# new show on Animal Planet called TANKED!!



## GeToChKn (Apr 15, 2011)

Looks neat!


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

Look at the 5 best tanks


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## GitMoe (Aug 30, 2010)

Not bad. Salt tanks really don't interest me at all though. But I like fun engineering. I'll definitely watch at least once to check it out...


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## DogFish (Jul 16, 2011)

I'm sure it will be like all the reality "worK" show. Jerk/Egomaniac owner/boss, one good employee that save's the boss's butt every episode and Idiot employees and Idiot customers.

And yes, i'll watch it.


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Number two for the top 5 tanks is amazing! 4 stories tall? That's insane.


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

Lil' Swimz$ said:


> Number two for the top 5 tanks is amazing! 4 stories tall? That's insane.


is that the one where they need to go on the roof to get into it?


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## [email protected] (Apr 27, 2011)

I will definitely be watching.


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## driftwoodhunter (Jul 1, 2011)

Looks like a fun show, but I don't know what's more disturbing to me; that a dentist makes enough $$ to buy an octagon multi-room aqauirium (have your insurance card handy! lol) or that a church gets enough $$ to buy that gorgeous entryway. No vows of poverty...


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## mott (Nov 23, 2006)

Looks awesome! will watch for sure.


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

looks cool. ill give it a watch or two. i think it will be cool to see the mechanics of these mega tanks.


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## Higher Thinking (Mar 16, 2011)

DogFish said:


> I'm sure it will be like all the reality "worK" show. Jerk/Egomaniac owner/boss, one good employee that save's the boss's butt every episode and Idiot employees and Idiot customers.
> 
> And yes, i'll watch it.


Haha, for sure!


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## Stormphyre (Aug 6, 2011)

Looks nifty! I've kind of lost faith in Animal Planet and their ability to give out information, though. Hopefully this one isn't so bad.


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## CKJ (Oct 3, 2008)

I can't wait to see it. It'll be neat to see how it's all done.


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## Jadelin (Sep 30, 2009)

The only problem I see would be people thinking, 'Oh, I should get out my old aquarium and buy some fish!!' and not planning ahead at all. 'I have a big tank; can I fit a shark in my 55 g?'

Although I do appreciate that they have some articles at the bottom about owning an aquarium and what you need to consider before you buy stuff. It's rather comprehensive, though, which unfortunately means it will likely fall under 'too long, didn't read.' :icon_neut


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## driftwoodhunter (Jul 1, 2011)

I like how it's a family business - they really found a niche and ran with it...


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## Eldachleich (Jul 9, 2011)

That tank with the archways reminds me of my ex-boyfriends house. He had a giant archway tank as his entryway...
I really don't care for saltwater, but the show looks fun though. Wonder if those corals are real. Or if they are fake like the ones at the rainforest cafe.


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

Eldachleich said:


> That tank with the archways reminds me of my ex-boyfriends house. He had a giant archway tank as his entryway...
> I really don't care for saltwater, but the show looks fun though. Wonder if those corals are real. Or if they are fake like the ones at the rainforest cafe.



I would say there is a good chance that they are fake. the reason being is that it would be very hard to get into that tank if anyone needed to. but.. who knows.... hopefully we will find out on the show


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

if they are fake, then that would suck!


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## Eldachleich (Jul 9, 2011)

johnny313 said:


> I would say there is a good chance that they are fake. the reason being is that it would be very hard to get into that tank if anyone needed to. but.. who knows.... hopefully we will find out on the show


Yah, I'm going with fake too..... Most of the larger ones are.. At my es's house they had stuck live corals and anemones and all that jazz in select places between the fake ones. It made it look alive and real, until you noticed that only some of them were actually moving... well the fake ones sort of moved too... but it wasnt the same. Maybe they will try something like that. I personally wouldn't like it unless the whole thing was real..


