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Correct Placement of Aquarium Stand
As discussed before in Finding the Best Location For your Aquarium you must decide on its final location to take into consideration drafts or sunlight which will affect the water temperature, and physical aspects of the floor where the stand will sit and any electrical or water supply nearby.
First Check Floors and walls
Make sure your floors can take the additional loading especially if you setting up your freshwater aquarium on a upper floor, as last thing you want is to have come though the floor. Remember a 100 gallon aquarium can weigh almost 1000 pounds when full.
When setting up your aquarium offset it from the wall, as you need to allow room for maintenance and all the piping work.
Look for Power and Water Supply
When determining the location for your new aquarium, consider the power supply as you will need 3 to 4 sockets. Last thing you want do is fix up the tank, add the water then find out there’s no power supply then you will have reserve your sequence and relocate.
If possible locate your tank near water too, as it will help you in the movement of water to and thou to save you spilling water.
Moving Aquariums
If you have done all the planning you shouldn’t need to relocate the aquarium but if you really need too then here’s the best way.
Always have two people to carry the aquarium for two reasons. Firstly you may damage your back if over stress for lifting the heavy aquarium and secondly you can damage the silicone and frame of the tank if you move alone.
So you are ready to move the tank, follow these steps:
Unplug the equipment and remove it from the aquarium, but allow 15mins after switching off for the heater as too not shatter it.
Take a bucket of water from your aquarium and place all the fish in it, count them to ensure there is none left.
Now you can remove the remaining water and take out any heavy decorations or rocks.
Don’t lift the tank by the top of the frame, this will damage the silicone or crack the glass, the correct way is to lift from the bottom corners of the tank.
Different Aquarium Styles
With the use of different materials in making aquarium tanks (i.e. Acrylic, Glass and plastic) come different shapes. Therefore if you don’t want a simple box shape there is many different shapes on the market.
Here is a few of the different designs of freshwater aquariums you can buy:
Portrait Aquariums
As the name says they are basically Acrylic portrait tanks that are hung like a portrait painting and don’t require any form of stand. Great tanks if you have small children as they can be mounted on the wall out the reach of any children.
Portrait aquariums come in a variety of sizes ranging from approx 4 to 6 feet wide, with a wide range of scenic backgrounds and frames to match most decors.
Feeding the fish inside is fairly simple as they are built with a feeding hole at the top. Remember these tanks are fairly thin and have a small surface area so you won’t be able to have many fish or any large fish within.
In the Wall Tanks
Again as the words say they are mounted within your walls, these tanks are quite thin too but typically thicker than a portrait tank. Best to get these installed by a local contractor as your wall might need reinforcement too. They also can be used for desk aquarium tanks due to their thin nature.
Cleaning and feeding of your fish is simple as there is an access flap above the tank or on one side of the wall the c point is left open.
Furniture Aquariums
These types of aquariums are combined into furniture and can make an outstanding feature item in any house. These types of tanks can be built into almost anything. Such as items of furniture like coffee tables, headboards, end tables, nightstands, lamps, and clocks even aquariums have been incorporated into toilets. They are often expensive but well worth the money.
Tower Aquariums
Tower aquariums are tanks that are built into tall columns or towers and are great for corner spaces. Typically expensive to buy and can be difficult to find plants that will naturally look tall to suit the tank. Otherwise they are no different to the standard tanks.
Plastic Aquarium Tanks
Plastic aquairum tanks are the least popular of all aquariums and are very inexpensive and normally are found on the shelves of your local aquarium store. They have many disadvantages and no advantages over acrylic aquarium tanks or glass aquarium tanks and are now becoming obsolete for many reasons:
- Discoloring over time: They will turn yellowish color as the aquarium tank ages.
- Scratching: They very scratch easily and there is no real way to repair the scratches.
- Limited sizes of tanks: Typically only come in very small sizes with capacity of about 2 to 5 gallons.
- Melt under heat: They have been known to melt when their own lights get hot so not a good choice.
- Distortion: They suffer major distortion problems due to their odd shapes.
Where to Buy your Aquarium Tank?
You will have several choices where you can buy your freshwater aquarium:
- Your Aquairum shop: The most common place to find your aquarium tanks and equipment, buying from a pet shop has many advantages and the tanks will generally come with warranties. If your aquarium has any issues you can come back and get a refund or replacement. Here you can get good advice for your aquarium. Disadvantage would be the cost of the aquarium tanks will generally be more expensive.
- Garage sales: Here you can get some good bargains and your aquarium will cost next to nothing compared to any pet shop. Big drawback would be the equipment is used and old and there are no guarantees if the equipment will last. If it’s the aquarium tank this could be fatal.
- Newspaper adverts: Following up to an advert in the newspaper can lead you to find some nice priced aquariums, but again it’s used so there could be question marks to the quality of the equipment. If you’re lucky you can see the aquarium in operation before you buy it.
- Online stores: The internet is the last and becoming the most used way to search for aquariums equipment. Only drawback is your unable to see what your buying before it arrives, so be sure you know what you’re buying.
Tips for Buying Used Aquarium Tanks
Before purchasing any used tank you need to carefully inspect it for three things, inspect for leaks, cracks and worn out silicone. Fill up the tank and look carefully any drips or leaks. Check to see if the silicone seal is worn out, peeling away or missing completely, any small defective silicone can cause a leak which will mean your house floor will be full of water and the aquarium will be dry. Look at every piece of glass to ensure there is no cracks or broken glass.
If in doubt don’t buy it…
Kids, high traffic and Aquariums
Avioid areas of high traffic such as hallways, entranceways, kitchens, and so on are not good places for your aquarium. Constant movement along the tank’s glass also tends to keep many species of fish continually spooked. Fear leads to stress. Stress leads to disease. Disease leads to death. This is a very simple but all too frequent pattern.
As mentioned in a previous article place them in the corner where you and the fish can relax and destress without having to worry about people moving around.
Fire and water dont mix and at times kids and aquariums dont mix too. Well sometimes anyhow.
When you have young children in your home, you childproof rooms by locking up chemicals, putting away sharp objects, and hiding anything that can harm them. You need to do the same thing with your aquarium. If you have young children, place the aquarium where the kids have hard time getting at it, such as on top of a large cabinet-style stand in an area you’re in frequently. Make sure your freshwater aquarium is on a solid stand that will not move easily if someone bumps into it. If your family spends most of its time in the family room, that’s a great place to have the aquarium so that you can keep a close eye on it when your children are near.
Not all kids are bad, my seven year old does all the water changing,feeds and general cleaning and all I have to do is supervise and drink coffee….
For more information on Location of Freshwater Aquarium click here.
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