Where to find a 90 or 100 gallon aquarium and stand (no canopy) for a reasonable price Oh and how to you store your RO/DI water?

[Jan Cavalieri]

It just seems like yesterday that all I saw everywhere was 75-150 gallon aquariums - they were even at Petco and Petsmart - now that I'm looking for one about 100 gallons and the existence of a stand (with doors - no silly canopy) I can't find any. I think I've searched every fish website on the Internet along with Petco, Petsmart and Walmart. I have found two and besides being over $1,500 just for the aquariums they had overflows and sumps etc - they were already semi-plumbed to be a salt water tank. I just want a regular aquarium - glass or acrylic made for freshwater fish. I know there are LOTS of freshwater fish people with 100 gallon tanks and stands. I'd rather not pay over $1,500 for the tank AND stand.

I also happen to be in the market for a saltwater tank as well - but I want a 40 gallon breeder tank because that is what I've read as a good beginner tank for a new reefer. I cannot find a 40 gallon breeder (at all) much less one that has the right size cabinet AND has an overflow and holes drilled- I realize you don't HAVE to go all out like that with a small saltwater tank, but I really do want to set up a sump, a protein skimmer, various pumps, UV and Live Rock and start buying corals and saltwater fish - there are really just two or three fish I'm especially interested in - I'm mainly interested in the corals. I do realize that this is a VERY expensive hobby but I have the cash to purchase the basic tank and gear and liverock - then I would just pay for the corals and fish as I went along. No hurry to have it completed quickly.

I need the 100 gallon tank and stand ASAP for my 6 DoJos that are all close to 1 foot long and still growing, even though the literature suggested that in captivity they won't outgrow the tank they are in. In the wild they get to be two feet long. They are currently in a tank with some amazingly tolerant Rainbow fish and the DoJo's eat most of the food to the point of making themselves sick. They love peas and green beans and will eat half a can of shelled peas and still be able to eat most of the flakes and pellets that I use to feed the Rainbows. It's time they have a large tank to themselves. I wouldn't be opposed to a 125 gallon which seem to be slightly easier to find but I can never find a stand to go with them or when I do it's a combination of stand and canopy which looks a little too 1980's for my taste. So where do you have the most luck finding big tanks and stands to match their size and be able to carry the weight?

Finally how you you operate a RO/DI system that puts out 50 to 100 gallons a day? I am renting so I can't really add it to the plumbing of the house but need a portable one that I could connect to the kitchen faucet when needed. They always show these systems in pictures without any additional plumbing or hoses - so how does the water get from the faucet to the RO?DI assembly and when it exits how does it get to a storage container - hoses? PVC pipes? I'm thinking about purchasing a rubbermaid trash can on wheels so I can move it too and from the aquarium room and skip the bucket brigade. Rubbermaid, I have read, doesn't leech any nasty chemicals into the water - other brands may or may not. Does anybody know what PH RO/DI systems produce or is it dependent on the PH of the water you put in (our tap water has a 9.4 PH, most saltwater organisms require an 8-8.5, while most fresh water systems should be around 7 (at least somewhere between 6.8 and 7.2 except for cichlids which like it around 8.0. I would actually need two wheeled trashcans - one for fresh water and one for salt water. The price jkeeps adding up LOL.

So your thoughts on where to get the right size of aquariums for these two "little projects"?

 

[Colin_T]

R/O and saltwater can be kept in plastic water containers or anything that is suitable for food/ water. Food safe plastic containers.

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

Thanks Colin - from what I have read in several places is that Rubbermaid garbage cans do not leech chemicals which should make them food safe. I'd be storing about 100 gallons at a time for water changes for both freshwater and saltwater aquariums so it has to be something fairly large and since it's difficult for me to carry heavy buckets of water I want to purchase ones with wheels attached - about $150 each. I can't think of any other way to store that much water.

 

[Colin_T]

If you plan on keeping saltwater fish, have a separate container for making up the salt water. It needs to be made up at least 24 hours in advance and aerated/ circulated during that time.

You could put a normal container on a mechanic creeper or trolley to move around.

 

[ClownLurch]

EBay? Craigslist?
Isnt “Schpock“ from over there?

 

[madmark285]

Thanks Colin - from what I have read in several places is that Rubbermaid garbage cans do not leech chemicals which should make them food safe. I'd be storing about 100 gallons at a time for water changes for both freshwater and saltwater aquariums so it has to be something fairly large and since it's difficult for me to carry heavy buckets of water I want to purchase ones with wheels attached - about $150 each.

Just to be clear, are you going to move the garbage can filled with water to your tanks? 50 gallons will weigh ~400 lbs. Even if you could move that, the wheels may not support the weight.

Mark

 

[madmark285]

I need the 100 gallon tank and stand ASAP

Your best option maybe a dresser.

You could look at kitchen base cabinet. One option, buy a metal aquarium stand and use the cabinet as a facade.

 

[madmark285]

Finally how you you operate a RO/DI system that puts out 50 to 100 gallons a day?

Under the kitchen sink there should be a value with a hose connected to the faucet. Remove the hose and screw on a tee as shown below:

Just ask for help in the plumbing section. You could also screw on a multiple output value: EDIT: Use this solution so you can turn the water off to your RO unit.

If you have a built in dishwasher, look for the waste line like this:

For the RO waste line, tap into this line with a tee. Once again, explain what you want to do to the plumbing guy at the store.

