Building My 50,000 Gallon Monster Mega Tank

[arapaimag]

Remember you are only restricted by the size of your dream.
and I dream MEGA

GO THE EXTRA MILE ..................IT'S NEVER CROWDED

I built my mega and mini mega tanks in the 1994 to 1997 period.

My mega tank: I built the tank as an addition to the home and then joined it by putting doors through the basement and upstairs through the bedroom. You can see the excavator removing the soil on the first week of construction. You can see the doors cut through my walls in the 3rd picture.

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The lower section has my tank and the upper section I keep my tropical birds. I had to do it on a budget so it is not fancy like a public Aquarium. It took me 9 years to save the money and 1 year from start to water in the tank. It is now in its 11th year with water. In the picture below you can see Mike Mosely and my brother Bob installing the base plates for the angle iron, which were cemented (lower 4 feet) and formed the frame for the glass to be inserted. I was restricted in it being a beautiful landscaped tank because of my injuries I am physically very limited and could not do much in its construction since I am paralyzed from the upper chest down.

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I honestly only expected it to hold water for about 10 years, so I am doing better than expected. My large tank is L shaped. The long part of the L is 36 feet, the short part of the L is 27 feet. The front to back of the long part of the L is 18 feet, the front to back of the short part of the L is 15 feet. The tank water is 9 feet deep. Notice in the picture above that I built a 4 foot high wall dividing the tank somewhat. The wall serves several purposes: 1. It and the L shape reduce aggression by stopping eye contact at times among predatory fish. 2. It helps brace the tank 3. It allows me to drain one side or the ther and just move fish into the side with the water in case I need to make repairs. The Aquarium holds a little over 50,000 US gallons. The floor area of the aquarium is 800 square feet. I only have glass on the top 5 feet of the tank and have a floor at that level so I can feed the fish etc.. from my wheelchair. In this tank I keep many small cichlids, barbs and characins. A viewing glass area was put into the the ceiling of the aquarium to admire the fish from above. As well 11 skylights were put into the roof of the bird room above so that beams of sunlight could come into the tank at different angles during the day. As well the glass panel was hinged allowing easy physical access to the aquarium to replace bulbs etc. via a rubber dinghy.

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In the picture on the below you can see Dominic Zanelli getting into the dinghy. TWO problems arose from this 1. The glass panel 6x2 feet was too difficult too keep clean. 2. Some of the fish bit the dinghy causing it too leak. Dominic got his 6'3" 225 lb frame out of the tank fast !!!! SOLUTION: 1. remove the glass panel access door with a solid one 2. Buy a British military dinghy made of material the fish have not punctured in the last 10 years (So far).

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I put in two small windows above the water line to get some natural light. One facing south the other north to get some natural light at those times. Jan Klazynski can be seen siliconing the window to the concrete. The concrete I had sand blasted to remove imperfections and get a very smooth finish, then epoxyed and two coats of a siliconed water proof paint. PROBLEM: The second coat never adhered to the first properly causing the second coat to peel off over the years. Unsightly but the tank does not leak (YET!).

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My daughter Nikki and her husband Richard are putting the Lava Rock into the tank.. The lava Rock would 1. create hiding spots for the many small fish (under 12") in the tank to avoid the serious predators and give their babies a place of refuge. 2. Create a natural filter for the aquarium.

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This was a good time to put the large pieces of driftwood in as well. Also the plumbing was installed Sean Wilson and Duncan Worthington. I had placed 4 swimming pool drains into the bottom of the aquarium and 1 swimming pool skimmer at the 9 foot water level. The driftwood had been soaked in my outside ponds for 3 to 5 years in preparation.

Next the glass had to be put in place by John Petersen his son and my brother Bob. The panels are 5x3 and 1" thick. GE1200 silicone was used.

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My friend Dominic is installing 6 sodium lights and 12 double fluorescent fixtures. I also installed 10 sets of halogen 500 watt fixtures but removed them over the first year because of short bulb life. Notice the 2nd and 3rd pictures below. I have filled one side of the Aquarium to make sure there is no leakage at the 4 foot safety wall. IT WORKS !

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The pictures below show the filling up process. It takes 7 days to fill. The Aquarium was filled and drained over 3 month period 5 times to insure any toxins were flushed out.

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The green tinge to the water disappeared over the first year.

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At this time I am having problems with my steel above the water line rusting. I built 10 access doors to feed the fish etc. and they are rusting also. I had problems with the floor above the tank after the first year because the floor materials absorbed water and weakened. I then had to replace the floor. I heat my tank with a house oil fired hot water tank. I have used 2 swimming pool heaters before this. But I had many problems 1. the first one ran great for 5 years but it had been installed improperly by the seller and caused a fire. The second one was far too big and it started leaking in the boiler after 1 and a half years. I use a 600 lb sand filter on the mega tank, the natural lava rock filtration, I don't over feed and I do about 10,000 gallon water changes every week.

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Mae West once said "Too much of a good thing is wonderful"


Please note that none of this article or pictures can be reproduced or used in any article or story without my verbal and written permission.

[acidburn470]

That is the coolest thing I have ever seen but it must cost you a fortune

[Mourinho18]

:bling:

I bow to you man.

[repair]

I USED to think I had a problem but now I know who has a problem and it's not me :ROFL:

I bow to your love of fish. I will show this to my wife and she will be scared that I want one.... I do want one.

[zennzzo]

Very nice indeed...
I'm not too sure I could even afford the water chganges... :cry:

[jenBLKAROWANA]

:drool: :WHOA: :drool: :WHOA: :drool: :WHOA: :drool:

I am on my knees.....I bow to thee oh fish God...lol....I am utterly amazed!

Jen ;)

[Vitaliy]

That looks so damn awesome!

[unknownuza13]

:WHOA: I cannot believe my eyes... That is awesome man beyond impressive.. I bet all the members would love to see more pictures of the fish inside the tanks..

[The TRUST]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I must have tanks like those!!!!!

[The TRUST]

I just read through your site. :eek:

You are THE LEGEND!!!! I've heard of you for years and never found out who you were.

OMG! I bow down to thee!!!!!!

:clap :clap :clap :clap

[wayne the pain]

Simply amazing :drool:

[nick]

wow is right


and my hats off to you

its nice to have a dream fulfilled correct?

thanks for showing us
nick<3 lol

[rayman45]

EAST SIDE

[Fish_are_fishfood]

EAST SIDE
HECK YEAH, this blows west side out of the water, lol

OMG, that is gigantic!!!! Ha, what do all your neighbors think about it, you must have been the talk of the town.

[redtailfool]

Speechless. I would say that if i had done half of this project, then i wouldve reached the setup of my dreams . But then again , you said to not limit yourself. .. so i wont.

Congrats on the drool-worthy, ultimate monster fish tank setup. Totally Peerless. :clap

[arapaimag]

Friends and family helped so the cost was reduced

[arapaimag]

HECK YEAH, this blows west side out of the water, lol

OMG, that is gigantic!!!! Ha, what do all your neighbors think about it, you must have been the talk of the town.


In live in the country so my most of my neighbours don't know..........

[neoprodigy]

Thanks again Mike! Your setup is awsome..

[kentobizmol]

u know what i apologize to you arapaimg.
so what you like toucans too?
i like your toco toucan avatar, one of my toucan can do a backflip!

[lizardfishman]

amazing tank. i was speechless when i saw those pics

[Roan Art]

arapaimag,

That is a totally awesome tank! I was wondering what part of Canada are you located? Not a full member as yet, so I don't know if it's in your profile or nay.

Tanks,
Roan

[coolkeith]

awesome tank man.
I can't wait to build my dream tank.

more pics please.

[fishyboi]

DAMN, MUST OF COST A FORTUNE

[Gamefishin]

Wow if you really wanted to you can make your house a tourist attraction. I'd come check it out if I was around you neck of the woods.

[Raskolnikov]

That is absolutely amazing on the order of sheer size, and then you went and stocked it with some awesome fish as well. :headbang2 Thanks so much for sharing the photos.

[contender]

wow..


arapaimaig, you have a site about the project?

URL ????

[RockyGoldy]

I had a mild cadiac arrest when i saw those pics.....

now i must admit...all my monster tanks are guppy tanks now....

:cry:

[lionelfishes]

Hey I'm in Canada too!

Arapaimag, pls pm me if it's alright with you.
I would really love to visit you and your amazing tank when uni ends.

Cheers!

[arapaimag]

I like Toucans and keep 5 species. I also have hornbills and aracaras. What species of toucans do you keep?

[arapaimag]

I live in Ontario

[Ash]

That is the coolest tank I have ever seen. That is awsome. Its like having your own aquarium attraction!

[ballsmcgee1234]

absolutely beautiful, i'm jealous...

[DanDanUK]

YOU ARE A GOD !!!!

[mAri]

:hypnotize that is amazing :jaw-dropp

[lionelfishes]

Ah Ontario, other side of Canada...but I'll be making a trip there early next year.

[traumatic]

that has to be a dream come true. I couldnt' dream of anything even 1/8 the size of that.

what species of piranha do you have? Have you learned much from watching them? I'm quite interested in that in particular, I keep piranha myself and enjoy any info I can get.

[Arapaimaman]

Awesome Tank !

