New 325 glass Arowana tank (7ft) with simple set-up

islandguy11

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Sep 17, 2017
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Been busy the last week after getting in a new custom-made showpiece tank for my young ~11" Goldenhead Crossback Arowana, which had been in a 4' grow out tank since I got him a month ago.

His new tank is 84"L X 32"W X 28"H (yes I know kind of weird numbers but I could choose whatever I wanted and those are the dimensions I finally decided on -- I don't like too high of tanks, as it makes daily cleaning or just working on the tank harder).

It's 16mm glass, with Euro bracing on bottom edges, vertical corners, top edges and top center so it's pretty stout I reckon. For the tank + simple but strong steel stand it cost me 26,500 Thai baht (~US $815) -- I'm sure a lot less than back home in the US -- though the final product isn't quite as polished: it took me about 2 hours to scrape away excess silicone here and there where they weren't careful).

One of my main goals with this tank is to keep it simple as possible, esp with filtration. Of course most would advise to have a sump for this size tank, but for a couple of reasons I just didn't want to go that route (with one main factor being the tank will only hold 1 Arowana and later at max maybe 2 other fish, so it really won't have a huge bio-load; I also zap out poop with a battery operated siphon before every daily feeding, and likewise feed in a very controlled manner, so there's really no food waste ever left in the tank).

I'll update more on filtration and lighting later, for now here's some pix of the initial install....

New 325g install new stand medp.jpg

New 325g install a medp.jpg

New 325g install b medp.jpg

For some reason they put white acrylic bordering around top and bottom edges of tank, but used black silicone! No worries though, I'm going to be covering those with long, half-pieces of bamboo. Also I know many peeps aren't going to dig my choice of background colors, but this is part of the White Tank Treatment (WTT) for my Arowana that I plan to do for ~6 months before changing to blue or black. Some pros would recommend to do this until the fish is about 15"-16", but I don't think I can wait that long, as I also really don't like this white look, but I believe it best for my fish to help his head and back to have more complete shine, so will continue for at least a bit. Of course WTT is a very debatable topic, which I will soon bring up in another thread on Arowana sub-forum.
New 325g install j medp.jpg

Euro bracing throughout.
New 325g install e Euro bracing med.jpg

Some yoga mats across center braces to help protect my Aro's noggin in case of jumping.
New 325g install g Padding on braces med plus.jpg
 

tlindsey

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Been busy the last week after getting in a new custom-made showpiece tank for my young ~11" Goldenhead Crossback Arowana, which had been in a 4' grow out tank since I got him a month ago.

His new tank is 84"L X 32"W X 28"H (yes I know kind of weird numbers but I could choose whatever I wanted and those are the dimensions I finally decided on -- I don't like too high of tanks, as it makes daily cleaning or just working on the tank harder).

It's 16mm glass, with Euro bracing on bottom edges, vertical corners, top edges and top center so it's pretty stout I reckon. For the tank + simple but strong steel stand it cost me 26,500 Thai baht (~US $815) -- I'm sure a lot less than back home in the US -- though the final product isn't quite as polished: it took me about 2 hours to scrape away excess silicone here and there where they weren't careful).

One of my main goals with this tank is to keep it simple as possible, esp with filtration. Of course most would advise to have a sump for this size tank, but for a couple of reasons I just didn't want to go that route (with one main factor being the tank will only hold 1 Arowana and later at max maybe 2 other fish, so it really won't have a huge bio-load; I also zap out poop with a battery operated siphon before every daily feeding, and likewise feed in a very controlled manner, so there's really no food waste ever left in the tank).

I'll update more on filtration and lighting later, for now here's some pix of the initial install....

View attachment 1351342

View attachment 1351343

View attachment 1351344

For some reason they put white acrylic bordering around top and bottom edges of tank, but used black silicone! No worries though, I'm going to be covering those with long, half-pieces of bamboo. Also I know many peeps aren't going to dig my choice of background colors, but this is part of the White Tank Treatment (WTT) for my Arowana that I plan to do for ~6 months before changing to blue or black. Some pros would recommend to do this until the fish is about 15"-16", but I don't think I can wait that long, as I also really don't like this white look, but I believe it best for my fish to help his head and back to have more complete shine, so will continue for at least a bit. Of course WTT is a very debatable topic, which I will soon bring up in another thread on Arowana sub-forum.
View attachment 1351345

Euro bracing throughout.
View attachment 1351346

Some yoga mats across center braces to help protect my Aro's noggin in case of jumping.
View attachment 1351347

That is a nice aquarium .
 
