Lets see your Fish Tanks!

[HKr1]

Sherri started out like two years ago with fish, this little 1 1/2 gallon tank. She got Manny, Moe & Jack. They got pretty big for that tank, so we bought her a 10 gallon starter kit from wal-mart. I got "Lewis Hamilton" to join the other car guys, she picked up Boris(algae eater) for this new tank. Tank was pretty good for awhile..... had to mod the cover to put a 20 gallon filter on it(instead of 10). Anyway, the guys were getting bigger. So I picked her up a new 46 gallon tank, and a real filter system to go with it. All I can say about this new tank is, WOW! The water is so clear, everybody looks amazing in there.

So what kinda fish tanks do you all have? Anybody....

[BlueTyke]

This is Goofer, aka the Fish that lived... This is his original home (aside from the tub he came in) he is a beta fish and yes... he is floating vertically ><



This is his second home that he was given for the trip across the country,



which he survived and lived happily for four more months... As it stands the tank is currently empty and I am debating getting another one... Goofer was four years old!

[HKr1]

Beta's look so cool, Kinda strange they have to be kept so isolated from others.

[BlueTyke]

Territory matters, so do females ... You mean that is different for humans?

[Snake]

No difference for humans. We have the same instinctive drive.

[Daeldren]

awww, no sharks

[zartan]

Originally Posted by HKr1

So what kinda fish tanks do you all have? Anybody....

Nice fish.. Gold fish are the BEST!!

[HKr1]

Originally Posted by Daeldren

awww, no sharks

Wal-mart has some sweet looking baby sharks, Sherri said she almost brought one home last night..... But, she thought I might want to pick one out with her.

Originally Posted by zartan

Nice fish.. Gold fish are the BEST!!

Thanks! She's looking at some fancy fin gold fish now. I think she just gonna over load this tank with all the fish she's looking at now. Gonna be on her way to a 90 gallon.

[ScraitT]

I'm too lazy to get pictures atm, but I'll list what I have....

-A small pond out front with two Koi and a sucker fish, all 3 of them about 18" long. The lawn guys keep threatening to eat the koi...
-A 95 gallon tank with a mayan cichlid (kinda resembles a peacock bass) that is about 15" long. Very agressives, refuses to have a friend in his tank.
-A 95 gallong tank with some tiny fish and two turtles. One is a Map Turtle and the other is a Softshell....both currently about 6" long, but the softshell is growing fast.
-A beta tank
-A smaller 35 gallong saltwater tank with 3 fish in it...damsels I think.

We have 2 other small tanks, just no fish in them atm.

[xTKx]

Got a nice salt water tank here at work (I'll try to post a pic or two later). Right now we've got one clown fish (yes, his name is Nemo), a large anemone, a big (skinny) starfish named Patrick, a crab named Eugene, some "turbo snails," and we're looking at getting a couple more fish really soon...

[MFTravis]

My fiancee brought home a Beta last week, and we are currently in the process of deciding what we want to do fish tank wise. We are thinking of getting him a 10 gallon tank, and then getting a bigger one with different fish (we are hooked hehe).

[Nickds7]

Originally Posted by MFTravis

My fiancee brought home a Beta last week, and we are currently in the process of deciding what we want to do fish tank wise. We are thinking of getting him a 10 gallon tank, and then getting a bigger one with different fish (we are hooked hehe).

I don't recommend getting him a 10 gallon tank unless you plan on putting a ton of plants in it. (with a slow filter)

The reason behind not wanting a large tank for a betta is that in their natural habitat they live and breed in shallow rice patties and basically puddles. They prefer small areas with slow moving water. It is their breeding grounds where they live their entire lives and breed using bubble nests thus slow moving water as to not stress them out.

I have a single 1 gallon half bowl for my betta, with one plant. Feed every other day 4 pellets of hikari gold betta food. Don't follow their instructions, its death.

