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If I had a 220 Gallon Aquarium, I would stock....

On my way to getting my dream aquarium...

122K views 1K replies 53 participants last post by  djembekah 
#1 ·
We have a 20, 35, and 2 x 55 gallon tanks. Today we took the plunge and put a 6 foot, 125 gallon tank with stand on layaway. It will be our last tank.



It'll take a couple of months for me to pay off the tank, stand, heaters, filter, etc which gives me plenty of time to figure out what kind of substrate I want, whether or not I am finally going to try live plants, and what kind of fish to keep. Actually, i'm not even sure what kind of filter to get yet.

Our current tanks are very colorful and artificial looking (think Vegas, tacky but entertaining) as you can see in these pictures:





I'm thinking I would like the new tank to look more natural. We're going to use it as a room divider in our basement so it will be visible from both sides of the tank, we won't be using a background. So far I'm leaning toward some Balas, Barbs, and Loaches, if the tank is big enough.

Can't wait to get the sucker home and set up! Going to be a long couple of months. My 3 year wedding anniversary is July 18 and I'm hoping to have it then, as this is my anniversary gift.
 
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#361 ·
The seal is even shot on the molding on one of the top corners on the 10 gallon, so condensation will probably drip down once the tank is up and running. Probably needs to be resealed.

I am NEVER buying used tanks again. Every time it's a headache.

Boxer, thank goodness your big tank was good and as described.
 
#363 ·
So I think tomorrow I might buy a 20 gallon kit at Big Al's, depending on what it costs.

My 35 has the Tetra Whisper 45 filter and the Aquaclear 70, because it used to house 2 dirty goldfish. Now it is home to a single Red Tailed Shark, so it doesn't need all that filtration.

I'm wondering, can I just take the Whisper 45 and put it on my new 20? Will it be cycled then?
 
#369 ·
One of the 5.5s looks brand new, as does the filter and the other accessories that came with it. The heater looked new too, but it was the one under recall.

I put the other two down in the basement. I'll reseal the lid of the 10 gallon in the near future when I have nothing better to do. I think the other 5.5 is fine, just needs a good cleaning.

I kept the nice 5.5 gallon in the kitchen. Next time i'm at the LFS, probably Monday, I'll grab some substrate, filter media and a heater.

Charlie says he wants an Orange fish. He always says Orange. He knows that tank is his and is impatient to put water in it. I would have grabbed all the stuff today, but I was planning on getting the 20 and the 5.5 was the furthest thing from my mind.

So I guess you cycle a Betta tank by sticking a Betta in it? Stupid Bettas.

I did 4 partial water changes on my Silver Dollar tank, between Thursday Oct 25 and Fri Nov 2 (yesterday). Thursday, Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday, because my nitrates had skyrocketed to 80 ppm. They're back to normal now. Don't know what caused them to jump like that.
 
#371 ·
If I put my Aquaclear 70 from my established tank on the 220, will it speed up the cycling? Or is it too small to make a difference on that big tank?

I am getting impatient. ;)





He's camera shy, but I finally got a decent video. I need to get a lighter background, he blends in too much against the dark backdrop.

I've got two roasts in the oven, starting to smell good. Should be ready just as my wife gets out of bed.
 
#373 ·
Does your wife work the night shift?We now have Discus in our Bala tank at work.I want to start a 75 with them.
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Yeah, she usually works midnight to 8 am. Sometimes 4pm to midnight.

Discus are beautiful. Shame they're so expensive. Can they live with balas long term, or will the active balas stress them out?
 
#379 ·
Pete and Repeat were in a boat. Pete fell out. Who was left? LOL, I think your phone is playing tricks on you Bluydgrl.

Well, off the the LFS again this morning. Going to get the stuff I need for my son to set up his big 5.5 Gallon tank. He is excited. He wants water in it NOW, lol.

If they still have the puffers (they had them on hold for me, but I took them off hold yesterday because I thought I was ditching the idea) I may break down today and buy a 10 gallon aquarium kit. :(

Just waiting for my wife to get home from work, and we're out of here. They're going to get sick of seeing us at that store.
 
#383 ·
I'm feeling really bad now about my Puffers.I have 4 in a 5 gallon Nano tank.They are so small and don't really do much.My Mngr said it was fine.Now I'm second guessing it.Your getting a 10 gallon for yours?
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Yeah, I got a 10 gallon and I think I'm going to put in 5. Prob is they are hard to sex and it would be better if I could get 1 male and 4 females to lessen aggression.
 
#382 ·
My point card fell apart ages ago, but the guy at the store knows my phone number off by heart. When I call they answer "Hi Matt"

MY 220 IS CYCLED!

Woo hoo!

And the nitrates in my Silver Dollar tank are back to being 5 ppm, like usual.

The test tubes for the 220 and the 55 looked identical. She asked me if I accidentally took water from the same tank twice, lol.

I already put the Balas downstairs in the big tank!
I stressed the poor bastards out catching them. I suck at it. Hopefully they're ok.

I got a 10 gallon kit for the dwarf puffers today, so now all I have to do this afternoon is set up the 10 gallon, set up the kid's 5.5 gallon, and make a video of the 220.

I bought plants for the 10 gallon. I'm going to use water, filter media from an establish tank. Plus gravel in a nylon from an established tank. Also got some bacteria in a bottle for it.
 
#385 ·
So I got the 10 gallon set up. As usual I was a walking disaster. I took water out of my 35 for the 10. I was siphoning into a bucket and didn't realize the hose came out of the bucket. I was flooding the kitchen and I didn't even notice. My kid noticed, thank God. Before it got out of hand.

Also, slipped getting on the stool and spilled water all over the counter.

Also knocked over an open can of 7Up on the counter.

Oh my. Typical.

Anyway, it's set up. I got 4 live plants in there. That's 3 planted tanks I have now. The water in the tanl was from an established tank. Some people say it doesn't help, some say it does, I figured I might as well. The sponge in the Aquaclear 20 I'm using is a chunk I cut off the established Aquaclear 70 sponge. I also stuck the rest of the sponge in the tank, figured it couldn't hurt. I also put a nylon of substrate from my Silver Dollar tank. I'm also going to add a bottle of live bacteria.

So hopefully I can add dwarf puffers in the next day or two.

I put a Betta log (I think that's what it is) in there because it said the more ways you separate dwarf puffers the better. That's also why I got 4 plants.

Oh, I put one of those ammonia remover packs in the Aquaclear too, to be safe. Dwarf puffers need good water.



 
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