David R

Width makes a huge difference, my 6' is 75cm wide instead of the usual 60cm, makes it look so much bigger/better. I'd much rather have a shorter wider tank than a long skinny one, eg 6x3x2' over 8x2x2' any day.

Can't comment on the fish, but two times per hour turn over is nowhere near enough filtration for a well stocked cichlid tank.

What is it? Bigger than the arapima or meekong catfish?

Mine is the cover of a brilliant album by one of my all time favourite bands.

Maybe some java fern or something to hide the sawn off top of that piece of drift wood?

The only thing you can do to make it more efficient is to stop it losing heat, either by insulating the tank or insulating the greenhouse. What is the greenhouse made of? Do you get big temperature fluctuations with a small greenhouse over summer?

KP let me know if you're looking to get rid of the red devil!

Avatars? Mine has nothing to do with fresh water, can I still post here?

:oops: :lol: Its all relative, according to the average trademe user my sump is large/enormous/huge/massive....

I've done a more accurate drawing of the above plan on paper, and I'm still stuck on how big to make the chamber for bio media. Its going to be 42cm high and 48cm wide, so its only the length that will vary. 30cm = 60L media 40cm = 80L 50cm = 100L 60cm = 120L Planning on using bioballs for the above water stuff, and either bioballs or noodles for the submerged stuff.

Haha!! Its not quite that big...

Funny how you never here people with big ones saying that........

Go get a free polystyrene cover sheet from somewhere like placemakers and a bag of mortar (under $20) and have a play, you might be surprised. Don't get too carried away with it, you shouldn't really notice a good back ground when you look at the tank as it should just blend in and look natural, less is more etc...

Don't forget what is probably the second most improperly kept fish in the hobby [behind goldfish]; CLOWN LOACHES!! If I get a few more L204, strike it lucky and get a male and female, and they successfully breed and raise fry in the 1400L community tank, then you're welcome to have a go at trying to catch them (without destroying the tank!).

Oops! Plants attached to wood will work with some cichlids, but the uaru will actually nibble on the driftwood! Anything green doesn't stand a chance...

Frazer thats why my tanks are usually plantless...

Severums starting to play with the plants??

Mk2 design, replaces the baffles and separate bioball chamber with one large wet/dry chamber fed by a big drip tray: http://s88.photobucket.com/albums/k186/ ... pplan2.jpg Drilling the tray to get the flow rate right would be a little tricky but not impossible, just a matter of trial and error.

Adodge I don't really want to put anything in with the heaters as I'll need some space for the water to drain through when the pumps shut off. Spoon, sump is going in the garage behind the tank, going to run the pipes through a hole in the wall, and will eventually do the same for the 6' next to it and build a new stand for it so they are the same height. http://s88.photobucket.com/albums/k186/ ... =sump1.jpg

Did this today, looking for suggestions... http://s88.photobucket.com/albums/k186/ ... plan-1.jpg I like the idea of having both submerged and exposed media, and this is about the only way to do it with the low height of the tank. It will also also keep the head down for the return pump, it should be less than 90cm. The filter wool will be in an draw that can slide out to make it easy to get to for cleaning, and when the draw is out it will leave a gap to get to the foam, which hopefully won't need cleaning so often. I'm unsure about how big to make the compartments for the media. The tank is about 370g/1400L, but isn't going to be overstocked with huge monsters (thread about stocking etc here). I was thinking on making the chamber for the bioballs is 40cm tall, 30cm long and 48cm wide, about 57 litres. As for the submerged media (noodles, pumice of bioballs?) I'm not sure on how much I'll need. Obviously more is better, but only to a point. The drip system is a long-term project and won't be set up now, but I'm future-proofing the sump by adding a drain for when it is up and running. For the time being, I've worked out that the water level will be about 25cm with the pump running, which leaves another 25cm for water to drain from the tank when the pump is switched off. 25cm height gives ~70L, which is about 3cm depth in the tank, so that should be plenty, I'm not expecting more than about 1cm to drain back from the tank. So, suggestions? feedback? Scrap it and start again?

Poop is a problem with some big plecos, but my ~12cm royal makes way more "sawdust" from rasping at the wood than poo! Clogs the filter wool up really fast, I'd hate to think whats going to happen when he's 30cm, I probably won't have any wood left! The other day I was looking at a German guys website who sets up professional aquariums, and had done many several-thousand-litre planted tanks, one with a big school of red bellied piranhas! Was an amazing site, I can't remember where I found the link though.

Would have to have gone DIY if I was going bigger, seriously considered it too, the cost of thicker glass for a longer/wider tank would have been massive. One day I'll do a massive concrete block tank, but for the time being we're not planning on being in this house for more than 10 years at the most, so didn't want to do anything quite so permanent. A few more pics, too big to post here so you'll have to click the link. :roll: 810L http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... 1243068930 http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... 1242029444 630L http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... 1243068930 looks empty, must have been an old photo!

Mine or aquaplod? Mine is 2400 long, 977 wide and 630 high, so a fraction shorter and wider than an 8x3x2. And Frazer the ugly guy was pretty much over it after getting a days notice that the tank was ready a week earlier and having to build a stand, move a 3' and 4' tank out of the way, and sort out delivery etc in under 24 hours!

Going to be an unauthentic South American tank, all SA fish, but not true to any particular biotope. Going to be stocked with earth eaters, uaru, severums, angels, whiptails and other small-medium plecos. Will be posting updates here as things progress.

There's not much else they could be really. Beautiful little fish, fingers crossed on big wednesday, would make an excellent addition to my South American tank! Might just have to settle for a couple more L204 though...