[headshrink]

I used to keep this in my office, in lieu of a window. I sold it all 2.5 yrs ago. When I moved my office I took it home and slowly it lost the joy. I would look at it differently as the owner/curator. I couldn't enjoy it without always looking for what needed attention. Although I did enjoy the sea life, what really interested me though was the engeneering.... I'm weird, I know.

[MFTravis]

Originally Posted by Nickds7

I don't recommend getting him a 10 gallon tank unless you plan on putting a ton of plants in it. (with a slow filter)

The reason behind not wanting a large tank for a betta is that in their natural habitat they live and breed in shallow rice patties and basically puddles. They prefer small areas with slow moving water. It is their breeding grounds where they live their entire lives and breed using bubble nests thus slow moving water as to not stress them out.

I have a single 1 gallon half bowl for my betta, with one plant. Feed every other day 4 pellets of hikari gold betta food. Don't follow their instructions, its death.

Thanks for the tips! We will keep em in a the small bowl that he is in then

[headshrink]

I'm not sure how the banners adds on this site work exactly to be relevant, but what is funny is the one on this thread (at the moment) is fish related.... I did a double take when I saw that.

[Alex]

We use Google Adsense, and I chuckle at some of the neat ads on some of the off-topic threads as well.

[headshrink]

I'll be watching them closer for now on.

boats, boats, ski boats, yahts..... just trying to see what pops up

For the OP - fish can be fun, but if I had to do it again, I wouldn't have gone so extreme. It is good that you are doing your research, should save you money and mistakes. If you are ever interested in switching to salt water or reefs, let me know and I can give you some great resources.

[xTKx]

Originally Posted by headshrink

I used to keep this in my office, in lieu of a window. I sold it all 2.5 yrs ago. When I moved my office I took it home and slowly it lost the joy. I would look at it differently as the owner/curator. I couldn't enjoy it without always looking for what needed attention. Although I did enjoy the sea life, what really interested me though was the engeneering.... I'm weird, I know.

Those are some giant anemone!!

Is that a black and yellow clown fish?! It's swimming awfully close to the anemone in your second pic but I've never seen one in black and yellow...

[headshrink]

xTKx - Yes, it is a 'Gold Banded Maroon Clown.' The maroon looks blackish in the photo, but it was really a deep maroon.... very pretty. Clown fish are I believe the only fish that has a symbiotic relationship with anemones. They aren't stung by them, so they actually provide protection for the Clown fish. S/he (changes sex - long explanation) would "sleep" in it at night. I believe there are a couple of theories on how the anemone benefits from the relationship, BUT you will actually catch the clown fish bringing food to the anemone at times (krill, etc.). It was only a 55gal which has a footprint of 1'X4' (ABSOLUTE smallest a beginner should ever attempt for a reef, and set aside $5k) so for perspective, they really weren't THAT big, but they were relatively healthy.


The second fish I believe was a Juvenile Yellow-Faced Angel fish. Do an image search on them and you will see that the adults look TOTALLY different and are absolutely stunning! Unfortunately, the store didn't tell me just how difficult they are to keep, and I had so much success at that point I thought I could keep anything (they can be one of the MOST difficult, and really should only be kept by advanced hobbyists with better equipment than I had). It was equally my fault for not researching it first.... a bit of an impulse buy because they didn't have what I went there for. I think it was dead within a week.... and I did EVERYTHING I knew to try to save it

BTW: Nice epoxy on that there garage floor of yours! I would like to do something like that. It looks like you may also benefit from an insulation kit for the door (they look great too, and give a finished look to roll-up doors), especially if you are from central TX. I have one on mine, and it makes a BIG difference. It will still get hot, but you won't start to hallucinate or see heat waves rising from your floor anymore

[darthnip]

yes that is a young yellow-faced angel fish. mine just died as a result of an extended power outage. he was about 4 and had already turned the green color with a slight yellow band. nice tank you got there.