Last Friday I sign a contract for a 11,700gal.tank.Thats about 1/4 the size of yours.I also had heard about your tank.God Bless you were able
to get your tank of your dream.Once you get addicted to Arapaimas,You can only dreaam of big tanks!

Good luck & God Bless

[arapaimag]

I saw your plan was to to get pemas again. Good luck with them. I know you've had them before so I'm sure you will do well. Zoodiver is a great source of information on any of the large fish and especially pemas.

Please give us pics when you get your new tank up.

[arapaimag]

that has to be a dream come true. I couldnt' dream of anything even 1/8 the size of that.

what species of piranha do you have? Have you learned much from watching them? I'm quite interested in that in particular, I keep piranha myself and enjoy any info I can get.

Welcome to Monsters. I have 8 species all fairly common. The oldest is 19 years old.

They are all kept in their own tank 50 to 100g. A good resource for piranhas is Oliver Lucanus at Below Water in Montreal.

[arapaimag]

I just read through your site. :eek:

You are THE LEGEND!!!! I've heard of you for years and never found out who you were.

OMG! I bow down to thee!!!!!!

:clap :clap :clap :clap

Trust, its a pleasure to be a member of this site that you and Li and friends have built. It is one of the few places people with large fish can converse and I thank you for creating it.

It will prompt many hobbyists with large fish to provide the larger habitats required to raise/keep them in.

I am most impressed by the many friendly and knowledgeable members

[softturtle]

You just made my day. Awsome setup!

[PhullTank57]

I am speechless?!!... totally in awe?!! :jaw:

Arapaimag, you have been an inspiration to us all! Thank you very much for sharing this with us! Hats off to you, my friend! You definitely get my vote, for "MFK legends, Hall of FAME!" :clap

[Cimmel1]

Hi Mike, I live in the Niagara area and around here you are a legend. I've heard your name mentioned at almost every store in the area. Even when I cross the boarder to shop for fish I'm asked if I know you (" Your from Canada? You must know Mike then right?"). The pictures of your tank are astounding. I could only dream of keeping tanks as large as yours.
You are the KING.... I bow to thee!

Sincerely
Chuck

[moneygetter1]

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: It's true, the only limitations are imagination & capital!! I applaud you & your team 4 a spectacular project. I might never reach those heights but it's nice 2 know what the 'Top of the Mountain' looks like!!!
Peace, MONEY

[joel]

:clap that is an awesome sight :clap

[shekes]

This is nuts!!

Where is that? What are you going to do when it starts falling apart? Build a bigger one for your growouts?

[Xite]

OMG thats my dreamtank, how much did it cost?:O:O:O:O

[snogard]

:eek: my jaw is still on the floor. thanks for sharing, im still in awe!! :D pls give us an update, will never tire of this.

[Mourinho18]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh Canada. My home and native land. :D


Your mini monster tank is awesome too. 15,000 gallons is :WHOA:

[tenzokenny]

thats a nice big fish tank

[Raven]

Oh my... what a tank....

[Clay]

Mike! Great to see you aboard! I haven't seen you at the last few ACA's, but I hope that offer to visit is still open. I hope to see you at the next ACA in 06. I have been wondering how you're doing. Still doing the Spitfires thing? I'll shoot you an email and catch up a bit.

[tigerfangs]

WWWWHHHHOOOOAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!! OK, compared to that, I have a goldfish bowl. :WHOA: I can't even say that someday I'll own something like that. That is the king of monster tanks!!!!

[RockyGoldy]

This tank should be in public display...

[xrtg]

This tank should be in public display...

yeah....awsome awsome tank. :)

wonder if we could have one during our livetime in sg where land cost is expensive.

[arapaimag]

Mike! Great to see you aboard! I haven't seen you at the last few ACA's, but I hope that offer to visit is still open. I hope to see you at the next ACA in 06. I have been wondering how you're doing. Still doing the Spitfires thing? I'll shoot you an email and catch up a bit.

Great to hear from you

Torn rotators in both shoulders. Still Can't play ball. My guys won the Canadian Championship. A few of my guys were on the national team that took gold in Athens. I hope to be at the ACA in Chicago. What big preds do you have now?

[arapaimag]

yeah....awsome awsome tank. :)

wonder if we could have one during our livetime in sg where land cost is expensive.


Thanks for the kind words

Move to Canada we have lots of land and cheap

[arapaimag]

Mike, every year at the ACA you'd tell me about the tank, and I'd be dying to see pictures. Thanks for sharing them with all of us, and welcome to MFK!
Josh Smick


Great to here from you Josh. I hope you enjoyed the pics

Did you make the ACA in Texas?

[armac]

So this is the guy Mojo talks about?:grinyes:

[thamunsta]

HOLY CRAP i live in ontario canada where exactly do u live because ontario is friggin huge

[Steve_89]

Oh my....

MONSTER to the max!

[neoprodigy]

So this is the guy Mojo talks about?:grinyes:
yes... the Legend!!!!

[arapaimag]

HOLY CRAP i live in ontario canada where exactly do u live because ontario is friggin huge


I live 5 hours west of Toronto (by roller skates)

[DiXoN]

that is a truly amazing monster tank.
thanks for sharing

[arapaimag]

that is a truly amazing monster tank.
thanks for sharing

Thanks for the post and I hope you enjoyed the pictures.

There are many people with large tanks out there. I hesitated to show the pics before on a wide basis just like they don't because I did not want to look like I was showing off. I've done it now not to brag or show off but because I hope it will encourage others to build large tanks for their fish.

John PTC :thumbsup: shows how to build an excellent 2400 gallon aquarium for his arapaima gigas in another article. His filtration and monitoring system is in a class of its own. This website also has some very experienced hobbyists like matt the Zoodiver :thumbsup: who shares his knowledge gained from working at public zoos and aquariums to all levels of enthusiasts.

What Monsters do you keep?

[arapaimag]

HOLY CRAP i live in ontario canada where exactly do u live because ontario is friggin huge


Where do you live in Ontario?

What monsters do you keep?

[thamunsta]

i live near peterbourough 2 hrs north of toronto the small town of lindsay my only monsters (i use the word sparingly) are piranhas 4 red bellys and a manueli i also have a flowerhorn the rest arent really monsters there small and peaceful

[dimebag]

Tnx for sharing us ur MONSTER TANK! How i wish i could have tank like that

[Gr8KarmaSF]

It brightens my day to see that somebody can actually accomplish one of their dream tanks. Very motivating and one of a kind! :)

[arapaimag]

i live near peterbourough 2 hrs north of toronto the small town of lindsay my only monsters (i use the word sparingly) are piranhas 4 red bellys and a manueli i also have a flowerhorn the rest arent really monsters there small and peaceful

I've got a brother with large farm near Kirby/35

I don't have a manueli

I do have a number of other Piranhas several of which are 15 to 17 years old. I once raised a red belly to just over 23 years of age.

[RowingMunkeyCU]

This is one of the most amazing projects that I have ever seen. Awesome job, I could only dream to have something a 5th of this size.

[kentobizmol]

hey ARAPAIMG, do you have any other pictures??

did you make it with some major aquarium company like west coast custom aquariums?
or was it a do-it-yourself project?

[thamunsta]

WOW id love to come see your tanks it would be well worth the trip !!!

[thamunsta]

I've got a brother with large farm near Kirby/35

I don't have a manueli

I do have a number of other Piranhas several of which are 15 to 17 years old. I once raised a red belly to just over 23 years of age.



thats soo old 15-17 how big where they, id love to come see your tanks/piranhas it would be well worth the trip

[JESS]

THAT IS ONE MAJOR TANK VERY VERY IMPRESSIVE

[Titus]

Absolutely Fantastic!!!... Only in my dreams would I imagine that....

Where I come from... reckon would cost a couple of hundred thousand to do that... excluding purchasing the land...

[arapaimag]

hey ARAPAIMG, do you have any other pictures??

did you make it with some major aquarium company like west coast custom aquariums?
or was it a do-it-yourself project?

Actually I designed it myself and built it with the help of family, friends and acquantinces in related fields. I am physically unable to build much. I am however able to do a lot of the maintenace in aquariums less than 5 1/2 feet high. In October I decided to reduce a lot of my smaller tanks (35 to 50 gal) so I will be taking out about 70 of my tanks. I still will have over 50 left.

[arapaimag]

WOW id love to come see your tanks it would be well worth the trip !!!

That might be a possibility next summer. Due to my busy winter/spring schedule it would be difficult before then.

[arapaimag]

Absolutely Fantastic!!!... Only in my dreams would I imagine that....

Where I come from... reckon would cost a couple of hundred thousand to do that... excluding purchasing the land...

Hey, you live in one of the most advanced and expensive countries (city-state) in the world. It would probably cost me a couple of hundred thousand to visit your country and take my family to McDonalds for supper.

We stayed home and we went hungary ..........and built the tank instead.

I have never been to your country but friends of mine who have..........said Singapore is cutting edge in tech and the the tropical fish hobbyists and stores there are all incredible :thumbsup: . Congratulations :clap

[arapaimag]

I USED to think I had a problem but now I know who has a problem and it's not me :ROFL:

I bow to your love of fish. I will show this to my wife and she will be scared that I want one.... I do want one.

