Kitchen Unit tank

[TIIEWL]

Hi guys (and gals)

New to the world of fish so go easy on me

Moving into my first house next month and I've got grand designs for a fish tank to put some mini-sharks in - you know the ones, sleek catfish type that only grow to a ft or so

I'm hoping I can get some advice on what's possible and (more importantly) whether I'll be able to look after them - never owned fish before

I've attached a sketch of the sort of thing I'm after doing - looks like it's going to be pretty heavy

i. is it possible

ii. where/who do I contact for a tank like this

 

[The-Wolf]

IMO no its not gonna be possible looking at that sketch.
There will be too much weight on one point of the tank,
also it would be too height for you to do your weekly matinance.

Kitchens are not the best place for fish tanks either due to the
change in room temperature.

sorry to burst you bubble.

BTW to the forums

 

[Lateral Line]

It is possible, but Danio has already pointed out some problems. I am not sure what kind of fish you are talking about since your description could be many species, freshwater and marine.

Whatever, if they grow to 12"/300mm and you want several of them, then we are talking about a pretty large tank, which means a lot of weight. You will need to be certain that the weight is evenly spread over the base of the tank, and in a suspended setup like that, it means you will not be able to do it with wood, a sufficiently rugged wooden structure will look really clunky, it will need to be a substantial steel structure.

Access for maintenance is going to be difficult, but then you must have realised that anyway, and presumably feel you can manage it, step ladders etc.

The equipment could be housed in the cupboards either side of the tank on the wall.

The large size will mean the variable room temperature will not affect the water temperature in the tank excessively. Something you will find though is the glass will get covered in condensation when you are cooking, you'll need to consider how you are going to deal with this, it will run down the glass and into the supporting structure - I can see lots of problems lurking there.

I believe it is possible but don't really think it is a terribly practical idea.

 

[TIIEWL]

Some very good points there (and wasn't expecting replies so soon)

I don't think I'd have a go at this myself so getting someone to build up a steel frame might not be too much of a problem

A few of the practicality issues could be solved easily - with a solid base to sit the tank on, and maybe drop the tank down a bit to provide better access etc

Are tanks this big easy to get hold of in the UK - seen some piccies of huge tanks in the US but they seem a bit more into doing things on the larger scale

Seen some very pretty Perruno Catfish on a Google search but couldn't find much info on keeping them

What sort of maintenance would you be looking at for a tank this size - guessing it's not just a case of dropping food in the top (if this lack of knowledge scares you, don't worry - I'll not be buying any fish till I'm sure I can handle them)

 

[Lateral Line]

Tanks up to about 6'x2'x2' are generally available. Larger then that, you may need a special built, but many bigger places will arrange that for you if required.

You'll be wanting to change about 20-25% of the water every week. At the same time, you'll need to vacuum the crud from the substrate. There is more of course, but you should plan to make these tasks as easy as possible.

Ask on the catfish board here about the fish, you'll get better answers there. Mention this thread when you do, the catfish people will want to know about the set-up.