[headshrink]

Originally Posted by darthnip

yes that is a young yellow-faced angel fish. mine just died as a result of an extended power outage. he was about 4 and had already turned the green color with a slight yellow band. nice tank you got there.

Thanks for the compliment. This picture was taken about two years before I sold it (2yrs ago). Someone got a good deal, because I wanted it GONE!!!! I think I got $600 or $700 for EVERYTHING.... that included halides and chiller. Crazy I know, but like I said, I wanted it GONE.


Congratulations on accomplishing that long with the yellow faced angel.... quite a feat for a fish like this. Sorry to hear about its death in the end

Some of the crazier hobbyists go as far as hooking up emergency generators, but that is a little too rich for my blood. Of course if you have tens of thousands of dollars invested, like many of them do, I guess you can't afford NOT to.

[darthnip]

oh i know the feeling, i've had this 45gal tall tank set up for like 8 years almost. i got one clown fish that just keeps on ticking. as soon as he dies the tank comes down. i just dont have the heart to flush him, he's been around for about 5 years so i think he's earned the right to go as long as he can. his name is marlin, nemo was eaten by a serpent star i used to have. i got young twin girls and that was a sad day at my house. "daddy's big ugly starfish ate nemo!!!" was all i heard all day. man they were pissed for days over that one lol

[headshrink]

Originally Posted by darthnip

oh i know the feeling, I've had this 45gal tall tank set up for like 8 years almost. i got one clown fish that just keeps on ticking. as soon as he dies the tank comes down. i just dont have the heart to flush him, he's been around for about 5 years so i think he's earned the right to go as long as he can. his name is marlin, nemo was eaten by a serpent star i used to have. i got young twin girls and that was a sad day at my house. "daddy's big ugly starfish ate nemo!!!" was all i heard all day. man they were pissed for days over that one lol

Wow, I have never heard of a serpentine star taking down a fish! Some fish stores will buy back livestock..... if you really want it gone. You could also see if there is a local club with a member who may want to buy your stuff.... or donate it somewhere responsible (kid's school.... crap-shoot). I posted my stuff on the local club section (was a member) on reefcentral.com. Fantastic site BTW - I spent several years of my life there.

[HKr1]

Dont bother with them "Black fin Sharks" at wal-mart. They are not like catfish........... So they say, just bottom feeders(wal-mart folks)

They are really cool looking, but make everybody else CRAZY! Not to mention what they will need when they get bigger. Just goes to show, Research all fish before putting them into your tank. IE: Look them up on line, people at the store are used car sales men

[ninjabrewer]

headshrink, that is/was a gorgeous tank, one like I always wanted, BUT, moving around so much made a tank next to impossible. Had a small one, either 5 or 10 gal, when we lived in AL. Had to go to a school for 2 months, something happened and they all died. Don't remember what it was but my wife told me about it on the phone. So after that, we sold all the stuff. Still think about it sometimes.

nb

[headshrink]

Originally Posted by ninjabrewer

headshrink, that is/was a gorgeous tank, one like I always wanted, BUT, moving around so much made a tank next to impossible. Had a small one, either 5 or 10 gal, when we lived in AL. Had to go to a school for 2 months, something happened and they all died. Don't remember what it was but my wife told me about it on the phone. So after that, we sold all the stuff. Still think about it sometimes.

nb

Thanks.

Salt water tanks are like having children.... takes time, care, pain, love, sometimes you want to scream. Wait.... the analogy breaks down at that point, because fish die a lot easier.... oh wait, but if they are salt water fish you do cry when they die, so maybe it still works. Freshwater fish just get fried or flushed

[darthnip]

lol aint it the truth! seeintg a $50 angel fish bite the dust after 3 days of swimming sideways will certainly bring a tear to the eye (and the wallet). my wife just HAD to have this scooter blennie we saw the other day at the pet shop. of course after the 30 minutes of me trying to explain to her that the tank just isn't right for any more fish due to my neglect, it would be a waste of money. well if anyone is married, they can guess how that went down. 24hrs and $25 later im scooping out a dead scooter and flushing him.