Hey I do enjoy the fish hobby.....but remember this

I don't suffer from insanity :WHOA: ...........I enjoy every minute :grinyes:

[fishfin]

always dreamed of big tanks but my dreames where not that big :WHOA:

[thamunsta]

That might be a possibility next summer. Due to my busy winter/spring schedule it would be difficult before then.


sounds like a plan to me :drool: :grinyes:

[woolfie]

i think i have died and gone to heaven that is the ultimate my god what you are god i feel faint ohohoho

[benzjamin13]

Awww! Now that's just SICK! :headbang2 Have you gone diving in there yet? The next step is going saltwater and get sharks with laser beam mounted on them? :ROFL:

[TheUnhappiest]

You stole my idea...
J/K Very Nice Tank indeed. If you dont mind,how much does it cost to run something like?

[cockroach]

i would marry you for that tank!!!! lol

[cichlaholic]

Incredible! Congrats to you for making your dream a reality. That is an amazing private tank!

[amazonfishman]

Do you have any other pics of the arapaima or the shovelnose species from some of your earlier pics? ~Trent

[ashdavid]

Very nice tank,I envy you a lot. I read an earlier post about this kind of tank costing a lot to build in Singapore, if you think Singapore is expensive try living in Japan, the cost of anything is phenomenal and I would think a tank would cost almost half a mil over here, also not to mention the cost of electricity here(so I will say again I envy you). I am building a 10,000g+ tank, it will probably be less than 20,000g, but I really am interested in your filter. How many g/h do you turn over? What do you use as a biological filter? Cheers.

[arapaimag]

Very nice tank,I envy you a lot. I read an earlier post about this kind of tank costing a lot to build in Singapore, if you think Singapore is expensive try living in Japan, the cost of anything is phenomenal and I would think a tank would cost almost half a mil over here, also not to mention the cost of electricity here(so I will say again I envy you). I am building a 10,000g+ tank, it will probably be less than 20,000g, but I really am interested in your filter. How many g/h do you turn over? What do you use as a biological filter? Cheers.

Thank you for your reply

I really do believe you about Japan being expensive (I learned a lot about the fact that Toyko is the most expensive city to live in the world, since my last girlfriend lives there).

I am very happy for you and your fish that you are building such a big tank :clap . This is a fantastic site because so many people are willing to provide suitable sized tanks for their Monster fish. :thumbsup: Have you seen Frank in the Netherlands tank and his friends 3 biggies? Go to my basketball teams website for his tremendous website of tanks from 550 gallon to 26,500 gallons. look at the bottom of the index on the left side www.spitfirechallenge.ca

How much do you pay for a litre of gas? kw of electricity?


John MFK with the 2,400 gallon arapaima tank, Zoodiver - Matt MFK and Frank from the Netherlands have far more knowledge in filtration than I do. I strongly recommend to anyone asking about filtration information to contact their websites or MFK for advice. They are avid hobbyists who go out of their way to be helpful.

My big tank has a low fish density and the 28,000 lbs of lava rock really assist the natural biological filtration. The pictures shown now only show a fraction of the Lava rock. I will give MFK some more pics in the future. I provide 10,000 gallon weekly water changes and I use a 600 lb sand filter (swimming pool with a 3 hp pump) and a high pressure air line at the 9 foot deep level.

By not feeding too often my tank can actually exist without any filtration from the sand filter at all. I have monitored my tank for a full 365 day period without any filtration. Just the airstone running. The fish were fine and I saved $1,200 in that period on the electricity bill by not running that particular pump & filter. The water was never as clear as Franks or Johns tanks but all my fish hobbyist friends found it was fine. Ad Koning and Stuart Grant both visited and operated a friends (Wai Hing Lam) submersible remote control dual vhs camera submarine in my big tank and the water was clear.

My 15K tank can not be left more than 4 weeks without running the filter (also a 600 lb sand filter with a 2 hp pump). The tank was not overstocked the first 3 years but now many of the fish have grown between 18" to 36" and it is now overstocked. SimonL a MFK member and a friend of mine is going into the tank and catch a couple of dozen in the late spring of 2006 to reduce the fish load. Over the summer I will put them outside in my outdoor ponds. I run a high pressure air line at 6 foot deep at all times. I give 4,000 gallon water changes on this one.

My electricity bill runs up to $1,200 a month to run my 123 tanks, heaters, lights (I use full spectrum with ultraviolet on most of my tanks and tropical birds), many pumps, 2 freezers and 3 fridges required to hold the approx 1400 pounds of frozen food I need to feed them. I also have several ponds one of which has a waterfall that is only 7 foot high but stretches across the pond about 60 to 70 feet and has 4 large pumps running the waterfalls. Due to the cost of running so many pumps (up to 3hp each) on this pond I have kept the number of hours they operate down.

My oil requirements to heat the tanks and water changes also run about $1,200 a month (before the oil price hike). Due to torn rotator cuffs from sport injuries I will reduce the number tanks by 70 smaller ones and add a few more 180's. So the hydro usage will probably be lower slightly due to decrease in lights required. My total gallonage in my 4 fishrooms will be reduced to about 76,000 total gallons.
A lot of people might think this is expensive but I used to ride & race motorcycles (not professionally) and spent a lot more on that hobby than this one.



I also have reduced the amount of light to my tanks because most of my big fish do not like bright light. Hobbyists tend to forget that many of the fish we keep come from sources covered by jungles or black tanic induced water, where the fish don't get much light. They really are uncomfortable in the bright light that many hobbyists provide them with. I plan to write an article on how fish eyesight differs from human eyesight in the future and why many fish prefer low level lighting.



I hope this helps you

Best of luck on building your new tank. Please write an article for Trust and Neoprodigy so that more MFK members will be inspired to also build large tanks for their fish. Thanks again to the founders of this great website :thumbsup: :clap

Please keep me updated on your progress of your new tank

[Fishwhore]

:WHOA: nice!! what else can you ask for?

[mon]

Ooooo... amazing...... cool...

[ashdavid]

Thank you for your reply

How much do you pay for a litre of gas? kw of electricity?




Gas is too expensive and electricity is about 30 cents kw/h and with that my electric bill is about $700-900 a month. I already have a 1850g tank and with the filter included would be about the same amount of gallons as Johns arapamia tank at 2400g.

I currently have two 900lbs sand filters (triton , imported from the states),I replaced the sand with filter media, plus I have a big sump that runs a few pumps as well. So I was surprised when your site only showed one sand filter as filtration.

I have seen franks site and I am waiting for that big tank to be finished so as I can see the filter that they are using. Anyway thanks for the help and I hope to see more pics from your tanks.

[Vince]

Well, that was a very humbling experience. Amazing is an understatement. What words can I describe seeing that tank. Not only am I humbled, I am also very jealous. Makes me want to tap into my retirement account, and some S&P investments. SIGH...It's very nice to "know" someone who has a fish tank attached to his house. Already showed it to my wife, she was just in awe just as I am.

How long did it take before the rust started setting in? What are your plans on preventing it from getting worse?

That is one inspiring setup.

:bowdown:

[gomezladdams]

You rule. :headbang2 Especially the part about having a hundred other tanks besides the megas :clap

[respect]

respect you! :WHOA:

[arapaimag]

Well, that was a very humbling experience. Amazing is an understatement. What words can I describe seeing that tank. Not only am I humbled, I am also very jealous. Makes me want to tap into my retirement account, and some S&P investments. SIGH...It's very nice to "know" someone who has a fish tank attached to his house. Already showed it to my wife, she was just in awe just as I am.

How long did it take before the rust started setting in? What are your plans on preventing it from getting worse?

That is one inspiring setup.

Thank for the kind words
Rust took about 6 years. I have applied rust proof paint annually since and it works OK.

[tetracanthus]

WOW, what kind of fish do you have in there?
I see what looks like a tiger shovel nose and a few pacus and possibly a giant gourami. :clap

[LAMBDACHI]

That is an awesome aquarium to have. I am amazed how much work you put and how much work you are putting every day/week.

[fish-fo-life]

Perhaps Earth is just one glorious billion gallon human tank.

[911]

Mike. This is Wayne from Toronto, the guy who hooked you up with Oliver (belowwater) and some piranhas. Thanks for the pics, now Alex from Hamilton and I don't have to track up to your place to see it live, its right in front of us! We might run into you at Miss. services someday. Yes, everyone, M.B has been holding off showing these giant tanks because he is indeed a humble person who does not seek or wish to show off these amazing tanks! Its amazing how long he has held back showing them! Btw, nice board here guys!

[Vince]

Mike. This is Wayne from Toronto, the guy who hooked you up with Oliver (belowwater) and some piranhas. Thanks for the pics, now Alex from Hamilton and I don't have to track up to your place to see it live, its right in front of us! We might run into you at Miss. services someday. Yes, everyone, M.B has been holding off showing these giant tanks because he is indeed a humble person who does not seek or wish to show off these amazing tanks! Its amazing how long he has held back showing them! Btw, nice board here guys!
:lol2: You know what's funny is that I am that person being egotistical "I have a humongous tank" attitude. That is why I am so humbled by this post! I don't have enough vocabulary in my thinktank to describe the words Mike have accomplished, and showed everyone how to be graceful about what you own. That's great character.

