Lets have some fun here and dream....

[brewmaster15]

Hi all,
I was thinking I'd start a thread on a hypothetical tank...Big tank...I have a absolutely rock solid steel rack system here that can hold a mega tank...

Its about 9 feet long X 2.6 feet wide and made from heavy duty galvanized steel... I've put at least 300 gals in smaller tanks on it already and it doesn't budge....

Someday.... approx 30 seconds after I win lotto:)... I'd like to put a tank there between 300 and 500 gals..

What would you recommend for filtration? How about lighting? If this was your tank...what would you do with it?:)


-al

[Ryan]

I have no idea how I'd filter it or light it, but I would turn it into a South American biotope with Uaru, mouth-brooding severums, wild discus, altums, and other odds and ends. I think everything I just listed comes from the Orinoco. You know, 500 gallons seems like a lot until you start adding large cichlids.

It would have a sand substrate with driftwood and large flat stones on the bottom for Apistos or rams to spawn on. I wouldn't plant it because Uaru would devour them.

If we're really dreaming big, I think it would be fun to build a biotope tank like I saw at the Georgia Aquarium last year. It was about 1/3 full of water (probably thousands of gallons) and housed several large Pacu, cichlids, and arrowana. The top 2/3 was canopy with trees and plants from the rain forest.

[pcsb23]

okay, now this is what I would call fun :D

I would have a sump as filtration, probaly with many return points so there would be no significant current. The sump would be used to increase the water volume and to hide all the gubbins that normally go in a tank (heaters etc..).

I would have sand on the floor of the tank and I would have a maze of roots into the tank. If height is fairly unrestricted then I would have some serious E. Bleheri or similar at one end grwoing out of the water. Some limnobium laevigatum (Amazon frogbit) floating on the surface would finish off the planting.

As for lights they would be a series of pendant halides on a sequenced timer to give the effect of sunrise, midday, and sunset. But not too powerful though.

For fish I would have a large shoal of cards, some sterbais and maybe a few BN's. Oh and around 25 or so wild blues....

one can only dream :D

[Ryan]

Paul,

Re: the filtration and lighting... if I win the lottery, I am flying you over here to purchase and install all of that for me because I am clueless, but it sounds amazing :D

[Moon]

I know someone who has a 500g tank and he breeds fresh water sting rays in it. He has a large trickle filter with boiballs in it.

[alron2]

I like the idea. Where are we going to place the tank? Surely not in the basement. Now comes the question "Will my house framing hold up with a 5000 pound tank in it?" Probable not, unless we install some super beams. Now we need more $. Better win a big lotto, we going to need a bucket of $.
Ron

[brewmaster15]

I like the idea. Where are we going to place the tank? Surely not in the basement. Now comes the question "Will my house framing hold up with a 5000 pound tank in it?" Probable not, unless we install some super beams. Now we need more $. Better win a big lotto, we going to need a bucket of $.
Ron
LOL.....Ron, think positive here:) Okay... in my case the tank will be in the basement as thats my fishroom domain...I have a 125 and 75 in the livingrm and my wife definetly won't go for more water there!..

So...basement on concrete is the tanks location....

some pics of this hypothetical tanks factual stand.... Its actually capable of a 125 gal on the bottom or one heck of a sump!;)

[Dying for Discus]

Oh oh let me have a go at this...I've never had a megatank, sump or anything TOO complicated. But if I got one I would get...

The tank would be a 500g Lucite-glass. A massive sump...industrial strength water pump for the return. Multiple return with those nifty in-line heaters. I'd also have a massive UV sterilizer.

Sandy bottom- preferably natural colored. A HUGE piece of root imported from South America (the real thing) with maze work.

About 200-300 neons/cardinals. 30-40 Heckel and Green discus.

Metal halide lighting. Just in case I ever wanted to go saltwater with the beast. :D

Cheerio :angel:

[Kathy Poe]

We have a customer that is setting up his 600 gal. tank and wants to put 40-50 of our discus in there.. It would still probably look empty. Wow, I cant imagine!! How awesome is that. He is still cycling. Cant wait to meet him and see his tank.

Kathy,
Inland Empire Discus

[Sam Chicklets]

If I won the lotto I would sell the dump I live in move out of town and set up a greenhouse for fish, quit my 12 hour a day job and devote my time to family and pets.

[BSW]

Well, take a look at some of these :D
http://www.pbase.com/plantella/xxlarge_tank
That would be so mind boggling, I'd have to plan for a while
B

[airbus123]

LOL.....Ron, think positive here:) Okay... in my case the tank will be in the basement as thats my fishroom domain...I have a 125 and 75 in the livingrm and my wife definetly won't go for more water there!..

