man I'll tell you what, I was supposed to do a side job yesterday priming a basement, I get there and there's drywall mud in the primer bucket that was bought at the Home Dumpster :roll:

Then on the way home from that dibacle I wanted to get some english muffins to make a sandwich for lunch and the store was out of them 

Crazy stuff, enough to drive a person nuts.......


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## BigJagLover

Sounds like a great time. hope the ick clears soon. I'd hate to have all those beauty's passs on. But your TFG so you got it under control i'm sure of it. :thumb:

Anjy pics, please !!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't get enough  :lol:


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## gage

man, u have pics of the Hatiensis? my favorite cichlid, and almost impossible to find, go figure.


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## TheFishGuy

Well I think the leaky bulk head crisis has been averted... The nut on it was barely tight :roll: Probably from me bumping into 1001 times over the past year and a half :x I tightened it with a big pipe wrench and no more puddle on the floor :thumb:

As for the ick..... I'm having trouble getting 950 gallons of water up to 83*.... I did a 1/3 water change on the tank this morning and re-filled with only hot water (not advised in smaller tanks) and I only got the water up 2* :x So I added another 4' electric baseboard heater to the room, and the room is up to 82* which means the water should be at 80*.... We'll see what the room is in the morning.... Water in a tank should be about two or three dagrees cooler than the ambient temperature so I've got to get that room up to 86.... Aught to make for a wonderful electric bill :roll:

It seems that out of nowhere the big male nic looks like someone spilled a salt shaker on him :x Him and the three odo's have it the worst, one of the green texas has it pretty bad too... a few of the GT's have a mild case but are swimming with closed fins (except at feeding time) and the three new little geophagus wanna be's also have it :x :x Everyone else seems to be getting on fine.... I've been treating with aquarisol but without being able to get the temps up I'm beating a dead horse and I fear I'm gonna lose the odos :x :x :x :x :x :x

Sorry, no pics this time... I'm a little ticked off...

I don't think it was the Satanoperca daemon that brought it in.... I noticed the ick the very next day on the odos :? :? :? :?


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## TheFishGuy

Just checked ,room temp is 84* and water temp is 78*.... Gettin there....


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## gage

oh man, i didnt even read these last posts, or i wouldnt have even asked for pics, oops, sorry, that woulda ticked me off if i was having difficulties and someone started asking for pics, my bad.

anyways, i found the best cure for ick is something called super ick cure from API, but for an 800g that could get really expensive, but if your willing to spend money, my friend has a tank without a heater (her apartment is at mid 80's, she got this stuff and within a couple days the ick was gone completely.


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## TheFishGuy

I usually have ick kicked in less than 36 hours, but Getting the temps up is key... and that's what I'm having trouble with... I plan to do another W/C tomorrow and plan to fill with straight hot water again... Which is a pain in the rear considering the water heater is a 55 gal and I change 300 gallons at a shot :roll: I have to wait for a half hour after I run out of hot water for the water heater to catch up :roll: (which isn't bad really, thank God it's a gas water heater and not an electric or I'd be waitin' forever :lol: )

There's a reason they say "now you're cookin' with gas" :lol:

I wasn't ticked about people asking for pics.... I'm just ticked about the whole situation... (I was ticked before anyone asked for pics :lol: ) So I'll post an old one:


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## gage

looks good, i wish i could find an odo around here, i have yet to see one in person.


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## kaseahutch

I'm sure it's a heck of a battle to get the temperature up there. We're cheering for ya!


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## TheFishGuy

I'm going to do another W/C this morning, after my wife takes a shower :lol: Ho-pefully I can get the temps up again.... Right now the room is 85*, and the tank is 79*

And Gage, those are old pictures.....


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## Big Vine

Well, I've finally got caught up on this thread, and all I can say is...good luck! :thumb: 
BV


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## TheFishGuy

Well, tank is up to 82* after slowly adding hot water to it all day today  and the room is at 86*

Shwew, Hopefully in three days this will all be over :roll:

I do have some bad news..... The hatiensis are nowhere to be found.... There's a ton and a half of hiding spots so hopefully I just couldn't find them.... But I'm thinking they're dead.... :?


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## Notrevo

TheFishGuy said:


> .. I'm having trouble getting 950 gallons of water up to 83*.... I did a 1/3 water change on the tank this morning and re-filled with only hot water (not advised in smaller tanks) and I only got the water up 2* :x So I added another 4' electric baseboard heater to the room, and the room is up to 82* which means the water should be at 80*.... We'll see what the room is in the morning.... Water in a tank should be about two or three dagrees cooler than the ambient temperature so I've got to get that room up to 86.... Aught to make for a wonderful electric bill :roll:


I know the feeling...my electric bill just came in...I'm sick...I told my wife the bill came in...she sat up straight, took a deep breath, and then said "tell me". She was mad as a hornet. Cold basements and tanks needing to be 80 or so make for a tough electric bill. Even with the entire hot water tank emptied...and the angry inmates (wife, children)...it does not do what you need (even with two 800w heaters) when you are doing 200 gallon changes a pop as the water coming out of the tap this time of year is nigh freezing (need to test the temperature one day). Have to do my water changes @ about 5AM so the hot water tank can warm back up by the time the other residents awake.

Oh this fishkeeping we do is fun 

PS. Have you considered a titanium heater running *WITHOUT* the controller? Just plug the wand/heating element directly into the wall outlet bypassing the controller. A chap at my LFS said he did that and it works to heat many of his tanks (central system) to the temperature he needs...I think also to a point where he needs to unplug it (this I am a bit hazy on).

Hoping you kick the ick soon!


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## OceanDevil

I may have missed it, but are you using any salt?

IME salt and high temps are the best solution.

Good luck. Large tanks are such a pain to treat.


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## TheFishGuy

Thanks Netrevo, Actually I've got good news and bad news. The good news is the tank is up to 84* this morning and the male nic (who had ick the worst) has half the ammount he did yesterday.  Everyone is active and eating well, no one's got closed fins anymore and everything seems to be getting better. The bad news is the odos didn't survive this ordeal :?

Last nite we had some friends over and we actually sat and watched a crayfish de-bone and eat a dead odo right in front of us :? I was kind of bumbed but atleast the crayfish are doing their job.... I'll take some pics later today


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## TheFishGuy

I'm going to investigate this heater you speak of.... Can you share more info on it?


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## BlackShark11k

You have crayfish in there? My cichlids love to eat crayfish, 'specially the Africans.

Sorry for your loss, but at least the parrots doing better


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## TheFishGuy

Yeah, he even looks better now!

My cichlids love crayfish too, but there's plenty of hiding spots and the fish in this tank are too passive (for the most part) to even care about the crayfish... In my opinion they make a great clean up crew.... and a great challenge for my kids to try and find them :lol:


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## JamieH

FANTASTIC.

I'll be honest and tell you I liked the tank more the old way... If i could ever own such a huge tank, i'd have a CA / SA collection too...


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## BigJagLover

sorry abouts the odos. I know it sucked but atleast they were new to you so they haden't grown on you too much I would suspect. Happy to hear the tank got back to a good temp and the Nic is doing better. I know his loss would suck a whole lot more to you.

good luck !


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## TheFishGuy

Well, as of this morning at 8:00 am there's no sign of ick on any creature in the tank 

everyone's eating well, and looks great! I'm going down stairs rigjht now to feed them and take a few pics and have a beer and cancer stick... I'll post the pics in a few minutes


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## TheFishGuy

Ok....

Feeding frenzy! :lol: They all come out of hiding for food! It's seems to be the only time I see the Jack dempseys :lol: But I can never get a picture of them (if you look closely at the big rock on the left (in the second picture) there's a JD close to the top left of the rock :lol: 


















Oh Geeze, where'd that piece go?? :lol: 









For those of you who can never tell the difference between a Blue Acara and a Green Terror...









Acara:









It seems this 80# rock fell over... oops....









Gee... What are these two up too??? :lol: 









Here's the male chasing away a mean old nasty pike :lol: He's a drama queen :roll: :lol: 









The chocolates posing for a shot.... they're camera hogs :lol:


















Does that suffice? :lol:


----------



## Bluekiller82

Wow took me a while to read everything, looking good!!


----------



## D-007

Well it has taken 4Â½ weeks and 152 pages of your other thread (yes I read each page :lol: ) plus these 5 pages and a registration, to say thank you TFG.

I know it has been already said but you, your family and other big tank builders are a real inspiration to those of us aspiring to such dreams.

Many thanks,
D


----------



## TheFishGuy

You're more than welcome! Jawi on this site was my inspiration 8)

You read the whole thing? That's cool 8) Welcome to the C-F :thumb:


----------



## DarkMatter

Thats quite a large fish tank.


----------



## BigJagLover




----------



## JamieH

Lovely severums....

have you ever tried planting any giant valis in the tank... it would look amazing.


----------



## illy-d

I like the way you decorated the tank this time around - looks good!


----------



## Notrevo

TheFishGuy said:


> Thanks Netrevo, Actually I've got good news and bad news. The good news is the tank is up to 84* this morning and the male nic (who had ick the worst) has half the ammount he did yesterday.  Everyone is active and eating well, no one's got closed fins anymore and everything seems to be getting better. The bad news is the odos didn't survive this ordeal :?
> 
> Last nite we had some friends over and we actually sat and watched a crayfish de-bone and eat a dead odo right in front of us :? I was kind of bumbed but atleast the crayfish are doing their job.... I'll take some pics later today


Great news on the improvement of the fish and the "passing" of the cursed ick  Very sorry to hear about the Odos however.


----------



## Notrevo

TheFishGuy said:


> I'm going to investigate this heater you speak of.... Can you share more info on it?


Did not get achance to see/read/respond until now...I am redoing my home network so computers were down for a bit. I will pass through the LFS (-3 this morning with wind chill so I did not venture out) I believe on Saturday (5th), get the info and pass it on to you.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks Notrevo, that'd be great 

And thanks for the compliments from the others 

As for live plants... not in this tank, but I do plan to do a heavily planted 185 in the near future... And will definately need advice on that :lol:

Ok, here's an up date, as some of you know I do everything myself. I'm a carpenter, and wouldn' have it any other way :lol:

I'm going to be making some changes to the back side service area of the tank to make it a little more user friendly.

First off, for those of you who don't know, I built this tank and the thread to it can be found here: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=103294 A warning though, the thread is 152 pages long and this thread picks right up where that one left off, so if you want to post, post on this thread. 

Ok, now that you're all up to speed here's the current problem, (which we've got a saying at work that there's no problems... just opportunities) The sump is leaking. Nothing to get excited about because there's floor drains, and by the time a weekly water change rolls around the sump pump hasn't started to suck air yet.

Here's the sump system:









And here's how it works. The water leaves the tank, goes through three pre-filters then dumps into the first 44 gallon drum.

Water is then forced UP through the bio media then it spills into another 44 gal drum that has the sump pump (waterfall pump) in it. Due to the large amount of water in the system in it's self another drum had to be added for the sump pump to have more water volume to work with.









The problem (or opportunity) is when these cans were crushed under the weight of sand the seal was broken between the the two drums on the left. (When you walk into the room they're the two closest cans to you)

So I plan to replace these two with a wooden box and some pond liner. I'll make the box big enough to hold atleast 150 gallons, which will push the total amount of water for the entire system (tank included) to over 1000 gallons.