[Zorro]

:owned: all of us

[prm]

:drool: That is awesome

That tank makes mine look minute. :hearts:

[downset21]

I would love to see more pictures of this tank if you could do us all that favor. I hope to make myself a monster tank in the future with your mentality towards stocking it. You dont have an excessive amount of fish. By not overstocking, you create a more natural and healthy environment for your fish. That's the right way to go about it. I've seen pictures of tanks where the fish couldnt even move without bumping into each other. I am utterly amazed, thanks for planting this seed in my mind about what I'm going to hopefully do in the future (on a much smaller scale of course).

[bak69]

:WHOA: wild :thumbsup: :clap

[David Hui]

speechless... :thumbsup:

[arapaimag]

Mike. This is Wayne from Toronto, the guy who hooked you up with Oliver (belowwater) and some piranhas. Thanks for the pics, now Alex from Hamilton and I don't have to track up to your place to see it live, its right in front of us! We might run into you at Miss. services someday. Yes, everyone, M.B has been holding off showing these giant tanks because he is indeed a humble person who does not seek or wish to show off these amazing tanks! Its amazing how long he has held back showing them! Btw, nice board here guys!

Thank you for your kind words

You and Alex are 2 of the most experienced Piranha enthusiasts in North America. Would you both share pictures of your large tanks and piranha collection with us?

Also Wayne would you reproduce one of your Piranha articles on this site.............Please..........

[nativelover]

wow. whats the fish in the net?? a tsn im guessing.
that giant gurami is huge!!!

whats the substrate? is there any? and what did you use to fill it? a garden hose?

[arapaimag]

wow. whats the fish in the net?? a tsn im guessing.
that giant gurami is huge!!!

whats the substrate? is there any? and what did you use to fill it? a garden hose?


The fish in the net is a Sorubimichthys planiceps. (50" tl) in pic grew to 54" 25lbs.
bought in 1987 at 12" from Aquarium services (Big Al's) in Mississauga,Ont
died in 2004.

The Goramy is an Osphronemus goramy(gorami). It is not in the same family as gouramies. Notice the different spelling. It is often called the Giant Gouramie by many stores today. More experienced Stores will call it the Goramy . I bought it from Tropic Aquaria Brampton Ont at 2 inches in 1988. It grew to 27" and weighed 30lbs at its death in 2004.

I put 2,000 lbs of silca and in one area of the tank. It was for a motoro stingray to use. However the stingray approx 14in diameter was eaten after about 3 years in the tank.

[armac]

I thought you had switched your name from 911, after you sold the car:naughty:

[Vince]

What or who ate the stingray?

[novafishy]

nice tank buddy. but just out of curiosity, if a fish dies and sinks to the bottom at the back of the tank, how do u get it out?

[911]

I thought you had switched your name from 911, after you sold the car:naughty:

Yes I did! But I'm thinking most of the people here will remember me as 911 from PRED. fish so I kept 911 for that purpose here. Good Memory! :)

[arapaimag]

What or who ate the stingray?

I was surprised when it happened. I have unfortunately witnessed a Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum roll up a 10" stingray like a taco and take him whole.
The 14" however had been in the tank with these other fish for 3 years, so it was a surprise.


Not sure, the suspects at the time (1997) were:

a 27" Pseudopimelodus fowleri
a 50"+ Walego leeri
any of 5 Phractocephalus hemioliopterus
the largest weighed 90lbs when he was killed in 2003 by a 24"black shark Morulius chrysophekadion (The smaller shark inflicted repeated bites on his head

either of 2 Sorubimichthys planiceps (48" & 54")
either of 2 Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum (36"-40")

[arapaimag]

nice tank buddy. but just out of curiosity, if a fish dies and sinks to the bottom at the back of the tank, how do u get it out?


If its not eaten before anyone can get it. A grappling hook is used to bring it to the surface. If it can not be reached I just don't feed the tank till its eaten.

[Dykemyster]

What a great tank!!! You have inspired all of us I am sure!

[Bizdaddy]

Even my daydreams don't go this far! Sweet setup. Can you post some more pics of your fish?

Justin

[rainmun]

Hey arapaimag, I just want to compliment you one your tank, your love of your fish, just everything in whole. One of my customers told me about your tank and I just had to check it out.

I actually own an aquarium her in Browns Plains, Australia. And honestly, if you cam into my shop and said "yeah I have a 50,000 Gal (thats 200 000L to us)" I wouldn't believe ya. That tank is somethink un-achivable and un-heard of over here.

Man once again thanks for sharing.

A couple of questions, how did you work out the inch thick glass was strong enough for that height aquarium? And also how did you manage to control the concrete from expanding and contracting? My old man built 60 ponds in his green house, and almost all of them have cracked over time.

[seung_k]

This is the most amazing tank I have ever seen! You have done what all fish enthusiasts dream of doing. How much and what do you feed them on a daily basis? Have you ever thought of swimming with your fish?

[arapaimag]

Hey arapaimag, I just want to compliment you one your tank, your love of your fish, just everything in whole. One of my customers told me about your tank and I just had to check it out.

I actually own an aquarium her in Browns Plains, Australia. And honestly, if you cam into my shop and said "yeah I have a 50,000 Gal (thats 200 000L to us)" I wouldn't believe ya. That tank is somethink un-achivable and un-heard of over here.

Man once again thanks for sharing.

A couple of questions, how did you work out the inch thick glass was strong enough for that height aquarium? And also how did you manage to control the concrete from expanding and contracting? My old man built 60 ponds in his green house, and almost all of them have cracked over time.

Thanks for kind words

I hosted the Paralympic Silver medal winning Aussie girls team at my wc bb tournament in July
You can see their pictures at my bb website listed below and also a few other hobbyists big tanks.

I checked with one of my financial advisors who actually lectured at the time on the properties of glass at a large university. I also studied several large reptile aquariums in the area and spoke with the builders of their tanks.

I built the walls 12" thick with double rebar every foot. As well I mixed into the concrete a fibre material that helps stop cracking of the concrete. It comes in 1lb packages here and has possibly a few hundred pieces per pound. I aslo de-aerated the concrete with a vibrating pump to help remove air bubbles.

have you got a website of your store? Do you sell monster fish?

keep smiling.

[arapaimag]

This is the most amazing tank I have ever seen! You have done what all fish enthusiasts dream of doing. How much and what do you feed them on a daily basis? Have you ever thought of swimming with your fish?

Glad you enjoyed the pics

I feed a variety of food including flakes,pellets,dog food, vegetables, etc once or twice a week. Smelt, makeral,herring,whitefish etc once or twice a month. There are huge colonies of african and central american cichlids breeding in the tank and supplying food to the predators.

This way I don't need to run my filter. The lava rock acts as a filter.

I am unable to physically get into the tank. I am paralyzed from the armpits down from 2 motorcycle accidents.

I actually was a competitive swimmer in a past life.

[downset21]

what you did as far as tank building is amazing, and so is your work with all the stuff on the spitfire website I just checked out. Despite your accidents, you've accomplished amazing things that most people not in your situation wouldnt dream (or only dream) of doing. I STILL NEED TO SEE SOME PICTURES... excuse my new found addiction to this monster fish tank.

[kjkeller]

i was wondering if you could give us a stocking list (at least an abriged one). i am very curious to know what all you keep in that monster tank. great job btw.

[arapaimag]

i was wondering if you could give us a stocking list (at least an abriged one). i am very curious to know what all you keep in that monster tank. great job btw.


thanks,


I will over the next week make a partial list of fish in both tanks

[st.anger]

now that is a dream tank.
very nice :headbang2

[carsanfish]

10,000 gallon water changes :eek: how much is your water bill... and how long does it take to empty 10,000 gallons of water and refill it... :WHOA:

[kjkeller]

actually, that is a good question. roughly, how much time do you spend on maintenance each week/day. and what do you use to drain 10,000 gallons of water. also, where do you put 10,000 gallons of water. i would imagine it doesnt just go down the drain.

[liberalswine]

*bows down* :clap

[arapaimag]

actually, that is a good question. roughly, how much time do you spend on maintenance each week/day. and what do you use to drain 10,000 gallons of water. also, where do you put 10,000 gallons of water. i would imagine it doesnt just go down the drain.

Actually I probably have closer to 20,000 gallons over a week. Since I do another 4,000 in the 15K, over 1,000 in my 800 each week. As well changes in all my other tanks.

I have swimming pool drains on the bottoms of the tanks and use valves to drain. I also have swimming pool overflows on the top of both of the bigger tanks. Almost all of my other tanks have overflows drilled in them. Most of my tanks have plumbing and valves to them to refill them.

I live in the country and have several ponds on my property so the drainage is not a problem. I use my wells to refill the tanks.

[badkarma44]

das uber tank :headbang2

[rainmun]

Thanks for kind words

I hosted the Paralympic Silver medal winning Aussie girls team at my wc bb tournament in July
You can see their pictures at my bb website listed below and also a few other hobbyists big tanks.

I checked with one of my financial advisors who actually lectured at the time on the properties of glass at a large university. I also studied several large reptile aquariums in the area and spoke with the builders of their tanks.

I built the walls 12" thick with double rebar every foot. As well I mixed into the concrete a fibre material that helps stop cracking of the concrete. It comes in 1lb packages here and has possibly a few hundred pieces per pound. I aslo de-aerated the concrete with a vibrating pump to help remove air bubbles.

have you got a website of your store? Do you sell monster fish?

keep smiling.

