any arowana pros mind to help me?

[giar]

hi

i am planning to get a super red arowana (the small one) pretty soon. so before that, i would like to clarify some of my doubts.

i understand that water, filter and food are the most important things for the arowana .

so i am planning to get a 240cm L x 80cm W x 80cm H tank (approx 400 gallon).

my questions are

For water
1- can i use drinking water for the aquarium? will it lacks any necessity materials for the fish to live?

2- i live in indonesia which have tropical climate, do i still need thermometer and heater?

3- if i put freshwater plants (w/e the types are), will it make any differences? will it do good or nothing?

4- do i really need to change 20-30% of the water every week?

For filter
1- is it necessary to have 2 filters? one in each side of the aquarium to make sure all the debris and/or unwanted materials get filtered thoroughly? i am actually thinking for three filters with the third one at the center of the tank..

2- should i get internal or external filter? or both will even better? im not really concerned with the budget i just want the best for the fish.

For food
1- i am planning to give the arowana ghost shrimps as its main diets. do i need to quarantine the shrimps? the LFS i get the shrimps do not mix their water filters among the tanks.

2- can i just dump the shrimps (let say 20 of it) all at once, and refill it again once it is gone? or do i need to feed the arowana a couple shrimps at once for 2-3 times a day?

lastly..
1- for the aquarium back ground , what collor will suits super red arowana the best? is it black? and for the sand, should i get dark or light color?

2- since the tank will be put in my office, so, is it ok to leave the arowana with little to no food every saturday and sunday as the office closes?

thanks!!

 

[knobhill]

my answers are:

For water
1- can i use drinking water for the aquarium? will it lacks any necessity materials for the fish to live?

Depends on if it is spring water (ok) or distilled water (needs mineral buffer)

2- i live in indonesia which have tropical climate, do i still need thermometer and heater?

It certainly wouldn't hurt. the heater will maintain a more stable temp if you ever have cold weather. Thermometer will tell you if temp is too high, you may need to find a way to cool it down..

3- if i put freshwater plants (w/e the types are), will it make any differences? will it do good or nothing?

My aro likes a little plant cover, I use plastic plants. Live plants will likely get destroyed.

4- do i really need to change 20-30% of the water every week?

If you have to ask the question, you already know the answer. YES!


For filter
1- is it necessary to have 2 filters? one in each side of the aquarium to make sure all the debris and/or unwanted materials get filtered thoroughly? i am actually thinking for three filters with the third one at the center of the tank..

With a fish as expensive as a red arowana and a 400g tank, overdo it. Go with 3 quality canister filters. If one ever fails, you will be happy you have 3 filters.


2- should i get internal or external filter? or both will even better? im not really concerned with the budget i just want the best for the fish.

External canister filter is good for this setup. Make sure, the retun jets aerate the water or add an airstone for oxygen.


For food
1- i am planning to give the arowana ghost shrimps as its main diets. do i need to quarantine the shrimps? the LFS i get the shrimps do not mix their water filters among the tanks.

You need to feed your fish a variety of foods! Try feeding frozen fish and shrimp as opposed to live, and high quality pellets/sticks.

2- can i just dump the shrimps (let say 20 of it) all at once, and refill it again once it is gone? or do i need to feed the arowana a couple shrimps at once for 2-3 times a day?

I personally wouldn't feed live food..

lastly..
1- for the aquarium back ground , what collor will suits super red arowana the best? is it black? and for the sand, should i get dark or light color?

No idea, check out youtube, there should be a ton of these fish on there, see what background is most commonly shown.

2- since the tank will be put in my office, so, is it ok to leave the arowana with little to no food every saturday and sunday as the office closes?

If you can get the aro eating pellets/sticks, you could leave an automatic feeder for weekends and vacations. But, if you don't want to, the fish should be just fine, provided you fed him plenty during the week.

thanks!!

you're welcome! post some pics when its all set up.

 

[knobhill]

One last thing: make sure the tank lids are heavy and secure. Aros are known to spook and jump out of the their tanks.

 

[Fat Homer]

Regarding background, over here a lot of stores place red dragons against black background with a red tan light in tank to further enhance the red coloration...

 

[Yuki Rihwa]

Since Arowana is banned in NA so you pretty much only get general information about Asian Aro, you can check out this site for more info and they focus mostly about Arowana
http://www.arofanatics.com/forums/index.php
I don't know why they are shut down the gallery section, but if it's up then check it out. Asian folks post their collections and setup in there.