Here's a shot of the back room. As you can see it's kind of a pain to access the top of the tank as it's a little over 5' from the ground to the top of the tank. 









So I'm going to build a cat walk so the top of the tank is only 3' from where you'd stand. I'll have to bend over a bit but it'll be well worth it. There'll be two steps right as you open the door, but the catwalk floor will hinge to cover the steps to have a level work space...









Problem is winter is usually slow for me but this year I've got a decent sized side job that's keeping me busy... and they keep adding stuff :lol:

As always I'll keep everyone posted on the progress.... and I'll always include pictures


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

What ever happened to that melamen(sp?) tank. Did you ever get the glass in there? I was thinking of building a box like that one as a sump ( without the glass). Or do you think the pond liner is a cheaper way to go. I already have 6 gallons of drylock from another project laying around.


----------



## TheFishGuy

I did put glass in the melamine tank, but it failed horribly.... it's sitting out side as we type witing to get demolished :lol:

I haven't heard from you in a while.... How's it going?


----------



## TheFishGuy

Ok, it's noon, I'm waiting for my wife to get back from the store so I can get this replacement of the sump tank done :?


----------



## Notrevo

TFG...the brand was Delphin Titanium heater (actually he has about 4 of them running the store)...not sure of the wattage. However, based on what he said I would assume any 800W Titanium heater would work. Just plug it straight into the wall bypassing the controller. Yes, I know that is **NOT** recommended...nor am I advocating it. However, in a pinch and for a few days...running that heater full bore with raw power from the wall should heat most tanks quickly...I guess you just have to keep a close eye on the thermometer


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks Notrevo 

Well, I got the cans out and new sump installed...

I made four boxes 48"x 27" (inside dimentions are 24"x45") out of treated 2x8 to stack on top of each other then screw together. This will be the most sturdy if I choose to build the cat walk on it. You can see that I cut out the first can already... it's in the back ground...









You can see my attempt at stopping the leak in this picture. All that silicone was put on from underneath the tank... Fun times...









Here's what it looked like after cutting out the second can:









The floor was so out of level one of the boxes was custom cut to match the floor so it'd be level.









This was fun, let me tell ya... The pond liner was outside and dirty.... and my hoses were all frozen, so I let the rain clean it. Then I had a good ol' time fitting it to this box :roll: 









The finished inside dimentions of this box are 45"x24"x24" at it's shallowest spot. It's actually 2" deeper the coser it gets to the can :lol: 









Here it is at operating levels. The water is still 12" deep  









I used a mirror i had to cover it for the moment, but I'll be cutting some pieces of plexiglass I have to fit the top air tightish...


----------



## BigJagLover

good job. I like the attempt at fixing the leak, that took some time and beer i'm sure :lol: .

Just for my info. why would you want to cover the new sump so tightly. Why not cut a peice of plexi like the mirror and let it go at that?

Anyway love the thread and tank. keep us up to date.


----------



## TheFishGuy

The more surface water I can cover the better. There's a lot of moisture in the air.... I still need to make covers for the pre filters too...


----------



## BigJagLover

Got it , it's a moisture thing, not an air thing. Thanks.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Things are still going good so far.... My wife was gone all day with her brother and sister-in-law, She had a baby today and my wife wanted to be there.... So I was stuck with four screaming cheetah wheelies all day :lol: Didn't get any tops made :? Oh well, it was a fun day


----------



## illy-d

So the catwalk will cover or go over the sump so you can access that end of the tank?


----------



## tom from ohio

TheFishGuy said:


> \So I was stuck with four screaming cheetah wheelies all day :lol: /quote] I saw that band once they opened for ZZ Top and IMO they sucked.
> 
> BTW I gotta stop over and see the new setup one of these days.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Any time Tom, you know that.... 

And yes, I want access to the entire tank. That far end never gets any good decor because I can never reach it, and at the moment it's a pain to even get in the tank when you want to... But now that I'm done with vacation things are starting to pile up again :? :?


----------



## lil mama

FG just an idea I thought of. You were talking about heating the 800g tank. Have you ever considered solar panels on your roof, like we have for our pool. I know I live in Florida and the sun shines more here than in Ohio. Our pool can get over 100 degrees if we forget and leave it on. Not to mention it's free heat. I don't know just thought I would throw the idea out there at you......it may not work for you.


----------



## TheFishGuy

It's a thought..... I wonder how much a system like that would cost??


----------



## lil mama

Not sure but I could ask the pool place next door to our cabinet shop. The way it works on a pool is the pool pump pushes the water into the panels...so you would have to have a pump to do that. I looked at all your pics of your pump room, very impressive but, I sure don't have a clue what's going on. So forgive me if that's a dumb statement. Other than that it's just pvc pipe and a panel. Our pool has 6 panels that heat 12,000 to 15,000 gallons easily. I know I thought about too....how many fish in 12,000 gallons  But any way you would probably only need one panel. You can find them used, just make sure you test it for leaks. Also, if you install it on your roof you need to put sheet flashing under the pvc joints. If you don't it will wear a hole in the roof from being turned on and off. I'll let you know what the pool guy says a panel should run.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Problem is.... winter around here gets awfully cold....


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

I have a home improvement magazine that talks about a DIY solar water heating system that runs about 2 grand. It appearently works as long as there is sun shinning with an automatic drain out if it gets to cold.


----------



## lil mama

For sure you couldn't use it in the winter time. If it could heat your tank or tanks in the spring, summer and fall maybe it would help some.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Not sure it's worth $2000, that's more than I've got into this tank :lol:


----------



## lil mama

Are you sure it would cost that much? I'll ask the pool guy next door. Like I said you can find the panels used as long as they don't leak. Does your system have a pump that would be able to pump the water into the panel?


----------



## Notrevo

lil mama/TFG...if not to run water through the heating panels how about to simply power the heating system? The panels should not be affected by the cold...as long as they are free of snow. Keeping it "green" I guess. My wife and I have considered having panels installed on our house after seeing a Eco program on them. They would sure pay for themselves in very short order.


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

According to the article everything was inculded. The 2g inculded the pump and a heat exchanger. Unless you live in a very tall house you my need some additional feed lines.


----------



## FiremouthShogun

Did I miss the part about you heating the fish room to say 80 degrees ?? Is it the water changes ?


----------



## TheFishGuy

You didn't miss anything, I'm just complaining as usual about keeping that room at 82* to keep the water at 80*....... but if i got off this dang computer and finished some projects around this house I could insulate that room and stop whining about it.... Then it wouldn't be so bad keeping the room at 82*......

Also, this is the first time I've kept juvis in this tank.... I seem to forget that juvi fish need warm water sometimes  So when the fish were put into the tank the tank was 76, but my rule of thumb ( :thumb: ) has always been to keep juvi tanks at 80* and adult tanks at 74*-76*.....

AND because I'm such a cheap S.O.B. I'm always looking for ways to save $$$

I suppose I need to insulate and finish this room off.... :roll: Anyone wanna do it for me? :lol:


----------



## lil mama

Notrevo that's a great idea. TFG your too funny...I bet you and your wife laugh alot :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Yeah, she laughs at me..........


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

Hey fish guy I've got nothing going on for the next 2 months if you need help . Laid off and the side work fell through... of course I don't tape or mud very well and I can't make a straight cut even with using a guide. Oh and the wife has our only car at work for the next month so you'd have to drive the hour each way to pick me up. But other than these minor details I could be a great help.


----------



## lil mama

Sirdavid ROFLMAO too too funny :lol: TFG I'm sure your wife is laughing with you not at you :wink:


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

Oh I forgot the wife told me not to let anyone let me touch a paint brush, roller, stencil, etc...


----------



## TheFishGuy

Actually, she's the funny one...... And Dave.... I'll be there in an hour from when you read this....


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

No problem fishguy. I'm Mr Mom for the next 2 monthes. If you do need a hand pm me and e we'll coordinate around the wife's work.


----------



## lil mama

Sirdavid you forgot to tell TFG you sleep late and you stop working early ...oh and he has to buy lunch and you take a 3 hour lunch. :lol: TFG I ask the pool guy about the solar panel he said a new one runs about $350. Will your pump have the power to pump the water threw the panel? Because the rest is just some pvc pipe and a shut off valve.


----------



## TheFishGuy

My pump is a 3500 gal per hour pump, but it's shut of is 23'..... It's actually too small for this tank for some peoples taste so I really don't have any spare pumpage...

It's a good idea but I'm gonna pass...  Thanks though :thumb:

As for drama in the tank.... Well all of the male convicts were involved in some intense negotiations for the past few days... and the females (3) were just sitting on the sidelines watching :lol: Now it's like they've all disappeared into the undergrowth and hiding spots in the tank.... Gee.... what's going on there? :lol:

I also think it was a mistake adding the crayfish so soon.... Fish are coming up missing.... I can't seem to see more than three green texas at once... :?

On the other hand some of the other future residents of this tank are starting to show color and get some personality... I'm speaking of my red terrors.... 
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=160416


----------



## becadavies

my my TFG wat a busy boy uve been! I suppose ill hav to read back 6mths worth of posts now just to catch up :? Ooorrr... u could cut a long story short for me in 1 post


----------



## mike86xj

first off I have to say that is a awesome tank, now I have to buy a house to build one 

here's a few suggestions as to heating the monster tank

1: insulate the sides of the tank even in the tank room
2:close off and insulate the sides of the stand under the tank (removable panels where scary)
3:I don't know how cold it gets where you are but here my basement floor is pretty cool most of the time, maybe put a layer of Styrofoam on the concrete under the tank

basically concentrate the heat in the actual tank

these ideas plus the insulating of the tank room should help with maintaining the temperature as well as when you have to raise it.

and i didn't even mention the cost of heating this behemoth will go down


----------



## TheFishGuy

Hi Beca, long time no see! How's the new little guy? Fun stuff isn't it???

Hi Mike, thanks for the kind words and suggestions!

Ok, here's the deal with the tank and the heat.

The part of the tank that is filled with water is 14'x3'x30". It's walls are 4 1/2" thick. (2x4 framed)

The room that this tank is in is 15'x6'x7'tall (not much bigger than the tank it's self). The walls to the room are insulated. The ceiling has not been insulated yet due to the heavy work load, excessive drinking, and lots of laziness. 
The block walls that make up two of the walls of this room are not insulated yet because of lack of time also. Not to mention the block walls need to be framed and I'm not doing that untill the basement is water-proofed. I'm not water proofing as of yet....

The real bummer is I've had the insulation for this room since this project started....









Keeping the tank at a certain temperature is not hard to do. The room is heated. It's getting the temperature UP in a period less than three days. Normally if I need to turn the temps up on a tank I do it over about a two hour period. This tank takes three days to get the temps up from 78 to 83. So heating it is not an issue, it's raising the temps during a bout of illness (which doesn't happen too often...


----------



## countrykat

Heres a picture for ya. Wonder if they will look like this?

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl= ... n%26sa%3DG
Both the RD are coloring up awesome. The bigger one is awesome as I'm sure you have seen in my post, the smaller one is coloring up just like the bigger one at the same size, maybe just a hint more of orange/red in the fins at the same size. Most likely due to the NLS.

Serious about the Red Terror though.

