Home aquariums.

[El Barto]

whoops, i was wrong earlier, I have African, not South American cichlids.  So I guess its all good in my tank world (which I figured anyway since the fish look and act as they should).

Didn't even notice. Since you bought from an assortment tank it was pretty much a given. Throwing random SA/CA into a tank is going to result in instant carnage. Besides which they can get huge, whereas Africans tend to remain (comparatively) smaller, making one far less suitable for the grab-bag approach.

[Chino]

Long story short, my eight year old, perfectly balanced ecosystem of a tank is dead. I hadn't added a fish in over 6 years and my two Pictus Cats were beauties. My mom has a small 2 gallon tank on her nightstand at her house, and one of her fish was getting too big for it. She asked if I could re-home it. I really didn't want to, and I told her that, but I did anyway. Within a week every one of my fish was dead.

I'm thinking of buying the tank in the link below, but I've never seen a filter setup like that before. What do you think I'd need to get it pumping?

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/2499849990267385/

[cramx3]

If you come to NJ I have a 120 gallon tank and old large filter (no idea of brand or model off my head) outside my house that used to be my brothers and he decommissioned it when he moved out as I didn't want to take care of it.  For me, I am done with fish tanks.  I no longer have the joy of the maintanence with little appreciation of the fish on my own part anymore. 

[Chino]

That's really tempting tbh. I'd have two main concerns though.
 
1) Has it just been sitting outside? I'd be wary of how well it still holds water. I'd be worried that the sun and summer heat damaged the seals.
2) I was looking to keep it around 75 gallons because I don't know what my floor will support weight wise. My house was built in 1927 and I don't know if I could put 1000 pounds in such a small area.

[El Barto]

Long story short, my eight year old, perfectly balanced ecosystem of a tank is dead. I hadn't added a fish in over 6 years and my two Pictus Cats were beauties. My mom has a small 2 gallon tank on her nightstand at her house, and one of her fish was getting too big for it. She asked if I could re-home it. I really didn't want to, and I told her that, but I did anyway. Within a week every one of my fish was dead.

I'm thinking of buying the tank in the link below, but I've never seen a filter setup like that before. What do you think I'd need to get it pumping?

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/2499849990267385/

A sump tank and a water pump, I believe. While I suspect they're pretty safe, I just never felt comfortable with a filtration system that exists in a constant state of dumping water out. "Wet dry filter" is what you're looking for, and there's plenty of information about it. They're very effective at maintaining nice water quality, the alternating wet and dry substrates amass tons of critters, but I'm not sure the headache (and fear in my case) is worth the added quality.

[El Barto]

That's really tempting tbh. I'd have two main concerns though.
 
1) Has it just been sitting outside? I'd be wary of how well it still holds water. I'd be worried that the sun and summer heat damaged the seals.
2) I was looking to keep it around 75 gallons because I don't know what my floor will support weight wise. My house was built in 1927 and I don't know if I could put 1000 pounds in such a small area.

The last of my fish croaked a few months ago. I have no real desire for more fish right now (the plumbing in my condo makes water changes a PITA), but I'm keeping it full and running just to maintain the tank's integrity. Plus, it still looks nice.

[cramx3]

That's really tempting tbh. I'd have two main concerns though.
 
1) Has it just been sitting outside? I'd be wary of how well it still holds water. I'd be worried that the sun and summer heat damaged the seals.
2) I was looking to keep it around 75 gallons because I don't know what my floor will support weight wise. My house was built in 1927 and I don't know if I could put 1000 pounds in such a small area.

Yea honestly, I don't know how good it is anymore because my brother was supposed to get it dumped but has yet to do so, just throwing it out there but it may not be worth your trip.  I can take pics and send them to you later or something if you were at least curious.

Plus, it still looks nice.

I have a second small 12 gallon tank in my basement with a black light for neon fish I had, but I currently still have water and the lights on because it still looks nice, but I actually want to fully decom that soon too.  The water hasn't been filtering so it's starting to not look so nice anymore.

[Chino]

I still have my dead tank running because I have a 9 year old plant in there that I can't get myself to part with. Without anything else in the tank though, it's starting to get dirt really fast.