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

Eldachleich said:


> Yah, I'm going with fake too..... Most of the larger ones are.. At my es's house they had stuck live corals and anemones and all that jazz in select places between the fake ones. It made it look alive and real, until you noticed that only some of them were actually moving... well the fake ones sort of moved too... but it wasnt the same. Maybe they will try something like that. I personally wouldn't like it unless the whole thing was real..


agreed


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## scapegoat (Jun 3, 2010)

they're fake. they've got another video where they give a quick tour of the joint and show one of their artists or whatever working on coral

still doesnt take away from their work


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

the had the molds in one of the clips on the site that made the corals or live rock. they said they were preserving the reef!


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

darn! doesnt make it nearly as cool. still huge tanks though, they deserve soem props


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## Eldachleich (Jul 9, 2011)

johnny313 said:


> the had the molds in one of the clips on the site that made the corals or live rock. they said they were preserving the reef!


Preserving the reef is cool... but theres alot of people out there dedicated to producing their own live corals and such to preserve the reefs as well. I think that would be cool.
I appreciate the scale artistry and size that goes into these tanks though. I wish these guys sould come in and do a huge blackwater aquarium/vivarium/paludarium/riparium/terrarium thingy in my home you know... to showcase small jungle lizards and insects... with a huge wall of tropical plants.. and tons of orchid species that have no right being anywhere near that biotype. It will be in the awkward wall created in my ceiling. that huge spot that looks like someone stuck a large cube in my house...


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## Eldachleich (Jul 9, 2011)

orchidman said:


> darn! doesnt make it nearly as cool. still huge tanks though, they deserve soem props


Seriously... 
My BF had some company called Living Color come in and do his... I think that was their name... They did a huge one... took up the entire length of the central wing of his house. But they waaay over charged him. I wonder if these guys are any cheaper.


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

the corals have to be fake. having a 90G reef, I know how expensive it is to have a tank full of corals and live rock. I spent about $6,000 EASILY! I cant even imagine how much it would cost to stock a tank of that magnitude!


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## CKJ (Oct 3, 2008)

Was kinda neat but was hoping to see more of the building and corals and actual fish and learn something. Didn't learn a thing. lol But i'll probably keep watching cause there are no other tv shows about aquariums.


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## TetraLover (Aug 6, 2011)

I caught it last night (while doing a water change, appropriately enough). I am not very interested in saltwater fishkeeping, but whatever. I liked seeing it when the owners (the 'stars' of the show) got to visit a warehouse (?) where a zillion varieties of fish were being held for commercial sale (is 'commercial sale' redundant?). It was like fish disneyland (for the people, at least--I'm sure the fish had different perspectives). I wish I could visit a place like that!

What struck me the most about the show (BEWARE: SNARKING AHEAD) was the appalling taste of some of the people buying and designing the aquariums _and_ the fact that the well-being of the fish did not seem to be much of a priority. I know Las Vegas is flashy and gaudy, but for heaven's sake, do you have to subject the fish to it? Did anyone see that "New York City" themed aquarium built into a telephone booth? Jaw-droppingly ugly, but in a fascinating/grotesque way, kinda like a casino. What is the phrase I've seen here to describe day-glo aquarium fakeness--"clown vomit?" It was like what clown vomit would look like if it was prestige, custom-designed, and cost tens of thousands of dollars. I couldn't believe my eyes. 

Very poor NYC-motif choices also, IMHO. Like if you asked some random street pedestrian in Indonesia: "Quick! When you think of NYC, what springs to mind? Quick!" Those would be the motif suggestions: yellow taxi cab, Statue of Liberty. It was so weird--I grew up in Nevada, so all the local tackiness on the show brought me back. Nevada is a very strange place to have a childhood (but then again, where isn't it?). This aquarium was something I might have designed when I was 8 years old after watching the movie Ghostbusters. 

Not that the clients paying for the aquarium seemed super easy to work with. The tank was for their massive home office. "We want something calm and relaxing, but also really exciting!" the woman says. I used to work in customer service, so I found that pretty hilarious. 

