Since April last year I have been in the process of setting up this tank, its taken a long time but its finally complete! Well, almost.
I have a group of 6 small Uaru amphiacanthoides growing out in an 80g tank which I will add once they get to about 3-4", and I've got my fingers crossed that the LFS can source me another black aro after losing mine over xmas. I may also consider adding more plecs, I'm considering add my group of L140, or I'd really like to increase the group of L066, but not both. I'm planning on upgrading the lighting and building hood for it, although that won't be until later this year after we've had a holiday! Lastly, the sump is drilled for a continuious drip system or auto water changer, which I hope to set up soon (before the holiday!).
Other than that its done to the point where I can actually sit down and enjoy looking at it, which I have been doing a fair bit of after nearly 9 months of anticipation. There's a link in my signature for those who want to read the full blown saga, but for those who don't here's a quick photo-essay of the build.
Specs:
Tank: 2400x977x620mm (LxWxH) with DIY polystyrene/mortar background.
Filtration: Custom sump running two 200 micron and two 50 micron socks, 25kg of ceramic noodles (submerged) and a similar volume of bioballs (above water). Laguna 7500 return pump with 25mm plumbing (only about 800mm head).
2 300W Jager heaters
2 4' and 2 3' T8 fluros
Builders sand substrate, various kinds of driftwood, schist for pleco caves.
Fish:
12 Geophagus altifrons
1 Heros Sp. Rotkeil
1 Hemiancistrus Sp. L128 (blue phantom)
1 Baryancistrus Sp. L81 (small spot gold nugget)
2 Hypancistrus Sp. L066 (king tiger)
1 Panaque Sp. L204 (flash)
1 Pimelodus pictus
Still to come
6 Uaru amphiacanthoides
1 Osteoglossum ferrari
April 5th 2010, tank delivered;
4th May, test-fitting background, wooden stand turned out to be an epic fail.
27th May main piece of background done
27th May first sump
5th July tank on new steel stand, background in, test-filling for the first time
16th July, first sump cracks, glass too thin (tank-makers fault not mine!!)
30th August tank just sitting there soaking driftwood
6th January new sump with filter socks installed (would have been two weeks earlier but I went away for xmas)
7th January 2011 first fish transferred across
Plecs added a week later
Tonight, lights finally sorted out, full tank shots:
And [some of] the inhabitants;
So, what have I learnt throughout this process?
1. Don't cut corners, do it right first time. If you're going to splash out on a massive tank that will be with your for years then spending a few hundred dollars more on a nice steel stand is worth while. Paying more for quality stuff is almost always worthwhile too.
2. Procrastination doesn't get stuff done!
3. Wide tanks are awesome. For 98% of aquarium fish a big footprint is going to be more beneficial than a tall tank and it looks far more natural IMO. I'll never buy another tank that isn't wider than it is tall.
4. Bigger is better. Seeing the way the fish behave in a tank of this size is great, I could watch it for hours. Now I would choose one huge tank over several smaller ones any day. Long-term plans are already being worked on for something even bigger, but its still several years away...
5. I don't like keeping over-stocked tank. I have no ethical objection to "JDM style" tanks so long as the fish are healthy and the waters clean, but its not for me. Having a bunch of medium sized fish in a huge tank where you can see them behaving naturally is far more interesting than watching a couple of big fish that can barely turn around. Even if I had a tank three times this size I'd still want to stock it with medium sized SA cichlids, just more of them!
I have a group of 6 small Uaru amphiacanthoides growing out in an 80g tank which I will add once they get to about 3-4", and I've got my fingers crossed that the LFS can source me another black aro after losing mine over xmas. I may also consider adding more plecs, I'm considering add my group of L140, or I'd really like to increase the group of L066, but not both. I'm planning on upgrading the lighting and building hood for it, although that won't be until later this year after we've had a holiday! Lastly, the sump is drilled for a continuious drip system or auto water changer, which I hope to set up soon (before the holiday!).
Other than that its done to the point where I can actually sit down and enjoy looking at it, which I have been doing a fair bit of after nearly 9 months of anticipation. There's a link in my signature for those who want to read the full blown saga, but for those who don't here's a quick photo-essay of the build.
Specs:
Tank: 2400x977x620mm (LxWxH) with DIY polystyrene/mortar background.
Filtration: Custom sump running two 200 micron and two 50 micron socks, 25kg of ceramic noodles (submerged) and a similar volume of bioballs (above water). Laguna 7500 return pump with 25mm plumbing (only about 800mm head).
2 300W Jager heaters
2 4' and 2 3' T8 fluros
Builders sand substrate, various kinds of driftwood, schist for pleco caves.
Fish:
12 Geophagus altifrons
1 Heros Sp. Rotkeil
1 Hemiancistrus Sp. L128 (blue phantom)
1 Baryancistrus Sp. L81 (small spot gold nugget)
2 Hypancistrus Sp. L066 (king tiger)
1 Panaque Sp. L204 (flash)
1 Pimelodus pictus
Still to come
6 Uaru amphiacanthoides
1 Osteoglossum ferrari
April 5th 2010, tank delivered;
4th May, test-fitting background, wooden stand turned out to be an epic fail.
27th May main piece of background done
27th May first sump
5th July tank on new steel stand, background in, test-filling for the first time
16th July, first sump cracks, glass too thin (tank-makers fault not mine!!)
30th August tank just sitting there soaking driftwood
6th January new sump with filter socks installed (would have been two weeks earlier but I went away for xmas)
7th January 2011 first fish transferred across
Plecs added a week later
Tonight, lights finally sorted out, full tank shots:
And [some of] the inhabitants;
So, what have I learnt throughout this process?
1. Don't cut corners, do it right first time. If you're going to splash out on a massive tank that will be with your for years then spending a few hundred dollars more on a nice steel stand is worth while. Paying more for quality stuff is almost always worthwhile too.
2. Procrastination doesn't get stuff done!
3. Wide tanks are awesome. For 98% of aquarium fish a big footprint is going to be more beneficial than a tall tank and it looks far more natural IMO. I'll never buy another tank that isn't wider than it is tall.
4. Bigger is better. Seeing the way the fish behave in a tank of this size is great, I could watch it for hours. Now I would choose one huge tank over several smaller ones any day. Long-term plans are already being worked on for something even bigger, but its still several years away...
5. I don't like keeping over-stocked tank. I have no ethical objection to "JDM style" tanks so long as the fish are healthy and the waters clean, but its not for me. Having a bunch of medium sized fish in a huge tank where you can see them behaving naturally is far more interesting than watching a couple of big fish that can barely turn around. Even if I had a tank three times this size I'd still want to stock it with medium sized SA cichlids, just more of them!