[Chino]

Finally found me a replacement tank. Came with everything needed for $150. Upgrading from a 25G to a 55G 

Old


New

[Indiscipline]

Very nice!

The interested cat on the old one is invaluable though 

[Evermind]

The interested cat on the old one is invaluable though 

Was about to say this

[cramx3]

Nice, I'm sure kitty will be interested in the new one once the fishies are swimming

And I officially decommissioned my old 20 gallon tank that had some glofish in there from 6 years ago.  Last one finally croaked about 5 months ago, but I left the tank in place.

[El Barto]

Nice, I'm sure kitty will be interested in the new one once the fishies are swimming

And I officially decommissioned my old 20 gallon tank that had some glofish in there from 6 years ago.  Last one finally croaked about 5 months ago, but I left the tank in place.

I've kept my 50 up and running simply so the seals don't dry out. Besides, a little water gurgling adds a relaxing element. At some point I'll restock it, but the plumbing in my current abode makes the maintenance a real PITA, as do Texas Summers. Just want some time off from it. When I do recommission it I'm going to have an entirely different way to do water changes in place.

[Evermind]

Nice, I'm sure kitty will be interested in the new one once the fishies are swimming

I request pics with the cat when it happens

[cramx3]

Nice, I'm sure kitty will be interested in the new one once the fishies are swimming

And I officially decommissioned my old 20 gallon tank that had some glofish in there from 6 years ago.  Last one finally croaked about 5 months ago, but I left the tank in place.

I've kept my 50 up and running simply so the seals don't dry out. Besides, a little water gurgling adds a relaxing element. At some point I'll restock it, but the plumbing in my current abode makes the maintenance a real PITA, as do Texas Summers. Just want some time off from it. When I do recommission it I'm going to have an entirely different way to do water changes in place.

I'm just done with fish tanks I think.  I don't have a plan on reusing it, and I kept it going for awhile just because the blue light was nice in the basement but at the end of the day, it was just sucking power for very little usage especially once the water levels evaporated.  I'll have a small amount of extra space in my basement now too.

[bosk1]

I'm just done with fish tanks I think.

Same here.  At least for now.  I enjoyed the work of getting mine set up years ago and getting exactly the fish I wanted and having a lively community.  When my heater thermostat broke while we were away on vacation, and we came home to a 55 gallon vat of fish soup, that went a long way in killing my passion for it.  But I could see maybe getting back into it at some point in the future.

[El Barto]

I'm just done with fish tanks I think.

Same here.  At least for now.  I enjoyed the work of getting mine set up years ago and getting exactly the fish I wanted and having a lively community.  When my heater thermostat broke while we were away on vacation, and we came home to a 55 gallon vat of fish soup, that went a long way in killing my passion for it.  But I could see maybe getting back into it at some point in the future.

Heh, I had the same thing happen decades ago. Except in my case we returned home to fish-cicles. A bummer, but infinitely preferable to your situation.

Amusing corollary to that. Included in that disaster was a freshwater eel which lived primarily under the gravel. When cleaning up the wreckage his existence completely slipped my mind. It was uncommon for him to come out and swim around, so we never really thought much about him. We re-stocked the tank and life went on. Dozens of cleanings took place, and I even moved the tank across town when my domestic situation changed. Over a year had gone by, and then one day when tending to something in the gravel, that little fucker came out of nowhere and scared the bejeezus out of me. Not only had he somehow survived the big freeze but he managed to stay hidden from sight for well over a year, and certainly long enough for me to have no recollection of his ever being there. It was like walking into your basement and finding a squatter who's been living down there for years, cooking breakfast as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

Christ, that little guy scared the hell out of me. 

[bosk1]

  If I ever did one again, the species I like most are:
-Clown loaches
-Plecos (various, but the gold nuggets are really pretty)
-Cory cats
-Roseline sharks

I could see doing a single species tank, or one that has just a mix of 2 o 3 of the above in large numbers.  Of those, I think the loaches would likely lose out.  As much as I love them and would love a tank with a large school, they are so prone to ich that I'm not sure I would want to deal with them again.  But a small school of about 8-10 roselines, Maybe 15 corys, and a pleco or 2 would be nice.