It was also massively overstocked (the aquarium). I felt badly for them. I thought, in six months almost all of you will be dead. Ah, to be suddenly snatched from your normal life in a reef of Hawaii...and stuck in a tank with a waterproofed 1980s pay telephone.


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## iKine (Aug 4, 2011)

I missed it! damnit


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## waya81 (Aug 13, 2010)

Is the show even about how they build the tanks? Or the normal, reality TV show type, where their stupidity is the major focus?


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## they call me bruce (Feb 13, 2011)

we are now mainstream -


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## Jim Miller (Dec 24, 2002)

It's strictly salt so far. No techie stuff. 

Jim


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## CKJ (Oct 3, 2008)

What gets me is all the money these people pay and don't even get the real stuff in there tank aside from the fish. One guy was doing one of the coral inserts and you could see wires. YUK For that kind of money i'd want real corals and such. You can buy that fake neon decor at walmart. lol

Last weeks episode kinda got me where they were doing a quarantine set up for the customers that they apparently didn't educate very well the first time they had gotten their tank cause they kept losing fish to the fact that they kept buying fish and putting them in the tank without putting them in a quarantine for a few weeks.

But for some reason I like the show anyway. Guess because it's the only aquarium show out there but wish it'd focus more on building the tanks and teach us about the fish and how to take care of them. They focus more on the funny family that owns the business. Not a whole lot to be learned frome the show. Really neat to see the fish warehouse though.


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## Jeffww (Aug 6, 2010)

Jim Miller said:


> It's strictly salt so far. No techie stuff.
> 
> Jim


I doubt a show about how to trim plants or how to split a coral or what makes a belgian reef so special would go over well with the people that actually watch the majority of shows on animal planet....imagine this with bad rock music: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KL8PZeX9os


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

I think they could have gone over the filtration a little to give everyone an idea of what it takes to filter one of those huge tanks.

The reef forum I am on everyone is getting ready to answer questions and help overcome the errors made based on this show and the upcoming Nemo 2.


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## karatekid14 (Jan 16, 2011)

I think this show is going to give people really bad ideas, like they can keep 10 yellow tangs in a 100g tank and not cycle it. They might overstock the tanks, but it appears they do have large filtration systems and I think alot of people might think a hob filter would be enough. I know this isn't true for everyone but I think most people who decide to get a tank after this show won't research it.

The decorations were terrible, I think in saltwater the most beautiful aspect is all the vibrant corals, and the fish just add life and movement. They should hqve a couple shows every season that really show the filtration, quarantine and all the things and TIME required to successfully take care of it. It would also be nice if they showed some with real coral, hopefully in one or two.


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## RickRS (Dec 31, 2010)

iKine said:


> I missed it! damnit


tvguide has it listed for repeats tonight (Sunday) at 7:00 pm Eastern, Monday 2:00am Eastern, so you have a chance to see if it's worth your time.


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## bpb (Mar 8, 2011)

I randomly stumbled on this show sunday night. Never heard of it. I love saltwater tanks, just dont keep them due to the expense involved. The show was entertaining definitely, though not terribly informative. I can see a lot of people foolishly trying to get into the saltwater hobby because of it. It I certainly worth watching though, compared to a lot of the other reality shows out. It was unbelievable that the quaranteen setup they made sunday was quoted at $30,000!!!! Yikes.


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## mrchach (Sep 8, 2010)

i don't like the show

i am not impressed by their ability to do anything


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

mrchach said:


> i don't like the show
> 
> i am not impressed by their ability to do anything


 
Really? They have created a successful business and some of the tanks they have created are beautiful. I'm not a huge fan of the fake corals that they use in some of the tanks but these tanks that are in busy hotels, casinos, and restaurants have to be easy to maintain long term. I don't know if we can judge their ability to being knowledgeable about keeping fish based on a 1 hour T.V. show. I really doubt that they installed the tank, all equipment, and put the fish in the tanks on the same day. It may appear that way on T.V. but the fact is that they film hours and hours of footage and piece this together to make a show.


