1 Year ..... And havent tested my water until today!

[xclan]

I have had a tank running for roughly 1 year.
75 gallon corner tank
I think it is overloaded with fish.

1 12" arowana {gotta ge rid of soon due to tank size}
2 Redtail catfish....both 6 to 8" and Fat.
2 plecos
1 bass{caught him while fishing 2")
3 koi
1 gourami large
1 large tinfoil barb

I had a ton f filtration hooked up for 6 months.
Now i just have a whisper 60 hang on back filter. and 2 bubble curtains
I havent suffered any fish deaths in ages.
I had 2 powerheads and a magnum 350....but long ago my wifes pomeranian chewed the cords.

nitrates 0
nitrites 0
ammona 0

I am completely amazed that this is possible. i havent even changed the water often. this is my freshwater tank.....and really has been 100 maintenance free with the exception of topping off water and 2 minor water changes a month.



I change the water in my 150 saltwater tank 2 times a month and only have 2 small fish some crabs a lobster and shrimps....but i cant get my saltwater tank to 0, 0, 0..

Oh well.....Happy camper to say the least!

 

[cdawson]

UHM yeah! The bass alone would require a 200g tank, same for the arowana, the red tail catfish require about a 5000g aquarium....they get to be about 4 1/2 feet.
You seriously need to return everything in that tank or get yourself a REALLY large aquarium. You're also mixing tropical and coldwater fish which will result in both health and aggression problems. Your first course of action should be to find homes for the catfish that'll eventually become extremely aggressive tank busters pretty soon. I don't think your nitrate test kit works (probably expired) because there is NO way that you'd have 0 nitrates in a tank that is so overcrowded like that. Especially seeing as you haven't done a water change in "ages". You should also have way more for filtration on that tank. Here's something to think about you've got about 164 possible inches (give or take a few) of fish in your 75g and the standard rule for stocking tanks (which should also never be used IMO) is 1 inch per gallon. You have 89 inches over the standard limit.

 

[Terry]

It isn't just the Arowana you will have to get rid, the Redtail, Bass and Koi should go as well. As cdawson said there is no way your perameters would read o,o,o with that sort of stocking levels, your test kits are not working or you did the test wrong.
All i can say is that you have been very lucky that you have had no deaths in your tank.
I would defiantly think about your stock and either change your tank to at least 200 to 300 gal to house them sorts of fish or get rid of the fish or some of them.

Here in the UK you would put Redtailed cats, Arowana in a 8ft long x4ft wide x3ft high aquarium, which in the uk is a 575ish gal aquarium.

 

[xclan]

BTW,
I always buy baby and I do mean baby baby fish and as they grow i get rid of them.
The arowana is the only large fish in the tank...
I plan on getting rid of all of these...
bass
redtails
arowana
and start over with more babies....Thats always how I have ran my tank and my tank is very healthy.

The baby redtail cats are a few months old...have had them since they were thumbnail size......they have tripled.
And yes i am aware of how large all of these fish get.
oh and for the test kit I tested our 10 gallon tank and the tank hasnt ran smoothly{because my wife is the one who maintains it} and her parameters are whacked. I just got this test kit and i highly doubt it is expired...i got it from drfostersmith . com this week.
And my tank is very healthy , very happy because they are very well fed. and have lots of hiding places. No agression problems, except and occasional fight between the catfish when goin after goldfish.

BTW edited the thread originally said 2 minor water changes...I meant to say 2 minor water changes a month.

oh and for as far as the size off all the fish named i know exactly how big they get...i have had many arowanas. many redtail cats. and hav caught bass millions of times. the bass i have is 2" in size...hardly a large fish.

 

[LondonGman]

Apart for the overstocking issues, it must be an awesome sight with all the large fishes. I only see those size fishes in shops and the local Chinese restaurant. Take pictures.
I never test my tank either except when I buy new fish which is rare but my tank is no where as large as yours.

