ID sharks

[Ben_ohare]

I got 2 ID sharks a few days ago and have them in my 125 and they love the space (6' long) but I'm wondering whats the best thing for these guys to eat? i tried a few things but the only thing i noticed them eat was flakes but they would have to eat Tons to fill them up. also, i took my green spotted puffer out cuz he ate 4 out of 8 of my blue lobsters and put him in a small tank but i noticed his belly is black and white now, oh and before he ate the 4 blue lobsters, he went on a feeding mission and ate 18 out of 20 feeder fish.

[Fishnut]

Not too sure about the puffer's belly but I'm not at all surprised that it ate the lobsters.  That's one of their natural foods.

The ID sharks can eat all sorts of frozen foods and pellets.  Depending on how big they are, you can really choose anything in the freezer at the LFS and get an assortment of pellets.  Sometimes it takes fish a while to get used to pellets when they've been on flakes for so long.  If all you offer them is pellets for 2 weeks, they'll eat them

You realize that those guys will out-grow that 125, right?

[Ben_ohare]

You realize that those guys will out-grow that 125, right?

yea i have relized that and have made arrangments with a company already for when they do out grow it, unless i build a 500gal+ tank in the basement

[bizfromqc]

Not only will they outgrow the 125+, they'll outgrow the 500+G you speak of.

Iridescent shark should not be sold if LFS for many reasons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridescent_shark#In_the_aquarium

[Ben_ohare]

a guy i know had his for 3 year so far in a 90g and they are just a bit bigger then mine, they will grow somewhat to the size of tank, saying that, i wouldn't put them in anything smaller as that would kill the fish, so as it gets bigger, if it gets to a size that i feel is hurting the fish then i will bring them somewhere, and i don't mean wait till they are 2 feet long, anything more then a foot and a half and i'll be taking them somewhere.

[bizfromqc]

a guy i know had his for 3 year so far in a 90g and they are just a bit bigger then mine, they will grow somewhat to the size of tank, saying that, i wouldn't put them in anything smaller as that would kill the fish, so as it gets bigger, if it gets to a size that i feel is hurting the fish then i will bring them somewhere, and i don't mean wait till they are 2 feet long, anything more then a foot and a half and i'll be taking them somewhere.

Keeping a fish alive in a tank doesn't mean that it's a good environment for them. Fish are not meant to grow "to the size of the tank", they don't get bigger because of the stunt growth and its lifespan will be shorten as a result. If you also consider that this particular specie likes to school in group of 5 or more, space is definitely an issue.

Personally I would never buy an ID shark because I can't take proper care of it but in your case, if you've secured a spot for it when it gets bigger, it's all good. I'm just putting this information out there so that people with smaller tanks don't go out and buy 10 of them 

How about posting pictures of your tank, would love to see them.

Cheers

[exv152]

a guy i know had his for 3 year so far in a 90g and they are just a bit bigger then mine, they will grow somewhat to the size of tank, saying that, i wouldn't put them in anything smaller as that would kill the fish, so as it gets bigger, if it gets to a size that i feel is hurting the fish then i will bring them somewhere, and i don't mean wait till they are 2 feet long, anything more then a foot and a half and i'll be taking them somewhere.

Saying a fish will only grow to the size of its tank is a myth - I know you're not saying this. But there's a big difference between stunting a fishes growth by forcing it to live in smaller than acceptable space, like your friend, and growing it to the size of its tank and finding another home for it, which I really hope you'll do. Fish are not bonsai trees, forcing them to live in a confined space can be considered cruel because it shortens its lifespan considerably.  Good luck!

[washefuzzy]

I had wanted to buy ID sharks for my 27gal. tank. Luckily I went home and read some info online about these sharks and was shocked to read how big they got. I had learnt my lesson before. I had bought some fish without reading about them first and ended up returning them because they  where going to be to big for my tank.
Enjoy your sharks

[Ben_ohare]

How about posting pictures of your tank, would love to see them.

I shall be posting more pics of my tank soon enough, i have to find a new filter ASAP as my filter is blowing bubbles threw the lines and is leaking, i have it off for now and turn it on while I'm at home so i can watch it. I'm hooping i can find o-ring kits for it today and hopfully that fixes it for now till i can buy a new filter and go up to the c-530 or get a eheim filter or something.

[new_hobby]

I shall be posting more pics of my tank soon enough, i have to find a new filter ASAP as my filter is blowing bubbles threw the lines and is leaking, i have it off for now and turn it on while I'm at home so i can watch it. I'm hooping i can find o-ring kits for it today and hopfully that fixes it for now till i can buy a new filter and go up to the c-530 or get a eheim filter or something.

Hi,

My Eheim Professional II also leaked recently, I went to HD to buy plumber paste (and silicon paste, expensive but aquarium safe) and then put it around the O - ring, close it again, at first it still leaked a little bit, but after that it stop leaking and works fine now. I also did the same with my other Eheim on other tank a while ago. You could try it first before decide to buy other filter.

[exv152]

I shall be posting more pics of my tank soon enough, i have to find a new filter ASAP as my filter is blowing bubbles threw the lines and is leaking, i have it off for now and turn it on while I'm at home so i can watch it. I'm hooping i can find o-ring kits for it today and hopfully that fixes it for now till i can buy a new filter and go up to the c-530 or get a eheim filter or something.

Just a word of caution, turning off your filter while you're away is not recommendable. The filter needs to run 24/7 or the beneficial bacteria will die slowly without the constant flow of water (oxygen). You should test your water to make sure the ammonia and nitrites aren't rising in your tank. As for a filter I strongly recommend the eheim 2217 for a tank that size.

[Ben_ohare]

Turning off your filter while you're away is not recommendable. The beneficial bacteria will die slowly without the constant flow of water (oxygen). You should test your water to make sure the ammonia and nitrites aren't rising in your tank. As for a filter I strongly recommend the eheim 2217 for a tank that size.

the last thing i need is for it to fully leak out while im not there and pump 125gal of water on my floor, i do have wave makes in my tank to have the water flow

[sas]

The water needs to flow through the canister, not just in the tank.

[Ben_ohare]

like i said, the last thing i want is 125gal of water on my floor

[Nerine]

then what you should do is take the media out of the filter and put it IN the tank....I have done that before if my filter has died. I just rinse it all off in tank water as not to get too much junk floating about...otherwise your bacteria WILL die ....and you do NOT want that back into your tank!! I had a large filter sock and just tossed all the ceramic chips in it and bio balls and put the air line on it to help keep them bopping around!!


but don't let your filter media die off! I know you don't want water all over your floor but you also don't want to loose your fish!

[washefuzzy]

I been told that the filter bacteria will be stay alive for 24 hours without the filter running.

[exv152]

I been told that the filter bacteria will be stay alive for 24 hours without the filter running.

Essentially beneficial bacteria begin to die off once the oxygen level hits zero, I suspect that would happen a lot sooner than 24 hours in a concealed canister filter. If it was a sump or HOB, 24 hours seems right.

[Fishnut]

Great sock suggestion!  The dollar store has nylon stockings for cheep.  I used to use them to contain the media I put in my HOB filters.

[Ben_ohare]

thats kinda useless to keep alive seeing im changeing to a new filter?

[Malyon18]

No it's atually really useful to keep alive, that way there you can seed your new filter media with some of the old media.