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## Imaginary1226 (Jul 27, 2010)

Absolutely! And keep in mind they don't constantly maintain some of these tanks so they have to set the owners up to be successful live corals make things way more complicated. I hope in future episodes they do some live planted or live corals. I guess it just depends on who is going to actually care for the tank in the long run that helps them decide how to work it. Overall I think they are very creative and very talented. The goal of their business is to make the costumers happy which they have done so far.


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## Higher Thinking (Mar 16, 2011)

The show is terrible with regards to "acting" and plot development. For me, every situation looks to be so terribly scripted and horribly acted out. I really like the idea of everything and enjoy catching some insight into the massive projects they undertake, but I could SOOOOO do without having to witness them have their "real life" interactions with each other.


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## dubvstudent (Jan 10, 2009)

mrchach said:


> i don't like the show
> 
> i am not impressed by their ability to do anything


I'm going to have to agree with this opinion. From what I have seen, these guys have no clue what they are doing...(or just don't give a $h!t)

Handling reef fish and star fish with bare hands? Definitively not in the best interest of the animals.
Stocking SW tanks right after they are filled (and BTW, looks like they are using tap)? Never a good idea, despite the 'magic of television' argument, it is pretty apparent that is what they are doing too. Why else would you fill a tank with water that is too hot then have to add ice to bring the temp down???
The jukebox tank in general? Have you ever seen a SW tank that is that overstocked? The tank could not have been more than 50-60 gallons and they easily had 25-30 fish in there. The bioload a tank can handle is a function of a lot of things, the most important being the efficiency of its filtration. And simply put, there is no way that that canister (looked to be a fluval 305, but that is just a guess) is sufficient to justify 4x-5x the responsible stocking limit of that tank. To make things worse, they made a comment as to... since this is a smaller tank, the setup is more or less plug and play. (obviously not a direct quote, but thats what anyone wanting to do this probably heard)

TFH magazine had an article on the company this month, in which they go on about how its all about the safety of the fish, and how they are hobbyist themselves... Well maybe that's true, and maybe I, and a lot of others here and on different forums, are wrong about them and their methods. But from what I have seen,thus far, these guys are not aquarist, they are dealing chiefly in BS and bad advice.


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## idontwan2know (Jun 8, 2011)

You folks need to step back and do a little math.

Add up all the money we and the hardcore reef guys spend on our tanks. Then add in enough to pay for overhead and to make a decent living at it. Look at that number and ask yourself exactly how long you think you'd stay in business trying to charge people that much for an aquarium. Not long!

These guys are running a business, not trying to make every tank an international contest winner. I dislike the focus on the "theme" tanks and would not consider having any of that tacky garbage in my home, but it's a TV show and that means drawing in a much larger audience than aquarium enthusiasts.


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## Sd760 (Apr 25, 2011)

I personally dot like te style of tanks they do. But appreciate there abilitys and products. I enjoy the show as well. Some of the tanks are to "out there" for me.


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## dubvstudent (Jan 10, 2009)

idontwan2know said:


> You folks need to step back and do a little math.
> 
> Add up all the money we and the hardcore reef guys spend on our tanks. Then add in enough to pay for overhead and to make a decent living at it. Look at that number and ask yourself exactly how long you think you'd stay in business trying to charge people that much for an aquarium. Not long!
> 
> These guys are running a business, not trying to make every tank an international contest winner. I dislike the focus on the "theme" tanks and would not consider having any of that tacky garbage in my home, but it's a TV show and that means drawing in a much larger audience than aquarium enthusiasts.


I agree. TV is TV and businesses are about making money.

What I have a problem with is that they are apparently, in general, using poor techniques that threaten the health of the fish. And, since they are on TV, the general public sees this and some, inevitably, will assume they can replicate these results on their own. 

They offer no disclaimer or even a reference to a website with responsible ownership information.