Jim


----------



## mike86xj

no no no not scary it was supposed to necessary  I used the spell check on another forum and didnt notice that little hiccup


----------



## lil mama

Hey, TFG I was just looking on Ebay and they have these super mini (wireless) remote control submarines for your fish tank. That would be so cool in your 800g! Most of us don't have a tank big enough to use one. But with 800 gallons! I wonder how the fish would react to it? The ad said it would fit in the palm of your hand. It had a $10 starting bid with no bids yet. I still think it would be cool.


----------



## BlackShark11k

Lol, or one of those RC sharks :lol: BTW, a barred or yellow midas would be a great replacement for those odos  Maybe a trimac or some other amphilophous would be cool too. As long as it doesn't kill every other fish you have :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

I used to have one of thoe subs, they're impossible to control :lol: And the fish tend to freak out in a hurry!

As for a replacement for the odos.... How do these strike you?


















At the moment they're in quaranteen in a divided 20H. I had to split them up though, one started to get on the others case right off the bat :lol: 









The good thing is they ate an hour after I had released them :thumb:


----------



## BigJagLover

Cool looking fish. Are they true red devils, midas, or petsmart half breeds. No matter what there very cool looking. Great pick up
:thumb:


----------



## lil mama

I should have known you already had one (sub). Those two are awesome  great looking pair. Nice markings too. LOL artemis1 I haven't seen the shark. :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Yeah, they'll do... and it really doesn't matter to me what they are.... One looks more midas than the other... Ones got the characteristics of a lab... long snout, slim not bulky, but I doubt it's a true lab... I like em alot though, not much personality yet but it's only been a day or so :lol:


----------



## Big Vine

Nice new additions!


TheFishGuy said:


> it really doesn't matter to me what they are.... One looks more midas than the other... Ones got the characteristics of a lab... long snout, slim not bulky, but I doubt it's a true lab...


So now we're using the term "lab" as short for "labiatus"?
Hmm...makes you wonder why we don't just call em' all "labia," doesn't it?!  :roll: 

BV :wink:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Actually, they got their name because of their lips.... funny how the latin laguage is so literal... and yes, "lab" is an accepted term when speaking of dogs... um... I mean fish...


----------



## Big Vine

TheFishGuy said:


> Actually, they got their name because of their lips.... funny how the latin laguage is so literal...


Alrighty then, 'labia' it is...

BV


----------



## BlackShark11k

I love those wild red devils with the huge lips. Shame most of the ones in stores don't have them :? :lol: Cool lab/midas whatever they are :lol:


----------



## lil mama

I heard their lips get bigger in the wild from sucking snails from their shells. I love the big lips too. They look like some Hollywood starlet with a bad collagen job :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

True, they also fancy crustceans that hide beneath the rocks...

Some bad news... The cray fish I put in the tank seem to be wreaking havok on my fish. Unfortunately they killed one of the chocolate cichlids :x

*******WARNING******
Don't try this at home kids!

In response to the problem I put my two 10" common oscars in the tank last nite to take care of the crayfish. Don't worry for the other very small fish in the tank. The oscars will have no interest in them. They will, however, hunt the crayfish and rip them to shreds.


----------



## Big Vine

Sounds like a good solution, TFG.
I can just see it now...your next post showing a pic of a fish's tail sticking out of your oscar's mouth, lol. :lol:

EDIT: And I meant to add that for next time (not that it does you much good now), simply pull the claws off of the crayfish prior to adding them to the tank. They'll still do excellent cleanup duty, and the only way they'd pose a threat to the fish is if they survive successive moults, allowing them to grow their claws back to a sufficient size---which could take months (and the fish would grow during this period).

Sorry for the loss though...hopefully those oscars help to keep things under control in there.
BV


----------



## TheFishGuy

Yeah, I don't know what I was thinking... I guess I put em in there for the kids to watch... They go nuts when they see one...


----------



## BlackShark11k

Man, TFG, you are losing quite some fish in there...have you seen any black cats lately? :lol:

BTW, My L. trewavasae LOVES crayfish. Oh, and since you lost your chocolate, your going to need a replacement fish :wink: How about a pink fenestrum


----------



## TheFishGuy

I'd like one or six.... That and a regani...


----------



## TheFishGuy

I took some pictures tonite:

Full tank shot:









Heckle, Bob and the little Uaru:









and closer look will reveal...









I prommised drama from those little jerks, and oh boy do we have it... they decided to spawn right where the dinnerbell rings:









I put the midas in tonite.. Look closely at this picture... Do you see the claw coming through the hole in the rock? :lol: He's the last one

















These two Heckle and Jeckle seem to be doing their job :thumb:


----------



## Big Vine

Haha, only one clawed little varmint remaining in that tank, eh?
What'd you do, get out your scuba gear, flip over all the rocks, and count the little buggers?! :lol:

Nice pics!
BV


----------



## TheFishGuy

No they actually would come out when I fed the tank, now only one comes out...


----------



## mithesaint

Hey TFG, this might be something that helps the next time you need to heat up your tank quickly. I've seen it used on a bucket of water, and it got that water warm quickly!! Not sure how it would handle 800 gallons though!!!!! Worth a look.

http://www.enasco.com/action/ProductDetail?sku=C13444(X)N

BTW, tank looks great!

edit : so, the link didn't work right. You need to manually enter the (X)N along with the rest of the link. I'm computer dumb 8)


----------



## TheFishGuy

Very interesting... I wonder how it would work keeping the tank at a constant temp?


----------



## mithesaint

TheFishGuy said:


> Very interesting... I wonder how it would work keeping the tank at a constant temp?


I don't know about using it on a constant basis for a heater, I have a feeling it might burn out if you used it day in/day out. Might be handy for a day or two though, when you're trying to heat up the tank in a hurry. Especially if you used two :lol: Try it out, and report your findings!

I dub thee: Official Cichlid Forum Guinea Pig or OCFGP. Take your title, and use it with care! :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Ok, you buy the heater and I'll test it


----------



## mithesaint

TheFishGuy said:


> Ok, you buy the heater and I'll test it


HAHAHA. It's always more fun to spend other people's money  Hopefully you won't need to fight another ick battle anytime soon.

When I get around to building my big tank, I'll let you advise me how to spend mine, ok? :lol: I've got the glass, I just am waiting till I live somewhere more permanent. My current basement is waaaay too cold to keep 500 gallons of water 80 degrees, and still be able to afford my mortgage!


----------



## TheFishGuy

Ah, money's overrated......


----------



## BigJagLover

Amen :lol:


----------



## illy-d

Wasn't there a song that went;

"Money can't buy you happiness, but I'm happiest when I can buy what I want, whenever I want"...


I like money - it just doesn't seem to like me... I know because so far it's been avoiding me.


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol:

We got a digital video camera last nite, I'll be able to post some video after I figure out how to use the camera a little better... Then you'll be able to hear my wonderful comentary :lol:


----------



## BlackShark11k

YEAH! Finally you got a video camera :roll: :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol: Well, shot some video, but it's in the wrong format and I can't figure out how to change it :lol:


----------



## jefejt

TheFishGuy said:


> :lol: Well, shot some video, but it's in the wrong format and I can't figure out how to change it :lol:


Someone get over there and show him how to fix it. ASAP.


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol: I'll figure it our in due time.....


----------



## TheFishGuy

Ok, here's the first of two videos, turn up the volume, I've narrated


----------



## BigJagLover

Love the video. It just makes me want it even more. The pics are great but now theres just nothing better then the vid.......... well in person but that's out of the qeston for now. Wife wouldn't lilke me driving 10 hours one way to see a tank. :lol: 
Great set up and how are all the new arrivals doing in there now?


----------



## BlackShark11k

Nice video man! I like that firemouth!

Good narration :thumb: :lol:


----------



## Ives

I was already envious of you for the 800 from pictures, but now I just hate you  
On the real that is an amazing tank and the video does show how big it really is. I give you credit for making such an elaborate filter system and it seems you really thought it through with being able to fill and drain the tank relatively easy. How do you clean the tank itself and how often are you doing it?

BTW, the fish are looking awesome and again I hate you. :thumb:


----------



## Big Vine

Wow, I'm very impressed!
I really like the narration and uninterrupted footage.

Nice to be able to really see just how spacious the tank is.
Of course I'm sure it'll "shrink" as the fish grow too---ain't it funny how that always happens?! :lol:

Oh...and I really enjoyed your brief footage/explanation of the plumbing/filtration.
I'm looking forward to seeing more installments as you get more footage. :thumb: 
BV


----------



## TheFishGuy

I do have the "second part" of that video, but I'm waiting for my wife to get it into the proper format :lol: It explains the filter even futher...

Glad you guys liked it.

as for cleaning the tank it's relatively self cleaning with the jets and all, But I still jet the sand once a month. It's been about a month since this set up has been in so it's due. Maybe I'll tape that too 

The new guys are doing ok, I added 12 new fish from the auction but two of them bit the dust upon insertion. Darn pikes :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Ok, here's a little more of a detailed video of the filtration system  It picks up right where the first one left off.


----------



## illy-d

Haha that was awesome!!!

Not only was it cool to put a face to the name, but it was great to put a voice to the text...

I'll have to start reading your posts with an accent!

Cheers,

D


----------



## TheFishGuy

What do you mean.... eh? :lol:


----------



## Big Vine

Very impressive setup.
Maybe next time you can film an underwater dive in there! 8)

BV


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks BV, I wish the camera was waterproof :lol: If it was I'd be in there in a heart beat! I'll shoot some video of feeding time this morning after the kids get on the bus.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Here's breakfast:


----------



## illy-d

TheFishGuy said:


> What do you mean.... eh? :lol:


  You got me figured out!

Couple questions;

How many convicts do you have in there? I know you have the marbled male - I thought I saw some pinks as well...

How many breeding pairs of cichlids at the moment?


----------



## Izzydawg

Lucky, lucky, man! I can't wait till the snow melts so I can start my project! Excellant job :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well, there's a breeding pair of nics, and it seems as if some of their fry are coming into their own and going through the motions :lol: Other than that, there's atleast two pairs of convicts doing the dance, a pink pair, and that big marble male fancys the blue female and they've got eggs right now... Let me go back in my notes.....

Male marble
male grey
male blue
male pink
male pink
grey female 
pink female
blue female
small unsexed marble

I've also got some interesting little guys I picked up at a store a few weeks back. We're calling them dapples. They're in a holding tank in the back room along with fry from the marble male and blue female... can't wait to see what they look like :thumb:

Here's some pictures my wife took today with her new DSLR camera :thumb:

In this pic you can see a common grey male all the way to the left ,then a blue male, his sister right below him then the marble male all the way to the right:









Here's one of the acaras, look at those colors! Finally a camera that captures their colors!!!









Bob, of course, she loves Bob. He was flaring at someone in this pic:









One of the severums:









The female blue:









The Wanna be jurupari :roll: 









And another satanoperca, look closely and you can see the sand falling from his mouth:


----------



## illy-d

That jurupari is some sort of satanoperca isn't it?


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol: Yes:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=497


----------



## murcat

wow man, beautiful tank and filtration system. I'm soooo jealous.I can just imagine all the hard work and thought that went into the making of it. I have a full undeveloped basement in which to do anything I want and am thinking of doing something around the same but not near as big. the wife would never approve. awesome job.looks amazing


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks, you gotta sell it man.... sell it! :lol: Just show her my tank and then go beyond that and say "See, and this dudes got four kids too!"


----------



## murcat

haha, I'm definatly going to try!


