Tank Size

[robertsskippyj]

Hi everyone its been a while since I dropped in.
 
A guy I sort of know can make me a 5ft x 2ft x 2ft tank for £250
 
Which I thought was a pretty good deal until he told me if I dropped to a 5ft x 1.5ft x 1.5ft
would cost £90.
 
Now I know it is smaller and apparently you can use 8mm Glass in stead of 10mm and the volume will be smaller to, but what are the downsides if any of a 5ft tank that is 6 inches narrower and shallower?
 
Would it restrict me with fish I could put in it?  for example would something that got 16 inches long not like a tank of only 2 inches more width than it is long.
 
Thanks.

 

[DrRob]

It's a slightly easier height to work with, you need tools really if you're going to scape a 2 foot deep tank.
 
It would be fine for territorial fish who want a lot of distance between them but don't need that much space (like groups of mbuna or dwarf cichlids)
 
For the bigger fish like the 16 inchers you want the biggest tank you can get generally, although there are always exceptions.

 

[robertsskippyj]

It's a slightly easier height to work with, you need tools really if you're going to scape a 2 foot deep tank.
 
It would be fine for territorial fish who want a lot of distance between them but don't need that much space (like groups of mbuna or dwarf cichlids)
 
For the bigger fish like the 16 inchers you want the biggest tank you can get generally, although there are always exceptions.

Hi thanks for the reply,
 
I was thinking peacock cichlids, or an electric blue jack dempsey and what ever tank mates he would tolorate.

 

[Zikofski]

yes it idealy depends on what you are putting in and maintenance, the reason the tank needs thinner glass is because of heigh, you could have a 1000L tank that is still only 1.5ft tall and you will still only need the 8mm glass its confusing but the taller the water the more pressure the water has
 
more water dose not equal more pressure but the taller the water the more pressure, and the glass is at a thickness for that pressure hope this makes sense to why

 

[robertsskippyj]

yes it idealy depends on what you are putting in and maintenance, the reason the tank needs thinner glass is because of heigh, you could have a 1000L tank that is still only 1.5ft tall and you will still only need the 8mm glass

its confusing but the taller the water the more pressure the water has
 
more water dose not equal more pressure but the taller the water the more pressure, and the glass is at a thickness for that pressure hope this makes sense to why

 
Yes makes complete sense.  The taller that piece of glass is the higher the amount of glass away from the strong bonded corners and a larger weight of water pushing on the "weaker" middle point.  Unless you wanted a bracing bar halfway up the tank, which would look lovely. lol

 

[Mikey1]

 
Unless you wanted a bracing bar halfway up the tank, which would look lovely. lol

 
not sure where u are from, but alot of tanks around here have center braces including some of my own,
 
this allows them to use thinner glass, which means a lighter and cheaper tank

 

[robertsskippyj]

 
 
Unless you wanted a bracing bar halfway up the tank, which would look lovely. lol

 
not sure where u are from, but alot of tanks around here have center braces including some of my own,
 
this allows them to use thinner glass, which means a lighter and cheaper tank

Think you may have mistaken my post or I failed to post clearly.
I'm aware of bracing bars half way along the top of the both my 180 litre and 1133 litre have these.  I was on about one halfway along the tank ie half way between the top and bottom and the two sides.

 

[Mikey1]

 

 
 
Unless you wanted a bracing bar halfway up the tank, which would look lovely. lol

 
not sure where u are from, but alot of tanks around here have center braces including some of my own,
 
this allows them to use thinner glass, which means a lighter and cheaper tank

Think you may have mistaken my post or I failed to post clearly.
I'm aware of bracing bars half way along the top of the both my 180 litre and 1133 litre have these.  I was on about one halfway along the tank ie half way between the top and bottom and the two sides.

 
 
oh, i understand now

 

[eaglesaquarium]

The only real downsides that I see is that:
 

• you'd have 25% less surface area for gas exchange at the surface - not a major issue, just be more strict about stocking levels. 
• you'd have less height, so taller bodied fish would be more cramped - it would make angelfish a bit more of a concern.  

 
 
I have a tank (sig) that's 22in tall.  Scaping that tank is a bit difficult and i'm 6'4" with wingspan to match.  The use of tools to scape would certainly greatly aid, but I don't have scaping tools at the moment.  

 

[Mikey1]

and i'm 6'4" with wingspan to match.  The use of tools to scape would certainly greatly aid, but I don't have scaping tools at the moment.  

 
 
yeah i know what you mean....
 
most of my tanks i can not even reach the bottom, thats when a magnetic glass cleaner comes in handy