So...basement on concrete is the tanks location....

some pics of this hypothetical tanks factual stand.... Its actually capable of a 125 gal on the bottom or one heck of a sump!;)

hi brew,

may i ask how did u partition your tanks in the last photo attached? i noticed the 3 ft tank is partitioned...

thanks!

cheers,

[brewmaster15]

Hi,
None of the tanks in my pic are partitioned...just look like it... the top row was 29 gal breeders layed out next to each other ( currently theres 2 each 75 gals there) and the bottom is 2 each 75 gals .:) They are painted on the sides or have a blue insulation board between them .

B- those tanks are amazing....If I win Lotto, maybe I'll fly Oliver-knott out here!:)

-al

[aquagal]

Al--

I know this is a "dreamin" thread, but I also had a question about the set up you pictured...do you have a central system or do you do all your WC manually? I'm trying to convince my husband to build a rack for me so I can somehow automate water changes and I don't know where to start...

Thanks.

Sherry

[neonmkr]

OK, if I won the lottery, I'd have a HUGE SW aquarium called the ocean, because I'd be living in the Virgin Islands. But if I would be able to set up a 500+ tank, it would be built in the wall, have under the tank plumbing, a sand substrate, massive driftwood, huge swords & jungle val. I'd probably stock it with as many discus, corys, bn plecos, & cardinals that it could hold.

[kaceyo]

First, since we're thinking BIG, I'd install a weir design into it to direct flow, a trickle tower and set it up as a sump.:)
But seriously, I've always wanted to do a paladarium with assorted fish, amphibiens and plants. Build a few tiers with rocks, gravel and sand with small waterfalls feeding small pools of water as it circulates from the top pool to the main tank water, which would take up the bottom 1/3 of the tank, then returned to the top pool again.
I'd like to use the above water construct as the filter media allowing enough water to spill out of the pools to trickle down through the gravel and sand to provide all the bio filtration so that it's self sustained as much as possible.
There would of course be a million details to work out with dividing the tank water from plant soil, channeling the water circulation, Choosing compatible tankmates, plants and amphibiens etc.
MH lighting would probably be the way to go with simulated sunrise and sunset.
What fun you could have building it. Of course I'd have to buy a new house that it would fit in, but like I said, details!!!

Kacey

[Tad]

Al,
Lets see your dream become a reality :D

I would envision something like one of "Takashi Amano's" aquascapes


Tad

[Dkarc@Aol.com]

Hrmmm....well for starters I would have MH lighting all around. Filtration...it would have to be a floating bead filter, along with an MBBR. I would have all of my parameters automatically monitored and controlled (O2, pH, temp, flow, ORP, etc). To make it easy on maintenance I would use artificial decorations....giant mangrove roots coming from top to bottom, misc roots and I would have a sand bottom with some nice big rocks. A few plants here or there, nothing too excessive. Water changes would be done automatically via a setup of PLC controls. For fish, a shoal of tetras, clown loaches, exotic plecos and a few other misc type fish. And of course a bunch of discus, lol.

-Ryan

[brewmaster15]

Hey Ryan,

Just for kicks someday you'll have to help me price out that system for a 450-500 gal tank.:)

Tad,
Someday I will my friend:):)

Sherry,

I know this is a "dreamin" thread, but I also had a question about the set up you pictured...do you have a central system or do you do all your WC manually? I'm trying to convince my husband to build a rack for me so I can somehow automate water changes and I don't know where to start...

I'm about as backwards and old fashioned a hobbyist as they come..:bandana:. Sponges and aquaclears..no plumbing or automation... About the only thing thats automated here is my biological clock which wakes me up 3-4 am so I can take care of the fishes a few hours in the am.:)


I've dreamn't of it...but something always comes up.... someday I'll change that...I have plans for a fishroom that will be automated and high tech....but again...waiting on that Lottery ticket.

-al

[sophie68]

Okay, since we are talking BIG and DREAMS here, I have always wanted to have an OTTER!
I know, sorry, it does not exactly fit in with the fish category.....I would love to be able to have an otter at home.....Silly, isn't it????? It's an old childhood dream of mine. I guess I would need a HUGE reservoir for my otter. You will think I am crazy...I might be....!!!!;););) If the otter is not feasible, then a desert fox (not sure what the technical term is, I am just translating from French) would also work!!!!!

