Thinking about building an indoor shark pond

JasonK84 · Jan 6, 2019

I've been messing with saltwater since the summer of 2010. Most recently I set up a 120 fish only aquarium in my living room and now have the itch for a shark (or 2).
Here is the build thread for it. It's been wet since October 5th 2018 and is doing great!

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/120-planet-aquarium-build.458000/

I know 120 is a no go for sharks that will get 3 to 4 feet so I'm considering a 350 to 400+ gallon pond. My wife's hobby is hydroponics and she has started several indoor gardens (nothing illegal). We have been discussing enclosing our back patio and dividing it into 2 rooms. One for her and her gardens and the other side for my saltwater stuff. Our other plan is a prebuilt building that we can set on a concrete pad and finish the inside. The things that are going into my side of the building are my water mixing station that I am building in my non temp controlled garage at the moment, my QT setup, and some shelves for equipment storage. If I can fit it comfortably I want to build a shark lagoon with lots of mangroves in the sump filter area. Thinking 300 gallon Rubbermaid and 150 gallon Rubbermaid tank as the filter/sump area that would be positioned above the shark tank. This pond/lagoon will also house any fish that end up getting big in the 120 that I get attached to. Really just my thinking at the moment since nothing will be done remodel or building wise until spring (Bonus time)!

Sharks I'm wanting most are Horned sharks, and epaulette sharks. Rays are cool too but I don't know if I'll have them or not yet. Probably just a shark or 2 and then pets from the 120 that need more room.

Questions:
What hurdles should I expect to encounter?
Am I thinking crazy?
Any diy sumps made from Rubbermaid stock tanks?

Any advice is greatly appreciated during this planning/research phase.

ndrwater · Jan 7, 2019

Horn and epaulet sharks come from very different types of temperature. Unless you are talking about Port Jackson. Horn sharks come from very temperate water.

JasonK84 · Jan 7, 2019

Either Port Jackson or the California horn shark would be fine. I like them both. Port Jackson has better markings but either is good.

Greybeard · Jan 7, 2019

Not particularly active, but there is some excellent information available at http://sharkraycentral.com/

JasonK84 · Jan 7, 2019

Greybeard said:
Not particularly active, but there is some excellent information available at http://sharkraycentral.com/

Thanks

alprazo · Jan 30, 2019

At that sized tank, the chain catsharks are perfect if you are OK with a chiller. They are available captive bred too, which is a plus.

JasonK84 · Jan 31, 2019

alprazo said:
At that sized tank, the chain catsharks are perfect if you are OK with a chiller. They are available captive bred too, which is a plus.

Great suggestion! Now I've just gotta decide if I'm going tropical or temperate. I like that they only grow to about 24" but the chiller is definitely a con.

Since I am building a dedicated fish room I can set the temp of the room where I want it. What would be cheaper? A chiller keeping the pond cool or the A/C keeping the room around 65 while the other tanks in the room run on heaters?

Still a lot to consider in this endevour. I definitely want to have a solid plan before diving in.

Jakobe · Jan 31, 2019

Ive been wanting to put a shark pond in my basement! Just havnt pulled the trigger..
Been in the hobby for about 1o years now! Theres a lot to consider when building one of these. Lots to plan.

Good luck!

steallife904 · Jan 31, 2019

Chiller would probably be the more cost efficient way to go.

alprazo · Jan 31, 2019

JasonK84 said:
Great suggestion! Now I've just gotta decide if I'm going tropical or temperate. I like that they only grow to about 24" but the chiller is definitely a con.

Since I am building a dedicated fish room I can set the temp of the room where I want it. What would be cheaper? A chiller keeping the pond cool or the A/C keeping the room around 65 while the other tanks in the room run on heaters?

Still a lot to consider in this endevour. I definitely want to have a solid plan before diving in.

The chain cats need to be at 55f. Their temp range is quite narrow. I keep an ornate box fish with mine plus some live silversides and sheepshead minnows.

JasonK84 · Jan 31, 2019

alprazo said:
The chain cats need to be at 55f. Their temp range is quite narrow. I keep an ornate box fish with mine plus some live silversides and sheepshead minnows.

I was reading the opposite earlier about them. Not sure how accurate the info is but it is showing a range from 55 to 68. Didn't have a ton of time to check multiple sources earlier but will be sure to study up before deciding.

TheRealDmorty217 · Feb 2, 2019

JasonK84 said:
I was reading the opposite earlier about them. Not sure how accurate the info is but it is showing a range from 55 to 68. Didn't have a ton of time to check multiple sources earlier but will be sure to study up before deciding.

Alprazo is the shark expert on this forum and a few others by a long shot... listen to what he has to say