Its the "Finding Nemo" affect. 2in10 made a reference to it as well. Countless numbers of clownfish died after that movie came out because the hobby was popularized without any thought as to educating people about owning these animals responsibly.


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## CKJ (Oct 3, 2008)

Well i'm gonna take back a little of my complaining after watching some of the extra footage on animal planet. I see why they do the fake coral. Apparently to preserve the reefs so I understand that now.

And after talking to them on fb chat one night they seem to be really nice guys. It sounds like there is just tons of stuff that we just don't see cause there isn't time on tv for 40+ hours of filming on one tank and such.

They said they do do freshwater setups too so my son asked them to do a freshwater tank. Hoping for that in the future. lol

Still of course wishing that they'd show more on the filtrations and how to care for the tank and fish and such more than the pranks. lol Nice guys though.


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## RandomMan (May 31, 2011)

What drives me nuts is how they react to the fish getting adding to the tank. Somebody needs to get them a thesaurus. 

"Oh wow, look at the colors on that Tang. I really like that," followed two seconds later by "Oh wow, look at the colors on that Damsel. I really like that." Repeat 10 times.

But yeah, I trust these guys know what they're doing. They don't get to be that big and that successful by killing a bunch of expensive fish. Too bad the producers aren't interested more in showing that side of the business.


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## fresh.salty (Jul 2, 2010)

If they started talking about biology, filtration and chemistry people would make a mad rush to the remote.

Ever had friends or family over and started that sort of talk? lol


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## Booger (May 17, 2004)

RandomMan said:


> But yeah, I trust these guys know what they're doing. They don't get to be that big and that successful by killing a bunch of expensive fish.



Hobbyists love to use shows like this as a way to boost their own self-esteem. It feels good to believe that you're more informed and capable than the hot shots with their own tv show.

A similar thread is happening on every aquaria related forum. Common sense would dictate that you don't sell hundreds of $25k-$150K+ setups without knowing how to keep basic saltwater fish alive, but armchair quarterbacking based on 40 minutes of trash tv is way more fun.


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## 10gallonplanted (Oct 31, 2010)

Higher Thinking said:


> The show is terrible with regards to "acting" and plot development. For me, every situation looks to be so terribly scripted and horribly acted out. I really like the idea of everything and enjoy catching some insight into the massive projects they undertake, but I could SOOOOO do without having to witness them have their "real life" interactions with each other.


I totally agree, I turned the channel when the dude's wife got mad over him not going to lunch with her or whatever. This is just another "reality" tv show.


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## RipariumGuy (Aug 6, 2009)

I loved how they where worried about the 90 degree temp of the water they where using when they filled up a new tank. They where for some reason a little worried that it was too warm for the fish? They wanted to put them in right away. Really stupid...


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## idontwan2know (Jun 8, 2011)

BTW - for the people making snarky comments about them using tap water.

What did you expect? How else do you fill a 1000 gallon tank inside a hotel? A thousand of those $8.99 gallons of reef water from Petco?


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## tulip55555 (May 14, 2011)

CKJ said:


> Well i'm gonna take back a little of my complaining after watching some of the extra footage on animal planet. I see why they do the fake coral. Apparently to preserve the reefs so I understand that now.
> 
> And after talking to them on fb chat one night they seem to be really nice guys. It sounds like there is just tons of stuff that we just don't see cause there isn't time on tv for 40+ hours of filming on one tank and such.
> 
> ...


I don't feel like doing the research and watching endless clips, so you might be the best person to answer this...Did you see anything about them cycling a tank before adding fish?? 
I know nothing about SW, but I guess that the 1,000 gallons might be ok to add fish uncycled due to volume. But the jukebox tank was not that big and they added fish immediately.


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## CKJ (Oct 3, 2008)

Didn't see anything about cycling but saw a comment on ******** page of something to the extent of how many hours they film that people don't see cause apparently they are getting the same kinds of questions from fishkeepers who would rather see the more technical side of things than the the personal interactions. 

