TANKED on Animal Planet

[Crooks]

When you pay to have a fish only set up in a business you want it to be up and running as soon as the tank is in. They arent using live rock these are fish only tanks.

 

[holdyourlight]

I think many people are forgetting a HUGE factor here too, that these are fish only tanks which are extremely easy and far less variables to go wrong than a Reef tank with live corals. Keep salinity stable and ammonia and Ph in check and that's it

I guess, but just wondering how the tanks are going to cycle? Are they just adding microbacter/stability/fritz starter bacteria because i really don't think you can dump in 100 fish with dry sand and plastic decorations and this will work. what happens when the nitrogen cycle kicks in?

And if they are adding meds like copper to control the ich, how is that going to work when there is no beneficial bacteria

In the second episode it said that the couple getting the quarantine tank built lost most of the initial fish that were put in. Was it because they were full of ich because they came straight from the wholesaler. yes.
is this probably an issue in every single tank they put in? i would assume so

Even at my old work where the VP got one of these ugly unnatural plastic decoration everywhere tanks, they let it cycle for a month before adding livestock

The main reason I won't be watching again is because i hate reality shows, there wasn't enough technical stuff to keep me interested. There was nothing that made me care about these characters at all

 

[Viva'sReef]

Well ich can be easily treated with running Hyposalainty and I'm only assuming they have some sort of Bio filtration wheel, or bio ball setup in advance. Let the show evolve a bit. They need to hook the regular reality show watching crowd first. I'm sure they will eventually get into a more technical explination as the show progresses

 

[zestyreefer]

all you have to remember is Its a tv show. Editing is a powerful tool!!!!! just like survior not showing the 5 star resort that is about 100 yards away from the filming set.

 

[holdyourlight]

all you have to remember is its a tv show. Editing is a powerful tool!!!!! Just like survior not showing the 5 star resort that is about 100 yards away from the filming set.

lol qft

 

[Viva'sReef]

And on the editing.....I remember part of the show when they were filling the mob tank it was cloudy, and they cut to shot of it crystal clear. I wonder how many 10's of hours they waited? Or days?

 

[texsun]

Of course it's the magic of tv or more precisely, editing! Having been on a reality show and known several folks who work on various shows, it's all in the editing. The tanks that you think cycle in minutes, most likely cycle in hours or even days. Even revealing a tank should cycle, let alone showing it, would take away from the contrived drama.

I was on one of those house purchase shows and one of the requirements is that you be in escrow before they'll even consider you. Now what fun would it be if the audience knew that while anxiously watching you decide between the modern urban loft, quaint suburban cottage or midtown townhome that's still convenient to work and shops?!

I doubt these guys would get repeat customers if they went around town setting up tanks and filling them with fish the same day. We all know (and have probably experienced at one time or another) how catastrophic that can be and these customers are paying tens of thousands of dollars for these setups + the fish.

 

[WilD ReeFer]

I would say that the only way they could keep there customers, is if they were running copper to keep the fish from dyeing. The fish at that wholesalers looked gross! all the fins were messed up and lesions all over there body, I was surprised the customers excepted the fish like that

 

[snailkicker]

Watched the first episode tonight. They said on the show they use a form of concrete they called poligen to make their reef inserts, rocks etc....

Anyone have any idea what the formula for this is?

Thanks

 

[Reef Pets]

I thought the show was OK, it's meant to be a reality show and not a documentary on how to maintain a health saltwater aquarium.
Keep in mind that we are not seeing everything that goes into setting up the tank. For example, they used tap water (which is fine for fish) to fill the tanks but we never saw them mixing salt.

Within an hours time they showed part of a 1000 gallon tank being built, installed, filled, all decorations including two flat screens, fish added, cleaned up, all the dry wall and construction repaired, plumbed and the list goes on and on..... With all of that being done on a one hour TV show do you think we saw everything they done?? In reality it probably took them a week or two to complete the job, guaranteed not one hour.

So, to say that the tank was not cycled and so on makes not since when you take everything into consideration. To put 26 boxes of fish into a 1000 gallon tank is not a problem at all if done properly. Keep in mind that these guys do aquarium maintenance and they get paid for water changes.

I dont think the show would be all that entertaining if they placed a camera on a couple floating dead shrimp for a week so everyone can see that bacteria was present when adding the fish.

