• Looking to buy a cephalopod? Check out Tomh's Cephs Forum, and this post in particular shares important info about our policies as it relates to responsible ceph-keeping.

50g Breeder and first attempt at keeping a ceph

 

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Since we have members all over the world, time of day is not as crazy as you feel at 3:00 AM. I am in AU this week and have no idea what time it is. Since I looked up GMT difference and Atlanta (and you) are -5 and Port Macquarie is +10 I believe that means we are 15 hours apart but on vacation I rarely know the time :biggrin2:

Unlike a reef tank, you can't over filter a ceph tank. Skimmers remove protein and most other filtration won't do that. I have noticed that one of the very fine socks I have appears to remove at least some of the same waste as my skimmer but it has to be replaced daily when used in a much smaller and lower waste tank. I have thought about mentioning it for emergency use but it won't handle inking and keeping enough swap outs for viable maintenance would be close to the price of a cheap skimmer. I have never owned a high end skimmer but have had many lower end units and find that the Coralife units are far superior to both the lower and higher priced skimmers I have owned.

If you build out your tank for an octopus, it will e suitable for cuttlefish. We allow members to switch between the two :wink:. Keep in mind that, in either case, lifespan is short and you will spend more time building out this tank than the life of its first primary resident.
 
The short lifespan is going to be the hardest part about keeping these guys, I can tell already. Especially if personality abounds, the end is going to be rough.:frown:
 
Did a quick leak and flow test without the 3rd emeggency drain. Once I dialed it in with the valve I was running full throttle from my return pump with zero noise.

I agree on the short lifespan going to be tough. The way I see it if I can give him/her the best home possible and treat it like a member of the family then I have done all I can. Identifying and buying the right species is also a concern especially since its my first one. I know there is no "Beginner" octopus but making sure its not a cold water species or one that will be too large for my 50g DT seems like it will be my biggest challenge (other then keeping him).

 

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Right on about keeping it in! That'll be the fun part of the build for me, but there's a whole thread in the "tank talk" forums from which to import ideas. My pets are family, & I too strive to give them the best, but it is going to be akin to caring for one with some terminal illness, in that they're not going to be around that long. Though I'm trying to think of it more as spending some long vacation together...By the way, your set-up looks pretty sweet; keep the pix coming! I'm looking forward to seeing it stocked:smile:
 
It is a bit odd trying to explain but when you lose your first one (hopefully to old age), get depressed and think about putting something else in the tank, it just feels wrong to not have an octopus in the room. In addition to the first one, this is always true when you have kept one of the "special" octos that are particularly interactive. I have often mentioned that I think the reason I keep at least two at any given time is to buffer the end of life sadness.. Even when I have had the opportunity to raise them from hatchling and have a full year with them, it seems like a very short time.
 
I can already foresee keeping more than one (along with a cuttlefish tank on the side), but I think I'm going to amass the experience of keeping my first before delving into multiple tank keeping just to ensure that it is, in fact, old age from which they expire, & not my beginner naivete..
 
DWhatley;193820 said:
It is a bit odd trying to explain but when you lose your first one (hopefully to old age), get depressed and think about putting something else in the tank, it just feels wrong to not have an octopus in the room. ... I think the reason I keep at least two at any given time is to buffer the end of life sadness
I've found that my natural callousness is sufficient to get me through those times
:smile:
 
The base rock I have been cycling in my 29g is now growing some nice green and purple coraline on it. I thought I wouldnt see growth for at least 30 days but 2 weeks in its starting to pop. I guess the 7lbs of live rock and live sand I put in really helped. When transfering my sand and rock over to the new 50g will I still have to wait 3 months after that?

Heres a pic of my top brace as Im playing with ideas of my top. I was thinking of getting 2 peices of 1/4" thick glass to go in each section. The putting some sliding latches/locks screwed into the plastic area. The other end of the lock would be bonded to the glass via some type of chemical compund like Restricted Access 2023



I would like to keep this simple and low cost if possible. Using acrylic or plexiglass is also an option and may be easier and safer.

Ideas are welcome...Thanks again
 

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I use 3M double sided tape (the kind used to attached bumper guards and window raid covers to cars) for attaching the latches. I do have to replace the tape on occasion but it work well in most places if you get a good clean, dry attachment.
 
Yeah I remember the 3m stuff working pretty good . The glass shop wants $20 per peice which isnt bad but I think ill check out acrylic and see what the price difference is. Each peice is 16.75 inches square and I would be less worried about handling acrylic.

I bought the other 50g today to make my sump so now I have to decide what to do with the 29g setup. I was considering putting a mantis shrimp in it or a dwarf lionfish but I would really like to breed some type of food for my ceph. A 29g could be a nice home for ghost shrimp but I feel like that would be a waste of such a reef ready system. It has a nice overflow and 20gH sump. Any type of saltwater crabs or shrimp that are fairly easy to breed? If not I will prolly just do a mantis shrimp. Thanks again
 
We have not identified a good/easy food or food supplement to raise. I would go with the mantis :biggrin2:. I've kept a couple small ones but never a peacock of something of that size.
 
Cool. They have a 6 or 7" peacock at my LFS. I think I would rather have them order me a small one though. I like raising stuff from an early stage.
 
AHHHHH!!!!

Moving my used 50g from my car into my apartment I heard a crack (uh oh). Looking further it was the bottom trim. This tank will be used as a sump and many things come to mind.
1. It will have 3 more 1/4"" glass baffles inside it to help brace the tank from bowing.
2. The trim isnt cracked all the way through (but pretty close to it)
3. since the first baffle will only be 8 inches away from where the trim is ....I would think that will really help support it.

I have already super glued the crack but may try to find some other plastic to brace it at lowes or HD. I really dont feel like this is as big an issue as it sounds but wanted to get opinions. The part that worries me the most is that its in the corner. Heres a pic

 

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