• We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

True piraiba aka Brachyplatystoma filamentosum

Anyway you could document your repairs on leak? My little 720g puddle isn’t leaking yet, but I’m going to have to do the same- empty, sand, epoxy, etc....
I figured you might have more experience!
Gotta say: that tsn/rtc just looks even more wrong when huge!! That’s just me though. But those jau and pariba make me tingle!!!!

Viktor, do you have any large slobbering cats ( I can’t remember Latin name right now) or any giant wood cats- s. planiceps ?
 
thebiggerthebetter said:
Thanks for that. There you go! Why didn't say so before? I love when patterns emerge and we increase our knowledge. Even if tentatively.

So it looks like the Peruvian versus Suriname thing, a behavioral wolf versus sheep.

Is Josh's Peruvian also more assertive with tank mates like my darker Peruvian?
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No not known any agression from it.infact mine and his will very often lie and swim with each other
 
suckerfish said:
Anyway you could document your repairs on leak? My little 720g puddle isn’t leaking yet, but I’m going to have to do the same- empty, sand, epoxy, etc....
I figured you might have more experience!
Gotta say: that tsn/rtc just looks even more wrong when huge!! That’s just me though. But those jau and pariba make me tingle!!!!

Viktor, do you have any large slobbering cats ( I can’t remember Latin name right now) or any giant wood cats- s. planiceps ?
Click to expand...
Tingle? :) When was the last time you saw your friendly neurologist? :)

Yes, I plan to film a time lapse video on the 4500 gal repair but it's fiberglass, not epoxy / pond armor. 720 gal is no puddle, very cool size tank.
Yes, I am not fond of man made fish either but if it's out there, we keep them, even if to show others how they compare to genuine fish.
We have only had one slob ever, it was 12"-14" in 4500 gal, in 2016. A tank mate killed it, IDK which. Brachyplatystoma platynemum.
We tried with the firewood catfish two times, multiple baby fish each time, I think once 4, the other time 2. Something in my water kills them after a month or two. So, has been no-go so far. Wanna try with a bigger one though.
 
Amazing viktor. This must be one of the largest in captivity! Biggest one I know of in private care. Well done. There sure do look impressive. That next foot of growth will soon make you realise how bulky these fish get, although it shall take some time, whilst out in Suriname, the guides said it takes the fish around 8-10 years to get to around 6feet. Will be interesting to see how fast yours grows over the next few years.
 
Viktor, I don’t want to jack your thread, but I have to ask- your leaking pond is fiberglass. So, if you don’t epoxy over the fiberglass, you won’t be able to hold any liquid. If some technology has changed, please educate me. I have to do the same on my fiberglass pond as well.
 
suckerfish said:
Viktor, I don’t want to jack your thread, but I have to ask- your leaking pond is fiberglass. So, if you don’t epoxy over the fiberglass, you won’t be able to hold any liquid. If some technology has changed, please educate me. I have to do the same on my fiberglass pond as well.
Click to expand...
I consulted the maker of my tanks, Dolphin Fiberglass Products, Jack Broyl and he told me that i would need to remove, grind out the area until only clean original fiberglass is left, no lose fiberglass, no dirt or any other foreign matter. Then I must fiberglass over the cracked / separated area again. That's all. Pretty simple in terms of steps and logic.

He never said anything about the epoxy. I don't get your statement. Like... coat the fiberglass tank on the inside by epoxy? With my very limited knowledge, I don't know why anyone would do it and whether it is an established technique. Fiberglass is waterproof by itself. Plus the last coat of the fiberglass, the gel coat, is usually a special one, it contains a surfactant wax (and a pigment, if one wants some other color than natural fiberglass reddish-brown), which drifts to the surface during curing and forms a hard, smooth surface, additionally strengthening the waterproofing of the tank. But this is just an extra assurance, it is not really needed for a tank to hold water 100%, Jack says.

IDK if there are grades of fiberglass. Jack says I can use the standard fiberglass from Home Depot and Lowes to do my repair. Maybe there exists an extremely porous fiberglass or very thin (?) that would need to be coated and sealed but this is way beyond my humble knowledge.

