# 180 gal



## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

I just got this 180 gal last sunday 6/26/2005 and me and a friend built the stand (which is not finished yet) The tank is still alittle cloudy from the sand i added.

View attachment 67341


Day 1 6/27/2005
I added all the water from my 125 gallon into my 180 gallon so it would be safe to put my fish in there, i didn't add any other water but the water from my 125 gallon. Its very cloudy because of the sand and water mix.

View attachment 67342


can hardly see any of my fish because of the sand. But i know they will be fine.

6/28/2005

Tank is getting more clear, all my fish are still alive, and i added some of my old plants into the sand, also added about 40 gallons of new water. Also i moved my 10 gallon bait tank underneath the stand.

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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

Plans for wednesday are to finish stand, with oak finish on the outside


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

damn... that's cloudy









make sure to post some pics once it clears up


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> damn... that's cloudy
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will do dude!


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## jan (Apr 24, 2004)

Looks good to me









What are your plans for this tank?


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

jan said:


> Looks good to me
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Im going to put the same fish in it that i had in my 125 gallon. And alot of the same decorations. Im just gonna make it as natural as possible.


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## benJii (Feb 17, 2005)

thats not a fish tank, thats a indoor mud puddle :laugh:


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## zygapophysis (Jul 16, 2004)

Lookin great..


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## bmpower007 (Feb 11, 2005)

Nicee looking. Are you going to add some more fish or just transfer the fish from your 125


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

bmpower007 said:


> Nicee looking. Are you going to add some more fish or just transfer the fish from your 125
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just transfer the fish from my 125. It may not seem like alot of fish, but the fish that are there get huge! I added 2 jack dempsey's though and 2 fronts


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

Ahh Day 3, getting alot better, water is more clear, and i added some of the tank decorations back in the tank.

View attachment 67503


i give it 1 or 2 more days and it will be crystal clear


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

Day 4, 98% clear








Here are some shots of the tank, i will keep it like this, except add a few more plants. I wnant to keep it kinda open in some areas.

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If u all have any suggestions let me know, because i would like to do a few more things with the tank, but not quit sure what. hah


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## jan (Apr 24, 2004)

It looks great, that clown knife has a remarkable pattern, great choice


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## Guest (Jul 1, 2005)

Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!

Redtail cat = 5ft
Clown Knife = 4ft
Oscar = 1ft
Jack Demps x2 = 1ft x 2
Fronts x2 = 1.5ft x 2

Plus there are some others in there.

And I hope you dont actually have 3 Peacocks in there!

If I were you, I'd sell all the fish, and keep the three Peacocks in there alone. Or maybe the Redtail and the Clown Knife.

Just thinking about the future man.

--Dan


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## pyrokingbrand (Nov 30, 2004)

very cool dude!


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

DannyBoy17 said:


> Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!
> 
> Redtail cat = 5ft
> Clown Knife = 4ft
> ...


actueally i didn't add any fish there all the ones from my 125 gal. Im only keeping my redtail for atleast a few more months, i told my friend i was going to get rid of him and he said he'd take him. The other fish will be fine in there for life, but it will be a little crowded for the pbass when there full grow.


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## channafreak (Mar 27, 2004)

Yea man if you keep all those fish you will eventually "End up living in a van down by the river!"

I like it, looking great with that open area.


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## Ries (Mar 20, 2004)

nice tank looks verry good


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## King Oscar (Apr 5, 2005)

sweet oscar dude


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## Joga Bonito (Oct 30, 2004)

nice, keep up the good work


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

ahh thats better! hehe it didnt even look like a fish tank when you added the sand









looks great though


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

DannyBoy17 said:


> Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!
> 
> Redtail cat = 5ft
> Clown Knife = 4ft
> ...


^obviously doesnt know about how big fish get in aquariums....^

the RTC will be about the only think you'll have to get rid of.... fronts wont get bigger than a foot, the clown knife will get about 24" tops, the dempseys will only get 8-10", and peacocks wont get bigger than 18".

good luck with the tank. it's looking great.


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> DannyBoy17 said:
> 
> 
> > Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!
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thanks for backin me man, i knew all my fish would be fine, cept the rtc... cause there just insane.

and thanks, its finally clear and kickin! I finished the stand....well most of it, heres a pic.

