Where should you put your aquarium? It sounds like a simple enough dilemma but there are some important things that may get overlooked, especially for a new fish keeper. Some things to consider are:
- The tanks size
- The weight
- Areas with direct sunlight
- Foot traffic
- Source of power
- Water source and drainage
Ok, let’s break these areas down.
The size of your tank
Imagine browsing some tanks and stands at the pet store and falling in love with a particular setup. You buy the tank and get it home only to realize that it’s too long to fit on the wall where you imagined it would go. Now you’re left with a couple options. You can either return the tank, which of course would be a huge hassle, or you’ll be forced to rearrange your furniture to find a wall big enough. The latter ends up leaving your house in disarray with a couch in the middle of the room.
Height can be an issue too if you have a lot of shelving in your home and are looking at tall tanks.
This is one area that you definitely want to do your research prior to making that purchase. When you have a location in mind grab a tape measure and see just how much space you actually have. Most tanks come in standard sizes and can easily be referenced.
Now that you know the largest aquarium that you can have, you’ll be able to confidently make your purchase without fear.
Weight
Weight is another one of those areas that is often an afterthought. But why is that so important? Well, its because aquariums are extremely heavy. A tank as small as a 20 gallon will weight over 225 lbs, a 55 gallon tank is over 625 lbs, and a 125 gallon is over 1,200 lbs when filled with water.
You want tomake sure that the floor can handle that kind of weight. Let’s say for examplethat you live in a mobile home. The average weight capacity in a mobile home isabout 40 lbs per square foot. So if you had a 125 gallon tank, which would havea floor area of approximately 9 square feet, that would be about 133 lbs persquare foot. Way too heavy for the floor which would likely end in acatastrophe.
This doesn’t mean that you are out of options though. If you can access the underside of your home you’ll be able to shore up the floor. This can be done simply with a couple of floor jacks and 2 x 4’s.
Another common error I’ve come across are aquariums set up on desks or dressers. Unless your desk is of high quality and made out of solid wood it probably won’t hold much weight. A dresser isn’t designed for heavy loads either. Due to the drawers, most dressers also lack a center support. Aquarium stands were specifically designed to withstand a heavy load, whereas desks, dressers, and tables were not.
Of course, if you are looking at a 5 gallon tank for your Betta fish a dresser may be an option. Just be aware that even a tank that small will weight in over 60 lbs.
Remember to always check with the manufacturers specifications if you are unsure.
Sunlight
Why should sunlight even be an issue? Fish like sunlight and plants like sunlight, but so does algae. It is highly recommended that an aquarium should not be set up in front of a window. If you do you will have constant algae issues in your tank that can’t just be solved with algae eating fish.
There are ways to alleviate some of the effects though by using curtains and painting the back of your tank or using a tank background.
Even with those safeguards in place, having a tank in front of a window can cause temperature swings. Your fish will appreciate a stable environment and sitting in direct sunlight can significantly raise the temperature of the water.
Alternatively, if there is any draft coming from the window it can make your water cold to the point where a heater can’t keep up.
Plenty of people do this and still have aquariums that flourish but it should be avoided if possible. This will only make the maintenance that much harder.
Traffic
No, I’m not talking about your drive to work or the cars on the road in front of your home. I’m referring to foot traffic. The constant movement of people walking around your home can stress your fish out. For this reason, it’s best to place your aquarium away from doorways or thresholds. With that said a hallway may not be the best option either.
A stressed fish can lose its color, have a poor appetite, and become more territorial and show aggression towards its tank mates. In severe instances prolonged stress can result in the death of your fish.
Source of power
It goes without saying but your aquarium will require a power source. Placing your aquarium near a plug will prevent you from having to run extension cords along the walls.
Your lighting, heaters, filters, and air pumps all require a power source. Having this power source conveniently behind your tank stand is an obvious win. I recommend running a power strip and mounting it inside the tank stand or cabinet. This way you will have easy access to all of your equipment’s plugs. Also, by having all your plugs hidden away in the stand you’ll be more protected from any electrical shock due to any water spillage.
Water sourceand drainage
Having an aquarium in a back bedroom far from any water source will get old really quick. Fish tanks require water changes. This involves removing water from your tank and adding back fresh clean water.
Depending on your method this may be having to lug around buckets back and forth from your sink and bathtub. Imagine a 50% water change on a 55 gallon tank. With a 5 gallon bucket, this will require 55 trips of 42 lbs to both empty and refill your tank. This will make doing water changes an extreme hassle and will likely result in you not doing it as often as you should. This will only be amplified the further you have to carry these buckets. Oh and forget about spilling water all over the floors, it’s almost unavoidable.
As always there are workarounds. Products exist that can make this process far easier. I personally use a gravel vacuum with a long hose and siphon the water right out of the closest window. No sense in wasting the old water when your garden would love it. As for filling it, I run that same long hose from my sink to the tank. Be sure to accurately match the sink waters temp with the tanks water as to not shock the fish. Don’t forget to add water conditioner to your tank during this process.
Conclusion
All these taken into consideration together make the perfect location for your aquarium setup. Easier said than done a lot of the time though. All of these suggestions are to make your life and the life of your fish easier. As you can see there are workarounds for all of these so you ultimately just have to do what works best for you. All I can advise is that you do your best to place your aquarium with as many of these in mind as possible.
