Location, Location - Where is your tank located?

[vetteguy53081]

When you installed your tank within your home, did you carefully pick a location or did you find a random spot where it would fit best?

Looking back, I have noticed many picking a spot near the window, as a room divider, in the bedroom and even basement.

What changes looking back do you wish you would have made opposed to where you placed your tank?

Near a window can promote algae, near an air conditioning vent can help cool the tank and basement can require trips up and down steps.

 

[AydenLincoln]

I wish I would’ve moved my tanks farther away from the wall and not put my reef tank in my attic style bedroom.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

For me, I picked the only spot in my house that could house my tank and my living room in a corner.

 

[CO2TLEY]

Bedroom next to the bed. Perfect spot for nanos imo. I wish my water making station wasn’t in the basement but oh well

 

[tzabor10]

Bedroom and spare room. Wife loves the sound of running water. Lucky me.

 

[Reefer Matt]

My first tank back into the hobby went into the front living room. It’s 36 gallons so it’s not too heavy. But it is placed on an outside wall adjacent from a window. All of my other tanks (5 of them) are in the basement in The Reef Cave. I have a new tank cycling in the Reef Cave now. I will be taking down the 36 gallon when the new tank is cycled so I don’t have to lug water up the stairs anymore.

 

[SeaJelly]

I put my 170 gallon downstairs in our finished basement (on concrete) where our living room is. It’s a massive room and where it’s located had been empty for years and was an awkward spot because it’s next to the sliding door. The tank works perfectly there!

 

[NanoNana]

I put it in the only spot it would fit and the target audience could watch it all day. Closer to a window than I’d like but no direct light. I hate carrying water up from the basement but I would hate having plumbing sticking out of the floor in my living room more. lol. I live in a D-log cabin and can’t plumb in the exterior walls. Getting close to retirement, have to think about resale and pipes sticking out of the floor would turn a lot of people off. lol (unless they were reef peeps).

 

[exnisstech]

First tank started in the living room then progressed to another in the dining room then another in the bedroom then a stock tank in the basement. I can watch a tank when I'm eating dinner, I can watch one when I'm supposed to be watching TV, and I watch one when I go to bed and it's the first thing I see when I wake up. I've never placed one in front of a window. I would love to have a peninsula as a room divider but that would require a new larger house which isn't happening.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Bedroom and spare room. Wife loves the sound of running water. Lucky me.

I would love the sound of that at night, haha.

 

[Mark Goode]

It has pride of place in my living room (where the light from it interferes with watching the telly).

 

[JustAnotherNanoTank]

.

 

[TehBrainz]

In the basement.

Originally, my 75g was set up in the home office. This was fine until we upgraded to 210g system.

Then it moved to the dining room as it was the only room that could keep it without it looking awkward due to the size. Plus the stand looked more like furniture, as my wife put it.

Now that we moved homes it is in the basement, which fits much better as the area it is in is more like a rec room. Plus my office is on the other side of the basement so I can see it and tend to it as needed

 

[danreef55]

I put it in the only spot it would fit and the target audience could watch it all day. Closer to a window than I’d like but no direct light. I hate carrying water up from the basement but I would hate having plumbing sticking out of the floor in my living room more. lol. I live in a D-log cabin and can’t plumb in the exterior walls. Getting close to retirement, have to think about resale and pipes sticking out of the floor would turn a lot of people off. lol (unless they were reef peeps).

I am planning a basement sump with tank on first floor. I was worried about pipe coming out of the floor and came up with an idea.... If I ever move I will just put a floor vent grille. It would just look like another register

 

[SPS2020]

Since the late 80's (old guy), I've had a tank in the master bedroom. My 100g acro tank resides at the foot of the bed. I can hear any little thing that goes wrong overnight.

 

[snorklr]

out in my attached garage...that way it can look more like a science experiment and less like living room furniture....and all the water that invariably spills on the concrete doesn't hurt a thing

 

[smitten with ocean life]

my first tank started tucked in a corner of the rec room. while it looked great there, i figured out it was just in too much of an out of the way spot. was easy to forget about it. so when i upgraded, i put it right in the living room next to our easy chairs. no way to ignore it im lovin it!

 

[NanoNana]

I am planning a basement sump with tank on first floor. I was worried about pipe coming out of the floor and came up with an idea.... If I ever move I will just put a floor vent grille. It would just look like another register

This is an idea I may use if I upgrade size.

 

[WhatCouldGoWrong71]

When you installed your tank within your home, did you carefully pick a location or did you find a random spot where it would fit best?

Looking back, I have noticed many picking a spot near the window, as a room divider, in the bedroom and even basement.

What changes looking back do you wish you would have made opposed to where you placed your tank?

Near a window can promote algae, near an air conditioning vent can help cool the tank and basement can require trips up and down steps.

I have 2 tanks, soon 1 large tank these two will consolidate down to. Mistakes/Lessons learned:
Mistakes:
- WAY WAY too close to the wall. Any tank from here on out will have at least 1 foot distance from the back side of tank to wall.
- Future proof proximity to what tank will eventually become I.E. UV, large ATO, proximity to water room, etc
- Using an AC/heat vent as your friend
- Having power outlets directly behind the tank (not good in my book).
- Accounting for additional power over time. What else is on this circuit?
- Can I see it from my normal walks in the house. Can I see it from where I sit and watch TV.
- If placed near a window, can you actually open that window? If you can, is there a storm that actually opens? If you can prevent algae growth from the light but not take advantage of fresh air, what's the point.
- Future proof!
- If you plan to stretch long water lines for ATO refill or AWC, make sure you can get your controller cables where you need them to go. I have 2 tanks. One in formal dinning room (we don't use this room) but it is viewable from living room and the other is our master suite. House is about 4K sq ft. I have a mixing room in the utility room in the garage. I can get water/Apex between garage and bedroom, I can't get water or Apex to my other tank without a lot of work (under sidewalks, through brick walls, etc). So I now have a 55G brute ATO reservoir in my dinning room. When I asked the wife if I could have a 400G peninsula built, she asked where I was going to put it. I said "Dining room is the only place if no addition" she said "Only if you can hide all the gear and run lines between the mixing room and the new tank". So, the fun has begun...

 

[BrokenReefer]

Basement for me - we had a very weird niche which the previous owners had made a 'bar' with a pool table in the vicinity. We took the pool table out which left an awkward area to be used, so I decided I wanted a fish tank there. Probably should have asked the Wife for her input before doing it but ...