HTH.
 
I think we’re having word confusion here. I’m probably wrong, but here’s my understanding: fiberglass is the matting or structure, then you use epoxy to seal it. For example- when building a pond with or without window, you would fiberglass mat the corners and seems, then you epoxy the entire inside.
Ok, after re reading your last post, we’re both on the same page but using different words.
If you go to Home Depot and ask for fiberglass, odds are they would hand you a sheet of fiberglass, then you buy epoxy (resin) to go over the fiberglass sheet/ mat.
 
suckerfish said:
I think we’re having word confusion here. I’m probably wrong, but here’s my understanding: fiberglass is the matting or structure, then you use epoxy to seal it. For example- when building a pond with or without window, you would fiberglass mat the corners and seems, then you epoxy the entire inside.
Ok, after re reading your last post, we’re both on the same page but using different words.
If you go to Home Depot and ask for fiberglass, odds are they would hand you a sheet of fiberglass, then you buy epoxy (resin) to go over the fiberglass sheet/ mat.
Click to expand...
It took me a couple of readings to grasp it, haha... Yes, the point of our misunderstanding is the polymer used with the fiberglass cloth / sheet. I didn't think or know it was an epoxy. I thought it was a kind of polymer that's related to polyethylene, or polypropylene, etc. Maybe I am wrong? Let's see...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fibre-reinforced_plastic says I am wrong. It is usually an epoxy or vinyl ester, or polyester. I only assumed, never looked into it, although I should have - I worked with the stuff...


suckerfish said:
Viktor, I don’t want to jack your thread, but I have to ask- your leaking pond is fiberglass. So, if you don’t epoxy over the fiberglass, you won’t be able to hold any liquid. If some technology has changed, please educate me. I have to do the same on my fiberglass pond as well.
Click to expand...
I am going back to your original question. When I said "fiberglass" (and you say it too in your last sentence) and everyone says it, they mean FRP - fiber reinforced plastic. Of course you and I and everyone must put down a layer of fiberglass cloth, epoxy over it, and repeat many times to build up strength and thickness.

Are we clear now? You can just like it, if we are :) Thank you so much for your diligence, it exposed an erroneous assumption I have had in my head for 5+ years! Thank you, bro, much appreciated.
 
Hi Viktor, I have done a lot of glasswork on boats . I was always taught that fiberglass is porus and the gelcoat seals it . Polyester resin is less expensive than vinylester resin and more porus . And epoxy resin is more expensive than vinylester as I remember. Vinylester is more expensive and is used to prevent water absorption into glass and prevent blisters in boat hulls . I have only used epoxy to laminate a few times so I am not real familiar with it .When polyester / vinylester resin contacts the fiberglass cloth it dissolves the binders holding the fibers together used to hold the strands /fibers together prior to getting wet with resin . You can have problems with epoxy resin not dissolving some binders in cloth designed for polyester resin so if you use epoxy resin make sure you have compatable glass cloth to be used specifically for epoxy . Regular polyester should be fine for your repairs just use 3 coats of gelcoat to finish . Usually vinylester is not too much more expensive that regular polyester and is a much better product . You have to go to a fiberglass supplier to get a good price on vinylester probably . Feel free to pm me if you have more questions .
 
Here is what happened mid or late April.

The 4' Suriname piraiba missed out on two feedings of thawed fish over one week because of its annoying timidness and hesitation and as if aiming to be the last to grab feed. All the feed had been eaten up by tank mates. Next thing I know it tried to swallow the smaller camel-face hybrid ~2' in the RTC 4500 gal one night. It couldn't but the hybrid got badly damaged.

As I observed and stated before, piraiba may be timid but quite predatory and if it gets hungry, it will try to take what's edible or potentially edible.

Photos and the recovery track of the hybrid are here (photo heavy) in posts #9 and #10 in our TSNxRTC hybrid thread: https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/...rids-at-fish-story-aquarium-and-rescue.699928
 
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