Its obvious that these guys are very successful in what they do and I really don't think they are killing everything they sell.....

 

[mojo]

I thought the show was OK, it's meant to be a reality show and not a documentary on how to maintain a health saltwater aquarium.
Keep in mind that we are not seeing everything that goes into setting up the tank. For example, they used tap water (which is fine for fish) to fill the tanks but we never saw them mixing salt.

Within an hours time they showed part of a 1000 gallon tank being built, installed, filled, all decorations including two flat screens, fish added, cleaned up, all the dry wall and construction repaired, plumbed and the list goes on and on..... With all of that being done on a one hour TV show do you think we saw everything they done?? In reality it probably took them a week or two to complete the job, guaranteed not one hour.

So, to say that the tank was not cycled and so on makes not since when you take everything into consideration. To put 26 boxes of fish into a 1000 gallon tank is not a problem at all if done properly. Keep in mind that these guys do aquarium maintenance and they get paid for water changes.

I dont think the show would be all that entertaining if they placed a camera on a couple floating dead shrimp for a week so everyone can see that bacteria was present when adding the fish.

Its obvious that these guys are very successful in what they do and I really don't think they are killing everything they sell.....

I agree with you.

Theshow was good. I would like to see more of the equipment that they are using. I only saw one flash of a sump with bio balls. Would just like to see more of the filtration as well.

 

[Acroholic]

How hard would it be to run a quick disclaimer at the beginning of the show: "all installations performed involve a 4-6 week cycle time of the filtration equipment to allow the fish to stay healthy in the new tank. This is not shown in the actual aired footage for the sake of continuity", or something like that?

There needs to be some communication that there is more involved than just setting up a tank and putting fish in it, just so folks don't go out and repeat what it looks like these guys are doing. Even fish only tanks have to cycle. And if they are adding a pre-cycled filtration system to the new install, it should be communicated somewhere.

 

[droblack]

I enjoyed the show. Also had some concerns regarding their apparent methodology, but I run reef tanks, not fowlr systems. Hopefully this kind of exposure can help people to discuss smart and compassionate ways of improving the hobby.

 

[AJ92124]

surprised they don't run the tank a few days before adding fish!

 

[hybridazn]

How do u not know they wait to put the fish in? Simply because it doesn't show them doing it on tv? The show is an hour long, if they showed everything it would almost never end. They def. Acclimate the fish, hence the big rubbermaid they haul around and shown with fish acclimating in it. U guys and gals have to remember that this is a tv show, they are not going to show everything. I really wish everyone would just realize this and move on instead of creating a million threads about it.

And these aren't reef tanks, nor fowlr tanks. They are ur basic fish tanks with decorations, aka fresh water tanks with saltwater and fish. A whole lot easier to setup and maintain

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk

 

[Reed639]

I Agree 100%
I think it would be a better show if there was corals in the tank.

 

[milkman]

I just watched the show with the "mob scene tank" and the "phone booth". I thought it was a typical reality show where the emphasis is on human emotion and not the subject matter. The fish are just the vehicle to show the human element, like Pawn Stars. These guys have been in business 15 years and I am sure they would not be successful if the fish died during startup. They appeared to know what they were doing.

 

[Acroholic]

And these aren't reef tanks, nor fowlr tanks. They are ur basic fish tanks with decorations, aka fresh water tanks with saltwater and fish. A whole lot easier to setup and maintain

Any aquarium, basic or not, needs an established biological filter so fish do not die of ammonia poisoning. It is not that the Tanked guys do this in reality, but that the show makes it appear they just set a tank up and fill it with fish. That mistake is made many, many times every day by new hobbyists, so all the show does in that specific area is reinforce and perpetuate the idea that you just fill a tank with water and throw in the fish. A simple statement like "the filtration system is cycled, so let's add the fish," or anything that shows that would stop a lot of the complainers.

 

[lps1212]

Hey that's showbiz that's why we on here are in reality and they are in "T.V Land" as kids I'm sure everyone of you heard the ol saying kids don't believe everything you see on tv. Has to be one of every parents past speeches I know it has for me so there's no exception here. Personally on a entertainment level I like the show but as for education I'm not lookin to get it from Tanked :wink:

 

[Acroholic]

It may be showbiz, but it may also be more unnecessary fish deaths from newcomers that get inspired by the show.