I would love to help out but Mrs. Mad has me fully booked these days

Mark

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

If you plan on keeping saltwater fish, have a separate container for making up the salt water. It needs to be made up at least 24 hours in advance and aerated/ circulated during that time.

You could put a normal container on a mechanic creeper or trolley to move around.

Exactly what I was thinking. Thanks for confirming. Now it sounds like when you replace evaporated water in a salt water tank you use fresh water to do it (because the salt didn't evaporate, just the water) and that will help you keep your tank to the right specific gravity (that scares me - how to ensure your water is always at the right specific gravity). I could also use the freshwater storage tank for water changes in my freshwater tanks. But when you do a water change on a saltwater tank you are removing both salt and water - so I'd need storage for salt water as well - am I correct? Do you know what percentage of water is removed by most reefers for a water change? Surely not the 70-80% that I'm used to for my freshwater tanks?

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

Under the kitchen sink there should be a value with a hose connected to the faucet. Remove the hose and screw on a tee as shown below:

View attachment 133407
Just ask for help in the plumbing section. You could also screw on a multiple output value: EDIT: Use this solution so you can turn the water off to your RO unit.

View attachment 133411

If you have a built in dishwasher, look for the waste line like this:

View attachment 133412

For the RO waste line, tap into this line with a tee. Once again, explain what you want to do to the plumbing guy at the store.

I would love to help out but Mrs. Mad has me fully booked these days

Mark

I think I understand what you are doing here but it's beyond my normal skill set - but how hard is plumbing? (My dad used to joke and say "All you need to remember is that sh*t doesn't run uphill") Thanks for the excellent photo graphs. Now I'll have find some place the store the 40 or 50 items I keep under the sink to make room for all of this. That is why I was thinking about a portable unit that attaches to your faucet rather than the pipes underneath and you take it on and off at will. I just worried about filters and membranes drying out between uses - maybe that doesn't matter. Plus I have yet to find a "portable" RO/DI unit - perhaps it's just all in the way you plumb it?.

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

Just to be clear, are you going to move the garbage can filled with water to your tanks? 50 gallons will weigh ~400 lbs. Even if you could move that, the wheels may not support the weight.

Mark

Excellent point, I just saw it on a youtube video and they didn't look like they had any problems. Some Rubbermaid trashcans have wheels built into the side of the trash can, while other you put on a separate dolly. I'm sure I could not move 400 gallons of water from one end of the house to the other. On the other hand I once had to push my 300lb husband (a lot of water weight gain) in a wheelchair up a slope to get him admitted to the hospital and into the Cathlab while he was having a massive heart attack. I managed to do it regardless of being on oxygen. I also had to carry and drag my 95 lb dog from the back yard to my car to get her to the vet to save her life. I have no idea how I lifed a 3ft long heavy set basset hound - but I did it. Sp maybe I purchase 4 of these expensive trash cans and only fill them half way. I am just sick to death of carrying buckets. I have degerative vertebrae in my lower back that I get pain treaments for so I feel like superwoman, while my assistant with wataer changes has a slipped disk and frequently has back problems (he's 24 and I'm 60 - figure that one out!) He never mentioned his back problems until after I hired him. I was going to rely on him to do most of the water changes except for the saltwater tank which I would do myself. But since most DI/RO units only make 60-100 gallons of water a day - with a loss of 2-3 gallons per 1 gallon of RO/DI water I wanted a RO/DI unit that I could place in one side of my sink and run a hose from it to the storage containers and run the rest of it down the drain as long as it doesn't overflow my sink like the Python does when left unattended. I have 65 yr old plumbing with a minum of upgrades What do you think?

 

[madmark285]

Come on Jan, you can do it! The only tool you need for the value is this:

That's a nice photo. I believe RO unit work by using the water pressure. You have to plumb it. Clean out under your sink and take photo, a nice photo please and post it.

But you can do it!

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

Right now I requested some quotes on tank prices from a custom tank manufacturer. Their standard size tanks, however are just as reasonably priced as anywhere - but when you add the wood stand and canopy (yuck) it drives the price of even a freshwater aqarium to over 2k - way more than I want to pay. But 2K is reasonable for a salt water tank since they include and plumb most of the equipment, sumps, skimmers, UV light, return pumps etc. That's what I would probably pay if I bought all this equipment myself but not knowing what I'm doing - while they do know what they are doing. I don't want a fancy tank and I HATE hoods, they look so 1980ish. but their prices are pretty reasonable online - I'll see what my quote turns out to be.

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

Come on Jan, you can do it! The only tool you need for the value is this:

View attachment 133464
That's a nice photo. I believe RO unit work by using the water pressure. You have to plumb it. Clean out under your sink and take photo, a nice photo please and post it.

But you can do it!

A pipe wrench is one tool I do not own. I think my step-monster sold all my dad's tools as well as his two really old swords that I wanted. She never once asked me if I wanted anything that belonged to him. I do own my grandfather's hammer though. And it's just as good now as it was 50 years agol. I'm sure I can fit a pipe wrench into my budget. I really do love hardware stores they have such cool stuff.

 

[madmark285]

I am thinking about a garbage can like this where you have to tip it to move around:

My apologies for the poor photo. A trolley or wagon may be much easier to move around. But I agree, no 5 gallon buckets for me.