Sophie

[brewmaster15]

Lol! Actually I think having the otter would be cool and could be done...I'd just need to build an outdoor penn as well and tunnel into the house:)

But I think The discus would not be too happy having an otter in the same room... I can imagine my response when my prize pair is reduced to a fish head and bone or two.:D:D:D:D

-al

[digthemlows]

I would love to have a huge tank......I'd go sump and hard plumb it to my regular water with an RO in between for consistency......water changes with a flip of a switch would be sooooo nice. I really like Heiko's biotype with such a huge school of wilds!

http://www.aquapress-bleher.com/images/stories/exhibition/blehersbiotops/interzoo2008/biotope2_cuipeua/biotope2-aquarium.jpg

[Dkarc@Aol.com]

Hey Ryan,

Just for kicks someday you'll have to help me price out that system for a 450-500 gal tank.:)

Tad,
Someday I will my friend:):)

Sherry,


I'm about as backwards and old fashioned a hobbyist as they come..:bandana:. Sponges and aquaclears..no plumbing or automation... About the only thing thats automated here is my biological clock which wakes me up 3-4 am so I can take care of the fishes a few hours in the am.:)


I've dreamn't of it...but something always comes up.... someday I'll change that...I have plans for a fishroom that will be automated and high tech....but again...waiting on that Lottery ticket.

-al

No problem Al....that system isnt all that difficult to make. Cost is another issue.....

-Ryan

[tedsdiscus]

Guys and gals,

Please, STOP IT ! STOP IT! STOP IT! How are some of us supposed to sleep tonight? When you close your eyes, and all you can think of is fish, fish, fish?

But since we are " dreaming " and since all of us are gonna hit that lotto sooner or later, the back of my tank will actually be the wall separating the house from the back yard. And the rest of the wall is actually made of glass. Looking at the top of the tank, you will see an elaborate waterfall that works as the whole wet/dry filtration system. The lighting will, for the most part, be all natural from mother nature herself. the tank background is actually the views of the mountains. Oh and by the way, the tank itself has grown, it's now 5ooo gallons and holds about 500 of all my favorite strains of discus. It's actually gonna be the first tank i the world that's big enough for my favorite fish to spawn in without having their eggs and babies eaten by others.

OK, sorry, but you guys started it.

Ted

[alron2]

Ted,
That is a big tank!!! Best I can tell it will be approx. 28 feet by 6 feet by 4 feet.
Yep I like it. Order one for me also.
Ron

[aquagal]

Sherry,
I'm about as backwards and old fashioned a hobbyist as they come..:bandana:. Sponges and aquaclears..no plumbing or automation...

Al--I can't believe it! That's a lot of water changing...I'm trying to convince my husband to build me a rack of some sort. I have absolutely no idea how to automate everything but would love to at least figure out how to have an automated water refill set up (that's my dream right now...I'll work up to something bigger down the road).

Sherry

[brewmaster15]

Hi Sherry,
Yep it is ...thats why my laptop is in the fishroom.. if I am online here...Theres a tank having its water changed... Its a lot of work...but I actually don't mind the maintenance aspect of this hobby...getting in there close with the fish is a great way to be sure I spot an issue before its major.... not that I wouldn't want to free up some time for another hobby:)

When you are ready to build that rack and system... theres a lot of people here that are really good at the tech things....just ask for help and I am sure some will come thru for you.... I few have really gone thru the the trouble of documenting what they have done and how to do it...

best of luck!

-al

[IAMTHOMAS]

If I had time and money I would get a HUGE heavily planted fish tank with lots of Discus and just watch them swim, It will be a dream..........

[Graham]

The 1st big tank I ever saw and still dream about was this one. It's owned By Rick Marot in Fl and it's in the livingroom........25' long 4' deep and 3' wide..just over 2200 gallons with a 1000 gallon reserve below it.

One sheet of glass and the rest is cinderblock

It was filtered with modified pool filters and TT's located outside.

With tanks this size ...a biotope all the way

http://www.fototime.com/375ACB5B6C0EB4F/standard.jpg

[dandestroy]

One of the best I've seen on the web

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/totm/index.php

[dandestroy]

unless we are really talking about dreaming! (http://gallery.simplydiscus.com/showphoto.php?photo=121)

[Graham]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ that's all it takes:D

[GrillMaster]

Well since we are talking about hitting the lottery...My fishroom, or basement in the new house I would buy, would have a large centralized sump and everything would be automated. The sump would be about the size of Jacks water changing barrel with all the goodies installed right in the sump. :D :D :D

Now the breeding tanks I would set up would have a seperate RO trickle sump with everything also being automated. ;) :D