How big a tank would you say is too big for an apartment?

[Sati]

I have a 38 and a 10 gallon tank but I need another. I want to go a lot bigger but structurally I'm not sure how big I can go. What do you all think? :]

 

[karlseith]

When I told my friends I got a 75g the first thing out of there mouth was "I hope you live on the 1st floor!" I know that doesn't help, but I would be very careful, 1g of water weighs approximately 8 pounds. Factor that in with the empty weight of the tank, gravel and decorations, and you could be in real trouble if it's an old building. I would talk to you landlord to get an idea. HTH.

 

[Sati]

I want to avoid talking to my landlord about tanks because I'm afraid they may try to tell me I need to pay pet fees because of the potential damage if water leaks, etc. I have a dog, and I will have 1-3 of my cats so being hush-hush about pets is necessary for money reasons, heh.

 

[fishfreek]

Depending on the quality of construction with your appartment even a 75 gal tank is not much weight per square foot as compaired to say a large bed or a fully loaded refrigerator, etc.

When placing the tank its important if possible to put it on an outside wall. This is because outside walls would be load bearing walls where as an inside wall might not be load bering. While a 75 gal tank could approach 1000lbs the acutall weight per square foot is no more than 200-250lbs. So it would be like having 4-5 guys all standing along a wall.

 

[webmoose]

I like that answer! The other thing to consider is when you have to move.. Unless you own the apartment or have a good lease...

 

[Sati]

So it would be like having 4-5 guys all standing along a wall.

I like that answer too!

I am getting ready to move in a month and a half so I'm not going to be setting anything up until after that for sure :] Lately I am moving once a year. It's not great, but it's doable.

Recently a cheap 125 gallon tank came across Ebay in my area and I thought about it for about 30 seconds before I decided that is probably insane.... So I'm trying to come up with a decent size that will work even though I don't own my own home.

 

[rabbit]

Just be careful when dealing with too large an aquarium in an apt. An accidental spill from a 20 gal tank is a lot easier to appologize/explain than say a 125 gal tank. Your downstairs neighbour will undoubtedly have a thing or three to say (via a lawyer) if 125 gallon tank had a "boo boo" above them. (I spilled the equivelent of 2 gallons from a pail that tipped over and my downstairs neighbour got nasty water stains on their roof. They were NOT happy. Fortunately I got of with a warning only).

 

[madasafish]

I've got a 55 Gallon, and it's a great-sized tank for small-medium fish. It's long and relatively thin, so it looks good for display. You don't need to get a 125 to turn heads and accomodate most smaller fish, so think about a 55 or a 70/90 gallon. Good luck choosing!

 

[shawmutt]

The single best advice I can give...no matter what the size of the tank, make sure you have renters insurance. It's pretty cheap, I pay $90 a year for $25,000 coverage. You want to check the fine print, and make sure it has water damage protection.

The second best advice I can give is...check it out with your landlord. I know you said you didn't want to, but any landlord may have a problem with a huge fishtank.

That being said...I say a 55 gallon is probably the best of both worlds. Small and light enough for the average apartment, but big enough for the wow factor.

 

[sweetsuvvyb]

Yea...I'd 2nd checking with your landlord. I'm lucky in that mine is also a fish-keeper...but nomatter how understanding, there are issues such as liability in the event of an accident that they have to address. You might want to take a look at your rental agreement as well...if it explicitly states no aquariums, you could even get evicted for having one in there (not very likely, but still worth considering).

I'm hoping get a 30 gallon set up sometime in the future...my landlord wants me to put down a deposit when I get it running, even though I didn't need one for my little 10 gallon...just because the risk of water damage is increased.

 

[ferret]

See signature. All within a 1200 sq feet. All placed against load bearing walls, none across from each other, and all with at least 10-15 feet of space between.

The only exception are the 10 gallons, both on the kitchen counter, and the 20gallon, which is actually on my desk

 

[Megalofyia]

you have only one black mystery snail for an entire 20 gl tank?

 

[jhd]

too big tank is the one that you have to cut the corner off to get it through the door. If you spill 55g or 125g it does not matter that much. Water will go everywhere. The key is to buy good quality, with glass at least 1/2 inch (about 13 mm). You can also think of some alarm going on once the bottom of the stand begins to collect water. There are submersible switches that can switch battery operated alarm. Depends how handy you are in electrical diy. If the switch is in the aquarium, it can signal lower water level. But if you are not at home, nothing helps. This is just an idea, i do not know of any available device like that.

 

[Megalofyia]

maybe a device under the tank to detect the presence of water. Like something someone would use with a child who wet the bed?

 

[dralarms]

That's easy, I can get "water bugs", they sit under hot water tanks, behind fridges & ect. all you would need is how ever many switches @ $20.00 ea. and a panel kit, ie panel, battery, transformer, keypad, siren for $250.00. Hook them up and if you have water leaks it sounds the alarm. You could even let your neibour know so if he/she heard the siren they could call you at work. I can get this for anyone that needs them, Shipping outsid ethe US might be a problem since I don't know what's involved, but we can figure something out.

 

[Megalofyia]

That sounds really expensive.. the kits they have for kids who wet the bed are much cheaper.

 

[dralarms]

Yea, but those won't let your neibour know you wet ther bed

 

[ferret]

you have only one black mystery snail for an entire 20 gl tank?

He's technically cycling it ;p He's been in there for 3 weeks now, still can't find the fish I want for a decent price. I'll have more soon. The 3 in my 29 gallon have laid about 150 eggs ;P Hopefully I'll have some baby snails to spread amongst the tanks.

 

[notmuffy]

I say to hell with the landlord, I mean he is going to be more upset at the 5 mammals you have than a fishtank. I also say 55 gal is perfect for the same reasons everyone else says. Rental insurance is a good idea though!

 

[Megalofyia]

you have only one black mystery snail for an entire 20 gl tank?

He's technically cycling it ;p He's been in there for 3 weeks now, still can't find the fish I want for a decent price. I'll have more soon. The 3 in my 29 gallon have laid about 150 eggs ;P Hopefully I'll have some baby snails to spread amongst the tanks.

I guess you don't have the problem I have of I keep seeing snails that I never put in the tank poping up in my tanks. And no I have nothing to do with live plants. Snails are crazy.