----------



## jefejt

TFG that is some fantastic work. I'm impressed by the tank, the filtration, the video and even your wife's pics. Keep up the good work.


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol: Thanks jefejt :thumb:


----------



## Izzydawg

Nice pics... Hey, how far is it to the back of your tank?....we are working on our plans right now, ( all those pics and videos have us totally inspired :lol: ) and I like how you can see all of your fish. Great job with the set up too. :thumb: I was thinking that if I made mine too far to the back of the tank, I'll miss out on seeing a lot of what's happening back there. What's your advice?


----------



## TheFishGuy

I'd go as big as humanly possible. I was concerned in the begining when I was going to make the tank 5' from front to back, but now I wish I would have. If you keep your water clean you won't miss a thing. You can easily see what's going on in the back...

I'm considering taking out all the decor to find my little catfish..... I'm getting concerned.... The little guy's got 1001 places to hide but now that Oscar de Lahoya's in there I'm worried...........

Here's a few more pics my wife took today:


----------



## Izzydawg

So, 6' to the back will be good then. We are ordering 2 sheets of plexiglass 4x8' and 1'' thick. We think we'll be alright with 1"....what do you got?


----------



## fishkeeper93

great tank love the pics and videos keep up the good work and keep them pics and videos coming.


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## TheFishGuy

fishkeeper93 said:


> great tank love the pics and videos keep up the good work and keep them pics and videos coming.


Oh, don't say that, I could video every day LOL

The GLASS in this tank is 3/4"


----------



## Izzydawg

Hey...who is that guy in the top pic that looks like he is yodeling? :lol: He's cute.


----------



## fishkeeper93

the tanks set up is brill and *** got 3 tanks in my room but i could never imagine such a large tank


----------



## TheFishGuy

Izzydawg said:


> Hey...who is that guy in the top pic that looks like he is yodeling? :lol: He's cute.


That's me in my tank :wink:

:lol:

That's a midas, or a red devil, or whatever you want to call them. :lol: Stinkin hybrids :roll:


----------



## Izzydawg

Haha, that's funny :lol: Yodeling with happieness eh? :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Here's a short vid of two cons that have spawned:





And I was watching the green texas for a while too:


----------



## fishkeeper93

my convictXparrots have spawned today ill look at video


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## ikevi

I like the new look, and found the videos entertaining.

So are you planning on taking out the two Os again or not?


----------



## illy-d

My buddy has the same ceramic tree stump thing - and his convicts always spawn there too! I'm surprised the males can fit in to fertilize the eggs!


----------



## TheFishGuy

I don't think the males need to fit, they just do their thing from the top


----------



## Izzydawg

Well come on then, lets see more videos....and don't forget to add that cute guy that looks like he is yodeling :lol:


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## TheFishGuy

Who.... me?


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## Izzydawg

:lol: I don't know :lol:


----------



## 2wheelsx2

Boy, can't believe it took me this long to see this thread. Been away for a while...busy with my planted tank projects. Congrats on the latest changes...looks great. Whew! Took me a while to read all this and I was skipping pages. :lol:


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## BlackShark11k

Man i love those sevs...nice vids too!


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## TheFishGuy

Izzydawg said:


> Well come on then, lets see more videos....and don't forget to add that cute guy that looks like he is yodeling :lol:


Ask and ye shall receive 

Feeding time in the 800:


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## 2wheelsx2

That's a pretty cool vid. Thx. :thumb:


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## Izzydawg

:thumb: Right on! I bet you must go through a lot of food. Feeding time must be a blast!


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## TheFishGuy

Feeding time is fun to watch, I used to sit back with my feet up when I fed the fish, but I want them to be comfortable with me so I started sitting right up against the tank 

I'm downloading more videos, so ifyou haven't subscibed to my videos now's the time!!!!!


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## Izzydawg

Right on, keep 'em comming :thumb:


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## DarkMatter

wow, I have never seen any of your vids before now.


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## DarkMatter

probably because you just added them all a week ago. lol


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## TheFishGuy

Thanks


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## thefordgt

man that tank is so sweet!!!!!!! you really did a great job TFG :thumb:


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## TheFishGuy

Thanks gt


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## Izzydawg

We will never get enough of your videos...keep em comming


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## Izzydawg

Oh yea, did your new black belt end up in this tank?


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## TheFishGuy

On no, not yet ,these fish need some growing... The new black belt is vey close to 11 inches... And I'm not sure of his personality yet... Incidently he's doing great, he ate last nite and this morning!!!!!!


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## Izzydawg

Right on....good to hear, gotta like it when a sad story turns out good


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## Izzydawg

This whole time I was never able to watch the videos normally, we have dial up internet here..this town is still in the dark ages...lol. I was able to see them, just real slowly, like 10 min each at least...one frame at a time. Today I went to town to a friends house and watched them properly...much better! :lol: You were saying that your tank is 30" deep. That seems like a good depth. I'm thinking that the one that I'm planning will be too deep. I know a footprint tank is best for cichlids. Cutting my height down is going to make me loose a lot of gallons though  
If this tank is around 5' after the gravel is in there, will the fish actually use this space, or is the top going to be empty, with the bottom flourishing with life?


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## TheFishGuy

They will use the top, trust me..... My next tank will be 5'x5'x14' and I plan to use the same glass I have now 

A few updates...

I took the last crayfish out today, and the leopard sailfin catfish. (learius longibarbus) sp.? He's only about 4" and very skinny. He needs to be trained to eat with the lights on.

I also got 5 salvini http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=26 I'll have to get my wife to get pics. They let me habd pick them at the local shop. I got three females and two males... The last time I had two mles it quickly became one :?


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## Izzydawg

Sounds like fun, I can't wait till I I have a big tank to fill too  
When are you gonna start the next tank?


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## TheFishGuy

:lol: When I move, which will more than likely be in about 18 years :lol:


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## Izzydawg

:lol: Yea...sure....you'll find a way to make room for another one right where you are :lol:


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## TheFishGuy

Maybe when the addition goes on 8)


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## Izzydawg

I'm sure that won't be long after you get this tank stocked the way you want it :lol: You sound like a guy that likes to keep busy...I'm sure it won't be long till you get the building itch again :lol: .

We just finished building our house last summer, and we are already building on (which wasn't actually supposed to happen for another couple of years ) just to get that tank ging :lol: 
Just seems to be one of those thingsthat once you start, you can't stop.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Yeah.... I don't know how to stop.... My wife says it's like a tatoo.... You get one then you want another, and another.... I only have two :lol:

Speaking of my wife, she took a bunch of pictures, but you'll have to wait till tomorrow.... I'm off to watch a movie


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## Izzydawg

:lol: Yea, I know what you're talking about...my sister thinks I'm ....well, let's just say she thinks I've completely lost my mind! :lol:


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## Izzydawg

How is that blackbelt you rescued? How is his tempermant? was he mellow enough to put in the 800 with everyone else?


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## TheFishGuy

I won't know his temperment until I'm able to get him in a large fish community. After that I'll have to make an educated guess. It's difficult to tell the temperment of a fish when it's in quaranteen. His eye still looks pretty bad.... so he'll be in solitary for a while. I think he'll be fine with the larger community. But I can't put him in there now as he'll get picked on and more than likely killed...


----------



## Izzydawg

Hope he gets better soon ...can't wait for the next video :thumb:


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## TheFishGuy

Here's some pics!

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... 04#1113804


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## burtoncb47

whew...! i finally got through it, it took me a while but i finished it!!! and i must say your tank is AMAZING!!! i can only dream of a tank like this in my future! :drooling: as soon as i have the money to buy an even slightly larger tank than i have now i know it will be a SA/CA setup for sure! they just seem to have so much life and personality, i dont know a lot of the species though so i might need some of your expert advice on stocking ideas! :wink: and i just want to say thank you for sharing all of your pictures, videos, and experiences with us!!!
thanks,
Burton :thumb:


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## TheFishGuy

You're welcome! Anytime!

And thanks for the kind words! Was it fun to read?


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## Izzydawg

Yea, if you think the pics were cool....check out the videos of the 800 :thumb: :drooling:


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## TheFishGuy

:lol: Speaking of which... I left my video camera down there..... oops...


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## burtoncb47

TFG, yes! it was a blast to read!! i love learning about new kinds of fish and how different people do their setups! keep the updates coming! i would love to see an updated stock list of all you have in the tank right now if you wouldnt mind?
thanks again,
Burton


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## TheFishGuy

Burton, clcick on "tanks" at the bottom of this post to see the current stock list :thumb:


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## burtoncb47

o thanks!!
i had to google more than half of the fish cuz i dont know the scientific names lol  
but i really like the uaru its awesome!!!!


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## BlackShark11k

So only cichlids? Come on TFG, have some variety :lol: How about a silver aro??? 

BTW, i like those texas


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## TheFishGuy

After the Aro I'll get myself a pacu!


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## BlackShark11k

Pacu are too ugly for me :lol:

Not aros though!


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## TheFishGuy

I like aros, I do, I really do... All in due time, all in due time....


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## auratum

How about Umbies and Doviis?

There have been lots of threads asking what the most aggressive cichlids are and many have these two at the top. In a tank your size, you might be able to manage the agression?

Just a thought.

Thanks for all the help in the PM's TFG! :thumb:

More pics & video? 8)

Patrick


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## TheFishGuy

Here's a nice Looooong video..... and no umbees or dovi for me.... not this time around! My tank is Waaaaaay over crowded as it is, I'm doing water changes every five days now :lol:

I just added 7 clown loaches, 8 more giant danios and two more chocolate cichlids :roll: I'm a sucker.......

This video is from before adding the clowns and such....


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## TheFishGuy

I'll shoot some more video today.... since it's only 1* outside and I'll have nothing better to do.... Maybe I'll shoot a series on doing the water change if anyone's interested in that.... Might be kind of boring though :lol: The fish tend to freak out a bit sometimes and go to the other end of the tank :lol:

Forgot to add that I also put in 6 blackbelts and two chinese high fin loaches  Now I need to start pulling some fish out....


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## countrykat

Hey lets see one of that 11" BB that you don't need! :roll:

Hows the color coming on the Festae?


----------



## auratum

So what is the current full list then? I got lost in the last 16 pages of where you are at...


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## TheFishGuy

auratum said:


> So what is the current full list then? I got lost in the last 16 pages of where you are at...


Click on "Tanks" in my signature and you'll see the updated list...


----------



## TheFishGuy

I'm uploading some videos as we type...


----------



## arapaimag1

Hey big guy the snow is melting and Neo has finally put the videos of my 15k and 52k up.

He did not have time to edit them but there are some good pics of my Wallago among the stuff posted in february 2008 videos. The arapaimas were about 4 feet in the videos. They now are 5 feet.

new videos of my 15k and 52k

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... hp?t=74879

keep smiling


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## TheFishGuy

Nice to see you here :thumb: I tried to upload vids of mine yesterday but youtube was not responding :?


----------



## Izzydawg

opcorn: Great video :thumb: 
I love your oscars, how big are they now?


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## TheFishGuy

The two commons have got to be pushing 11" or so, the little guy Oscar de Lahoya is about 8"...


----------



## lil mama

TheFishGuy said:


> The two commons have got to be pushing 11" or so, the little guy Oscar de Lahoya is about 8"...


Oscar de Lahoya OMG LMAO that's tooooo funny. Great name! Are you sure TFG doesn't stand for The Funny Guy? Still laughing :lol: Hey can you send me some female Cons? Can't seem to find them around here. :?


