setting up a tank for an octo

[alien4fish]

HI everyone! i am a member over at NanoReef.com and i was reffered over to this site to get more info on keeping an octo, i am already keeping a 29 gal nano right now ( i will post a pic) so i am already dialed in on trate levels ammonias etc. so .......................the LFS has very tiny (baby i think) octo and 2- 3 blue ring octo's as well, i have a 10 gal that i would like assemble and turn into an octo house there will be a fuge thats plubmed in that will sit directly behind the main tank for bio as well as mech filtratio , im drilling holes today 1/2 inch and there will be a bulk head with screen on the intake and lok line one the return, the top has cut glass so it fits very tight on top so he can't wander off, now,............ does he need any spec lighting?? can i use the black sand from the islands?should i use a lot of L/R in main tank? or just run it in fuge ? how much waste does an octo produce? ( so i can manage water changes more effectivley) also i realize that the blue ring is venomus, so should i stay away from the blue ring and just go with the regular ink tanked species?and what other animals can i keep in the main tank with the octo>> should i just keep corals and NO fish (i.e. frogspawn, xenia star polyps ) or can i keep a clown with a BTA ....................................sorry if this is kinda a long post but really wanna get it right the first time,
thanks
Kevin

 

[mcatee123]

dont go for blue rings they can bite you and trasfer tetodotoxin a nearly always fatal neurotoxin that can kill in minutes go to ceph care and look through the articales on keeping octos

 

[alien4fish]

thank you, so does it seem im on the right track?? from the reading ive done so far here it looks like the octo's for sale are called pigmy's?? so they stay small ??

 

[neptune]

Alien,

Welcome to Tonmo.

A few points of interest for you. Octopuses create a lot of waste so your tank (10 gal) is going to be a tough one to pull of. You definately can not keep anything other than pygmys in there, but they have some disadvantages you should know of first.

They have a naturally short life expectancy 4-6 months. That being said you will not know the age of the one your lfs has. Could be 2 months or 6mos, with just days to live. Primarily the pgymy that is traded is called mecatoris.

Most lfs do not know what they are selling, make sure you are not getting a baby octo, that will grow a lot larger!

Did your lfs call the octo for sale anything, (brown octo perhaps) that would help to identify?

I would even recommend a larger tank for even the wee little meca, but you may have success in a 10 with one.

Hopefully, this helps, and feel free to ask away!

 

[NickA5582]

thank you, so does it seem im on the right track?? from the reading ive done so far here it looks like the octo's for sale are called pigmy's?? so they stay small ??

Pygmys do stay small, but live only for half a year and the one at your LFS may be a full grown adult with only a month to live, and spend it hiding in tiny holes in your rock. The best octopus is a O. bimaculoides.

Octos in a ten gallon aren't a good idea, they produce too much waste and the tank can't handle the load or something like that, ask Colin or Nancy. :P

Octos produce thrice as much waste as average fish.

Corals have stinging cells in them, I think and your octo may decide to redecorate. NO fish too, just them, hiding spaces, and some food.

Octos don't really care about lighting, they probably would rather have none at all.

Stay away from the blue ring, they make lousy pets and their bite is almost unnoticable untill it's too late. There are hundreds of bites in Australia each year, according to Dr. Woods, but only 3 - 4 have died, no hobbyist has ever been bitten though.

to TONMO!

 

[alien4fish]

so a 10 would be just ok to start with, and it looks like a 20-30 is ideal with my fuge on the back total water capacity is a bout 17-18 right now, i think what the plan will be is get the tank up and cycling and do more homework on wich spieces i wanna get

 

[alien4fish]

how long is the longevity of the blue ring

 

[neptune]

With that tank size you are limited to the species you can keep. Check first, and build tank from there. IMO.

 

[alien4fish]

and THANK YOU for the warm welcome and SORRY about all the dumb questions

 

[NickA5582]

how long is the longevity of the blue ring

Same as a pygmy.

 

[neptune]

SORRY about all the dumb questions

No need!!!!!! There are no dumb questions!

 

[alien4fish]

i think what i may do is finish the set i have now and then i can turn the 10 into a fuge when i get the 20 which is most successful to keep??

 

[neptune]

BIMAC but they need 55g!

 

[alien4fish]

geeez thats way bigger than my nanoreef and its 29, so it looks like im gonna stay small then at least for now, i dont have enuf room that size tank

 

[neptune]

I understand. I have 35 g reef, 72 g FO, and a 55 octo tank. Wish I had nmore room too