I have a co-worker that is offering to give me a 55 gallon fish tank, since he no longer uses it… it’s just sitting in his back yard, collecting rain water.
Before I head over to pick it up (possibly next weekend) I need to figure out where to put it.
He’s not sure, and he informed me that he’s not interested in traipsing out to his backyard with a measuring tape (he’s kind of a phallus that way), but I am trying to find out how big a 55 gallon tank is.
It’s a standard rectangular tank, if that’s any help.
A “standard” 55 gallon is usually 48" long, about 12 inches wide, and about 21 inches high. You should add at least six inches to the width for filters & such in the back.
Not that it’s gonna happen, but if I had it set on a shelf (properly supported, of course) that had a half inch hanging off one edge, would that be a problem?
I may have to just break down and spend the money for a seperate stand.
Of course, it should probably be noted that a 55-gallon tank doesn’t really hold 55 gallons. That figure is more or less the volume of the outside of the tank. When you factor in the thickness of the glass and the fact that nobody fills aquariums all the way to the rim, almost all tanks hold less water than advertised.
On the other hand, most people put a hefty load of rocks and gravel in their tanks (plus, as elfkin477 pointed out, you also have to figure in the weight of the tank, the stand, the canopy, the lighting fixtures and the filter). If it was me, I’d make sure that my floor could handle at least a 600 pound load spread out over only 4 square feet if I was going to be putting in a 55 gallon tank.
Ooh. Bad idea, I’d say. Modern glass tanks need to set dead level and supported all the way around. You might get away with it for a while, but if you do that and a seam opens up or you get a crack, don’t be surprised.
I have to second chukhung. I can’t imagine a 55 gallon on a shelf, it just seems like disaster waiting to happen.
But a half inch hanging off the edge of a nice sturdy aquarium stand, I don’t think that would be a problem at all. Most of the weight would be distributed over the stand. Still, I feel much better recommending you support the whole thing on a flat, level, sturdy stand.
Just for you, I went and measured my 55 gallon tank. It’s 18"wide by 21" high by 36" long, so the outside dimensions of a 55 gallon tank can vary.
This tank is on a stand that was built for it. Like others have stated, I wouldn’t put it on anything that isn’t very sturdy. Instructions that come with the tank are very clear about placing it on a level surface that evenly supports the tank.
Tristan? What Chukhung said.
Hon, the bought-it-at-Wal-Mart shelving hasn’t been designed, and probably doesn’t even exist in this particular space/time continuum with its particular laws of physics, that can support a 55 filled with water, let alone water and rocks and gravel and filters and plants and glass lid and lights on top.
Unless you’re talking about some kind of custom “Uncle Bob does enjoy working with wood” shelving that’s made out of, I dunno, solid oak or something, that doubles as a car lift for when Uncle Bob wants to work on his car.
Do yourself an enormous favor and get a proper aquarium stand designed for it. Your living room floor, and the people who live downstairs, will thank you for it. Especially if you have any kind of nice wood floor–you won’t believe what even a small leakage occasioned by the tank not being perfectly level because it isn’t supported all the way around and so it pops its silicone seal at one point can do to a nice wood floor.
Plus, some of them come with nifty storage cabinets underneath, which gives you a handy place to stash the nets and food and pH testing stuff etc.
I have a 55 in my living room, and just the idea of trying to put it on a shelf of some kind leaves me silent at the way some people just seem to have a death wish.
Chances are excellent that age, temperature fluctuations, and UV deterioration from sunlight has caused the silicone sealant to no longer be doing its job. I’d definitely set this up in the driveway or garage, and fill it with water, and let it sit for about a week, to see if it leaks, before hauling it into my living room and proudly setting it up.
