# getting a 500 gallon in the house



## marcshrimp (Jun 16, 2013)

Might be a dumb question but I would rather side with caution and get some advise from you guys. Im buying a 500 gallon glass aquarium.... is it ok to turn it on its side to get it through the door? Im thinking yes, but then I started thinking that it might put alot of stress on the glass and the cross brace. Its just alot of wieght and I was wondering if anyone had done it before.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i have moved several times as well as helped others move..i have turned aquariums every which way but loose and have never had a problem with them..


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## marcshrimp (Jun 16, 2013)

Thanks! I figured it would be ok, but in my head I kept thinking.... what if it stresses the glass and it busts and we drop it and there goes $4000 dollars lol. Loha, if I run my 125 as a sump, would I need to make compartments in it and do bio balls and all that crap or could I fully plant it and put a couple sponge filters in and that be enough? I only run one hydro 5 on the 125 now as it is... so im thinking 3 hydro 5's and full of plants and that should be plenty of filtration on a 500? I mean, the main tank will be full of plants too


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

a couple of years ago i bought 100 or so of the large hydro sponges from a wholesaler that was retiring..i am not out of them and will have to order some new sponge filters from canada...i use about 6 or 7 of them in my 135..but it has no substrate or plants..just someclown loaches , raphael cats and L-66 plecos..
i imagine that your plan should work..i don't know for sure as i have never used a sump type system.
the wife and i would love to have a 500 gallon tank...lots and lots of tetras...


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## Elliott225 (Jan 9, 2014)

A 500g tank?? One word....DAMN!!!! I got a few questions. 

What are the dimensions of said 500g tank? 
What kind of stand is it going on? 
How are you moving it? 
What is the floor beneath it?

When I got my 150g it took me and four friends to pick it up. 

Just thinking of the approx. weights of a 500g. Water alone is 4000 lbs. Just guessing that the tank is between 32 and 36 inches tall, but wider if you have to turn on it's side.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

well , a tank the is 24" tall x 48" wide x 96" long = 480 gallons

easiest way to calculate gallonage is............

H X W X L =? divide by 231 = gallon capacity.
24 x 48 x 96 = 110,592 divided by 231 = 478.753
increase height to 25" and it makes it 498.70

but these days tanks are less standardized than they used to be.

i wish we had the room here for a big tank....i would love to build a 500+ gallon tank for our tetras and loaches....


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## Elliott225 (Jan 9, 2014)

Increasing the height by 1 inch add 160 pounds.

It's not a tank, it's a pond.  hehehehe

Cleaning wouldn't involve little scrubbers on a stick. It requires waders and scrub brushes. Not tall enough to snorkel though. 

If I were to build that big, I would go with a fiberglass tank with glass only on the viewing side. Like zoos do.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i make them out of plywood..much cheaper than fiberglass.we used to have "tank building workshops" with the Cleveland Aquarium Society years ago...1 piece of 1/4" glass and 1 sheet of 3/4" plywood and 1 8' 2x4 would build a 120 gallon tank...
2' x 2' x 4'...they are awesome tanks..


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## marcshrimp (Jun 16, 2013)

The room I have the 125 in has a concrete floor, its the old enclosed carport, now its my tankroom. Lol. Yeah a 500 is gonna be big but the dimensions are close to what loha said. I got plenty of room for it, and can run water lines to it for water top offs. Im not too concerned with cleaning, I rarely do more than clean the glass with a magnet scrubber once a month and dip out some dead leaves. Im gonna build the stand, and place my current 125 underneath with an open front so you can see it too. Im gonna fill the 125 with floating water sprite and java moss on rocks and use it as basically a sump/filter.


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## Elliott225 (Jan 9, 2014)

Sounds like a sweet setup. Filling the 125g with plants sounds great. That should keep the 500g crystal.


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