Thanks for the reply, I have checked out your website its very cool I hope our team gets the Gold next time, they play very hard thats for sure (one of our customers actually helps with the team and lets us know their progress all the time). There are some purely amazing aquariums also on your site, but once again nothing compares to your aquarium.

Also thanks very much on the info about the glass thickness, and concreting. I will definately pass on the info to my father about the concreting techniques, as my father is pulling his hair out on how to re-build the ponds. And I'll contact some engineers about the glass as most of our merchants don't have a clue.

I have a website for our store (but its currently under construction), its www.marysaquarium.com . Hopefully it will be completed just before Xmas. :)

Unfortunately over here in Australia, our import regulations are very strict so most of the beautiful Monster Fish are not allowed into the country (which I am spewwing about, as I would love an Araipama, Asian Arowana, Red Tail Cats and other things).

But there are quite a few avid collectors over here that have managed to obtain these fish and are breeding them, and I'm slowly carrying more and more monster fish. I do carry some things like Cichla sp. , Datinoides (when available), Giant Gouramis, and a whole host of other Australian monster fish like both Liechardts and Jardin's Arowana's (they're called Saratoga over here :) ), Barramundi (Lates Calcarifer), Australian Lungfish (Neoceratodus Forsteri), and the Murray Cod.

Once again thanks for the info, and hopefully one day soon I will have a monster tank to share of my own :).

PS: Sorry about the poor grammar in the first post, I was overly exticed to post. :)

[arapaimag]

Thanks for the reply, I have checked out your website its very cool I hope our team gets the Gold next time, they play very hard thats for sure (one of our customers actually helps with the team and lets us know their progress all the time). There are some purely amazing aquariums also on your site, but once again nothing compares to your aquarium.

Also thanks very much on the info about the glass thickness, and concreting. I will definately pass on the info to my father about the concreting techniques, as my father is pulling his hair out on how to re-build the ponds. And I'll contact some engineers about the glass as most of our merchants don't have a clue.

I have a website for our store (but its currently under construction), its www.marysaquarium.com . Hopefully it will be completed just before Xmas. :)

Unfortunately over here in Australia, our import regulations are very strict so most of the beautiful Monster Fish are not allowed into the country (which I am spewwing about, as I would love an Araipama, Asian Arowana, Red Tail Cats and other things).

But there are quite a few avid collectors over here that have managed to obtain these fish and are breeding them, and I'm slowly carrying more and more monster fish. I do carry some things like Cichla sp. , Datinoides (when available), Giant Gouramis, and a whole host of other Australian monster fish like both Liechardts and Jardin's Arowana's (they're called Saratoga over here :) ), Barramundi (Lates Calcarifer), Australian Lungfish (Neoceratodus Forsteri), and the Murray Cod.

Once again thanks for the info, and hopefully one day soon I will have a monster tank to share of my own :).


I hope you have the tank of your dreams also.

Saratoga are neat fish I have 3 jardini at present. I really like THE GORAMY and I know many people call them the giant gouramie on this site also. I have 3 of these in my 15k. 1 is the regular and 2 are the red fin. I've had them about 8 or 9 years. I had a large female regular in my 52k but she passed away last year with a few of my other favourites. No one knows the reason. I did have a small house fire which killed a few air breathing fish immediately a few years prior. I noticed some of the cats slowly going downhill after that. Of course the goramy also could have breathed the bad air.

I will soon put out a list of some of the fish I presently have which will include the year I got them and their size then and size at present and who I purchased them from.

Some of my fish I raise very slowly. They generally live longer and eventually still get just as big. Of course some fish just never get big because their parents might have been quite small.

From what I read on this site the australian lungfish is now available in the States but I have not seen them in Canada yet. I do have a couple of African Protopterus annectens.

You are fortunate to have the beautiful Australian birds just by looking out your window. I've had many as pets and this was a sad week as my favourite Australian King named ELVIS passed away. I've had him about 10 years and I don't have a clue why he died. I had just hand fed him and he was fine. An hour later I was feeding my group of toucans located in the same room as Elvis's cage and noticed him dead. I do have a breeding pair of Kings and hope they have a few chicks this coming year. I still have a Galah, several barabands, several rosellas, a couple of port lincolns, pr crimson wings, a rosey bourke & cloncurry all from Australia. I have several others from Africa (breeding colony of greys) and hornbills and softbills from South/central america toucans & aracari. I had many more but when I tore up both rotators playing bb I had to cut back.


I put your site on my favorites so I can see it when it is finished. :clap

Hey! I saw the goldfish bowl on your site now. :WHOA:

I had a goldfish bowl when I was 4. Even took them outside each day to get sunlight so they could turn red faster. They were still brown.

Have fun Downunder

ps check out the tank I added in Monster Tank Hall of Insanity it is the very last one. I could never have thought to build anything like that. I saw it on a German site I was surfing. I added the site to my small list of monster sites and joined it. It is really fun since I can't speak German. thankfully for Alta Vista.

[Zygaena]

Pure inspiration is what it is! Thanks Arapaimag! I've always dreamt of a monster SW reef tank. Now I know it's do-able.

One dreamer to another: thanks, man! I needed that.

[seldumscene]

I dont know what to say, other than DAMN!!

[H20Boy]

In regards to your access doors rusting I had my stand sand blasted and powder coated so far so good 2.5 years (salt water) works like a charm.
If that is not a option you might want to try brushing on a rust converter followed with a top coat of rust inhibitive paint….just a thought but--looks like you have thought of everything.
NICE TANK!

[arapaimag]

In regards to your access doors rusting I had my stand sand blasted and powder coated so far so good 2.5 years (salt water) works like a charm.
If that is not a option you might want to try brushing on a rust converter followed with a top coat of rust inhibitive paint….just a thought but--looks like you have thought of everything.
NICE TANK!


Thank you very much for that idea. I really will try powder coating it in the spring.
I have two walkout basement doors which are close to the tank and I would like them open while I do the work. But its a little cool right now (-15) and might get chillier in a couple of days.

I've had no rust problems in the tank below water. (so far).

I wish I had done that with some of my metal stands doublestacking my 180's. Some broke and damaged the tanks. Nolemite has been over helping me build some new wooden ones.

This is a great site for getting help..............thanks again

[arapaimag]

Pure inspiration is what it is! Thanks Arapaimag! I've always dreamt of a monster SW reef tank. Now I know it's do-able.

One dreamer to another: thanks, man! I needed that.


WOW! now that would be incredible if you build the monster SW reef tank. Trust and Neoprodigy I am sure will love to have the pictures and all of us will really enjoy looking at them. Please Keep me posted if you start your project.

[Kurt-Inge]

dont you hawe any new picture of the tank?

[odphelo]

awesome tank. im sure im not the only person that keeps looking in this thread for your updates.excellent job please continue to keep us updated and amazed with your tanks

[franks]

that is awesome, Iwoujd love to have one even half that size.

[franks]

that word is would, I hit the wrong key!

[mcblack]

awesome tank! i must be a headache if there would be leaks in the tank

[arapaimag]

awesome tank! i must be a headache if there would be leaks in the tank

Hey if it leaks I'll just switch to Australian crocs and won't have to feed them the first couple of months.

[arapaimag]

awesome tank. im sure im not the only person that keeps looking in this thread for your updates.excellent job please continue to keep us updated and amazed with your tanks

I will in the future. Right now I'm too busy with basketball and still taking out 60 or so of my 35's and 50's. Also some of my mid size tanks require a lot of extra attention right now feeding and water changes. My 800 pema tank gets 250 gallons major changes each day and a continual drip change of 100 gallons every day. I spend a lot of time on this tank because they are growing so fast and so incredible to watch. My 500 aligator gar tank and 540 aba aba tank also get a lot of water changes (200 gallons every 3rd day). I've still got many other tanks to look after. Sorry pics are not a high priority at this time. But I really will look into it when time permits. In the meantime check out some of the guys incredible big tanks linked to my bb site. Go to Something Fishy on the left side bar. Let me know what you thing of that acrylic hamster style fish tank in Germany. Also Frank must be putting water in that 26,500 gallon tank in the Netherlands by now.

[TortureXvidian]

what is next project... to keep great whites lol very nice tank

[Garfield]

Awesome....hope someday, I could also make a monster tank......

[suckerfish]

thanks very much for posting. i've heard about you and your tanks for years!!! if you ever write a book about construction, i'll buy the first autographed version. i need a tank like that for my masheer...i'll be looking for updates-- pics, fish, problems, anything. thanks again.

[paintboi101]

VERY VERY VERY RICCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCH

[paintboi101]

so like, u should charge ppl to come in, lol like a aquarium. HAHAHAHA

[SharkLover]

wow! lot's of construction!

[exzolt]

beautiful

[LasVagrant]

Truley awesome and inspiring!

[hked24]

wow just speechless .... :headbang2

[puffer_girl]

Absolutely unbelieveable!!! And to have so many other tanks besides the MEGA...... Will never complain about partials again. Just wouldn't be right......

[mbhw]

Simply stunning! God bless, and thanks for sharing.

[leviathon13]

WOW , i think that's what we'd all love to have!!!

[rweedon]

I was showing this to my gf and just thought everybody would like to see it agian truly one of the best private fishkeepers ever!!!

