# Idea.... homemade stacked tank?



## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Just wondering if anyone thinks this could work.... I know of people who have used this as snake/rat homes/breeding areas
and I was wondering... could it be used as tanks?
Each cointainer holds 3 gallons of water (roughly), I havent cleaned them yet, normally used to hold doggy stuff, there are "slits" on three sides, roughly an inch wide, I can enlongate this more and add mesh so more air can fit through but right now the crack are big enough to fit a cord for a heater....

There are three (my dog is the blury thing on the bottom)











Side View










Drawers are EXTREMELLY easy to open 

The crack- on ALL three sides, I have kept plants in these before











What do you think... should I try it?


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Went ahead and cleaned them out and filled with water... it IS holding... any thoughts????


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## lordadamar (Aug 24, 2011)

Well,

Cant see through that plastic very well.

Might be a pain to clean have to open and not slosh water around...

Idea on the cleaning thought would be to get a 1" Hole bit a drill 1" hole near the bottom above the Gravel live and get a Bulk head fitting and Valve to drain water out... of course seal it well...


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## Princess Penny (Aug 26, 2011)

I have a few of those around my house and I personally wouldn't use it for a tank, just because you can't see into them very well. But good luck if you decide to do it!


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

I actually JUST got done testing how I could clean it... I have it filled up with 3 gallons of water (only two of the containers right now) I can open it EASILY half way with out sloshing around to much and I could then remove the betta via plastic cup and THEN clean the tank without having to worry about upsetting the betta (this is ctually how I clean all of my tanks) 

As for visability... you can actually see into the containers, my cell camera is the only phone I have and SUCKS

But...
(only top and bottom have water) pic with decoration to demo visibility










King being a demo (floating n a cup)










(he go a BW for this  )



Princess... mayb we dont have the same kind, this on is a few years older than the other ones I have (which have lot less clarity)

any ideas off of these pics... good idea or bad?


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## Vaughan06 (Aug 9, 2011)

In my opinion, I would say Absolutely NOT.
Aquariums are made to hold/support water, those plastic drawers are not. If it is the kind I am thinking of, the plastic frame that holds the drawers is no where close to being sturdy enough to support over 5 gallons of water.

Also, if the water is heated then it will condensate. There will be no way to stop or control the water from dripping down onto the floor/whatever it is sitting on.

My final input is: I think it isn't worth the trouble when it won't take long to save for a nice aquarium that you can divide.


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## Vaughan06 (Aug 9, 2011)

Also, what about decorations and the like?


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Vaughan06 said:


> In my opinion, I would say Absolutely NOT.
> Aquariums are made to hold/support water, those plastic drawers are not. If it is the kind I am thinking of, the plastic frame that holds the drawers is no where close to being sturdy enough to support over 5 gallons of water.
> 
> Also, if the water is heated then it will condensate. There will be no way to stop or control the water from dripping down onto the floor/whatever it is sitting on.
> ...


As for weight- thats why I am testing it, my sister had one of these FULL of rocks and sand (no idea why, lol) sturdy wise, as long as the weight is INSIDE it eems to work well, place ANYTHING on top and the top caves in and messes up the way the drawers open 


Heater wse is where I have a problem with it... because of the enclosed space is is much like having a tank with plastic wrap (plus holes to allow air to go through) the drawers would heat up... but, all of my tanks are at 78, the drawers (NO fish in them) are holdig at 80- with NO heater

And as for decorations... same as people place in the 3 gallon critter cages


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## Vaughan06 (Aug 9, 2011)

LittleBettas said:


> And as for decorations... same as people place in the 3 gallon critter cages


Oh, so each drawer will hold 3 gallons. I was thinking those drawers only held maybe 1.5 gallons each.

I may be wrong, but isn't 80 degrees ideal for Bettas?


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

No, they actually probably hold close to 5 gallons, but Im not comfy filling them up all the way (mine are actually older than the newer ones, IMO, they are built better and mine have actually never held anything other than beads and doggy t-shirts/collars)

80 is ideal for bettas.. which is why I like the idea of using them


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

I guess it could work. The frames on all the ones I've seen don't look like they'd hold that much water for very long without beginning to bow, the same problem arises in plastic bin tanks. Plus I've always been told fish don't do very well when put on the ground so a fish in the lower drawers might not be very happy.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Im going to keep them filled with water for a while and monitor to see if they bow any.... hopefully that works, lol

Hmmm... never heard that fish dont like being close to the ground....