Visually nice but advisor unfriendly tank LOL I am not an advisor

 

[cdawson]

Take it from me, you can't assume you can just get rid of them when they're too big. Do you really think a store is going to readily take 2 large red tail catfish off your hands? Most stores couldn't even house them and won't take them. Same for the rest, that bass will most likely die unless you keep him. No store will take it, as it's a local fish and is illegal to keep in stores or aquariums for that matter (your problem now). You can pretty much bet the farm that you're gonna have a REALLY hard time getting rid of those fish if you wait any longer because I hate to say it but most of the fish stores in my area actually have a list of fish they won't accept because of the sizes they get. The list includes, pacus, red tail catfish, tiger shovelnoses, gars, scats, monos, sharks, large eels, rays, arowanas above baby size. I'm just trying to give you an idea of what your situation is, because you wanted to keep these fish you're almost stuck with them. Try selling them in a local news paper, I see people trying to sell their arowanas and red tails all the time here.

 

[Megalofyia]

Hmmm well if the bass gets big enough he could always eat it.

 

[William]

most of the fish stores in my area actually have a list of fish they won't accept because of the sizes they get. The list includes, pacus, red tail catfish, tiger shovelnoses, gars, scats, monos, sharks, large eels, rays, arowanas above baby size.

That must be a nice shop.

The LFS I went to today had 8 12+ inch pacu's in what I estimate to be around a 35 to 40gal tank.

They had about 10 inches of substrate [ which took away alot of their room ] as well as a giant foot and a half pleco.

It was so sad seeing all those big fish crammed into sucha tiny tank..

 

[TankGirl]

Like has been posted, there would have to be a measurable level of nitrates for the tank to be cycled with fish in it. If there is ammonia present (fish waste) then you will have a byproduct of some kind, so something is wrong here, but if you don't have any fish deaths, no cloudy water, then that's wonderful and it does not really matter what your test results are. You seem to understand what you are into, and it is just a novel approach to fishkeeping. Bully for you!

 

[xclan]

I doubt I will have a hard time getting rid of these fish. My cousin has a 180 gallon custom made shallow tank and has always begged me for my cats and the arowana. I know he wont want the bass however.
Originally i had planned on moving all these fish into my 150 gallon tank in a few more months. But I set it up for saltwater. I currently have 5 aquariums in my house. {1 empty until i decide what to keep in it}.
I have been reading about building my own quarium with plywood and sealants, plus glass. I really really wish i had the time to build a HUGE tank. But by the time that happens I will have got rid of all the cats and the arowna by then.
Also I see people sell their arowanas online all the time. i can easily get rid of the arowana for 25${which is what i paid}.
Anyways whn i made this thread I figured everyone would come and school me on the size of my fish....but oh well thats life.

 

[Allivymar]

You'll find, xclan, folks here take their fish very seriously (not that you don't) and have a heightened level of concern for fish in general.

Your water husbandry is pretty minimal compared to most of us folks here, and you've got a pretty high bio-load for that size tank. You were absolutely correct in thinking folks would be concerned; I kinda wonder if you started the thread to simply get a reaction? I apologise if that wasn't your intent.

As for your water parameters, I too am rather surprised there are no measureable nitrates, considering the bio-load. You might want to have the water double checked; occasionally tests are no good.

 

[TankGirl]

Yep, appropriate fish for specific tank sizes is a major issue for many who post to these types of boards, as someone new to the hobby will get the fish first and then discover it can't stay in their tank. It is a knee-jerk reaction when people post to look at the fish in relation to the tank, since it is often the root of many problems. Did you start the thread to demonstrate that it is unecessary to test water, or just to share your pleasant surprise? Just curious.

 

[xclan]

Tankgirl,
I started the thread in pure shock. I knew my tank was healthy and I seriously have not had a death in 6 monhs and no ill fish or heavy breathing, etc. when i set this tank up i just wanted 2 fish .. arowana and redtail cat until i got a bigger tank.....my wife added all the other fish....and instead of gettin 1 redtail cat she got my 2 of them for my birthday.....I told her that 1 of them alone can get as big as my tank literally. as far as overloading a tank this tank is my only one overloaded and it wont be in a few more months.....I will have got rid of both the cats and arowana unless i build the tank i have been planning on for the past few months.

 

[TankGirl]

Well, I guess I would have been in pure shock too!

 

[AtodaJ]

75 gallon tank with that bio load and no nitrates? Sounds like you've been adding pixie dust to your tank.