*** the tank is not as taken care of any more because i really want to take it down. im seriously convinced that the one remaining clown fish is a zombie of some sorts, the little feller just wont die. i refuse to kill him or flush him or anything, i think he has earned the right to keep on going as long as he can, but that doesn't mean i still have to put countless hours of labor into the tank any more. so for now, my undead zombie clown fish is still going strong. if anyone wants him, i bet i could just stuff him in an envelope with no water or anything and he'd make it just fine (just remember he will be very hungry for brains when you open the envelope, so please wear your helmet!)

[headshrink]

Yeah, clowns are very resilient. It seems it is usually the ugly fishes that you can't get rid of but it is cool that clowns are so pretty and resiliant... they are the "staple" of the family saltwater tank.

Maroons are known to be a little more of an aggressive variation, but mine was very "chill." A friend would actually be nipped by his, but not mine.

[darthnip]

i hada couple damsels that were downright vicious! they had "run of the yard" more or less until one day when i put in a pair of tomato clowns. the tension was there for a few days between the damsel gang and the tomato gang, but then thing kinda calmed down. then one day i woke up to find 3 shredded damsels in the bottom of the tank and the 2 tomato clowns were strutting around like they were the bees knees. i would have never thought the little tomato clowns had a black belt in fish fu, but it seems they did and they didn't take kindly to the damsels at all. boy i've learned a lot with salt tanks. they are worth every ounce of effort though, thats the best therapy you can get just sitting and watching the tank.

[zartan]

my babies magical golden fish.

[darthnip]

nice looking fish zartan! gold fish usually get a bad rap, but i love the lil boogers. they have more character then most fish in my opinion. even the big ole bubble eyed ones are awesome i think. i'd love to do a koi pond in my yard but im afraid my dogs would eat them. they both love the water, and eating stuff, so i doubt i can pull it off.

[zartan]

Yes I bet they would have a little sushi snack for sure and thanks. I have always loved GF!

[mike_sema]

you guys have some nice fish tanks, here is a few pics of my 185gl knife tank i hand made the stand and the canopy along with the 3d background right now it is still awaiting a gold clown knife,albino clown knife an p afer knife and i have a 6in royal clown knife in it right now

[HKr1]

Mike,
Thats one bad ass looking tank

Iam in trouble if the wife looks in on this thread now.................




Heres a pic of them sharks & split tail gold fish. Split tail "Mini" got to stay... Shark1, Shark2(Ben & Jerry) had to go back to wal-mart.
Kinda blurry pic, oh well.

[mike_sema]

thanks hkr1 my wife likes what i have done so shes happy but i am planing out a hand made tank thats 12ft wide 40 in deep 40 in tall to house my clown knifes when they get this big

[mike_sema]

just in case anyone wanted to know how this project went I used Styrofoam for the back ground and covered it with a mix of concert and sand black sand with some light brown concert paint mixed in it gave it a ice earth tone to the rocks with a little sparkle with the black sand all in all I think it came out great. i have made a few of these types of backgrounds for a few pepole and they have loved them

[darthnip]

wow nice job man! and here i thought i was cool when i painted the outside of back of my tank with blue house paint lol.

[mike_sema]

hey hkr1 that type of catfish needs a good amount of current to feel comfy like a power head put upside down or somthing like that and reading up on the fish befor you get him is a good idea

[mike_sema]

a few pics of some other ones i have done

[HKr1]

Originally Posted by mike_sema

hey hkr1 that type of catfish needs a good amount of current to feel comfy like a power head put upside down or somthing like that and reading up on the fish befor you get him is a good idea

Yeah when we got them home, All they did was stay in the output of the filter. Thats when we knew something wasnt right......... We looked them up on line, it mentioned they will eat others & need salt water when they get bigger. At walmart all they do is stay on the bottom, and look really cool.
Once you get them home, there like crack heads. < making the whole place crazy... LOL!