[matthew.]

my new goal in life is to own a mega tank like yours

[Hakon]

Your tank are really impressive! Good work :clap

[Rui]

I am checking my lotto ticket now :)

If I win, could you at least point me in the right direction as to who to contact to build such a dream project? Help a Canadian brother out! haha

Truly fantastic and inspirational. After getting a 240 gallon tank, I thought I would have enough room to keep MOST of the fish I wanted. It took me about a week to realize it wasn't even much of a hospital tank.

One day..one day..

Have you considered using solar panels to help diffuse some of the electrical expense? I am in the 'planning stages' (as are 9/10ths of the users on this forum) and am thinking of how to do it to save money in the long run. I was even researching water hyacinths as part of the filtration like some 3rd world countries do to treat their municipal water, just to help save water and money.

I think you are the envy of everyone on this forum, and the epitomy of all that is monster fish keeping!

[arapaimag]

Thanks for the kind words.

I have thought of solar panels but I have not done anything yet. I might in the future the intial cost and space for the number of batteries vs the number of years required to offset the cost is whats held me back. The lifespan of the batteries and replacement cost can be pretty expensive.

[arapaimag]

I was showing this to my gf and just thought everybody would like to see it agian truly one of the best private fishkeepers ever!!!

thanks for the reply. I will have a lot of new pics of the smaller tank 15k in the article section as soon as neoprodigy can post them. I hope you enjoy them

[FishBait]

I know, you could make money by letting people snokle in it! no longer must you go to a tropical paridise!! Fishing derbies might be and idea too if you can stock that thing with some trout!! All of us at cudata.org love it too and are getting ideas for our newts...

[goldclownknife]

OMG.... I thought your mini mega was crazy, this tank is a work of art. I wish I had room and money to do something like that, though not such a huge scale.

[arapaimag]

OMG.... I thought your mini mega was crazy, this tank is a work of art. I wish I had room and money to do something like that, though not such a huge scale.

Glad to see you got around the site. Do you have a gold clownknife? If so please post a few pics of him on this article so I will see it. thanks.

Did you go to the photo gallery and see the other 60 pictures that went along with the article on the list of fish in the 15,000 ?

The quick link is at the bottom of that article just after the list of fish.

[riskistang]

NEED A ROOMIE?.....TIME TO HIT THE STREET AND SLANG THE DOPE TO GET SOME **** LIKE THAT! :screwy:

OK BACK OFF TO THE REAL WORLD!

OUTSTANDING TANK!.....(do you still call THAT a tank?)

GUESS YOU NEVER GET WATER RESTRICTIONS :ROFL:

[rook45]

wow

[Vapor]

:clap :clap :clap There are no words. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[Atfownz]

thats ****in banging !

[koliveira]

wow
all my tanks are baby pools

[goldclownknife]

Glad to see you got around the site. Do you have a gold clownknife? If so please post a few pics of him on this article so I will see it. thanks.

Did you go to the photo gallery and see the other 60 pictures that went along with the article on the list of fish in the 15,000 ?

The quick link is at the bottom of that article just after the list of fish.


Yes I do have a gold clownknife, i'll try and put a pic on here im still new to the site so not really sure how all this works just yet. If I mess this up, I did add two pics of him on my personal gallery.

I think I must of missed the photo gallery link on the mini mega's page, i'll have to go back and take a look.

[arapaimag]

Yes I do have a gold clownknife, i'll try and put a pic on here im still new to the site so not really sure how all this works just yet. If I mess this up, I did add two pics of him on my personal gallery.

I think I must of missed the photo gallery link on the mini mega's page, i'll have to go back and take a look.

Great pictures you really got the hang of it fast..........It took me weeks and then Neoprodigy really did the work.

Great sign on the tank. Contact MFK and they will send you free non sticky MFK signs.

Hey he looks really NICE :thumbsup: How long is he and what size tank do you keep him in.

I like the fact you decorated his tank. I only wish I could do that in my tanks.
My Clownknives are not golden its just the flash that made mine look that way. I had 4 in the mini mega at one time all of them 24 to 28inches. I still have the 2 they now know to avoid Dracula (My male stingray).

You are a nice addition to this site :D

[goldclownknife]

Great pictures you really got the hang of it fast..........It took me weeks and then Neoprodigy really did the work.

Great sign on the tank. Contact MFK and they will send you free non sticky MFK signs.

Hey he looks really NICE :thumbsup: How long is he and what size tank do you keep him in.

I like the fact you decorated his tank. I only wish I could do that in my tanks.
My Clownknives are not golden its just the flash that made mine look that way. I had 4 in the mini mega at one time all of them 24 to 28inches. I still have the 2 they now know to avoid Dracula (My male stingray).

You are a nice addition to this site :D

Hey, Oh ok even if yours are regulars they still look amazing. Oh the other two got a lil to close to Dracula, eh. ;) Thanks... The sign was a joke gift from my dad we found it at a rest stop on some highway, haha. He is about 18-20inches in that ball park currently. Unfortunately he is currently housed in a 55gallon :( I need to get him into something bigger and am currently on the look out for deals on bigger tanks. I'm new to this whole monster fish thing, and kind of by a lack of info from the pet store when I purchased my Gold clown knife... What size tank would you recommend upgrading him to? Also what is a good price to expect to pay for various sized tanks? I don't want to get ripped off but also want to be able to know if a deal is to good to be ture... such as perhaps there is something wrong with a tank... I would appreciate any insight you have :)

[shmeva_riles_7]

That is the sweetest thing i have ever seen u are a rebel :headbang2 :headbang2 :headbang2

[arapaimag]

Hey, Oh ok even if yours are regulars they still look amazing. Oh the other two got a lil to close to Dracula, eh. ;) Thanks... The sign was a joke gift from my dad we found it at a rest stop on some highway, haha. He is about 18-20inches in that ball park currently. Unfortunately he is currently housed in a 55gallon :( I need to get him into something bigger and am currently on the look out for deals on bigger tanks. I'm new to this whole monster fish thing, and kind of by a lack of info from the pet store when I purchased my Gold clown knife... What size tank would you recommend upgrading him to? Also what is a good price to expect to pay for various sized tanks? I don't want to get ripped off but also want to be able to know if a deal is to good to be ture... such as perhaps there is something wrong with a tank... I would appreciate any insight you have :)

I am going to cop out on the question of tank size. Always go for the biggest you have room for and you can afford............
I have not bought any tanks in a while. However looking at sale flyers it seems that $1.50 a gallon are deals for new tanks. If you want the tank long term I suggest new over used.

Used ones really vary in price from next to nothing to 75cents a gallon. I think the others on this site will be able to help further on prices.

One potential problem with used is the general lack of knowledge as too how old they really are. The silicone can become a problem, so if buying used, I suggest you make sure it is a relatively new.

I hope you are able to get a new bigger tank soon your clown will love it. :D

[goldclownknife]

Alright thanks man. I'm thinking about building a tank, just it may be easier for me to just buy one. We'll see what happens and how it all works out. If I wanted to build say a 6' x 2' x 2' tank, how thick should the glass or pelxi-glass be? If you happen to know, I would be greatful for any insight, since you obviously have the experience building tanks...

[arapaimag]

Alright thanks man. I'm thinking about building a tank, just it may be easier for me to just buy one. We'll see what happens and how it all works out. If I wanted to build say a 6' x 2' x 2' tank, how thick should the glass or pelxi-glass be? If you happen to know, I would be greatful for any insight, since you obviously have the experience building tanks...

Although I have built ply wood tanks with glass fronts, I have only assisted a glass tank builder named John Pettersen (now lives in Virginia) on a few glass tanks. This man is amazing building tanks. He built 2,000 tanks working at a manufacturer in one year once. He is an engineer and unfortunatly is too busy in that field now to work with or keep fish (Had over 140 tanks of his own in his house).

He uses 1/2 glass on the sides of a 180 and either 1/2, 5/8 or 3/4 on the bottoms. He recommends GE1200 silicone. He built my 360 8x2x3 using 3/4 and my 800 (8x4.5x3) using 3/4. He is the fellow pictured installing the glass in my 50k+ he also installed and largly built my 15k. I have never built a plexi or acrylic tank. I bought 2 acrylic tanks (500 & 600)from Aquart near Columbus Ohio (Rich Gould - owner) that I saw in advertisement in FAMA.

Good luck with your plans & hope this helps :woot:

[goldclownknife]

Although I have built ply wood tanks with glass fronts, I have only assisted a glass tank builder named John Pettersen (now lives in Virginia) on a few glass tanks. This man is amazing building tanks. He built 2,000 tanks working at a manufacturer in one year once. He is an engineer and unfortunatly is too busy in that field now to work with or keep fish (Had over 140 tanks of his own in his house).

He uses 1/2 glass on the sides of a 180 and either 1/2, 5/8 or 3/4 on the bottoms. He recommends GE1200 silicone. He built my 360 8x2x3 using 3/4 and my 800 (8x4.5x3) using 3/4. He is the fellow pictured installing the glass in my 50k+ he also installed and largly built my 15k. I have never built a plexi or acrylic tank. I bought 2 acrylic tanks (500 & 600)from Aquart near Columbus Ohio (Rich Gould - owner) that I saw in advertisement in FAMA.

