The noise is definitely a factor for some people I suppose. I have a large fan blowing on the 29g tank to cool it some, the protein skimmer and hang on tank skimmer, along with a sump overflow/return/skimmer deal all in the same room -- my bedroom!!!
I got used to it very quickly, but some people are more sensitive to noise perhaps.
As far as buying an octopus in a store, beware. Octopus are very hard to ID and many species are either not well suited for the home aquarium, are sold nearly at the end of their life, are sold at the very BEGINNING of their life as a 'pygmy' (and end up being feet long), or could even be POISONOUS WITHOUT YOU KNOWING IT. They're also fairly expensive, from what I hear. In nearly all cases, the octopus are also wild caught..
Keeping this in mind, buying from
http
/www.octopets.com is a much smarter decision. They have tank bred octopus that sell for $25 I believe, plus ~$30 shipping. This is a very good deal considering they sell octopus bimaculoides, which are VERY suited to a small home aquarium, and that they are also of a KNOWN AGE and hardy since they are tank raised. Also, you know you won't bring home something that will end up killing you.
As far as when I will upgrade my 29g, I won't be! There is really not a need to. Eventually I am going to have to take the damsels out, or they'll get eaten, but the octopus shouldn't ever outgrow this tank. Some people do put them in 55g. This is probably a better option, but I simply do not have the size for that tank, or the money to stock it with LR either. The species reaches 6" mantle and 14" arms at a max. Right now if I had to guess I would say mine is about 1.5" mantle and 2.5" arms maybe. As of today I have had him about 2 months, which makes him about 4 months old. He is about 1/3 through his life!
I will really try my best to post more videos of him, I am glad people are watching them and enjoying them. Theres a lot of neat stuff he does that I'd love to capture shots of.. I work 20 hours a week and am taking a full load of college courses so my free time to mess with the octopus is extremely limited, and I try to focus the time more on him than on filming him! Soon though I will try!!
Thanks for all the interest. Octopus are really neat creatures, and it's a shame more peopled on't get the chance to enjoy them
Robert
