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At one LFS, I saw the largest size tank they had there was 210 gallons. Would you pay about $1000 or so (I can't remember the price) for it? Or would you try to make your own tank and acquire materials to build it that are just as good or even better?

Also if you had a tank that big, would you have fewer big fish or many small fish? Cause I think getting TONS and TONS of little fish would be really cool looking, but then yet at the same time though it is harder to keep track of them in case any die and plus you could always put those fish in smaller tank. Or would you get fewer bigger fish such as large cichilds or what ever else instead?

I would buy it, but you could probably get a better deal in the usa, there is so much more competition.
I would have a few fish, probably a manguanese, a red devil, flowerhorn, big aggressive fish

I would shop around a bit more for the tank. I'm sure there would be a better deal than that. You have to consider the cost of filtering and heating a tank that size too. I think that making your own at that size would have its problems.

As for fish I would get a group of frontosa with some other fish from the lake. At the same time a planted tank with lots of schooling fish would look awesome too.

Happy deciding!

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Before you criticize someone walk a mile in their shoes. That way you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

You will pay more than 1000$ tanks are $expensive$ i gonna keep looking in the local papers and find 1 that someones bought and grows tried of it quickly you can get good deals that way nice talking to ya gotta go feed my horses my other bye

Also the guy said the weight of that tank alone without any thing in it was about 340 or more pounds. It's possible you could find a better deal. But I'd say at the very most, you might find one for $50 less, so it will cost an arm and a leg no matter what. I think the only way you could get a tank that big cheaper is if someone is giving it away or selling a used one for less or you have some kind of hook up for getting on cheaper. Normally though, about $1000, if not more is what it will cost.

There could be several reasons for the higher cost.
Made from good quality glass.
Thicker glass.
Well made and correctly braced.
It might also carry a good gurantee.
Price is usually an indication of quality.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Good point, Keith

A good example is Oceanic versus All Glass. The latter is much less expensive but the quality and durability of the Oceanic tank is better. However, it all depends on what you are looking for: for example, I might move pretty soon and expected that when I was looking for a biggr tank. Oceanic is way more heavy, so I figured replacing the cheaper All Glass if required after the move would still be more economic. After all, both manufacturers produce good quality.

I would inquire re justification of the high price of this tank

As to the question of what would I put in a huge tank, well the answer is simple - LOTS of small fish.

A 210 gallon tank would house a humungous population of Panda Corys.



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

HI,
Yes, it would house lots of corries, but... what would
you put in the rest of the tank?

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

i just bought my 55g with a stand in the paper for $50 bucks. It needs to be cleaned big time, but I thought it was a great deal....

I would look around in the classifieds if I were you GH. You may find the right deal, it would just take time.

I would have to go with keith that to a point price can be indicative of quality...

As for stocking, wow, I would probably vary the sizes (within safe reason, dont want the biggies eating the littl-ies). but then again, I love variety...

I would find a better deal than $1000. No way would I try building a tank that size. I have seen LFS moving sales where they sold their used display tanks... 200 gallon tank for only $200. The only reason I didn't buy it myself was that I didn't have any place to put it.

><>

Yes, it would house lots of corries, but... what would
you put in the rest of the tank?

In 210 gallone?

Easy. 300 mixed Characins (6 shoals of 50 each) and 40 Otocinclus.

Oh, and in 210 gallons, I'd probably still have space for a dozen Apistogramma panduro as well. It's not as if they'd have territorial problems in a setup THAT size. Plus, if I was planning a 210 gallon setup, I'd have it custom made so that it was a relatively shallow 210 gallon setup, so that the surface area was correspondingly huge. Something of the order of 96" long x 36" wide x 18" deep (that comes to 224 UK gallons). That way my Pandas wouldn't have to swim far to take air at the surface.

I reckon that setup would be a BLAST once up and running.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

look for recycling groups online on like yahoo or in the local papers or craigslist. i got my 150gallon tank and stand an only paid $100 and it was in excellent condition

myself, one that big, an arowana and a bottom feeder that would get just as big.

Fish tanks are an expensive addiction

I reckon that setup would be a BLAST once up and running.

Yes, but imagine the water changes, man! THE WATER CHANGES!

Jeez, I can't even imagine doing a little weekly plant pruning on that. It would take an hour and a half at least.

Joe Potato

Big tank = Big fish. If there was a little fish I wanted I'd get it already with all the other empty, small tanks I have around.

I personally would not build something myself since I'm really bad at that kind of stuff. However, it is possible to do it. If you're good with your hands, try looking at www.garf.org for some details on tank-building; they've got a good guide for building a tank with four out of the five sides out of wood and one viewing pane of glass or acrylic; this cuts down on the cost immensely, but you won't be able to see through the sides in this sort of tank.

What I would personally do is watch the classifieds for big tanks; that's how I acquired my 125 gallon. There may be some people online selling tanks too, such as on e-bay or on aquabid. This may turn out to be cheaper, especially with used aquariums.

Also, keep in mind how heavy a 210 gallon aquarium is, and hope that someone is there to help you move that beast. Once you put that tank somewhere, it's probably not going to move for a long time. Make sure that the floor can support this sort of weight. A gallon is approximately 8 lbs, so that's over half a ton there in water.

--------------------------------------------
The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

I think it would be very neat to have a tank that big, but I probably wouldn't get something that big for many years to come. Looking at the prices at that LFS, I say probably 90 gallons or less is what I would get if I wanted a big tank, 55 being mininum within any time in the next 2 years. Currently though I only have a 10 and a 20 gallon tank.

I went back to that LFS today. The cost of the tank glass only is $899. The whole package costs $1,099. The package includes the tank tops and lights, the tank itself and a pine stand.

Still a bad deal?

As a comparison, I recently bought a 250G for $1885. It's custom made, with a beautiful rosewood stand. Like Keith said price is an indicator of quality & you really dont want to compromise on the aquarium quality.

Think of it as an investment

As for big fish vs small fish....It's awesome just having the choice....I'm going for a Malawi colony myself

i say if you have the money and want the tank get it- just dnt regret it if in the long run you see the same sort of thing a lot cheaper. if you dont have the money then you will be all the more excited when the right tank comes up! as for fish...
mate it would take me as long to save up the money as it would to have a vague idea of what i would put in it! i will have to get back to you on that...

I would buy the set up as far as fish I would deinately go with some medium and larger CA/SA cichlids. Also don't forget about the cost of decorating the tank, unless you can mange to take the time and get natural alternatives for substrate, rocks, wood, or whatever it is you prefer.

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I happen to have become a philosopher