View attachment 68047


I just need to finish the sides and im going to add a few more plants and i should be done.

Its not the best looking, but its pretty bad ass in my opinion, especially for the first stand i ever built. I only spend $80 on it where it would of cost $200+ to buy one.


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## Joga Bonito (Oct 30, 2004)

nice, keep up the good work


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## Guest (Jul 5, 2005)

lemmywinks said:


> DannyBoy17 said:
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> > Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!
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Hmm. Well my measurements were from actual fish we kept in tanks at the LFS, all around 125g











mauls said:


> lemmywinks said:
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> > DannyBoy17 said:
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Man, Im not attackin you. I just dont see the need to cram so many monsters into such a small space. Why not make it more natural, make them happy.

Your call though.

--Fan


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

so your telling me you kept a 5' RTC and a 4' clown knife in a 125g at your lfs?!


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## psychofish (Jun 5, 2004)

Why didnt you risne the sand before you put it in your tank


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## jan (Apr 24, 2004)

I have never seen a 5' RTC in captivity. They get big, but not likely to reach 5' in an aquarium. The same goes for clown knives. I would love to see a pic of a 4' clown in captivity


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## hyphen (Apr 4, 2004)

i wouldn't keep 3 pbass in a 180. pond for 3 of those bad boys for sure.


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

hyphen.. everyone knows that bigger is always better... especially you









but as long as they dont start fighting they should be fine. You might have to take the fronts out because they are pretty diffrent from the other fish you have in there. But I think that a clown knife, 2 dempseys, and the 3 peacocks would do alright in there for atleast 2 years. if you need to upgrade... 300g stock ponds are only 150$


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> DannyBoy17 said:
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> > Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!
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100% incorrect.

Where is your information to back this? How do you know any species of cichla, will stop growing at 18 inches because its IN A 180 gallon tank?

Please, Tell me. Have you kept a peacock? How about a RTC over 24 inches?

Also, Please... Tell me- How do fish magically stop growing to "fit" their tank? WHat is the scientific reason behind this? Do you know? Do you know of one?


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

mauls said:


> DannyBoy17 said:
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> > Mauls...I cant believe you added more fish!
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It wont be crowded for the cichla, the tank will be to small. They will start to develope HITH and become very stressed.

You obviously dont know much about them.

You do realize that they are "jolting" predators? meaning they require alot of room for feeding?


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

Peacock said:


> lemmywinks said:
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also, I would like to add.

What species of Cichla stays under 18 inches lemmy? Do you know something I dont? Do you know of some new species of Peacock that magically stops growing at 18 inches?


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

jan said:


> I have never seen a 5' RTC in captivity. They get big, but not likely to reach 5' in an aquarium.
> [snapback]1096225[/snapback]​


I have.

I have seen larger too.

A friend of mine had a couple 3+ footers that were only a few years old. Unfortunatly they died from ammonia.

The vancouver aquarium in BC had a 6 footer.

You mentioned "in an aquarium"

what do you mean? do you mean that the fish stops growing because the tank is to small? what is the scientific explination behind this?


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## we have sound (Apr 27, 2005)

Did you really need four posts for that ? maybe you could have just said like other people have already done, "look, great tank, but it will be too small in the end" instead of attacking what people have offered.

And btw, great lookin tank. For all its worth I hope you keep those fish in there for a while. They will look great







, its just about knowing when to move them on. hope it goes well for you.

CT


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## Serygo (May 17, 2004)

Dannyboy dont you have some saltwater fan club to go to?
You said you kept a 4ft Clown Knife and a 5ft RTC in a 125g tank?
WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU!!!
You are saying he will need a bigger tank, then why didnt u give them a bigger tank, they will need it more than anything.
Besides you are making this all up as you go.

Peacock- LoL I didnt understand a word you just said :laugh: 
But good information









<--------Translating Peacocks Post Starting----------->

Peacock bass need a lot of room, if they dont then they will die from over stressing. They like to jump at their food, well jolt (as Peacock) put it, right when it hits the water.
Peacock bass can get up to about 36+" (Cichla Mono.). Well the peacock bass I have seen have only been up to about 24" but they can surely get up to way past that.
RTC can get up to about 6ft, or even bigger, as seen in the Vancouver BC Aquarium.