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## TheFishGuy

If you'd like to come and catch them out of the 800 you're more than welcome :thumb:


----------



## lil mama

OH yeah that should be easy. Thanks how big of a net do I need? LOL Did you see the colors on my new female Con? I've never seen all the colors of the rainbow on one before. I'm sure you have seen it all.


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## TheFishGuy

The iridescence are awesome on them arn't they :thumb:


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## auratum

TFG,

Have you put any thought into building "shelves" into this monster? When I say shelves, what I am talking about is platforms at about mid water level (or so) to artificially increase the perceived square footage for your fish? For cichlids it is mostly about the square footage rather than gallonage, right?

I once had a 20 gallon xtall (like two 10 gallons stacked on top of each other) and in this I siliconed (is that a verb?) some pieces of plexiglass in the back left and right corners (at two different levels). The pieces were roughly triangular in shape, but I has used my artistic tallent (not) to make the edge that was not glued to the front or back curvy. I then siliconed small rocks to the edge of the plexiglass to hide the edge and help hold some gravel on there. In the end it looked really cool and I got tons of compliments, but it really sucked for cleaning or catching fish as the footprint was so small to start with. Just wondered if you had considered this at all? In a tank as large as yours, you could sink a table or chair and serve the same purpose or build something free standing like that which could be easily removed during cleaning or fish catching.

Thoughts?

Patrick


----------



## TheFishGuy

It's a great idea, and I like it, but the tank is already 42 square feet.... I have done something similar iun the past but with large flat rocks. If I can find some large pieces of flag stone I might consider it.... I like to change things up a bit from time to time... Usually when the tank gets a deep deep cleaning. Meaning when I pull everything out and jet the sand.... which it's about due but I'm trying to find the time for it... Thanks for the idea, I like it 8)


----------



## auratum

When I lived in MN (last year), the Menards there had pretty reasonable flag stones. They were bigger than I could use in my 150 xtall, but would be exactly what I would look for if I had the opportunity to aquascape a cement pond like you have in your basement. 8)

The stone were close to an inch thick and varying shapes but most were ~ 1' x 2' or so. I hate buying rocks though. I find a local farmer and ask where there rock pile is - usually a huge selection for free! :thumb: Trouble is that these tend to be round rather than the nice flat ones which make aquascaping easier. :roll:

Patrick


----------



## jefejt

That is such a great tank. Now what you need is another 800 gallon tank on the other side of the room with some giant frontosa, big old peacocks and some african haps...


----------



## TheFishGuy

jefejt said:


> That is such a great tank. Now what you need is another 800 gallon tank on the other side of the room with some giant frontosa, big old peacocks and some african haps...


Thank you  and..... HA ha, it's been discussed, my wife would love that! If it were entirely up to me I'd just build a building all for myself and have HUGE tanks 

(clearing throat) buy a shirt..... (clearing throat again) :lol:


----------



## DirtyBlackSocks

African's are no fun anywho, only us good fish keepers know that.


----------



## TheFishGuy

I like tilapia and paratilapia along with fronts, but that's about it.... and oddly enough those are africans that most resemble SA/CA :thumb:


----------



## Izzydawg

> Thank you and..... HA ha, it's been discussed, my wife would love that! If it were entirely up to me I'd just build a building all for myself and have HUGE tanks
> 
> (clearing throat) buy a shirt..... (clearing throat again)


There you go...get out of the regular construction buisness, and switch to building tanks :wink: :thumb: :drooling: 
Use that building for your show room, fill it with your rescues, and as you build the tanks for the customers, you you would also be building the future homes for your rescues 8) 
While your choking on your coffee, or beer, or whatever you have right now....I'll add, that we'd all but shirts to see that tank room go down :lol: :lol: :drooling: :drooling: :drooling:


----------



## Izzydawg

oops, spell check  :lol:
Got any tank tops?


----------



## TheFishGuy

What do you mean by tank tops? If you mean covers over the the tank then yes... :lol:


----------



## Izzydawg

:lol: no...I meant the sleeveless shirts :lol: I'm gonna be ordering a couple of MFR shirts 

Man, you would do so good with building custom tanks 8) ...ever thought of the idea I sugested?


----------



## TheFishGuy

Yes, I have, but the market around here wouldn't support me or the family. Custom tank building is on my flier though....

And if you'd like tank tops (I get it now) I can inquire about it.....


----------



## Izzydawg

:thumb:


----------



## arapaimag1

_Hey big guy,_

The stingray symposium has been up on the MFK home page since last year. I mentioned it to you when I met you in Ohio and in a phone call a few days afterwards you said it was OK to show your tank in my presentation there.

Not many people post pictures on this site.


----------



## TheFishGuy

I like to post pictures..... Sorry I kind of forgot about it... I don't keep any rays... I supppose if I did I would have remembered  I have a horrible memory.... That's why I've got a wife :thumb:

I'll have to check it out.... also, you've got to understand.... you're celeberty status to me, so you calling me and asking about my tanks was... well... Awesome!  I was a little distracted with that alone


----------



## BlackShark11k

:lol:

Can't will till the symposium comes...


----------



## Izzydawg

Hey there,
I know this might be a bit off topic, but how is that blackbelt you had rescued earlier in the thread?
Is he all healed up now? :fish:


----------



## Konvikt

Three things:  :drooling: :thumb: 
Enough said.


----------



## TK220

I've got to jump in here and ask how you maintain an 800 gallon tank? I spent quite a bit of time maintaining a 220.

How often do you do water changes? How much water do you take out at once? Where do you put the water?

This is fascinating stuff to me!!

Best of luck to you.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well... The Black belt died. He started eating and was eating well for about a week straight then I woke up one morning and he must have died over nite. His water was perfect so I'm a little frustrated..

How do I maintain it... Well, very easily really. I turn one valve once a week and drain 1/3 of the water out of the tank into a floor drain. After it's done draining I fill it back up with the plumbing lines I ran to the top of the tank. No hoses, no buckets, no BS.  I use stress coat as a chlorine remover. I buy it by the gallon :lol:

Other than that the UGJ's along with a robertsoni and four geophagus keep the substrate pretty clean. It is in need of a good sand jetting though... I haven't had time as of lately...


----------



## Izzydawg

sorry to hear about the blackbelt man...he was cute...losses are frustrating. But I remember that he was pretty beat up when you brought him home.


----------



## TheFishGuy

He was, but I've pulled worse through.


----------



## slp2772

I have to say this is one of the longest most fascinating threads *** ever read. Allmost like a book. Over 400,000 views  For the dys plyboard aquarium, unbelievable!. Wish I could see it in person. Whats even more fascinating is how all those board members helped out with ideas and alot of them were implemented into the design. Very cool stuff. Never held my breath over a tank being filled with water before . One word sums it up, incredible. Love the tank.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well thank you, I'm sorry I haven't updated this thread in a while. Things tend to get super busy for me in spring/summer. So here's what's been going on...

We lost our geophagus jurupari 

There's only two giant danios left...

We got ourselves a paratilapia polleni, he's a cool little guy :thumb:

Also added a Tilapia buttikoferi and our little Leiarius longibarbis isn't so little anymore, he's pushing 9"  And I only see him when I shut all the lights off and use a flashlight :lol:

Oscar de Lahoya has been yanked from the program due to eating 6 silver dollars and a few other cichlids :? He's an aggressive little turd.....

Anothr recent addition to the tank is four HUGE silver dollars that came as a rescue. One of them (who's name I won't type on this board) is over twelve years old!

I've taken a mental health day today so I'm considering tearing apart the 800 to give the sand a good jetting... I might shoot some more video too...


----------



## Desi&lt;3

WOW I read all 18 pages :drooling: watched all of the vids opcorn: and glared at every detail of every picture  and it took over an hour!  
But I have to say I love your tank and was about to get all happy about seeing the BB in the big tank when I got to the part about him killing over :x !
Im looking to build a 500. How thick would the glass have to be?
Oh and sorry to hear about all of the other lost fish along the way! 
I would kill to have a third of the fish you have!


----------



## TheFishGuy

The thickness of glass would depend on the overall dimentions of the tank. The taller the tank the thicker the glass needs to be :thumb:


----------



## Desi&lt;3

I think we are going w/ 36" but not sure quite yet.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Once you arrive at your final dimentions feel free to shoot me a pm, but if you plan to go over 6' in length then it's going to have to be 3/4"


----------



## Toby_H

TheFishGuy said:


> Once you arrive at your final dimentions feel free to shoot me a pm, but if you plan to go over 6' in length then it's going to have to be 3/4"


DO you still feel this way if the glass is solidly anchored along all 4 sides?...


----------



## TheFishGuy

I'd use a 1/2" piece of glass if the overall dimentions were 72" long X 36" high X 36" deep.

But if it were just a foot longer I'd go thicker...


----------



## Izzydawg

Hey man, thanks for the update, can't wait to see the video opcorn: 
There sure is a lot happening in there, it must be a blast 8)


----------



## Izzydawg

Oh yea, how did the con fishing session go? Were you able to net all those little buggers out of there? ...and before I forget, how is it that you are able to get any single fish out of a tank that size anyway? You must be a fast swimmer :lol:


----------



## Desi&lt;3

Wow I want a vid of that! opcorn: opcorn: opcorn: opcorn: opcorn: 
Swim little fishy swim!


----------



## bernie comeau

Desi<3 said:


> I think we are going w/ 36" but not sure quite yet.


With 36" deep, you would be best to go with 1/2" tempered rather then just 1/2" plate glass.

VERY interesting tank, TFG. I've always wondered how the big Tilapias would get along in a big tank. As I have never heard or known of anyone that has attempted to house butii with tiger cichlid, though very few people have 14 ft. tanks. I would think its more then enough space for it to work well. And as well, both fishes are in different subgenuses, and are likely to end up in different genuses eventually, so they are probably not really that close. I think you'll like your Tigers a lot; there my favourite Tilapia. Not really brightly colored, but very beautiful fish when you actually see them in person.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well, unfortunately I wasn't able to do any of the jetting or have time to shoot a video. My lawyer called concerning things with Monster Fish Rescue, so the rest of the afternoon was taken up with that... Then it was back to work as usual.. Busy busy busy. Hopefully I'll have time tomorrow to get some jetting done.

I just got back from Columbus with a female barred midas, a trimac, and a hybrid convict that is flippin HUGE! Wait till you guys see pictures!

As for the 800 a synspilum (10 1/2") was moved in and two 11" bocourti to make room for the newcommers.

I plan to strip the entire tank of decor which requires a lot of time and space... then I'll shoot some video of all the fish without decor... I need to get an accurate count of who's who in the tank since it's getting a bit over crowded now....

Bernie, I love the tilapia, all of them... There's even a paratilapia polleni in there! So far they get along just fine, but to be honest I haven't seen the butter for a while :-? I hope the catfish didn't get him! The tigers as you call them are a site to see when fresh veggies are put in the tank, they strip zuccini like no tomorrow! They seem to get on pretty well with everyone just some aggression amungst them selves but nothing to get excited about...


