How to: Buying a Tank

[Shane Tesser]

It was suggested to me today that i should write a basic how to, on choosing, purchasing and setting up a tank. Kind of a begginers guide. So ill keep this as short as possible, and i hope that it will help anyone who is considering buying that first tank or perhaps up-grading to a bigger one.

1) The size: There is a few basic things to consider here.
a) The Price: Perhaps the biggest problem one faces is the sheer cost of buying the tank. Remember, tanks are for the most part the most inexpensive part of the hole process, but think ahead. Accessories such as filters, decorations and the fish can often cost ten fold of what you basically had in mind to spend.
b) Weight. Where is it going to be situated. A general rule of thumb that absolutely has to be considered is the weight. For easy math it works like this. Roughly one gallon of water is equal to ten pounds (sorry no metric from this kid). So ten gallons, one hundred pounds. Now this does not include the tank itself, the roof work, wood, corel etc.
c) Where do i put it: Kind of back to the weight problem; can your floor joints handle it. For the majority of tanks, id say yes, but you wouldn't believe the large tanks that are available. Plus, it the floor, plus stand level. If you have fifty gallons, and ninety percent of that weight is pushing on one side, you will eventually have a leak at the seam, think about what the water will come into contact with, rugs, wall, hardwood floors, etc. Also, exposure to direct sunlight, while it has a certain appeal to the fish, may not be a great idea when considering the amount of algae you'll be removing daily. Consider as well if it has to be moved. Even twenty gallons is a chore to rip apart, move and re-assembly, so you'll want a place that is as perminant as possible. Traffic has to be considered. Is the tank on the corner where your hundred pound German sheppard runs by to play fetch with your kids in the hallway. Sometimes the view point has to be considered as well. Main focal point in the room, or something that compliments another piece of furnature. Remember water changes. Is it really going to be convienent walking across the living room floor with a bucket for hose to fill the thing. No matter what you do, there will be spills. Also consider the humidity. Believe me i speak from experience here. I have a hundred and fifty gallon in my bedroom. When i kept discus the temperature hovered around eight five constantly. I don't care what anyone say. Apart from making the tank air tight, there will be humidity in that room. I ended up running a de-humidifier as even the sheets on my bed where damp. And electrical. Is there enough outlets where the tank will be located. I would hate to have to see ten extension cords running across the floor and down the hall to support your power needs. Some big tanks, look like they need their own power supply with the amount of equipment they have set up. Also, if your going to consider salt water, think of where the salt will end up as a result of evaporation
d) How many gallons do i need: This is something your going to have to answer your self. Use the rules above as a guide, but also consider a few more points. What do you want to keep, hopefully you have done the research on this already, and are well aware how big your future pet will become. That white and black snake head looks really cute at two inches, but when he becomes three feet and eats the family cat one day, the novelty might wear off. Another thing to consider is disease and problems. Lets say your heater dies one day. You may come home to your ten gallon and find those three hundred dollar baby discus dead in water that is fifty degrees. At the same token, your hundred gallon may have only dropped one or two degrees. Not to mention, disease. A parasite, will take longer in a bigger tank. This is more true for freshwater than salt. Often salt water fish can get diseases that can wipe out everyfish in a day or so. Not too common in fresh water but it does happen. So the general rule is, the bigger, the better
e) New or used: Entirely up to you. We have all bought from time to time that ten gallon for five bucks at the local garage sale, or maybe pulled one out of the garbage that someone is throwing out. If you do choose this route, make sure that you completely remove all of the silicone from the inside of the tank and re-seal it. If you do this, please make sure it is aquarium safe silicone for obvious reasons. A little trick is to add some vinegar to the old silicone, its a natural product and helps to soften it up.
f) Glass or plexi. Entirely up to taste, however here too is a couple of things to consider. Glass, can crack, plain and simple and it is disasterous. Ive had rocks go right throught the front panels on tanks, trust me its not fun. Plexi on the other hand has a little more give, its not entirely crack proof however. Plexi also has the advantage that it come be made into millions of different shapes and sizes. Not to mention that some plexi tanks are seamless, quite beautiful if you've never seen one....not to mention expensive. But plexi can scratch relatively easy as compared to glass. In some of my tanks the light output is so intense that a large film of algae appears after a day or two. These are tanks that i raise plant for sale in and i need the extreme light to make them grow fast for the market. In these particular tanks in usually not too concerned with the way the tank looks, it is in no way a display and i will ofter only clean the glass every week. By about this time, the growth on the glass is enormous, and i will usually clean it with fine steel wool (stainless Steel). I dont think you'll want to attempt this with plexi. Weight again, plexi is a lot lighter. Yes i know that there is metal frame tanks sometimes available. But i think you know how i feel about those by the lack of attention there getting. Water plus metal, equals rust, which equals toxins, which equal death of animals. Dont even try it with salt water, not even if its a ten thousand gallon tanks and its on sale for ten bucks!!!!
g) Style:Up to person taste, however remember the fish. Your gold fish might not mind swimming around in circles in your see through coffee table tank in the middle of the living room, but your sensitive Babis Babis may. Sometimes as well a tall tank might be more suitable than a long one to a perticular species and vica versa.

Im gonna stop here (im tired of typing, lol, thank god im fast). Hopefully you can use this as a basic guideline. Use all of the steps above and you should have no problems. Most of this is common sense. And i think this should cover just about everything, but if there is anything that i missed, or that you can think of please feel free to add. Thanks, shane.