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Dloks

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My brother from across the ocean congrats on your new tank, look forward to seeing MY fish in YOUR new tank :cheers:
 

islandguy11

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Sep 17, 2017
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For tank lid me and our handyman designed and made this unit from aluminum and plastic webbing. Cost in materials about $25 plus one day of labor for handyman. I like the webbing as opposed to something heavier because if my fish jumps and hits his head the webbing gives just a bit, so less chance of hard impact which might lead to drop eye.

GHXB 325 tank cover 4 med.jpg

GHXB 325 tank cover 1 med.jpg

As it's made of aluminum it's not very heavy, but this really isn't a problem because I can use similar to bungee cords to secure it tightly. It has 2 sections where we put hinges so it opens up on either side.

GHXB 325 tank cover 3 med.jpg

For lighting I've kept it simple for now: 1 X 36watt + 1 X 18 watt normal house LED (6500K daylight), waterproof (IP65) in case they get splashed. Total cost about $30. They're suspended from an aluminum electrical rod by good-sized zip ties, which allows me to turn them and adjust the amount light going into the tank. In fact they're really bright so most of the time I keep them turned to the side.

The rod itself is held by a stout backdrop holder (for making videos with green screen effect for my virtual online wedding service). These actually aren't super cheap so I probably wouldn't go out and buy one just for this, but I had it already and it's not really being used, and works well in this capacity -- I can easily adjust the height or lateral positioning of the lights.

GHXB Tank Light holder med.jpg

Next post will be about filtration & aeration.
 
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RD.

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Congrats on the new tank, Barrett!

IME as soon as WTT ends, the color & shine of a gold xback will begin to darken. WTT is a great way for vendors to show the potential of a young fish, and to market them, but unless one keeps them in WTT for life they will never retain the same appearance. Some farms even keep the lights on 24/7 for grooming. I look forward to watching your fish progress.
 

islandguy11

Redtail Catfish
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Sep 17, 2017
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Congrats on the new tank, Barrett!

IME as soon as WTT ends, the color & shine of a gold xback will begin to darken. WTT is a great way for vendors to show the potential of a young fish, and to market them, but unless one keeps them in WTT for life they will never retain the same appearance. Some farms even keep the lights on 24/7 for grooming. I look forward to watching your fish progress.
Thanks a lot RD -- no doubt I've been influenced by MFK site & members -- lol one has to wonder how much revenue, jobs, etc. this site has even indirectly brought to the aquarium industry/hobby, no small amount I'm sure!

Also appreciate your input re: WTT -- for sure one of the most hotly debated Golden Arowana topics (and then there's all that even more complicated tanning stuff with Reds) -- one can spend days pouring over all the posts with opinions of pros & cons (as I did) and still be confused/unsure of how to approach it. But for sure the general consensus would support your experience that the shine will indeed drop after stopping WTT -- I would only add, as I reckon you'd agree but just didn't state, that how much it drops can be somewhat influenced by first, how good are its genetics (while not super duper top grade, my GH is about 98% crossed on the back already at only 10.5" -- that's not all from WTT), then also diet and water parameter care.

While I'm not sure if a GXB would have to be kept in WTT for its entire life, I have been told by a couple of long-time breeders that the WTT needs to continue until the fish is at least 15-16 inches for it really to become more permanent -- something few (incl. myself) usually have the patience for (arguably ethical issues aside), esp. given the rather unattractive look of WTT.