----------



## mithesaint

TheFishGuy said:


> I plan to strip the entire tank of decor which requires a lot of time and space... then I'll shoot some video of all the fish without decor... I need to get an accurate count of who's who in the tank since it's getting a bit over crowded now....
> 
> 
> 
> Are you monitoring nitrate levels? What about TDS? How do you know when you're over stocked?? :lol: I imagine there are relatively few people that can advise you on stocking levels for an 800 gallon, especially when you don't know how many fish you have :lol: That being said...it's a nice problem to have, eh :dancing:
> 
> You could always just increase the frequency of your water changes :thumb: Kidding, kidding.
Click to expand...


----------



## TheFishGuy

Actually I do monitor the water often, and it seems that water changes need to be done every six days!!  Fun stuff, love that water bill!

The stock will get lighter and lighter as time goes on. All I want in this tank are males to show that size matters when keeping SA/CA There's multiples of everything in the tank, when pairs form (which they are forming as we read) they will get pulled when time allows and either sold or given their own tank. Then when another pair forms within the same species all but the male will be pulled and sold or auctioned


----------



## illy-d

So end of the day is it just 1 male from each species? I know from experience that conspecific aggression seems to be higher in most species so limiting it to just 1 male will certainly reduce that... However I have found with some fish, keeping multiple males is typically not a problem so long as there are no females present... Invite one lady to the party and the demeanor amongst the males changes entirely! :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Exactly... But have you ever seen heavy hitter males in the same tank? Co-existing? That's the goal here. Not only will these males have grown up together they will have an established pecking order... We'll see what happens...


----------



## Letsgotothefishstore

What filtration and lighting will you use? opcorn:


----------



## illy-d

TheFishGuy said:


> Exactly... But have you ever seen heavy hitter males in the same tank? Co-existing? That's the goal here. Not only will these males have grown up together they will have an established pecking order... We'll see what happens...


I have no personal experience with the real heavy hitters - I live vicariously through a lot of the members here!!! But from what I have learned with the fish that I have kept totally affirms what you are saying & doing with this tank...

I think that your approach will undoubtedly give you the greatest chance at success.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Letsgotothefishstore said:


> What filtration and lighting will you use? opcorn:


I biuld my own filters, it's essentailly a very large (175 gal) sump system consisting of four five gallon pail pre filters, a 44 gallon drum full of bio media and a 125 gallon pond linered box as a sump tank :lol:

Lighting is horrible and really needs attention, it's three four foot flo fixtures all with different bulbs in each :lol: Terrible... I know.... :lol:

ill-d, thanks ,I hope I suceed.... only time will tell if size matters...


----------



## TheFishGuy

I got a rare shot of my catfish last nite at midnight. I went down with a flashlight and a camera :lol:


----------



## the General

Really cool catfish what kind is it?

As far as lighting if you want to upgrade consider using a bunch of 6500k spiral cfl's, they have them at lowes. When I built the canopy for my 135 i wired 6 in parallel (4 23 watt and 2 13 watt) to a switch, and since its an approximation of a bunch of point sources of light instead of long tubes, it gives a cool ripple effect on the fish and substrate. You'd just have to use about a thousand of them :lol:

Oh and you could even do some cool stuff with that. You could have 1/3 or 1/4 of them wired to a separate switch to create a sort of "twilight" effect and maybe you could get your catfish to come out more!


----------



## TheFishGuy

I've tried dim light for the cats, and they don't fall for it :lol: They need pitch black to come out :lol:

That was definately a rare shot of him, he's a Leiarius longibarbis. His barbels are even striped! He grow to about 2' or so and when that happens he'll be hard to miss :lol: I had one many many moons ago who was very personable, but grew up in a 185. This guy isn't so personable but maybe as he grows he'll get to know me and start to feed by hand opcorn:


----------



## trimac

I like the idea of a whole bunch of big males- I am thinking of doing the same in my pond
TFG what do you think of this list:
Dovii
Umbee
Jag
Red Pike
Black Belt
True Festae
Red Devil 
Barred Midas
and of course Trimac-wow that would be awesome!!!


----------



## BlackShark11k

Cool marble 8)


----------



## cage623

That is a great looking cat! How big is it? My guess is about 10-12 inches (judging from the con in the background of the first pic). ...After a second look I'm not so sure. :?


----------



## TheFishGuy

The cat's about 7-8 inches... but the last time a saw him before this size he was a touch over 4" :lol:

I love the idea trimac  Let us know what you decide...

And thanks art... I've really got two.... ones in a friends tank till it gets too big :lol:


----------



## trimac

Fishguy-Have you ever thought of adding a Marbled Achara Cat-Awesome fish get to about two feet!


----------



## Aalelan

That is an amazing tank! You have me inspired, just wish I had the time and $$ to do it.. I have a huge basement that just needs to be cleaned out..

I love our 180G planted tank but a really monster tank with Oscars and cats would be the tops!

Keep up the good work TFG.. Do you have any new shots of the inside of your tank room? From the other thread the last pic I saw it was still unfinished..

--AA


----------



## TheFishGuy

trimac said:


> Fishguy-Have you ever thought of adding a Marbled Achara Cat-Awesome fish get to about two feet!


You mean like the one pictured above? 

Also...Aalelan, the back room still isn't finished :lol: The insulation is in though :thumb: And thanks for the kind words


----------



## trimac

Sorry I am at work right now-my prep and in this computer I can't see the images-I can only do that at my folks home-so is it an Achara Cat-if so congrats! Another cool cat-but rare is a Torpedo Catfish get to bet. 16-20 inches I have also seen those with large cichlids!


----------



## TheFishGuy

Hmmn...


----------



## TheFishGuy

So last nite at 8:00 I decided to strip the 800 of all the decor and jet the sand. It went pretty well actually, it only took till 10:45, but I scrubbed the glass too :thumb: In the summer I uncover the window in the back room to give them natural light (and attempt to save on the electric bill) and the frint glass was filthy :lol: I shot a short video this morning.... I'm actually somewhat disapointed as it seems quite a few fish are missing :? I'm about to go down there now and try and make an accurate list of what's in the tank... anyway, here's the video


----------



## LJ

Man that is so awesome!  I can only dream that one day I'll have something half that scale.

Too bad about the missing fish. What is "jetting the sand?"


----------



## TheFishGuy

LJ said:


> What is "jetting the sand?"


Well... Most people that have sand in their tanks use their hands to mix the sand up a bit every once and a while. In my case everything has got to be super sized. So I made an attatchment that fits on the end of a hose out of 3/4" pvc. The end of it was placed in boiling water for a few minutes then squeezed to make a jet. Then I go around the whole tank and jet the sand loosening it up and moving it around to release air pockets. And when you've got such a big tank with tons of fish in it some will die. If they don't get eaten the others will bury it then it just rots creating a huge gas pocket. Jetting the sand releases al that lovely stuff. It's been 24 hours since I did it so it's time for a nice big water change and to redecorate! I leave the pump running and the tank still is being filter while I jet, then all three filter pads get rinsed tonite (since one of them is all but clogged and the other two are close to being clogged) while it's draining. It's going to be a busy nite! I'll post pics of the new decor set up later tonite


----------



## LJ

Okay thanks, that's a very innovative way to fashion a jet. I'm looking forward to the pics of the new decor :thumb:


----------



## cage623

I just got done watching all of your youtube videos. I really love the new one! :thumb: The decor in the tank looks good and the fish seem to like it.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks! And here's the link to that video:






The tank's a little clearer today, I'll take some pictures later... I'm going to get my daughters room carpetted today... Gota love free stuff! My favorite is when people have so much money that they change things like carpet just because they can... Then I bring their carpet home and install it in my house


----------



## Big Vine

Hot diggity' dog! Looks great! :dancing: 
BV :thumb:


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## illy-d

I like the new decor as well!


----------



## LJ

:thumb:


----------



## Izzydawg

WOW! You always find a way to bump it up a notch.....okay, a lot of notches, don't you..lol.
Excellant job man, I love it 8)


----------



## Izzydawg

Oh yea, did you swap stock or anything while you were doing all this work? Did you dig out all those Cons, and sort them out?


----------



## countrykat

Did I see my BlackBelt in that there video?


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks for the kind words all  I really like this set up more because it tends to spread all the fish out through the entire length of the tank instead of hangin' out at one end all the time :lol:

Nah, didn't pull any cons Izzy, I really don't have much time in the summer months to be messin' around with sillyness like breeding cons in a hundred different tanks :lol:

Your black belt eh? :lol: Says who? :lol: After they pair up and I pull the pair, and then if another pair forms all I want is the male. So that leaves a female for you, if there's two in there.... I've only got four to start with so assuming I don't kill any of them (with the luck I've been having lately) You can have the spare female 

There's a lot of fish missing  :x I'll post the list as soon as I've got time to type it out...


----------



## Izzydawg

Thanks for the update...I totally hear ya on the no time thing. We could be working 24 hrs if we wanted to. We planned way too much this year. I now have to put a lot of projects I was really looking forward to off till next year.
Once again, very sweet video...had to watch it again
8) :drooling:


----------



## convictkid

This tank is absolutely stunning. And not failing to relize you are very smart when it comes to this craft. Especially the way you made what could of been a stessfull filter system into a pretty easy task considering its an 800 gallon tank. My jaw just drops when I see these videos. I wish I lived near you I would never have to go to the fish store again, im sure you could sell me anything I can think of lol


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well convict kid, you're not that far away! Thanks for the compliments


----------



## convictkid

lol if I calculated the gas prices for the trip there and back, I would be better off just buying a 120 gallon tank.


----------



## TheFishGuy

So buy a 120! :lol:


----------



## Aalelan

TFG, are the walls of your 800 two layers of 3/4" plywood and then the HardiPlank or just one? I know you said at one point the bottom was two ply thick, but I cant find the wall specs in the other thread again 

I have a :thumb: to start on my project.. Just need to start selling some stuff to find some cash 

Here is the thread I have started here: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=171880

Thanks
-AA


----------



## TheFishGuy

The walls are 2x4's one foot on center sheeted with one layer of 1/2" plywood, then the dryloked hardie


----------



## TheFishGuy

I just realized I never posted the current stock list of what's in this tank...

1 Synodontis Eupterus 6-7 inches 
1 Leiarius longibarbis 8-9 inches 
1 Glyptoperichthys gibbiceps 12-13 inches 
2 Astronotus ocellatus (common or green) 10-11 inches 
4 some sort of saum GT's 3-5 inches 
4 Aequidens pulcher 3-5 inches 
12 Archocentrus nigrofasciatus All varieties 1-6 inches 
3 Uaru amphiacanthoides 2-5 inches 
6 Amphilophus Citrinellus/Amphilophus labiatus ? 6inches
3 Hypselecara temporalis 
7 Hypsophrys nicaraguensis 2-9 inches 
4 Archocentrus spilurus 1-2 inches 
1 Herichthys carpintis 2-3 inches 
3 (green) Heros severus 6-8 inches 
3 (lemon) Heros severus 2-4 inches
1 Satanoperca daemon 5 inches 
5 'Cichlasoma' octofasciatum 2-3 inches 
4 Tilapia mariae 4-6 inches 
1 Crenicichla sp. "Belly Crawler" 3-4 inches 
1 Amphilophus robertsoni "Bob" 9 inches 
1 Thorichthys meeki 3 inches
2 Parachromis managuensis 2-6 inches
5 Salvinii 3-5 inches
1 Male Cutteri 5 inches
2 Giant danios 2 inches
2 Clown Loaches 2-3 inches
2 Bocourti 11-12 inches
1 Synspilum 11 inches
4 Silver dollars 5 inches
1 Paratilapia polleni 4 inches
1 Tilapia mamfe 5 inches
4 Vieja Regani 3-5 inches
4 Vieja maculicauda 5-6 inches

97 fish..... holy carp....