<-------------Translating Peacocks Post Ending---------->

And the other things he said I dont remember









Also,,, the biggest Clown Knife I have ever seen recorded was only about 27-30 inches.

Frontosa can only get to about 1.5 feet (well mine is that big, and its the biggest I have ever seen).

The fish in that tank will get big but will def. need a bigger tank







I am asuming that tank is 6ft long, 24 tall, and 24 wide.
That should keep them busy for awhile (couple months or so for the RTC, and he will be about 12-15 inches, they grow really fast).


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## King Oscar (Apr 5, 2005)

damn thats a nice tank and stand dude


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

we have sound said:


> Did you really need four posts for that ? maybe you could have just said like other people have already done, "look, great tank, but it will be too small in the end" instead of attacking what people have offered.
> 
> And btw, great lookin tank. For all its worth I hope you keep those fish in there for a while. They will look great
> 
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I had forgot about the quote options.

They offered incorrect information. I am calling them out on their bogus info, to hopefully get them to realize what they said was 100% incorrect and that they need to stop making bullshit up.


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

King Oscar said:


> damn thats a nice tank and stand dude
> [snapback]1096868[/snapback]​


thanks bro.

Sorry to disagree with u all, but once again im on lemmywinks side. The only fish that i will have a problem with is the RTC, and a cheap plastic pond will be an easy fix in 1.5 - 2 years when he gets around 3ft. The bass will be fine, and if they do outgrow the tank, were talking 2 years down the road, maybe longer, but i dont see it happening, i will find a new home for them. And i've never, ever in my life seen a 4ft clown knife in an aquarium thats 48" man, sorry but i call bs on that, and if there is one i would really like to a pic, but i doubt anybody will ever be able to pull up a pic since theres. I've read many articles, and they state, "A nocturnal hunter, this knife can grow, in the wild, to lengths greater than three feet." "in the wild"

but hey i could be wrong


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

neal likes expanding things out to make himself seem more important









and neal... intermedia only get about 18-20".... so bleh.

i said the fronts would probly have to go and the RTC would have to. id never recomend putting a RTC in a 180 for life, so i dont see why you got all pissy about that and threw a fit. and i also said that if they cichla do outgrow his tank, it wont be for atleast 2 years. that would give him plenty of time to save up some funds. and o yes, thank you king neal for correcting all my incorrect statements


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> neal likes expanding things out to make himself seem more important
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this is not proven, so to suggest say the intermedia only grows to this size is completely subjective.

You are incorrect.

Answere my questions-

HOw do fish magically stop growing?

How will a monoculus/ocellaris stay at 18 inches?

DOnt be an idiot and blurt out incorrect information with out something to support it.

You dont have any information, because your making this crap up.


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

Peacock said:


> lemmywinks said:
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> > neal likes expanding things out to make himself seem more important :rasp:
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woah woah, ok ur done, i didn't want this to happen lol.

I just wanted to show pics of my new tank and get a little feedback, yes i have huge fish and i know that. No fighting, and no calling people idiots because they have different opinions







so ease up bro


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

Ive seen quite a few large ocellaris and monos in aquariums and I can honestly say that the biggest one that I have ever seen was about 24". and that was in an enormous tank at the shedd. this is like how saying that dovii get 30" in the wild, but have you ever personally seen one in a home aquarium that large? sure, they might get a little larger than 18", but my point is that they will not get as large in a home aquarium as they would in a wild enviroment. and I corrected my mistake before you even posted about that if they do outgrow the tank it will be in over 2 years, so he will have plenty of time to save up if he needs to. Im done with this childish arguement. and neal, if you want to continue it, hit me up on AIM or YIM.


