New Tank

[sher]

I am new here(today) I am looking into getting a 90 gal from a girl I work with(has been empty for years), my concern is that I have never had a tank of this size. I presently have a 29 gal and that is the largest I have ever owned. My question is what do I need to know for a tank of this size, as per filtration and such. I have only ever owned tanks that have the filters that hang on the side of the tank. I am afraid I might be getting in over my head. The girl I work with has no idea what her husband has for the tank I am going to take a look in a couple days. I am in no rush to set up right away as it will be going in the basement family room which at this point is under heavy renovations. Just want to do my research now.
I have never had an issue with my smaller tank, and have long time fish living in there. The only fish I have lost in the last 3 years was my pleco 3 weeks ago. Had him for about 6 years, he survived 3 moves to new house with us and 2 tank changes, so no idea why he died and everyone else seems good.
Any help would be appreicated. I know everyone has different preferences, i'm just looking for opinions.
Thanks in advance everyone.

 

[WaterPond]

WELCOME to AA!! I would go with a canister filter on a tank that big. I don't know much about them, i am into smaller tanks. Sorry i can't help that much, just though i would welcome you, and help you the best i can. Good luck

 

[rich311k]

Definetly go with a cannister maybe two depending on the fish you want to get. I woud use two heaters as well or an inline heater.

I would fill the tank up outside for a few days to ensure there are no leaks if it has been empty that long.

Does it come with a hood and lighting?

Most importantly Welcome to AA!!!!

 

[sher]

Been talking to the girl I work with and I am assuming that the tank is from before her and her husband were married, she has no idea what he has for it, says they might have the filters sill and by the looks of the pic she sent me it has lights. I am going to go take a look on Thursday afer work. Thanks so far for the suggestions.

 

[evercl92]

I'm mostly in agreement with rich, though I dont use a canister filter, let alone two of them. I do rely on my plants to do the filtering though. If you planned on having some plants, you prob wouldnt need a 2nd filter. I've found that a powerhead was a necessity for my tank (125 gal). With just a simple HOB filter, I didn't get much, if any, water movement in the front corner away from the filter.

 

[sher]

Thank you all for your opinions I am sure that by reading here and asking questions that once the time comes to set up I will be more confident than i am now. I am looking into purchasing a 100 gal complete, guy want $150 for it, still have yet to talk to him, have only e-mailed so I am still hoping it is in good condition. At least it is something that has been used recently and is complete.

 

[sher]

So I went today to see the tank. It has a canister filter and a hang on back filter. No Canopy anymore but they do have the light parts from the canopy. I can make a canopy I found directions somewhere online. It looks very good actually. They bought the aquarium about 6 years ago, it did have fish in it at one time, but has been empty for a few years now. The woman told me her husband was hanging onto it and was going to set up a salt water tank but it is too expensive and they are moving in less than a year. I am going to go pick it up on Saturday morning (no way it was going to fit in the car) Won't be setting it up for awhile, but I am going to fill it up on my back deck for a few days to make sure it does not leak. Any suggestions on any prep work I should think about doing since it has been sitting for such a long time????

 

[JustOneMore20]

Welcome to AA!

I am so happy to see people like you that research before they shove a bunch of fish in the tank. Thank you for doing it right!

If the tank has been dry for 6 years...I'd let it sit for more than a few days. I think you should let it sit with water in it for a couple weeks. Leaks may not show up until after a week with water. Its better to be safe than sorry.

You could give it a good rinse with just some water and use a soft sponge if you need to. Then fill it with water and procede with the leak check. If possible, I'd put in on a covered deck or in the basement, if you have one. That way if it rains, it won't mess up the leak check (water all around the tank....can't tell if its rain or the tank ).

Do you know what kind of fish you want to keep? You could go to the LFS in your area, while you are leak testing and see what you might like to keep. That way, you can be doing some research and getting suggestions until you can set it up.

