General Aquaria Discussion • Two 125 gallon tanks or one 220 gallon Tank?

[Paulbearer]

Yes, i'm still waiting on my good old uncle sam check to come in like some of us still are. Looks like it might be another few weeks, but i'm going to start the stand next weekend for sure. The issue is, do you think it's better to have two 125 6ft tanks or one 220 gallon 6 foot tank?

I was thinking about it today and was thinking of going with the two 125's so that way I can have two tanks of different species of fish instead of the 220 with having things you can't combine. I'm really wanting to keep C. Moorii in a group (1m/3-4f). But then again I'm wanting to keep some Star Sapphires also. If I go with the two tanks, i'm going to make the stand to put the tanks side by side to look like one seamless 12 foot tank. I've even got it all written down and also have the 220 stand and hood all written out also.

Thoughts.........suggestions?

[Joels fish]

The more the merrier, and I think the Idea of having them end to end like one big tank is pretty cool. Wish I had the room to do something like that.

[DJRansome]

Definitely two 125G tanks. More footprint is better than more gallons for the fish you mention.

[Marduk]

I say get the two tanks as well!

[Donfish]

... The issue is, do you think it's better to have two 125 6ft tanks or one 220 gallon 6 foot tank?...


Thoughts.........suggestions?

I've been meaning to ask this in one of these huge tank threads may as well be here.
How in the world do you move them, people talk about these huge tanks but I never see anything about the logistics of getting one in place.

Paulbearer, do I need to hire pallbearers?

[DJRansome]

My 125G was terrifying, I'd hate to even think about anything larger.

We had a appliance moving cart, the type used to move refrigerators with big fat tires and a strap to hold the tank in place. It slid out of the back of the truck and onto the cart...not too bad. Then we had 6 stone steps to bounce it up. Only one person could really pull the cart/tank up the steps, anything heavier would have been too much.

The tank sat on the cart (laid flat on the floor, resting on the cart handle) for a week while I removed the cardboard, washed the tank, installed the in-tank background and let the silicone cure.

The hardest part was lifting it onto the stand. I had three big men, but really only two had room to get a grip on it and do the lifting. Then how do you get your fingers out of the way as you slide it into the lip in the stand designed to hold the frame? Thank goodness it's done!

[BillD]

Perhaps the question should be 2 x 180 vs 220, since the base is the same on both as opposed to the 125s which are 6 inches narrower. The 220 is just too deep for me, and 2 tanks are always better than one.

[Paulbearer]

Perhaps the question should be 2 x 180 vs 220, since the base is the same on both as opposed to the 125s which are 6 inches narrower. The 220 is just too deep for me, and 2 tanks are always better than one.

True, I like how you think. It's more of cost with the 2 X 180's compared to 2 X 125's. I have about 1k to work with and was thinking if I get two used 125's for about 200 at most a piece, that would give me plenty of room for filters, lights, sand and building the stand and hood if you see what I mean. I really do like the 180 with that added depth of the tank.....maybe I could just go ahead and build the stand for two 180's and just get one of them now and save up for another one to put on the stand later. My other half has said I could get another one in February with the taxes then, but that's a long wait for me .

[MetalHead06351]

All it took to get my 125g and stand home and in my house was 2 sets of muscles and a ford ranger

[Paulbearer]

The only thing I don't like about the 125 is the short height of 22" on it. I would prefer the 120's 26" height, but then you loose a foot on length......sigh. I just like a larger viewable area on my tanks. I know the footprint is important too, but I need to find a happy medium there and that is where my difficulty lies.

[spotmonster]

I agree, I never liked the height of 125's. This is a tough one. If it were a 8 ft tank I'd say go with one big one. I like the idea of larger "show tanks". but since they are both 6 ft.. have to decide which is more important to you. If I had a choice I'd go 2- 5ft 120's or 2 6 ft 150's if they could fit the budget. But like you said though, 125's can be had for cheap compared to any other 5-8 ft tank.

I've been meaning to ask this in one of these huge tank threads may as well be here.
How in the world do you move them, people talk about these huge tanks but I never see anything about the logistics of getting one in place.

Paulbearer, do I need to hire pallbearers?

I just aquired a 6 ft 180 https://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=174591. Nice tank , though I haven't set it up yet. Boy did I under estimate the weight I barely, and I mean barely, manged to get this moved out of a basement and into another with only myself and one other person. Da#$ this thing is heavy! My pinkie fingers of all things were killing me the next day because when you move a tank like this all you have to grab onto going up stairs is the trim at the bottom! 350 lbs resting on your pinkies, nice 4 people woukld be no problem, but the issue most times is there is not room enough for 4 people to fit in the hallways and doorways it needs to be moved through.

[Marduk]

Glasscages.com sells suction cups for lifting. The ones we borrowed from my LFS made lifting my 265g SOOOOOOOO much easier for me and my four brothers...

I highly recommend using suction cups, they're a lot safer, easier, etc...

~Ed

[Donfish]

I shouldn't have asked this here, I didn't want to hijack the thread but I guess it did. Sorry Paulbearer. Anyway the answers are duly noted.

[Paulbearer]

It's all good....i'm thinking i'm going to go with the two 125's anyways. That's a 12 foot wall of tank to look at that will look like one big tank by the time I get done with it. Although I really want the larger tank, I feel that the benefit of having 2 tanks will out weight the 1 larger tank. That way I can have 2 tanks of different fish that I would prefer to keep and have a tank to be able to move fish around in...thanks again and I do appreciate all the input.