Any one keep Silver sharks? (Bala sharks)

[Scarlet_Rain]

I saw 2 silver sharks today and fell in love..unfortunatly as I live in a first floor maisonette I feel if I was to set up a tank of 1250ltrs the floor would give and my neighbours would either drown or kill me

Anyone keep these?

As soon as we decide to move into a house (in a few yrs) il definatly have to buy some of these!

[Graylord]

why do you think you need a tank that size.?

A 300 l tank would make a grand home for silver sharks for many years to come.

they are slow growers .

[Scarlet_Rain]

Originally Posted by Graylord

why do you think you need a tank that size.?

A 300 l tank would make a grand home for silver sharks for many years to come.

they are slow growers .

These ones are already 2-3 inches. I was told they need alot of space

Also look this is off a care sheet -

Silver Shark
Alternative Name(s): Bala shark
Scientific Name(s): Balantiochellus melanopterus
Category: Tropical
Difficulty:
Maximum Size: 40cms
Minimum Tank Volume: 700 litres
Minimum Tank Size: 6ftx2ft x2ft minimum
Water Temperature Range: 22-28°C
Water pH Range: 6.5-7.2
Water Hardness Range: 4-11 dGH

[Graylord]

Take it from me . keep the ph above 7 they will not reach greater than 10 inches in captivity ,that takes many years .

This is the danger of the internet and not practical experience .

a 5 foot by 18 by 18 inch aquarium would house a group of silver sharks for years .

unless my calculations are out that equates to around 60 gallons net after displacement .

ie 300 litres .

good circulatiuon and a ph above 7 is all that is needed for silver sharks .

They hate water that is soft and acid.

forget the internet care sheets they are not borne out of real experience.

oh and by the way they don`t need it too warm either 23 centigrade is plenty warm enough .

[Scarlet_Rain]

Originally Posted by Graylord

Take it from me . keep the ph above 7 they will not reach greater than 10 inches in captivity ,that takes many years .

This is the danger of the internet and not practical experience .

a 5 foot by 18 by 18 inch aquarium would house a group of silver sharks for years .

unless my calculations are out that equates to around 60 gallons net after displacement .

ie 300 litres .

good circulatiuon and a ph above 7 is all that is needed for silver sharks .

They hate water that is soft and acid.

forget the internet care sheets they are not borne out of real experience.

oh and by the way they don`t need it too warm either 23 centigrade is plenty warm enough .

Yeah Im a firm believer of experience over care sheets lol. My boyfriend actually told me they need to be in a 6 foot tank as you need a group of three+. I then looked at internet care sheets and got a completely different answer.

So a 300 is roughly 5ft long? That does sound reasonable to me actually. And of course you are most likely to be right if you have kept them

I am now wondering if a 300 will be ok, still a lot of weight. our biggest fish tank is 200 litres. I don't suppose you know how heavy a 300 will be and if there is anyway to prevent the floor from giving?

Thanks for your time by the way I extremly gratefull

[Scarlet_Rain]

Ok just went and spoke to a guy locally who has a fish house. He said exactly the same as you. Thanks a lot for your help!

Now I just need to check out my floor and see if the jolsts are where I want them to be

[white]

i kept some in a 180litre tank which was roughly 40 inches

[Scarlet_Rain]

Thing is I plan on keeping them long term and that sized tank won't be big enough for them as they grow a lot bigger.

[snakequeen]

i had a couple of these before, i had them for a year in my 4ft tank with no problems, they were only a couple of inches long when i got them and only grew about half an inch in that year

[rum&coke]

I have seen some really huge ones and they are very active so need alot of room to swim, but they dont really need to be in a group but they will be more happy if they are and they like a good fast flow of water.
good luck with them if you do get some