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> Ive seen quite a few large ocellaris and monos in aquariums and I can honestly say that the biggest one that I have ever seen was about 24". and that was in an enormous tank at the shedd. this is like how saying that dovii get 30" in the wild, but have you ever personally seen one in a home aquarium that large? sure, they might get a little larger than 18", but my point is that they will not get as large in a home aquarium as they would in a wild enviroment. and I corrected my mistake before you even posted about that if they do outgrow the tank it will be in over 2 years, so he will have plenty of time to save up if he needs to. Im done with this childish arguement. and neal, if you want to continue it, hit me up on AIM or YIM.
> [snapback]1097879[/snapback]​


i've been to shedd that place is bad ass, but its been a few years so it might be different now


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

im sure that it has. they are alway putting up new exhibits up at the shedd


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> Ive seen quite a few large ocellaris and monos in aquariums and I can honestly say that the biggest one that I have ever seen was about 24". and that was in an enormous tank at the shedd. this is like how saying that dovii get 30" in the wild, but have you ever personally seen one in a home aquarium that large? sure, they might get a little larger than 18", but my point is that they will not get as large in a home aquarium as they would in a wild enviroment. and I corrected my mistake before you even posted about that if they do outgrow the tank it will be in over 2 years, so he will have plenty of time to save up if he needs to. Im done with this childish arguement. and neal, if you want to continue it, hit me up on AIM or YIM.
> [snapback]1097879[/snapback]​


exactly what I thought, You have no concrete information supporting your claims. Therefore you are spewing out personal opinion, how YOU see it, weather it be wrong or not.

Your logic contradicts its self.

How many 30 inch dovii have you seen in the wild?

How many 24+ inch cichla have you seen in the wild? The same amount you have seen in tanks. 0. You have no background or back up to support your opinion.

You cannot say, that because you dont see such fish in aquariums they must not exist or are quite rare when compared to wild populations, becuase you have never seen these fish in the wild either.

Do you know WHY you dont see large fish in tanks?

because people usualy kill them off before they get large, or they are traded off, or taken to the zoo, ect ect. or, my personal favorite; the keepers harm the fishes growth by poor food and/or poor water quality.

Dont spew out personal opinion in a factual argument.


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## Peacock (Feb 23, 2004)

mauls said:


> No fighting, and no calling people idiots because they have different opinions
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see, this is where you are mixed up.

It wasn't difference of opinion. It was Theory(opinion) Vs reality(fact).


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

Not again.

A new thread about fish sizes is acceptable. More banter about it in Maul's thread is *not *(such posts will be deleted/moved).

Some fish grow to different sizes in captivity. It is the ADVANCED hobbyist's responsibility to discern this from cramping/stunting or causing disease because of lack of space. I trust Mauls to do this.

Oh, by the way, no quadruple posts or calling fellow members idiots.









Back to the tank.... any video? Looks to be a very cool set-up, glad it cleared up. Also, any confusion between the New World and Old World cichlids? I'm always curious how they deal with the different 'fight languages'.


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## jiggy (Jun 27, 2004)

neal is the man


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

maybe the thread is doomed


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

anyone have a picture of a HUGE red tail cat? like 3ft+?


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

Found these....


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)




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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

I still dont see why you are getting all pissy about it neal. I agree with you 100% that they will probly get larger than 18". It was my mistake that i posted they wont get larger than 18" and I will admit it. I will admit that I was wrong, unlike someone else who always thinks he has to be right









And like i said earlier, it will take atleast 2 years for those little cichla of his to outgrow that tank. That gives him plenty of time to save up some funds for a larger tank.

and like i said earlier, stop fuckin with mauls thread. send me an IM if you got a probelm. Im sure you wouldnt like someone to f*ck up one of your threads, so please show them the same amount of courtesy


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

dang they're really pretty... too bad they get so big


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

acestro said:


> Back to the tank.... any video? Looks to be a very cool set-up, glad it cleared up. Also, any confusion between the New World and Old World cichlids? I'm always curious how they deal with the different 'fight languages'.
> [snapback]1098208[/snapback]​


yea i will get a vid for ya, i need to find the charger for my cam, and i was real suprised on how fast it cleared up. I read alot of post that people had on sand and most that i read it took there tank 4+ days to clear up, one member said his wasn't cleared after a week and a half. I washed it off in a pillow case and added the water in slowly, so maybe i jsut got lucky!


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

Ah, pillow case trick! I'll have to remember that one. Look forward to the vid.


