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New Octupus tank..at least I hope!!!!

swansondan

Hatchling
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Jul 26, 2008
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Hello Everyone, I am new to this board but not new to Saltwater. I have had a 90 gallon reef for about a year and a half now. Finally got sick of not being able to get the fish I want. SO I put a 125 gallon in the only closet we have. I am obsessed. Anyways here is my question.

Like I said I have the 125 and it is a 75 gallon sump. Instead of wasting all that sump room I cut another hole below the main tank in the wall to see the middle of the sump. The protein skimmer, heater and filter sock are on the left then I bought some acrilic and drilled little holes in it. I glued those in to create a 2 foot by 2 foot "tank" in the middle of the sump, then you have 3 mainfolds and the return pump.

So my question is. I want to have aggresive fish in the top 125 but I wanted to put an octupus in the small tank aka the sump. I am pretty sure it is secure enough but....

I have heard that if they ink that could poison the entire tank. Is that true?

Do you think that it would be an adequate home for a small octupus?

Any other things I should worry about?

I have about 225 pounds of live rock. ASMg4 skimmer. I am going to fill the maifolds with chaeto and live rock rubble.

So I think I have thought everything out, but I thought I would run it by your guys at this wonderful site!

Thanks

Dan
 
:welcome: to TONMO

If you have a reasonable skimmer for that water volume, ink shouldn't be a problem. I'm a bit concerned for other reasons, though: octopuses are notorious for their ability to escape, and are prone to messing with the equipment-- one reason most octo owners prefer sumps is that if the main tank is escape-proof, the octos "idle hands" are far from the equipment in the sump.

I'm not really clear on how the inside-the-sump tank is sealed... it seems like there is a good chance the octo would be able to escape from there. I'm also not sure how you'd have access to feed it, etc. Obviously, water volume wouldn't be a problem since it's tied to the rest of the tank, but a lot of octo species would be cramped in a 2' x 2' space.

My initial reaction is to be a bit concerned because there are so many possible complications, but it does seem like an intriguing idea. I'll be curious to see what the more experienced tank-keepers think about whether the difficulties could be sorted out...
 
Welcome to TONMO.

You sound very enthusiastic about your involvement in the hobby. Are you an engineer? I say that half jokingly because of the arrangement I'm envisioning in my head based on your setups description.

Monty pretty much covered anything I would say, but I guarantee he summed it up better than I would have. I would like to know the complete dimensions of this 2'x2' area. Is that length and width? How tall is this space/how high is the water level? I'm estimating it will be smaller than we would generally recommend for most species.

I imagine an Abdopus or something similar in size or smaller would work out ~okay~ though given the security issue is taken care of. It's just a matter of making sure it truly is "escape proof". I don't know how effective your sump would be if you screened off the intakes and any other flow-through areas the octopus would be in direct contact with. I can imagine it would become quite a chore removing any built up debris, keeping the lines unclogged, etc.

And again, how accessible would it be for feeding and cleaning is something to really take into consideration. You might not mind the work. Some people think that's the funnest part. The more I think about it though, the more I shudder at the thought.

Can you not plumb another individual display tank into the already existing setup? 50 gallons or so?

If possible, please show us a picture of your setup! I'd love to see this, and people could give you better advice knowing exactly what you're working with.
 
The acrilic with the tiny holes should keep the octupus from the equipment. I have a piece of acrilic that is on top of the two acrilic pieces (the roof) that I am going to put a rock on to hold down then remove when it comes time to feed it. There is no way the octupus could get to the return pump..separated by mainfolds...

please keep the ideas or problems coming!!!

Thanks
Dan
 
Thanks for the welcome animal mother and Monty. I will work on getting you a pic. The space we are talking about is almost exactly 2 by 2, I think I cut the hole in the wall 23 by 23 but the actual space is a little closer to 25in by 24in. No I am not an engineer but kind of feel like one after this project. lol. The water level is above the lid. I dont think cleaning will be all that big of a job except by the protein skimmer, but I can handle it. I can just take off the lid and clean the prospective octo tank. It will be a bare bottom tank to make that easier.

I can't plumb any other display into this setup however, it would be nice mind you!

I looked at the seperation from the protein skimmer etc, and the only thing I think the octo could reach would maybe be the big "tube"(?) thing of the protein skimmer, but I dont think it could get it's little arms caught up in anything.

Please keep the ideas coming!

Thanks
Dan
 

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