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## N03113 (Jun 2, 2011)

It doesn't seem very appropriate and you can barely see fish or the decore in your photos, only outlines.. What about light? You really won't have room to put lights up for each drawer, and yes, cleaning that is going to be horrible. 

My vote is no on that one.


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

I keep bin tanks and I have 3 drawer set ups like this one (although I don't use it for fish tanks). They are a LOT clearer than they look in the photo. The OP said she took them with a camera phone and that is probably why they're so blurry.

The down side to tub tanks is they are harder to see through, doesn't make them a bad home though.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Can you post a pic of yours 1fish2fish?
And yeah, most of my pictures come ou blurry or foggy looking, the onyl way I get good ones is if I have a few light sources hitting it JUST right (hoping to by a new camer SOON!)


I jus did a test run cleaning it, all my bettas are "taught" that when ever they see my finger at the top of the water it means food is coming soon, I can then scoop them out with the walmrt cups they came in (stress free for them AND me), I take ALL of m bettas out when I do water changes, no mater if its 25% or 100% (I prefer it)
It was actually pretty easy for the top one, I was able to use the hose I us for my 5 gal,though for the bottom on I had to use a gallon pitcher to clean it out


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## Creat (Dec 6, 2010)

My major issue is the plastic frame starts to bow with weight after a while making the drawers harder to open but other then that I see no reason why it wouldnt work ...


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Im holding off putting any of my babies in it for a while, just to make sure the frame holds up, but like I said, my little sister had hers (we got them at the same time) full of rocks and sand and kept in storage for a few years, the drawers still work great but they are heavily scratched on the sides from one of our moves (military family)


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

Here's a picture of a rescue I had who was in a plastic bin tank until he was adopted out. This pic is slightly out of focus but as you can see it's pretty easy to see the fish still.










I breed almost exclusively in bin tanks... here's an example set up


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Thank you 1fish2fish!
The claity is about the same as with the ones I have.... once I get into breeding I may use the same method as you, lol


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## Creat (Dec 6, 2010)

1fish2fish i agree plastic bins are the way to go sometimes I just spawning in bins instead of glass tanks and I love it so much more it was so cheap and easy


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

I like the locking tops. It keeps the air nice and humid for my babies.


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## Creat (Dec 6, 2010)

Ha ha! we think alike! nice to know I think like a amazing breeder


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

So you lock the otps on the,?
do you cut a hole for mesh or just pen it every now and then to allow new air?


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

Well I have to open it at least 2 times a day for feeding. The air is not going to get stale in there that fast an even full grown bettas don't use that much air when they breathe so I never have an issue with it. Those tops aren't air tight either so air can get in and out even with the top on.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Im guessig you keep tops on to preent debris/dust from fallng in and bettas from jumping out?


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

It's a cute idea, but I dont know how well the plastic frame of the unit will hold. Water sloshing around when opening the drawer _could_ put more pressure on the frame, moreso than if it was just rocks or other junk in there. Also, I dont believe a betta would be alright with being on the ground. The vibrations from people walking around the room would majorly stress him out.

My vote is a negative. :/ If there werent a bunch of flaws in that idea, it would be cute to have fish in there. Maybe just take the bins out of the frame and have them on a table or something like that.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

I was thinking about moving it up to a higher place, I have a seel desk, vibrations is something I would have to worry aboutm I have a 2 year old pitbull and she never stops moving
I dont have the space to just have them unstacked, probably wont use it... there do seem to be a lot of flaws... it is something to consider homemaking in the future though


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Yeah. Also, you can buy metal stacker fish tank stands.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

^ may invest in those next


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

I keep the top on to keep the air above the water really humid which is necessary for fry who are developing their labrynth organs. It also keeps the nests held together easier.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

Ah, lol, I thought the humidity thing, Ive read about other breeders doing it, but I didnt know it helped with the nests (nice to learn new things )


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## Bresn (Sep 1, 2011)

I don't think it's safe to do this.


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## LittleBettas (Jul 23, 2011)

I already had decided not to use them.


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