I bet if the guys had say in what footage is seen we'd probably be more happy but then they'd get less ratings. lol


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## RipariumGuy (Aug 6, 2009)

Couldn't they just use some bacteria supplaments?


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

I don't understand where some of these comments are coming from about them not knowing how to properly setup and care for an aquarium are coming from. You people are basing your opinions off of a 1 hour edited T.V. show. I really doubt that a business would be successful and grow to the size of theirs without knowing a thing or two about the hobby. The people at Animal Planet are editing these shows to get people to watch. It would be pretty boring T.V. watching a tank come up to the proper Ph or watching fish drip acclimate in a bucket. The whole "reality show" theme is not something that I really care for but to come out say that they don't know how to properly do things is a little ignorant. If they really were as inexperienced as some of you seem to think I wouldn't think that their business would still be around especially in a big market like Las Vegas.


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## sampster5000 (Oct 30, 2010)

I've gotta agree with ua hua. Yall are being very harsh. I myself was wondering why they werent cycling the tanks and why they were throwing loads of fish into these tanks all at once. I am sure there is a lot we dont see, though. I got to ask these guys some questions on facebook and it helped me feel a lot better about them.

You cant say that they dont know what they are doing if they are this popular and have this much business. Until you are making and setting up huge saltwater aquariums from scratch with your family, you cant say anything against these guys and how they are making their money.

I am still trying to figure out if they did in fact add the fish loads instantly in some of these tanks or not. I know that they are big on quarantining, but in the sting ray set up for example, they said that they added in these fish last second. I do agree with some of the users here that some of these things are not going to be good examples to viewers, like 10 tangs in 1 tank. I am sure when it gets down to it they know what they are doing but it is going to be hard to see these things in a 1 hour show when they probably spend months setting some of these aquariums up. 

I like it so far and am very impressed. Nobody get your hopes up for live coral in these tanks. That would quadruple the price of some of these set ups and is nearly impossible in ones that are very deep. I would love to see some freshwater set ups. They said they do freshwater as well so I am waiting to see some.


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## Patriot (Dec 22, 2010)

I thought the show was going to be about the hobby of fish keeping and show the technical side of it. But its just another reality show in my eyes. The tanks they make are ugly and the drama along with it is ugly to. How about they show growing plants, coral, taking care of fish, breeding, etc. I remember when *Animal Planet* was about the animals and not the lives of people.


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## sampster5000 (Oct 30, 2010)

They gave what they said they would give. They are aquarium builders and that is what they are showing... them building aquariums. Not once did they say they were biologists or that they work in fish/plant nurseries.


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## CKJ (Oct 3, 2008)

I'm happy to see a show about aquariums at all really. Maybe this will pave the way for other shows about the hobby. 

They are nice guys and readily answer questions on facebook. Acrylic tank Manucafturers. Go check them out and ask them why they make certian decisions that you don't agree with and see why they made them.


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## koebwil (Jul 6, 2011)

I saw the ad and I thought it looked Like OCC at a tank manufacturer, which it is. I like the show though, maybe it isn't perfect or exactly what I would like, but it has to be marketable. It's entertaining and that's all I really ask for out of TV.


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## RandomMan (May 31, 2011)

As to the bio-loads, my guess is they pre-cycle/age the filter materials. That would allow them to get an instant cycle in the filters from the get go, with only the in-tank bioload needing some work, and that can be helped along with bacterial supplements or aged sand.

They might also be using Purigen or simliar in the filters, which goes a long way towards preventing Ammonia spikes during the cycle process. 

I also get the feeling that they overload the tanks for TV, and then when filming/unveil is done they pull a bunch of the fish out to leave it at more manageable levels.