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

acestro said:


> Ah, pillow case trick! I'll have to remember that one. Look forward to the vid.
> [snapback]1099003[/snapback]​


yea i stole it from lemmy


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

acestro said:


> Back to the tank.... any video? Looks to be a very cool set-up, glad it cleared up. Also, any confusion between the New World and Old World cichlids? I'm always curious how they deal with the different 'fight languages'.
> [snapback]1098208[/snapback]​


ok well here is the vid.. haha its nothing special at all since my fish are still juvies and not much to look at, and theres not much agression going on except for the redtail and the pleco at the end. The tank may look like alot of fish, but i threw 4 baby blue gills in to feed my redtail, and my girlfriend bought a stupid bala shark, so i hope that thing gets smoked by the rtc, as well as the convicts!

Well enjoy the vid, like i say its kind of boring so i added in some music, and i threw some food in the tank to get the fish movin.

http://www.putfile.com/media.php?n=180galfish

btw my camera is no special camera... yes its a piece of crap and makes my water look cloudy and some images are pixlated, so just have to deal with it :nod: haha also when i zoomed on my uro, it looks like he's singing... i dunno i just thought it was pretty funny

Mauls~


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## hyphen (Apr 4, 2004)

pixelation occurs via compression. every other frame is lowered in quality to lessen the size of the video. so, that isn't from your camera









either way, nice vid


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

hyphen said:


> pixelation occurs via compression. every other frame is lowered in quality to lessen the size of the video. so, that isn't from your camera
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thanks man, i didn't put alot of time in it to make it all pretty i just did a simple shot of the fish and tank. And ya i see what ur saying about the compression!


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

hehehe. I thought that was a pretty cool vid









by the way, how big is your red tail getting? he's getting huge









I also like the uros in there too


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

lemmywinks said:


> hehehe. I thought that was a pretty cool vid
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lol man i dont know that damn fish is the fastest growing fish i have ever seen in my life. he's about 8-9" now and i dont even feed him that much any more, i feed him beefheart or krill about every other day, but he does it minnows i've seen.


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## NIKE (Jan 27, 2003)

cool video Mauls. great look'n tank and decor job.


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

Ha, I dig the video and music choice. I think you have fish from almost every continent!







You know fish are going to start to disappear before the RTC gets too big.


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

acestro said:


> Ha, I dig the video and music choice. I think you have fish from almost every continent!
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hah ya most of them are central/south american, except for the fronts and the clown knife, i know the clown knife will be fine but im iffy about the fronts. And yea that rtc is growing so fast, i may throw him in my 125 with the big oscars until my other fish catch up. That way there's no more deaths. He;s already ate a 3" jack dempsey, and a 3" oscar as well as one of my pbass so im pretty pissed, but i guess i should have expected it. So in a week or so he'll be in the 125 for a while.

glad u enjoyed the vid


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## King Oscar (Apr 5, 2005)

nice vid i luv ur clown knife it look realy nice


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

King Oscar said:


> nice vid i luv ur clown knife it look realy nice
> [snapback]1103726[/snapback]​


thanks man, that clown knife is one of my fav fish, i love how there whole body moves, almost like a snake in the water


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## bmpower007 (Feb 11, 2005)

Great looking fish and tank


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

thanks for the compliments

OK, the RTC is going bye bye, it smoked another fish, an irr-shark i just put in there, it was bout 4" long. So now my RTC has ate: 2 baby peacock bass, 1 jack dempsey, 1 frontosa, 1 oscar, 1 orange african cichlid, and my irridisent shark (sp)

I can't be mad at it, it was expected but i dont want any more of my fish to get eaten so im going to get rid of it. They are incredible looking fish but this will save trouble down the road, because it will outgrow my tank.

so







RTC


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

> 2 baby peacock bass, 1 jack dempsey, 1 frontosa, 1 oscar, 1 orange african cichlid, and my irridisent shark


whoah quite a menu! Someone will be interested in that monster I'm sure.


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## mauls (Mar 25, 2004)

acestro said:


> > 2 baby peacock bass, 1 jack dempsey, 1 frontosa, 1 oscar, 1 orange african cichlid, and my irridisent shark
> 
> 
> whoah quite a menu! Someone will be interested in that monster I'm sure.
> [snapback]1112392[/snapback]​


let me add my leaf fish, and front...







its at my buddies house in a 40 gallon until i can find a home for it. bastard has ate over $100 worth of fish


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