Aquarium in Retail Store question... High traffic area??

[Biggen]

Hey guys,

I am looking at purchasing a Seaclear 40 gallon tall acrylic tank and putting an Eclilpse 3 hood on it. I am wanting to put it in my retail store here in Panama City Beach FL. If I set it up the way I am dreaming it can be set up, it should give the customers that "WOW!" sense when they see it in the store. I have read a lot of articles that say tropical fish tanks should not be put in high traffic areas, but there is no such thing as a "non-high traffic" area in a retail/gift store. In our season, we may have hundreds of customers come through the store on one day.

My question is, is what I am trying to do feasible for my situation? I know that a lot of people use SW tanks for this purpose. I guess SW fish aren't as timid as tropical fish. However, I don't want to spend the money setting up a reef tank. Also, because I have been playing around with freshwater a little bit, I think I would be more capable of running a freshwater tank in my store than I would a SW tank as well. What kinds of fish could I put in my tank that wouldn't go crazy every time a customer went by? Also, is it possible for fish to be "conditioned"? In other words, would they eventually get use to having people walk by the tank? If they could, they would be great...

Another concern I have is it accidently getting knocked over by some prick kid whose parents have left him alone in the store. Although the tank itself will weigh around 400lbs with water and gravel inside of it so I doubt it would get knocked over easily. I would guess that as long as I get a REALLY good stand, it shouldn't be much of a problem. Bigalsonline.com had some good looking stands that looked pretty sturdy.

I just want to get some opinions before I try something like this. There are A LOT of people here who know way more about this than me.

 

[RogerMcAllen]

Get schools of fish, and they should feel more secure.

 

[mulron]

If you are worried about people tipping it over then surround the top of the stand where the tank sits with extra wood. Meaning screw the extra pieces of wood into the stand. Also ancor the stand to the wall. Do this by attaching a piece of threaded rod to the wall, then thru a hole in the back of the tank and finally secure on the inside of the tank with a metal plate and a nut.



pic below might help.

 

[ConanTheLibraia]

I agree with RogerMcAllen about the schools of fish. Give them places to hide and stuff too. The fish will probably get the most stressed from people harassing the fish by tapping the glass or making quick movements. The fish from my LFS were in high traffic areas, probably the same for you too.

 

[Biggen]

Thx for all the great replies guys...

Schools of fish, eh? That sounds like a great idea. I was originally thinking about larger fish, but I think it would look better, overall, with schools of smaller faster fish. I am going to heavily plant this tank so they should have plenty of places to hide.

I like the idea of anchoring the tank. Unfortunately, it won't be against a wall but it will be against the side of some free standing floor shelving/displays. I can anchor it against the sides of that. That should keep the stand from moving.

Anybody recommend any good stands for acrylic tanks that has a back to it so that I can anchor it?

 

[loganj]

Every tank I have set up as a package deal at the store in Dalton has sold fairly quickly. I set it up as one of the "WOW" tanks like you were talking about. It's not an extremely high traffic area, but it's visible from the door. Everybody ends up wandering over there to look at it. Set it up, put a price on it, it'll sell. I agree with the schooling fish...I think that is a good selling point also. Everybody likes to see a school of fish.
Logan J

 

[Biggen]

Hey Logan,

Actually I wasn't thinking about selling it, but now that you mention it, it might not be a bad idea to stick a price on it. Although it will be a high price as I really wouldn't want to get rid of it. I want it for more of an "attraction" than anything else. Instead of people going out when they are done shopping they could, instead, gather around the aquarium. That keeps them in the store for longer periods increasing my chances of them buying more items...

Retail is all about mind games...

 

[RogerMcAllen]

You should throw up a link for the site under/near the aquarium. Perhaps suggest that if people want more aquarium information to see the site?

 

[nugrad2005]

To be perfectly honest schooling fish are generally small and not very colorful. Big fancy fun fish are always a good time, but they also tend to be SW fish(more work).

If you're looking to go the freshwater route you might want to try fancy guppies. They have big beautiful tails(well the males do) and they aren't too afraid of anything. Also you can put a large quantity of these fish in a not so big tank. Last point about them is that they breed like bunnies, every week or so you'll have a new batch ready to help you sell more stuff in your store. This might be a good way to set up another tank some day in your store.

What do people like more than fish? Well baby fish of course.

Its a sound investment either way you look at it.

Oh and by the way, fancy guppies thrive in planted tanks, they seriously grow at like twice the normal rate it seems.

-Dan

 

[mound]

and remember to put a sign on it with fishfreak's sig:

Dont tap the glass, the fish will think your an idiot

 

[nugrad2005]

Drunk spring breakers + a sign reading "Dont tap the glass, the fish will think your an idiot" = a very bad scene....

-Dan

 

[Biggen]

Yeah I figured that if I went with smaller schooling fish that it would't be AS colorful as the larger Chichlids. But the fancy guppy route is a great idea. Are guppies compatible with Gourami's? I think a tank full of Guppies, Gourami's, Tetra's, and Cory's would look pretty cool. These fish are all compatible with each other, correct? I think they are but want to be sure...

Also, aren't you supposed to add a tablespoon of salt for every 5 gallons for Guppies? Will the fish I listed above in the aquarium be able to tolerate this?

Oh there will be several signs around the tank. "Don't tap the glass", "No climbing", etc... The area I am putting it in is right near our checkout counter so I (we) will be able to keep an eye on it at all times. I will take a picture of the setup when I get it completed and let you guys take a look at it. I think it is going to look great.

 

[Biggen]

My foot + drunk breakers butt = free flight to the parking lot...



I have been dealing with Spring Breakers for several years. We throw out several a year for unruly behavior and catch even more attempting to shoplift from us. luckily, not all are that bad. In fact, it is only a select few that give us problems.

I am more worried about the 5 year old that wonders around the store without their parent supervision. They cost us more money per year by breaking things than spring breakers ever could.

As far as putting a link to this site under the aquarium, I think that would be a great idea. As much as everyone has helped me I think it is the least I could do...