Good luck with your plans & hope this helps :woot:

Alright thanks, for the info. Good to know for the thickness, cause I had no idea what it should be. I'll prolly start getting prices for pieces of glass and see what works out better for me. Also, i'm not to far from columbus so perhaps i'll look up Aquart and see if I can afford a nice size tank from them. Thanks for all the help. :clap

[goldclownknife]

Whoops almost forgot, you mentioned plywood tanks, are they any good? I found instructions on building them, are they worth it? Or is it better to just build/buy a glass or acrylic tank?

[freeskierrocket]

the wife hates that i have a 125g, a 30g, a 5g, and a .5g (betta)........amazing, i'd be living in that tank if i ever tried anything close to that...hahahahah!!! love it man......

[arapaimag]

Whoops almost forgot, you mentioned plywood tanks, are they any good? I found instructions on building them, are they worth it? Or is it better to just build/buy a glass or acrylic tank?


I built two plywood tanks. One was 8x4x2. I bought 2 plywood tanks prior to building my own. They all lasted about 10 years before any leakage. They cost less to build than buying a glass tank. The new techniques in building probably will allow for a lot longer tank life.

[goldclownknife]

I built two plywood tanks. One was 8x4x2. I bought 2 plywood tanks prior to building my own. They all lasted about 10 years before any leakage. They cost less to build than buying a glass tank. The new techniques in building probably will allow for a lot longer tank life.

If they last that long, I'll look more into that, cause I dont need anything real fancy, just something with some room for the poor guy to have swimming room. Thanks, i'll let you know what I end up with.

[congealedmeat]

amazing work!

[AfricanGreyDude]

im absolutely speechless. as im lookin @ this thread i notice u keep alot of fish and also alot of parrots. i have 9 african greys and also a breeding pair of green wing macaws witch i have produced 3 chicks off. im sorry to go off the subject of your amazing aquarium. but im scared to admit i only have a 400g tank lol witch is like 1/120 of the size of your tank? lol. i dnt keep "monesters" but i got some 14" oscars and a giant raphael catfish in they're @ the moment as it is only 5 months old i run 4 Fluval externals and i still have to do 75G per week water changes. im absolutely amazed @ the size of your tank.

i would like to learn more about your experience with australian kings as i got offered a trio of 12 year old specimens. 2m / 1f. witch i relunctantly turned down as i have no space for a new aviary. the aviary i keep my greys in is 15ftx12ftx8 (lxwxh) and my macaw aviary is 20ftx15ftx10ft (lxwxh) i have plans of addin more pairs of macaws to my aviary but i've got to build some breeding pens where i cna isolate the pairs off to if i decide to get more pairs.

how many greys do you have and in what size aviary? and also wot the the aviary brood that the greys produce? as im interested to know wether the different habitat that they are in wether it affects the brood size?

any info would be appreciated. my hat is off to you. myt see wot funds i can peice together to get myself a 2,000G tank . *dreams arrowanas and RTC*

[h3llphyre]

Utterly amazing work. You are my new envy of the new year. I constantly dream of doing these types of things, but never have the nerve to just go and do it. Major kudos to you.

[jonnyrotten]

You could charge admission to the local public schools, education for the kids and it will help pay the bills...

[arapaimag]

im absolutely speechless. as im lookin @ this thread i notice u keep alot of fish and also alot of parrots. i have 9 african greys and also a breeding pair of green wing macaws witch i have produced 3 chicks off. im sorry to go off the subject of your amazing aquarium. but im scared to admit i only have a 400g tank lol witch is like 1/120 of the size of your tank? lol. i dnt keep "monesters" but i got some 14" oscars and a giant raphael catfish in they're @ the moment as it is only 5 months old i run 4 Fluval externals and i still have to do 75G per week water changes. im absolutely amazed @ the size of your tank.

i would like to learn more about your experience with australian kings as i got offered a trio of 12 year old specimens. 2m / 1f. witch i relunctantly turned down as i have no space for a new aviary. the aviary i keep my greys in is 15ftx12ftx8 (lxwxh) and my macaw aviary is 20ftx15ftx10ft (lxwxh) i have plans of addin more pairs of macaws to my aviary but i've got to build some breeding pens where i cna isolate the pairs off to if i decide to get more pairs.

how many greys do you have and in what size aviary? and also wot the the aviary brood that the greys produce? as im interested to know wether the different habitat that they are in wether it affects the brood size?

any info would be appreciated. my hat is off to you. myt see wot funds i can peice together to get myself a 2,000G tank . *dreams arrowanas and RTC*

First I would like to welcome you to MFK..... :headbang2

Congrats on breeding your green wings. You can buy a lot of fish selling those babies.

A 400 g tank is great.. I can still remember as a kid having a 10g homemade angle iron tank and I thought it was huge. I've never raised an oscar to 14" so you've beaten me big time.

regarding the birds please email my basketball's email address at the bottom of my basketball teams website. www.spitfirechallenge.ca The message will be passed on to me and I can reply.

[AfricanGreyDude]

well the place that i bought them from has like 50 pairs of them and when i breed i think it is only fair that i let her take the babies as they are in short supply. i got £950 per chick from them witch is not bad considering the pair only costs £2,000 anyways.

my african greys are the biggest earners with around 25 - 30 chicks from them every year. they also get sold back to the local breeder and she gives me £400 per chick. before my 400g tank i had a 30g firemouth tank. im plannin on adding my firemouths into the 400g soon but with my big oscars im a bt hesitant as the firemouths are around the 5" size im hopin they will be fully growin within the next 6 - 10 months then i can add them.

i will email you now as id love to tlk to you about your experience with oxotic birds aswell as your amazing sized tank.

[jmcc000]

That is unreal!!!!
Aweome job.

[arapaimag]

Thanks glad you enjoyed it

[halofishboy]

headbang2 Arapaimag's House of Fish :headbang2


The Giant Fish Zoo..... Where you look like a Guppy and where the fish can eat you

Child Admission----- $1.50
Adult Admission----- $2.50
Senior Admission--- $2.00
(ages 60 and up)


Hey i gotta pay for the fish some how!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!






ha ha n e ways great tank man i gotta show this to my momo she thinks that i have a problem with my 150 and 60 gallons wait until she sees this tank ha ha ha
how a bout u make me 1 and ill give u one of my 10 gallons. ha :ROFL: :ROFL: ha :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL:

[AfricanGreyDude]

can i just point out that your tanks in your sig are severely overstocked @ the moment. and a Dovii = wolf cichlid .. thought you wouldda known that???

yo arapaimag - you should get a dovvi for your tank see how big they grow .. given the massive room you have .. i wreckon they would reach the 30" mark.

[DontGoInTheWater]

I just wanted to say how amazed I am with what you have done !

I my self have been keeping piranha for about 10 years now, I even sell them and breed pygocentrus nattereri. I would love to hear what you have noticed with your large pygos as for breeding behavior. that is if you still keep them ! thanks again!

Nick Cooper

[arapaimag]

can i just point out that your tanks in your sig are severely overstocked @ the moment. and a Dovii = wolf cichlid .. thought you wouldda known that???

yo arapaimag - you should get a dovvi for your tank see how big they grow .. given the massive room you have .. i wreckon they would reach the 30" mark.


Only have 2 Dovi. You can see the one in 15k update in the article section. He is getting old and stopped at 22". The other was only about 8" the last time I saw him in the 50k+. More pics of the bigger Dovi in the South and Central American cichlid forum "Largest of the 4 monster cichlids owned"

[arapaimag]

I just wanted to say how amazed I am with what you have done !

I my self have been keeping piranha for about 10 years now, I even sell them and breed pygocentrus nattereri. I would love to hear what you have noticed with your large pygos as for breeding behavior. that is if you still keep them ! thanks again!

Nick Cooper



Congrats on breeding.

I keep several varieties of pygos but don't breed. Unfortunately my schedule gets to hectic to have fry at home.

[Gubben_Stark]

Holy crap! What an amazing tank! =)

[DontGoInTheWater]

Thats cool
what species of pygos do you keep?

anyway you would make a post saying every species you have in there with sizes please and thx!!!?

[chefdazza]

wow

[breedospecial]

u should start charging admission to view it! :eek:

[arapaimag]

u should start charging admission to view it! :eek:


Welcome to MFK. You have a great avator.

[mav]

amazing, must be a full time ob to maitain...what is your site?

[PhoMan]

I just registered.... and you have my first post.

Wow.... what a great tank. Thanks for sharing and taking time to correspond with everyone's questions and comments.

[ANGELMINE]

HOW DO YOU FEED THE FISH, HOW MANY FISH IN THERE

[arapaimag]

HOW DO YOU FEED THE FISH, HOW MANY FISH IN THERE


I feed them through the hinged doors above the water line. There are 10 doors most of which are 3 feet by 2 feet.

The number of fish is impossible to count because of a large number of cichlids. With 28,000 lbs of lava rock many are hiding, breeding etc out of sight.

[ilovereeftanks]

hi guys! i just registered in order to post in your thread. its an amazing tank.

just have a quick question....why don't you use ozone to clarify the water? its not difficult to have crystal clear water, even for such an incredibly huge tank. i don't know the first thing about freshwater, since i just keep a marine tank. but i do use ozone and an orp controller, and it has made my tank water invisible.

thanks!