There used to be 115 fish. some are M.I.A. others I pulled out. Others have been added. The greatest part is when it's not feeding time the tank does not look crowded what's so ever. But when it's feeding time... look out... Now, to put it inperspective what feeding time looks like:

:fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :fish: :lol:


----------



## lostnight

I'm jealous, nice work! I love the selection of fish, and watching the videos, I was mentally compiling my own stocking list if that was my aquarium. It's cool that you didn't stock it with super huge predators like peacock bass, umbees, redtail cats, etc. This way you were able to populate it in a more diverse fashion. It might be cool to see schools of small disposable schooling fish in there, but I don't know how often you'd have to replenish the schools with all those cichlids in there.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well, I started with 30 giant danios in January. There's two left :lol: The problem now is I do have a large growing catfish in the tank, the Leiarius longibarbis. And soon I will have two. A friend of mine has one in a 240 but we both know he'll out grow it. Before he got it he asked if I'd take it when he out grew the tank. They get two foot... But they are by far my most favorite catfish  Thing is, I think he's been picking fish off..... :?


----------



## lostnight

I was wondering how hard it would be to maintain small schooling fish in there, sounds like they get eaten pretty quickly.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Well, yes, unfortunately.... To be honest I'd love to have schools of fish in the tank. I really like noens for some reason... I'd love to see a school of 100 or so. But they'd be toast in a few days


----------



## Izzydawg

> I really like noens for some reason... I'd love to see a school of 100 or so.


Hahaha, that's funny you say that, it's exactly what my old has been saying for the last bit. I guess great minds think alike.

 that is a wicked stock list....I bet the excitement never dies in there :drooling:


----------



## convictkid

Maybe get a school of something slightly bigger, it would get pretty expensive though, you should add electric blue dempsey to your stock. If you could keep it alive.


----------



## TheFishGuy

I've got a good contact for EBJD's but I still like the good old originals the best.... I guess it's hard to get the old school out of an old fart like me


----------



## auratum

How about the gold JD's?




























I have become quite fond of these guys!


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol: Not sure my wife would handle those.... she has a hard enough time with pink convicts...

Surprisingly she says: "eh, they're alright, but it's not like I'm going 'I need to get me some of those!"

Ist that your breeding pair that your going to send me some fry from?


----------



## SLIGHTLY STOOPID

Everyone should see you tank videos. Any cichlid keeper who has stock over 6 inches in length needs to see how fish actually move in a large tank. *** always been a fan of "small fish big tank" because you can observe the behavior and habits of the fish.

*Many people's fish are just drones in a box. Nothing to do nowhere to go. *

*Your fish can actually move which is nice to see. *

.


----------



## auratum

TheFishGuy said:


> Isn't that your breeding pair that your going to send me some fry from?


I thought I responded to this once already, but it must not have posted?!? :-?

The Gold JD pics were of my males in a community tank. I bought 6 little ones and ended up with only one female who I have betroved to my EBJD male. I just hope he and she agree with my arrangement soon! :roll: Their behavior suggests to me that they are happy together and irritated with all the other tank mates so I am hopefull. :thumb:

So unless the boys can figure out how to make little ones without a girl, I don't know that I will be able to help you out with this one.  :? :roll:

Although if my plans work out, I may have some golds a few generations down the road. opcorn:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Cool :thumb:

And thanks for noticing that SLIGHTLY STOOPID, that's why I love this tank so much


----------



## WakinAZ

TFG, long time, no type. Maybe you could beef up the silver dollars to a bigger school. 11 or 13 of those saucer sized Red Hooks or Black Bars would be really cool going back and forth, back and forth.

Why no umbee or dovii -too many predation worries when they get 18" - 24"?

I love those green oscars, and it is cool to see them kind of shoal together.

Eric


----------



## TheFishGuy

I've been super busy lately, but it seems I've broken my shin, slightly.... So I'll be home doing nothing for the next couple of days... :lol:

I took 98 pictures last nite :lol:

Here's a few:































































Everything seems to be going well in the tank, no real aggression problems to speak of :thumb:


----------



## Paaw

Nice tank :thumb: 
Would you please take some pictures for your Jaguar Cichlid (Parachromis managuensis) ?


----------



## Big Vine

TheFishGuy said:


> I've been super busy lately, but it seems I've broken my shin, slightly.... So I'll be home doing nothing for the next couple of days...


Heh, that kinda sounds like a cop-out so you can avoid doing work, you lazy ba$$tard! j/k 

Actually, this will help me 'police' our awesome folder here, so it's kind of a win-win-lose scenario (win for the forum, win for me, and loss for your poor frail brittle old-man shin :wink: )...
Time to start crackin' down on all these newbies posting about opaline gouramies and such in the CA section! :roll: :lol:

BV

P.S. Hope you milk this for all it's worth...give that wife of yours a 'summons' bell so she can wait on you in your great time of need... :lol:


----------



## cage623

LMAO! :lol:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Nice fellas.... nice....

Here's a pic of my wild caught in my 240:









The one in the 800 is not a good representation of what a jag should look like. It was purchased as a rainbow cichlid :lol: It's a jag but somwhat deformed in the mouth area...


----------



## TheFishGuy

Here's a couple more shots from last nite


----------



## sirdavidofdiscus

How big is that jag? Too bad about your shin. Couldn't ask for better weather to be "injured" in though. :lol:


----------



## Alleycat

Big Vine said:


> TheFishGuy said:
> 
> 
> 
> I've been super busy lately, but it seems I've broken my shin, slightly.... So I'll be home doing nothing for the next couple of days...
> 
> 
> 
> Heh, that kinda sounds like a cop-out so you can avoid doing work, you lazy ba$$tard! j/k
> :
Click to expand...

*That's exactly what I was thinking !!!!! * 

That's one helluva set-up you have there TFG !!!

Thanks for your time to show me the whole sha bang. :thumb:


----------



## Joels fish

I've been meaning to ask , whats the 800 set you back so far (not counting livestock) . I think you may have mentioned it somewhere before , but I must have missed it . 
tremendous looking set though , and great fish to boot. If only we could all be so fortunate. :thumb:


----------



## Hubbynz

oh wow that tank is crazy.....do you have to go scuba diving to do maintenance work.....can we get a photo of you in front to see the sheer scale?

Ha classic about the 10000 convicts they will probably take over the whole tank.

How many different tanks do you have? Sounds like your house is basically a zoo.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Hubbynz said:


> oh wow that tank is crazy.....do you have to go scuba diving to do maintenance work.....can we get a photo of you in front to see the sheer scale?
> 
> Ha classic about the 10000 convicts they will probably take over the whole tank.
> 
> How many different tanks do you have? Sounds like your house is basically a zoo.


 :lol: I don't have many tanks set up at the moment... Just the 800, a 240, a 185, a custom 50, two twentys, a 29 and a ten. I got some fish over the weekend 

As far as how much is in the tank.... could you be more specific? Like how much did it cost to build? Or how muh I've spent on fish?

As far as being fortunate... The only fortune I have is a very cool wife who lets me "play with my fish" :lol:

I have less than $3000 in this tank, close to $2000 in the one that's a quarter it's size :roll:

I couldn't even begin to tell you how much I've spent on fish.... Not even gonna try... it'll be depressing :lol:

Thanks for comin' out Glen, Sorry I prolly talked you ear off... I never know when to shut up :lol:

The sheer scale of the tank..... hmmmnnnn, I'll see if I can find some old pics....


----------



## TheFishGuy

:lol:

Here's a ten gallon tank set on the framed tank:


----------



## severseas

TFG - post the pic of the 10 gallon floating with beer bottles


----------



## Joels fish

Yeah , I gotta see that one! I was asking about the rough cost of the constuction and pumps + the plumbing. Don't worry I won't ask how much you've spent on fish, you've already got a busted leg and I wouldn't want to add insult to injury. :lol: :lol: I'm sure though that we could each buy new cars with what we've spent over the years on fish. :lol: 
My wife isn't as understanding about the "fish thing" as yours is, She's cool with it to a point . I've already reached the point, and gotten the "If you bring one more tank home you'll be sleeping in it " talk. Oh well.


----------



## WakinAZ

WakinAZ said:


> TFG, long time, no type. Maybe you could beef up the silver dollars to a bigger school. 11 or 13 of those saucer sized Red Hooks or Black Bars would be really cool going back and forth, back and forth.
> 
> Why no umbee or dovii -too many predation worries when they get 18" - 24"?
> 
> I love those green oscars, and it is cool to see them kind of shoal together.
> 
> Eric


TFG, you must be too busy propping up your leg? j/k - would like to know what your thoughts on above comments/questions. Beer will help that leg heal up...


----------



## AU Chief

Well, it seems i missed alot in the past few months and I just got caught up on this thread. Amazing stuff as always TFG. I've shown your tank to my fiancÃ© a few times, each time telling her I want to do this one day, and she rolls her eyes every time. I figure I've got a few years to butter her up, but as soon as we have a house of our own its on!

The vids and pics are great, so keep them coming!

as a side note, I really have to get me some nics.


----------



## Hubbynz

ok cool so its only like 40 times the size of my tank :roll:


----------



## TheFishGuy

Geeze, I'll really have to search for that picture....


----------



## TheFishGuy

How's these for size comparison :lol:

I'm 6'2" 250lbs



















And the beer drank while the tank was filling for the first time 










And I ran across a few pictures of the oscars that are in the 800 now, Heckle and Jeckle. They'll be two years old this fathers day :lol: 









Thanks for making me look through all my old pictures! It was.... fun 8)


----------



## TheFishGuy

Shot a quick feeding video:


----------



## Big Vine

Cool vid...
I liked it when those oscars at the back of the tank let us see a glimpse of them during the last 30 seconds or so. About how big are they (lengthwise, from head to tail)? They look pretty big considering how large that tank is! Mine's gotta be a little weenie compared to them, lol. :lol:

BV


----------



## TheFishGuy

The last time they were measured was when they were put in this mix and they measured 11". The bocourti also measured 11" and were put in later and are smaller than the oscars.... So 12" or so??

They are gentle giants though :thumb: Heckle and Jeckle will be two this fathers day


----------



## TheFishGuy

My wife always gets me fish on fathers day :lol: 8)


----------



## TheFishGuy

Hopefully she's reading this thread.... maybe I should send her a link....


----------



## dwarfpike

and get you some pikes ...


----------



## Alleycat

TheFishGuy said:


> Hopefully she's reading this thread.... maybe I should send her a link....


I sent it too her for ya TFG !! 

Hope that legs healing, and you can get your butt back outside and do some work. :thumb:

Excellent vid too btw, but seeing it close up is awesome....

Cheers


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks Alleycat, the leg is much better but mama's not letting me do anything :lol:

I've got a belly crawler in the 800, still very small though....


----------



## faile486

I just read through this entire post  I'm thinking of going back and looking at the construction one, this is pretty cool ^.^

Really makes me wish I lived in Illinois, rather than California again - no way will we ever afford a house in LA where we could do something like that! At least my husband can't really talk about how much I spend on fish - he collects video games, so we both have our own expensive hobby =p

Sorry about your leg, broken bones are the worst. Glad to hear it's healing nicely!