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## tulip55555 (May 14, 2011)

Maybe it's true that they wouldn't stay in business if they didn't know what they were doing. It could also be true that they have lowered their standards to have a TV show. 
There are plenty of shows on TV that are technical _*and*_ entertaining. Paul Teutul doesn't skip adding the gas tank cuz it takes too long for TV. They don't cut corners to be entertaining, they shoot hours and hours and edit down to the most entertaining. Cycle the darn tank or show why it is possible to add fish immediately and be funny while you're doing it!! If they are using cycled filters they need to show that. They are giving people misinformation or no information when they could be educating.
I think that anyone interested in watching this show would be interested in the technical stuff. And I'll bet they get some complaints and start to address these issues either directly or indirectly on the show. We can't be the only 20 people annoyed by this


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## fresh.salty (Jul 2, 2010)

CKJ said:


> Maybe this will pave the way for other shows about the hobby.


Wait til Nemo Wars comes out next year. lol


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## tulip55555 (May 14, 2011)

fresh.salty said:


> Wait til Nemo Wars comes out next year. lol


is that a TV show??


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## fresh.salty (Jul 2, 2010)

No, that's a vile attempt at a PETA-driven joke. lol


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

tulip55555 said:


> Maybe it's true that they wouldn't stay in business if they didn't know what they were doing. It could also be true that they have lowered their standards to have a TV show.
> There are plenty of shows on TV that are technical _*and*_ entertaining. Paul Teutul doesn't skip adding the gas tank cuz it takes too long for TV. They don't cut corners to be entertaining, they shoot hours and hours and edit down to the most entertaining. Cycle the darn tank or show why it is possible to add fish immediately and be funny while you're doing it!! If they are using cycled filters they need to show that. They are giving people misinformation or no information when they could be educating.
> I think that anyone interested in watching this show would be interested in the technical stuff. And I'll bet they get some complaints and start to address these issues either directly or indirectly on the show. We can't be the only 20 people annoyed by this


 
How do you know that they don't cycle the tank before the livestock is put in? You are basing this opinion off of what they show you on T.V. I'm sure there is way more that goes into setting up these tanks that what they show you. T.V. shows are meant to be entertainment, if you want to be educated read a book.


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## d3snoopy (Apr 1, 2011)

fresh.salty said:


> Wait til Nemo Wars comes out next year. lol


.....The high-stakes aquarium auction world is about to have its secrets revealed!

.....Fish COPS - fighting ammonia one arrest at a time. You! Yes you! Did you dump your fish into an un-cycled tank?!?


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## tulip55555 (May 14, 2011)

ua hua said:


> How do you know that they don't cycle the tank before the livestock is put in? You are basing this opinion off of what they show you on T.V. I'm sure there is way more that goes into setting up these tanks that what they show you. T.V. shows are meant to be entertainment, if you want to be educated read a book.


I saw them add water, add ice to cool the water because it was too hot _*from the tap*_ and add fish while I could still see ice floating in the water. I think that proves a time line.

I am not trying to be educated by a TV show, but it's also not Jersey Shore we are talking about here. It's a reality based show about _*something*_. I just expect that _*thing*_ to be *portrayed accurately by professionals* and I would expect they should want the same thing. If some important step in their process is being edited out I would expect them to want to address that.
I have seen people in forums come down *hard* on newbs for not cycling, not knowing enough about the pets they chose to keep, being cruel to the fish, etc. These guys know better and it irks me.


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## tulip55555 (May 14, 2011)

fresh.salty said:


> No, that's a vile attempt at a PETA-driven joke. lol


ok. i saw d3snoopy's post. i get it now and it's HILARIOUS!!!


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## mrchach (Sep 8, 2010)

i still am not impressed with these people.

They make cool tanks. Ok A+ for general silicone and acrylic construction (they apparently make alot of money on tanks not stocking)

But what goes beyond the acrylic in this show is what bothers me. Im not trying to tug on the ADG bandwagon, but a good example is ADGs work, way better than theirs. Look at their decorative saltwater portfolio.

This is TV, and who would watch storage wars without Barry. Or Hoarders without showing the insane amount of trash and destruction inside their worlds.