But finally I decided to order my tank with white oyama stickering, based on the thought at the time that my fish had likely spent most its life so far under WTT (as 99.99% of farms and dealers/shops do it nowadays), so this would smooth the transition to his new, much larger home (which has worked well so far, he's looking mighty comfortable in the tank, not holed up or shy at all, healthy appetite). Then later, maybe in 3-6 months I can easily change the back and sides to probably blue and then maybe eventually black. In hindsight I should have had them put black stickering on the bottom, then I could have temporarily put in white tiles and taken them out later, so now I'll just have to reverse that process when I go a similar route later. For now though at least it doesn't look like a pool table lol.

As always appreciate your valuable input buddy, it helped my Kamfa-RTH ;) become a mini-YouTube star lol, I'm sure my 2 Arowana will benefit as well.
 

islandguy11

Redtail Catfish
MFK Member
Sep 17, 2017
2,217
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Thailand
Congrats on the new tank, Barrett!

IME as soon as WTT ends, the color & shine of a gold xback will begin to darken. WTT is a great way for vendors to show the potential of a young fish, and to market them, but unless one keeps them in WTT for life they will never retain the same appearance. Some farms even keep the lights on 24/7 for grooming. I look forward to watching your fish progress.
Thanks a lot RD -- no doubt I've been influenced by MFK site & members -- lol one has to wonder how much revenue, jobs, etc. this site has even indirectly brought to the aquarium industry/hobby, no small amount I'm sure!

Also appreciate your input re: WTT -- for sure one of the most hotly debated Golden Arowana topics (and then there's all that even more complicated tanning stuff with Reds) -- one can spend days pouring over all the posts with opinions of pros & cons (as I did) and still be confused/unsure of how to approach it. But for sure the general consensus would support your experience that the shine will indeed drop after stopping WTT -- I would only add, as I reckon you'd agree but just didn't state, that how much it drops can be somewhat influenced by first, how good are its genetics (while not super duper top grade, my GH is about 98% crossed on the back already at only 10.5" -- that's not all from WTT), then also diet and water parameter care.

While I'm not sure if a GXB would have to be kept in WTT for its entire life, I have been told by a couple of long-time breeders that the WTT needs to continue until the fish is at least 15-16 inches for it really to become more permanent -- something few (incl. myself) usually have the patience for (arguably ethical issues aside), esp. given the rather unattractive look of WTT.

But finally I decided to order my tank with white oyama stickering, based on the thought at the time that my fish had likely spent most its life so far under WTT (as 99.99% of farms and dealers/shops do it nowadays), so this would smooth the transition to his new, much larger home (which has worked well so far, he's looking mighty comfortable in the tank, not holed up or shy at all, healthy appetite). Then later, maybe in 3-6 months I can easily change the back and sides to probably blue and then maybe eventually black. In hindsight I should have had them put black stickering on the bottom, then I could have temporarily put in white tiles and taken them out later, so now I'll just have to reverse that process when I go a similar route later. For now though at least it doesn't look like a pool table lol.

As always appreciate your valuable input buddy, it helped my Kamfa-RTH ;) become a mini-YouTube star lol, I'm sure my 2 Arowana will benefit as well.
 

RD.

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My friend who used to import wholesale from Singapore kept his gold head xback in white oyama covered tank until approx. 15-16". Keep in mind he bought in bulk from the wholesaler, so was a valued customer, and he hand picked this fish in person I believe, while visiting the Aquarama when it was in Sing. At this point he had owned several Asian aros, and handled scores of quality specimens that he had imported for resale. It was a high quality specimen, the genetics were solid. He kept it in a 550 gallon tank, where via auto drip he changed out approx. 100 gallons a day. He also fed it the best of the best, better than I typically eat. lol It still darkened to a more brassy color once it ended up with a black background.

Another friend in town who imported a gold xback frim a different farm in Sing had the same experience. Super bright, super shiny, but it did not keep that super bright high shine, even though it did fully cross. His went in to a black background before it reached 15-16". He felt, and probably still does, that WTT is a sales gimmick.

I know that vendors/farm owners or reps say a lot of things, but I have personally never seen a baby aro kept in WTT look the same later in life, unless it was kept in WTT its entire life.

Just a small sample of some of the actual gold xbacks that my friend Boydo imported from Koji. :)

https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/bling-bling-crossing-over-2-canada-soon.311535/

https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/are-you-willing-to-pay-for-the-price.304950/
 
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