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks! I'm back in full swing, and back to working like mad....


----------



## SOLE.sic

hey guys im completely new here, took me a week to read the whole post this and the other monster!
im in the process of planning a 500 gallon tank in my new house (wife is awesome like that, said i could have the whole basement... :dancing: :dancing:

wondering if anyone has advice on sealing the acrylic to the epoxy. i know TFG used glass but acrylic is much cheaper around here unless TFG is willing to give up his source of cheap glass...

couple places suggested acrylic epoxy, which *** never heard of, and of course sanitred...

anyways any help is very much appreciated,


----------



## MetalHead06351

I can't help with your question, but if you and your wife ever get divorced i've only got junk in my basement....JK :lol: Lucky guy, a whole basement.


----------



## TheFishGuy

Here's a hint on the glass.... Toledo is the glass city. Sometimes it's worth the drive


----------



## SOLE.sic

Alright now to find out how far it is from Chicago to Toledo...


----------



## Alleycat

SOLE.sic said:


> Alright now to find out how far it is from Chicago to Toledo...


240 miles or a 4 hour drive. Or just drive another 1.5 hours to TFG's place and pick out what you need in his garage. He won't mind


----------



## TheFishGuy

LOL, Yes, I'd mind! I love my free stuff!


----------



## jack lover

holy $nap!!!! that is alot of tank u lucky son.


----------



## Nathan43

TheFishGuy said:


> Shot a quick feeding video:


Are those huge fish in the video with the black dots along the bottom backside veijas? Just curious. Thanks.
p.s. I believe I just saw my dream setup :drooling:


----------



## Izzydawg

It's been a while,.... those fish GREW! WOW! :drooling: 
Your wife sounds like a cool chick


----------



## TheFishGuy

Thanks all 



> Are those huge fish in the video with the black dots along the bottom backside veijas?


Not sure which ones you mean? You might be talking about the tilapia.... But there's four blackbelt in there too... Along with an 11" synspilum..... 

Sorry it took me so long to get back, things have been...... busy....


----------



## SOLE.sic

TFG wondering why you have the drain setup like you do and if you do have a way to backflush the "skippy" filter or if you even needed to seems like the filter needs very little upkeep was also wondring if you had the room with a tank your size would you think it a good idea to go to two smaller filters rather than one large I have also been thnjung about the usefulness of a wet dry trickle filter or do you think it would be redundant


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## trimac

Awesome video!


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## TheFishGuy

There's no need to backflush the filter, the prefilters in the five gallon buckets get rinsed every three weeks. one per week during the water change.

The drains are set up to be able to drain 1/3 of the tank which is my standar weekly water change. This way I don't have to baby sit a siphon hose. Since draining close to 300 gallons at a shot would take forever with a hose, I decided to do it with 2" hard pipe. It takes about 20 minutes for 300 gal to drain down to just a trickle off the surface. Then the valve is shut and the tanks gets refilled. Easy as pie  Hope that answers your question 

And Thanks Timac


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## SOLE.sic

thanks for the reply, was looking around the internet and found an article where the guy had rigged the skippy to backflush even with a prefilter, was jusst wondering if you'd run into any problems... by the way i realized id never complimented you on the tank even though you've heard at least once a page...
your still using the "sofa"cushion foam as prefilter, no problems with breakdown or clogging?


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## TheFishGuy

No, actually the prefilter now is foam used in the seat cusions of boats... It looks like the normal large cel foam we'd use in a spill or canister filter...


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## Alleycat

No wonder the price of boat seats are on the rise....


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## TheFishGuy

:lol:


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## TheFishGuy

Shot some new video:





There's actually a bunch of video of this if you'd like to watch the others too


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## Big Vine

Love the new footage with the cucumber feast!
Man, those Midas/RD sure love gorging themselves on that thing.
Where the heck are the oscars?!? They holding out for the meaty carnivore meal?!? :lol:

Great background commentary too...your kids gonna know the food pyramid in no time! :wink: 
BV


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## PChap

Before I ever registered at this site, I lurked around and followed your design and construction of the 800. I kept saying to myself, "This guy is crazy, building it is one thing, maintaining it is another."

So does it seem like the maintenance is more of a challenge than the construction was? And how did your heating problem ever work out? IIRC, you posted earlier that you finished insulating the room, if so what is your temp running at now? Also, how many fish are you looking to keep once you have your all male set up?

Thanks again for letting us be part of this.


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## TheFishGuy

> So does it seem like the maintenance is more of a challenge than the construction was?


Oh heck no! It's a breeze! All I do is turn a few valves once a week and the water gets changed! One of the three filter pads gets rinsed once a week and I occasionally jet the sand... That's about it 



> And how did your heating problem ever work out?


It's a little easier now that the room is insulated :thumb: But raising the temps is difficult still, maintaining them is a breeze now 



> what is your temp running at now?


As of 5:30 am this morning it's 78* :thumb:



> Also, how many fish are you looking to keep once you have your all male set up?


This is kind of a hard question to answer since the stock here tends to change so much. I'm thinking when it's all said and done hopefully five or six big males and more than likely a big cat or two... :fish:



> Thanks again for letting us be part of this.


The thanks should go to you guys, without you all I would have never been so motivated =D>


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## heylady

Man I love your tank!! :drooling: But I have to say that Dominic kinda stole the show~~ :thumb: What a cute little boy you have!!


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## TheFishGuy

You should see the youngest, according to my wife he's the cutest kid on the planet :lol:

Thanks


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## bell

have you played with the drylok background piece i gave you yet?


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## TheFishGuy

Actually, I gave it to my friend nextr door to use in his 125, it looks sweet :thumb:


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## bell

awesome, snap some pics of it next time you're over there and i'll do a write-up on it as i never got to see it submerged fully and "finish" the report


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## TheFishGuy

Will do


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## loogielv

Ok, i was readin the first thread and TFG contacted me and told me to basically shut up in the wrong thread . I didn't want to read ahead, so I didn't know about the new thread. Instead, I'll copy and paste my comments from the first thread here.

Dammit, I just realized there's MORE than 153 pages for me to read now. Arrrrghh! It never ends with this fish guy.

quotage:
==============
Ok, here's my story. I'm new here, and I'm reading this entire thread, front to back. I have no idea if this thread is still active, or if I'm bumping a thread that shouldn't be bumped. #%$&, this thread might be locked and my post might get rejected as I hit submit. I have no idea.

I'm on page 42 right now, and the glass is about to be installed. I will not read ahead and I wont skip any pages.

I just wanted to let you know that someone is very interested in this.

I felt like I was watching a move for the first 20 pages when you were deciding how to seal the tank. I realize things have changed in the 2+ years since the inception of this monster, and we now know that 2 part epoxy is the way to go on wood tanks. But I wanted to scream at my monitor "GO EPOXY! YOU HAVE TO GO EPOXY!" I caught myself several times wanting to post a reply, and then remembered that not only is there almost 3 years of posts ahead of the one i was reading, but that the tank has already been long since filled. It's a very gripping read and I'm very excited to see how it turns out. The only spoiler I have is your avatar, which I can assume is you inside the monster....

So anyway, thank you for this thread, and if I'm not supposed to bump it, or there's a #2 thread or whatever, I dont care. I'm invested in this beast now. 42 pages and counting.
======================


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## loogielv

the only reason I'm bothering to quote myself from one thread to the next, is because TFG put alot of time, work, heart and soul into this thread and this project. I feel I owe it to him to let him know where I'm at. Hope nobody minds.

quotage:
=======================
well, on page 78, about half way done. the first post went through, so i guess this thread is still active. I'm not reading ahead to even see if anyone replied to me. Just letting you know, i'm still here Smile

I'm at the part where the oscars spawned, but no eggs were there the next day, and it's becoming obvious that everything is spawning with everything else and soon an animal that the world has never known will spawn do to all the hybreeding. Smile


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## loogielv

well, i'm on page 123 of the original thread, and I gotta say, I'm really taken aback by all this. I'm at the part where you just put the fish back into the monster after sani-tred redo.

#1: to see you evolve from a fish nut, to an actual fish rescuer, and see the inception of the link in your signature is pretty neat. I feel like i know you now.

#2: I had the worst feeling about you getting inside the monster when I saw you walking around on it. I'm not happy my feelings were correct.

#3: I was really sad to read about your Oscar. Well, not sad about the oscar, i would glanced right over it and really wouldn't have paid much mind to a fish that died. No offense, it's just something I've never connected with. Until I read the words that you said about it. It was obvious you were very upset by it, and then describing the other fish helping her was almost tear jerking. And my tears dont get jerked easily. I'm very interested to read about the dynamic of the tank now. I feel like I miss her too 

#4: I have some questions, but I want to make sure they haven't been answered already. Alot of the current reading for me is quick posts and follow ups so it's faster to get through now.

I will ask a few though. I want them to be answered already by the time I get to my own question  
Are you happy with the Sani-tred? 
What would you do differently now?
What do you love most about the tank?
What do you love most about WHAT YOU BUILT for the tank? ie: the way you designed something that you're particularly happy with everything you think about it? I'm sure you'll say filter, but break down why and what you love most about the filter too? I'm stingy with my answers 
And now one for my own personal gain, if you dont mind:
Do you think 1/2" of tempered glass is ok for a 6x3x4(4 ft HIGH) tank? The viewing area would be about 5'x3' with 3 inches overlapping for seal. So total glass size would be 66"x42". Think that's pushing it?

ok then, got more reading to do. bbl


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## TheFishGuy

I'll have to respond to these in depth after work today... Gotta go..........


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## loogielv

Well, I'm on page 140 and my next post will be when I jump to the second thread.

I personally like the Sani-tred color alot more than the blue, fwiw. I feel that only SW should be blue. FW should be off color, dusty maybe. A definite upgrade imo.

I'm confused with the naming of Tigger2. Tigger2 is the first Tigger, and who the tank is for yes?, but then another Tigger came along and took the name Tigger1? or did you let OG Tigger get adopted into a bigger tank? I'm only at the part where you were gonna send him off, so if things turned out differently I just haven't gotten to there yet.

I'm almost exactly a year behind now and the fish are HUGE! I can't wait to see updated pictures from like...4 minutes ago.  get on it
I really hope that I don't get further and see that something awful happened to any of the fish. It's really something to see them come together in a great dynamic. Especially Tigger. He's simply awesome looking and it's really neat to quickly see him grow for 3 years (relatively speaking of course. ther'es nothing quick about readin this thread)

Also, you're wife is as nutty as you. Period. There's no other way to describe it. She "let you" convince her to move your bedroom into the fishroom/basement? PUHLEEZE. she's as obsessed as you, she just wont admit it.


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## loogielv

Well ****. I'm on the new thread now and I'm still spinning over the loss of Tigger. After I just got done saying I hope all is well.... sigh.

Sorry about that. It really sucks.

On page 10 of this thread btw


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## mbunapete

Just finished reading this epic post, I laughed, I cried, I gasped & was kept on the edge of my seat. TFG, Shakespeare's got nothing on this! Kuddos on your tank!!!!!!!!! The fish look excellent. Just wondering ... have any of your handfed monsters ever get a bit of TFG finger fillet? :lol:


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## TheFishGuy

Hi guys, I split the thread in two... Moved everything involving the addition to the 800 to the DIY forum.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... c&&start=0


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