 

[sher]

good idea about putting it in a covered area, I am not in any rush by any stretch of the imagination to get it up and running, I just want to make sure that when I do get it set up that I have a good grasp on everything, that and I don't want to have some catastrophe in my new basement.
I figured by the time I really get everything ready to set it will be closer to the end of the year, I know it is only August, but the basement is still under renovations as well. Besides it will give me time to do some research and reading. I have heard that a larger tank is easier to care for than a smaller one is. My 29 gallon has been running for about 2 years now with no issues. Other than here and asking questions and taking advise is there anywhere that you guys can think of that I can find good info. I am hesitant about asking at the aquarium store, although it is a Big Als that I shop at here, there always seems to be new people working there and I am not sure how much experience they really have.

 

[JustOneMore20]

Very true about the store workers. You never know how much true information they can give you. Alot of them will feed you all kinds of wrong info just to get you to buy some fish. There are alot of very knowledgeable people on this site, so you are in good hands. If you do ask for advice at Big Als, I'd also run it by the people on here just to make sure.

Its good to know you aren't in a rush. That will give you time to figure out just what kind of fish you want to keep....and to change your mind a few times. I am setting up another tank soon, but am still gathering up supplies. I've changed my mind many times about the stocking...and its still not final.

The end of the year will be here before you know it, so its a reasonable time frame. Its better to wait and be patient then to jump into it (I know this from personal experience).

I'll be anxious to see what kind of stocking you go with. I'd love to have a 90g tank...or anything bigger than 55g. It would be hard for me to choose what to put in it! The possibilities are endless! Congrats on getting the big tank!

 

[sher]

Was lucky with the tank, actually had someone else contact me about wanting to sell their 100 complete for $150 but I have e-mail him back twice and phone twice and have not heard anything for him.
As for set up, I have no idea at this point what I will put in it fish wise, I tend to prefer smaller faster moving fish though, so I will just have to do my research on what I can put together.
Still trying to figure out the whole filter issue and what to use, luckily this one comes with both that were recommended I am sure I will figure it out though and have a lot of time to plan and put supplies together. Set up will depend on when the basement reno is complete. Working in construction doesn't help because it is the last thing I want to look at when I get home from work.

 

[Nokinja]

For what it's worth:

When I had my 90g running, I had two Fluval 404 Canisters as my filtration for the tank. They were great filters and could go 15-30 days before needing to be cleaned out but when you had to, they were a pain to break down and clean, usually with an hour downtime.

Another thing I hated about the Fluvals was that the hoses really made the tank look cluttered when combined with heating/skimmers/powerheads.

Hope this helps in your decisions.

 

[JustOneMore20]

I have a Rena XP3 cannister that is really easy to clean and setup. If you decide you need another cannister, look into the XP3...its also pretty reasonably priced. You could use the cannister and the HOB filters if they filter enough gallons per hour (gph).

 

[ksfishguy]

I use a Magnum 350, alot of people don't like them, but I love mine.

 

[sher]

So, I picked up the tank, the husband brought me out a tote full of filters and stuff. In the tote he had a magnum 350, and 3 power filters that hang on the back of the tank. Not sure what make they are though. One looks like it would be adequate for a 75-100 gal and 2 are smaller probably for a 45 gallon or something that size.
He also had 4 heaters, smaller ones not sure on the wattage of them.
I have not yet checked that any of it works and to be honest never had a tank with a canister filter so I have no idea how to even use one. I did stop into Big Als where it looks as thought that is where he bought it as a kit about 5 years ago and they told me if I bring the stuff in they can test the filters for me and see if they work or not ( I would bring only the canister)
The tank is missing the trim from around the top and the bottom and after doing some reading online and posting in the general section I found that I can either replace the trim at $40 a piece or I could get a piece of glass to silicone across the top of the middle of the tank inside from the front to the back to provide the support this tank would need.
In the meantime I wanted to make sure I had no leaks so I put a ratchet strap around the tank and filled it up, Outside of course.(Didn't want to spend money to fix it if it was only going to leak) So far no immediate leaks(been about 8 hours) but I am going to leave it out there full for a few weeks.
Is there anywhere online that anyone knows of where I can find the instructions to run the Magnum and see if it is working?