Never buy a very large glass aquarium.

[PheonixKingZ]

Weird hypothetical question here, but if you were to have an acrylic tank in an upstairs room, would it put less strain on the floor than having a glass tank of the same size?

Yes, it would. Less weight = less strain.

Hmm... Only wondering since I'm going to be cheeky and ask for a 5-6ft tank for my birthday, but my parents have already (understandably) voiced their concerns about the floor caving in lol. I wonder if an acrylic tank would put less strain on the floor than a glass tank

If the tank is upstairs, and even if it was an acrylic tank, the floor would still probably not support I.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

"Also if you fill the tank with salt water you add another 19 lbs."

???

100G of water weighs about 834 pounds....

There’s about 1.6lb more buoyancy in saltwater than freshwater. That means that saltwater is just a tad bit heavier than freshwater, but not by much.

 

[madmark285]

Hmm... Only wondering since I'm going to be cheeky and ask for a 5-6ft tank for my birthday, but my parents have already (understandably) voiced their concerns about the floor caving in lol. I wonder if an acrylic tank would put less strain on the floor than a glass tank.

That's a big tank

I used to have a 50 gallon breeder, 36"x18"x19" tall, I always liked that tank. It has 18 depth which give you room to put big rocks/driftwood in the middle of the tank allowing the fish to swim around things but it's not too big.

I am starting to appreciate smaller tanks with my experience with my 75 gallon system. I have Tiger and Odessa barbs which does limit me on tank mates. Having smaller tanks would give me more option for different fish.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

That's a big tank

I used to have a 50 gallon breeder, 36"x18"x19" tall, I always liked that tank. It has 18 depth which give you room to put big rocks/driftwood in the middle of the tank allowing the fish to swim around things but it's not too big.

I am starting to appreciate smaller tanks with my experience with my 75 gallon system. I have Tiger and Odessa barbs which does limit me on tank mates. Having smaller tanks would give me more option for different fish.

My main tank is 3.6ft, and I've got a sailfin plec - hence the 5-6ft ideal. My other tank is a 2ft 54L, and it's quite nice to have it just perched in the room.

I sort of hope that maybe my parents will forfeit the TV for a big tank, but it seems quite unlikely!

My grandparents are getting a tank (hopefully) after lockdown though, so with any luck I'll be making frequent trips to them to marvel at their choices!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

My grandparents are getting a tank (hopefully) after lockdown though, so with any luck I'll be making frequent trips to them to marvel at their choices!

That’s cool! You should be able to help them out a lot.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

That’s cool! You should be able to help them out a lot.

Oh I'm desperate to. Since my autism means I miss out on a lot of social cues I end up boring people to death with useless facts and information about fish, so having family members who are passionate about it makes me really happy.

They used to keep fish - my granddad made his fish room from the ground up (a shed in the garden full of breeding tanks), so I'm really happy to see them getting back into it.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I end up boring people to death with useless facts and information about fish

I have never met anyone in real life that has as much or more of an interest/knowledge in fish than I do. I wish there was a small aquarium club near me, that I could attend.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

I have never met anyone in real life that has as much or more of an interest/knowledge in fish than I do. I wish there was a small aquarium club near me, that I could attend.

My dad's the one who introduced me to fishkeeping, but I think even he gets pretty exhausted with how much I talk about fish now. A club would be really nice.

 

[madmark285]

If the tank is upstairs, and even if it was an acrylic tank, the floor would still probably not support I.

For houses with a foundation/basement (not slab construction). Typically the floor joist used for the second floor would be the same as they used for the first floor, they would be able to handle the same load.

The critical issue would be the load bearing walls. The first floor would be supported by the foundation and by any beams in the basement. The second floor would be supported by the load bearing walls on the first floor which could be exterior. Note: the exterior walls also have plywood nailed to them, they are very strong.

As I said in the above post, where to place the tank (for 1st or 2nd floor) is what really matters.

 

[itiwhetu]

For years I was a member of the Aquarium Society, it was really good. We would meet monthly, do buy, sell, swap, have guest speakers. Then we would go to the regional and National fish shows together it was great. The Society had an extensive library that you could borrow books from. All in All it was great. We all were good friends with a common interest.

 

[Stan510]

I was watching a youtube vid of the very famous David Sand's one or two thousand gallon reef tank in England. He mentioned that one day the glass shattered on its own. He said he woke up to ankle deep water in his apartment. He didn't say about the casualties or time to replace.
If it had been acrylic?..Never would have happened.

 

[itiwhetu]

If you use plate glass the tank should just crack and not blow out. A lot of people use toughened glass which is a big mistake as the tank will shatter. The main problem with Acrylic is that it scratches easily. If the correct thickness and type of glass is used, with an aquarium silicone, glass is still my preferred option.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

He said he woke up to ankle deep water in his apartment.

He better have some fuplie merciful landlords...

 

[madmark285]

If you use plate glass the tank should just crack and not blow out. A lot of people use toughened glass which is a big mistake as the tank will shatter.

Tempered (toughened) glass is 4 times stronger than regular glass, I think stronger is better. You cannot drill tempered glass which is an issue with overflow boxes.

Indeed tempered glass will shatter into small little pieces which are safer to handle compared to the large knife like shard when non-tempered glass breaks.

 

[Stan510]

There is a company that can actually go to your home and buff all scratches out of your huge ( whatever) size Acrylic tank...still with fish and water. I've seen it on the tube. Air driven power equipment and if they have to get into the largest tanks with a wetsuit- they will.
I know ADA pushes low lead glass. But I have heard that it is very brittle due to the low lead and if some Iwagumi rock topples and hits the glass..
It might be why so many ADA tanks are canister filtered. Drilling is too risky with a $4 thousand dollar,one hundred gallon of starfire glass I think it's also called.
I mean,sump tanks you would think would eliminate all those hoses and wires of canisters. I bet its the frail glass that makes them go canister.