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## finaddictfred (Aug 5, 2008)

Saw 10 minutes of one show and changed the channel and wont watch it again. Guess I'm getting old and cynical in my old age.


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## IWANNAGOFAST (Jan 14, 2008)

i like the show, it's entertaining. It's not a documentary or instructional video on setting up aquariums. 

The thing that irked me the most was not showing or talking about the cycling process. Although it'd be super boring to watch a tank sit empty for a month.

Hopefully they at least talk about precycling the filters and stuff in a future episode.


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## sampster5000 (Oct 30, 2010)

The 2nd and 3rd episodes are obviously better than the first. Its still the first few episodes of the first season. What show has ever done amazing and got perfect reviews that early? It'll get a lot better and I'll be watching the shows growth over time.


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

It's a drama/comedy, not a documentary unfortunately. It will change as they discover what the audience responds to, but that's not likely to be the way we'd like it to change.


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## RandomMan (May 31, 2011)

And they'll always fit a little bit of "real" into each episode. The stingray tank they talked briefly about the need to drip acclimate the sting rays before putting them in the tank. I'm sure at some point they'll get around to talking about how filters work.


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## koebwil (Jul 6, 2011)

okay, I just watched them put a fake coral in a freshwater tank, these guys are idiots.


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## jreich (Feb 11, 2009)

koebwil said:


> okay, I just watched them put a fake coral in a freshwater tank, these guys are idiots.


its not about what they want in the tank, its about puting $ in there pockets which basically means the customer gets what the customer wants. but i have to agree there idiots, and i think the one guy got droped on his head as a child.


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## ua hua (Oct 30, 2009)

koebwil said:


> okay, I just watched them put a fake coral in a freshwater tank, these guys are idiots.


I don't understand all the negative comments. If you don't like the show change the channel and just because you don't like the fake coral in a freshwater tank (which I don't care for either) doesn't make these guys idiots. If anyone thinks that this show is going to be a how to guide to setting up and maintaining an aquarium they might as well quit watching any future episodes right now because it will never be that. It is meant to be entertaining just like all the other shows on t.v. There is not much difference between this show and Jersey Shore except I can watch this show with my 6 year old and not have to explain what DTF means. By the way DTF means Down to Fish right.....


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## koebwil (Jul 6, 2011)

ua hua said:


> I don't understand all the negative comments. If you don't like the show change the channel and just because you don't like the fake coral in a freshwater tank (which I don't care for either) doesn't make these guys idiots. If anyone thinks that this show is going to be a how to guide to setting up and maintaining an aquarium they might as well quit watching any future episodes right now because it will never be that. It is meant to be entertaining just like all the other shows on t.v. There is not much difference between this show and Jersey Shore except I can watch this show with my 6 year old and not have to explain what DTF means. By the way DTF means Down to Fish right.....


I understand that they are just trying to be entertaining and give customers what they want, but you would think they might change the decorations to match the tank they are making. Rather than rehashing the exact same thing they do for every other tank. I enjoy the show because the tanks that they manufacture are unique and beautiful, but I can't stand that they ruin the whole thing by filling it up with fake baseballs, corals, and basketball nets. Maybe I am completely wrong about them and they were pushed into this by the client, but it really is a shame that that tank looked so horrible on the inside when it was so great on the outside.


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## gonzo.njexit9 (Aug 21, 2011)

lol-at some of these comments

the show is there to make money--thats it
commercial ads-promos--etc.
money money money

for the people that are reading this might find the show funny and redicilous
ask a kid about a tank in a car or jukebox
ask a non aquarium person about a stingray tank
and you will probably get the same reaction
WOW-HOLY S--T --THATS COOL
the show is meant for non aquarium owners

i personally think the show sucks and 
yes do believe that a lot more indepth of behind the scene and explanation is needed
How many have kids that wanted a clown fish after seeing Nemo

just my 2.5 cents worth


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