[tenzokenny]

Thats awsome thats a monster fish tank

[HurricaneForce76]

Wow......WOW. I' dont know how to put this to show my exact amazement, but dude- you are officially the master of fishkeepers. A TRUE MONSTER FISH KEEPER!
~76

[arapaimag]

hi guys! i just registered in order to post in your thread. its an amazing tank.

just have a quick question....why don't you use ozone to clarify the water? its not difficult to have crystal clear water, even for such an incredibly huge tank. i don't know the first thing about freshwater, since i just keep a marine tank. but i do use ozone and an orp controller, and it has made my tank water invisible.

thanks!

Thanks for the suggestion. What size is your reef tank?

[yongsum]

yup, the master, a true inspiration to me and many others. i actually day dream about a tank like that, just like when i was a kid. i even keep telling me one day i'll have some sort of monster tank. when i'm ready, i'll be coming to you for tips, do's, don'ts, and what not.

[arapaimag]

yup, the master, a true inspiration to me and many others. i actually day dream about a tank like that, just like when i was a kid. i even keep telling me one day i'll have some sort of monster tank. when i'm ready, i'll be coming to you for tips, do's, don'ts, and what not.


Thanks for the reply and welcome to MFK. I hope it inspires you to build a big tank for your fish. We all will be ready to help you with advice/suggestions when you are ready.

[GODS1KID]

K

[GODS1KID]

LLLLL

[ilovereeftanks]

Thanks for the suggestion. What size is your reef tank?

hehe...im almost embarressed to say it here....its a 5 footer mix reef.

i've been using ozone coupled to an orp controller for about a year now. it maintains the tank at about 400mv, and the water is crystal clear.

the reason i brought up ozone is because there seems to be a slight greenish tinge in the water. it would be amazing if you manage to hit 350mv.....imagine all those monsters looking like they are flying around the room in all their glory....

kinda creepy actually...... :P

but it would be a magnificent sight.

[arapaimag]

hehe...im almost embarressed to say it here....its a 5 footer mix reef.

i've been using ozone coupled to an orp controller for about a year now. it maintains the tank at about 400mv, and the water is crystal clear.

the reason i brought up ozone is because there seems to be a slight greenish tinge in the water. it would be amazing if you manage to hit 350mv.....imagine all those monsters looking like they are flying around the room in all their glory....

kinda creepy actually...... :P

but it would be a magnificent sight.

Thanks again. Do you think I can get a system large enough to handle the 50K+ of water? The green tinge in the water actually disappeared after about a month and I have not seen it for 11 years.

[ilovereeftanks]

Thanks again. Do you think I can get a system large enough to handle the 50K+ of water? The green tinge in the water actually disappeared after about a month and I have not seen it for 11 years.

oh, i must have missed that when i read through your thread. im 11 years late.....hehe

sure, its not hard to get a relatively inexpensive ozonizer that is big enough for you.

you can try this link...

http://www.enaly.com/HGOZ-1000.htm

the output is around 1000mg/hr, which should be sufficient if you were to inject it after the mechanical filter, before the biological filter (if any).

its something i would recommend simply because it boggles my mind to imagine having a crystal clear view of the huge fishes in your tank. i wasn't kidding when i mentioned earlier that its a little creepy....lol....only way i can describe the mental image i have in my brain is suspended floating-in-the-air fishes. the size of my arm. staring at me. all at once. hungrily. brrr...... :(

[davo]

it doesnt matter that so many people have said it before me, 'cause u deserve all the complements u can get, that is the most awesome project, and u must be such a proud owner of something so awesome-real good job

now-i'll need a digger and some materials.......

[TheAntiEggroll]

Just wanted to make my first post in this thread. I have no right to be on this site but Im working towards it and will be setting up my 120 tall in the next couple of days (dont laugh to hard). Beautiful tank and youve done what most of us can only really dream of doing

[wickedglass]

wow is all i can say

[marcicarrera]

This is the best -at home- tank I have ever seen, Anywhere. :drool:

[pass]

I bow to you......AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This has got to be the project of ages. Never did I think someone would venture into such a project but you did, so I am not the only one with humongous expectations . :clap

[arapaimag]

[QUOTE=ilovereeftanks]oh, i must have missed that when i read through your thread. im 11 years late.....hehe

sure, its not hard to get a relatively inexpensive ozonizer that is big enough for you.

you can try this link...

http://www.enaly.com/HGOZ-1000.htm

Thanks again. I phoned today but the owner/manager has just departed to China for perhaps up to 2 months. They suggested I email with my questions and he can answer since he has the expertise in this area. I will let you know when I have his answer.

[arapaimag]

Just wanted to make my first post in this thread. I have no right to be on this site but Im working towards it and will be setting up my 120 tall in the next couple of days (dont laugh to hard). Beautiful tank and youve done what most of us can only really dream of doing


Thanks for the reply. Good luck with your 120. Don't forget I've got tanks that size and smaller too. Like you, I enjoy all aspects of the hobby. There was a time my biggest tank was a home made 10 gallon...............

[WolfFisho1]

how do u pay for all that?

[Exoticfish]

I missed so much here but just caught up with you guys.

OMG, Mike! More than a dream tank to me! Now your monster mega tank makes me work 24 hours. LOL.... Thanks for sharing.

[mr lindeman]

that looks real cool

[mr lindeman]

i like those fish.

[mr lindeman]

wish i could do the same

[WolfFisho1]

same here

[black_monster]

omg :WHOA: ... u must be broke

[Aquaman]

That is an awsome tank! I am going to start a savings fund for my own mega tank. I can only dream. :drool:

What species of monsters do you Keep in there?

[drano33]

Dang....Dang....Dang....Wow another gigantic tank i can only dream of having...lol :WHOA: :eek: :WHOA:

[ripesteel]

:thumbsup: I can't believe what I see! That is the most amazing thing I have ever seen!

[mudskipper]

HOLY SHNICKES!!!!!!! :woot: :woot: :clap :headbang2 I am curious how you pull off 10,00gallon waterchanges weekly. Do you start on saturday and ende on friday, sleep then reapeat :hitting: :hitting: :hitting:

[arapaimag]

HOLY SHNICKES!!!!!!! :woot: :woot: :clap :headbang2 I am curious how you pull off 10,00gallon waterchanges weekly. Do you start on saturday and ende on friday, sleep then reapeat :hitting: :hitting: :hitting:


Actually its very easy. I pump 2,000 gallons out using a swimming pool pump. This only takes a matter of minutes. The water goes to a couple of large outside ponds. I then just add 500 gallons an hour for 4 hours in a day. I repeat this 5 days in a row and I have changed 10,000 gallons in the week.

[DwarfCichlid101]

what type of fish do you have in there? That is amazing! And must have taken a lot of time and effort to do that! Did you need a permit to build it?

[ewurm]

I don't think my entire apartment could hold 50,000 gallons. I would still do it anyway. I'd sleep underwater, maybe even grow gills. My landlord would be so pissed.

[redtailfool]

Actually its very easy. I pump 2,000 gallons out using a swimming pool pump. This only takes a matter of minutes. The water goes to a couple of large outside ponds. I then just add 500 gallons an hour for 4 hours in a day. I repeat this 5 days in a row and I have changed 10,000 gallons in the week.


arapaimag if you dont mind me asking , how much does your water bill costs??

[rfdavid]

That is just incredible!

[arapaimag]

what type of fish do you have in there? That is amazing! And must have taken a lot of time and effort to do that! Did you need a permit to build it?

I've had many types of fish in the tank. I will make a complete list in the future.
I did need a building permit. As well I had to have an engineer give a complete review, inspection and analysis. Regular building inspector approvals. Also electrical and taxation department visits and inspections.

[arapaimag]

arapaimag if you dont mind me asking , how much does your water bill costs??


The cost isn't the water its the electricity to pump it and the oil to heat it.
I live in the country.

The most I've paid is $1,200 a month for hydro and $1,200 for oil.

[ewurm]

You had to get building permits? I hope you never plan to move. I can imagine that most potential buyers would not share the same enthusiasm. Having said that, how much do you want for your house? Also, you should definitely see my thread on addiction. You are the epitome. That's AWESOME.

[ewurm]

The cost isn't the water its the electricity to pump it and the oil to heat it.
I live in the country.

The most I've paid is $1,200 a month for hydro and $1,200 for oil.


$2400 for utilities? My landlord would have a heart attack. What do you do for a living? CEO of microsoft? :ROFL:

[rottbo]

by far a dream of all monster fish lovers come true would love to have that in my basement

[ExoticTrading]

that such beautiful, that would exactly like by dream tank that i alway wish for. u just make my day. i would like to see more picture as other members if u could. keep the good workkkkkkkk..... :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[flagtailpc]

BEAUTY,eh! (i'm from Canada and we say that up here when we mean
very,very, very cool!

[rottbo]

i would love to see pics of your other tanks no matter what size all fish are cool

[Ozzy]

arapaimag, I read your first post then skimmed the thread so if this was already talked about in depth dont bother.

What do you do for lighting? How would you change bulbs? How often did the 500W halogens burn out? Is humidity a problem with the electrical fixtures?

[CrypticSins]

Holy fu<ken shi† Balls dude!! :clap

I mean, shi*!! Did you talk out aLoan or do you have a really good job or ... damn WTF.... I totally envy that fish tank....

[ewurm]

BEAUTY,eh! (i'm from Canada and we say that up here when we mean
very,very, very cool!

Fish are cool, eh? Take off hoser! :thumbsup: :ROFL: