Uh...score?

[Tim Benzedrine]

Huh. been here for 15 years and have never had cause to post in this sub-forum. oh well, first time for everything.

I snagged this never used dual tank for free. It is likely a 30 long divided in two, but that's from taking a rough measurement. it is a retail store-style tank, the back wall having holes cit through for whatever retail store fish-tanks have those holes for, maybe filtration system.

The reason the thread title says "Score?" rather than "Score!" is because A) I don't know where I will keep it and B) if I do, not sure what I should use it for.

Keeping fish in it as it was designed for is out of the question, mainly because I have no interest in keeping animals that die if you merely look at them the wrong way.

But just for fun, what would YOU do with it?

 

[Rhino1]

Round vents for the round holes with custom lids or remove rear glass and replace with Perspex with drilled holes.
Scorpion breeding enclosures or plenty of digging space for burrowing species or live food breeding tanks or communal tanks for communal scorpion species or anything other than fish- amphibians, small lizard species or whatever it is your into or sell or swap them and buy more Ts or more suitable enclosures

 

[Arthroverts]

I'd keep the holes, add complex tubing that is impossible to understand and hook it up to a back sump where it runs through a 3-stage filtration system before emptying into a calcium reactor to provide the proper levels for all of the Small Polyp Stony corals I would want to keep. Not to mention the fish...

Invertebrate-wise, you could literally do almost anything. I think a multi-species tank would look crazy awesome in there. Although a communal tarantula setup would also look really cool; M. balfouri on one side, N. incei on the other (I know there are those who disagree that any species should be kept communally, but this is just a suggestion and let's not have that argument here)!

Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[Mirandarachnid]

I'd slap some mesh on the holes and use it for a big multi-species desert enclosure.

How easily can you remove the middle panel?

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

I don't know if it could easily be removed or not, I didn't really study that part closely as I was cleaning it up. And by cleaning up, it from time, it has never been out of the box. It was in storage and was never used, although the box had been opened. There was residue on the glass, which was kind of amusing. See, the fellows where I got the thing at emptied a butt-load of packing peanuts into the enclosure and decided to help me out by loading it into my unlocked car as a favour as a surprise.Which was very kind. There were bagged packing peanuts that had surrounded the tank in the box it had been shipped in and they removed it from the box because it was a very close fit in the back seat of my car even without the box. So they figured the peanuts loose in the tank would offer some protection and filled the tank with them
But, Styrofoam in a closed a care AND inside a glass tank will get pretty hot and I believe they melted slightly leaving that residue on the inside glass. There wasn't a huge amount stuck but took some extra time to clean it up. No real problem though and I got it looking good.

This may be the first example of a divided tank that would be suitable for tarantulas, but I don't intend to do that. Some measurements indicate that it is probably equal to a 30 gallon long, two 15 gallon tanks joined in other words. it's the equivalent length and width of a 55 gallon tank, roughly. But not as tall.
Probably should not have brought it home. Because I also (same day) accepted the offer of a king snake complete with habitat (again free) to be acquired sometime this week probably and my space is getting very limited.

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

Wow. We all missed a potential. Specifically, we totally overlooked a dimension.

So, I was out on the porch prepping some compacted sphagnum moss for my leopard gecko hides and the Asian forest scorpion cages, and glanced over at the dual tank, which I had set on end for space-conservation purposes. Suddenly a light-bulb went off in my head. This should not be a dual enclosure for terrestrial critters, but a dual enclosure for arboreals!

Not arboreal tarantulas, since I'm not a big fan of those, but geckos. Specifically a tokay gecko and crested(s) I've kinda have wanted a tokay despite the fact that they are complete bastards and one would house nicely on the upper deck. And perhaps crested in the bottom level. All that would be needed to be modified would be making the divider opaque, so the tokay would not constantly be stalking the downtown tenants, and sealing off the holes, or using them as conduits for heat apparatus. I haven't fully thought that part out yet, but I think it has potential.
I believe tokays require the higher range in temperature, (research will be pending) whereas cresties (I have one of those already) do better in more moderate climes. The warmer temps would rise where they should be at, the upper compartment.
The best part of this notion -and that is all it is at this point - is the downside of my staking a claim on this tank was the space footprint. Four feet horizontal was gonna take a lot more thought, but the vertical footprint is negligible. Set upon a properly proportioned it could be very doable.

Since I'm feeling a bit like a genius right now, take me down a peg or two by pointing out the flaws in this plan!

 

[Pepper]

take me down a peg or two by pointing out the flaws in this plan!

Uh, its going to be mildy inconvenient to build a "lid"
But seriously, i dont know much about geckos but i bet they need substrate and maybe some vertical climbing surfaces that rest on the "floor." Make sure the divider wont break by putting some books on it while the tank is vertical?

Love your excitement and thinking outside the box.

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

Well, I use repti carpet for my reptiles so substrate won't be an issue. And most accessories I'd use would not be too heavy, I'd just need to ensure that there would be nothing that could fall onto the divider from above and I'd not likely use anything with much weight to begin with.

According to my measurements, it is exactly the same length and width as my 55 gallon snake enclosure, so a lid will be the easiest part. You can buy 55 gallon lids. Just need to make a slight modification, there is a plastic channel that might hamper lid placement, but the channel appears to have been designed to be removable. Lid clamps are available to keep a lid from falling off, I use a pair on my crested gecko enclosure and they work well.
What this thing's original purpose was for is a fish display at a retail store.

I'll ponder it. One of the downsides is that whatever is living in the lower deck will not be at a very convenient or attractive viewing height, that gives me pause. I would put it on some sort of stand. but would need to give that some careful consideration as the center of gravity would be high, so I'd have to be sure to use something stable. On end it is already four feet tall. The ceiling in the room is probably 7 feet and change, maybe 8 feet. the only thing to do, I guess, would be locate something to make a suitable stable stand and do a "dry run" placement to see how it would work and look. Set directly on the floor would work, but lacks appeal to me. The goal would be to make it attractive AND practical, and I'm not sure I can reach both parameters.

If wanted to house a tokay, I could just put one in the upper deck, and leave the lower empty, but if I were going to do that, why not just use a single 15 or 30 gallon tank?

I dunno. Seems like a neat idea in theory, but on paper...not so sure. Not going to abandon the idea yet, just need to think some more about it and maybe experiment a little.

 

[Arthroverts]

Hmm. That's an idea, but I'd have to agree if you aren't using both sides of it you might as well get a regular 30 gallon. Maybe a paludarium of some sort?

Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[Arthroverts]

Oh, and where do you live that you can get a free dual enclosure and a free king snake with habitat? The hobby can't be THAT big "in a possum hole" .

Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

It's who ya know, kid!

 

[Arthroverts]

Well, I know you...



Thanks,

Arthroverts

 

[viper69]

I think I'd make a pokie communal, of course it would work flawlessly!

I'd use it for frogs perhaps.

 

[moricollins]

Dart frogs!!! Tear out the divider and make a cool dart frog tank.

 

[Pepper]

You could make the "side" the front so that the lid is on the side (plus- wouldnt it be hard to open the lid if one lip of it is resting under the side of the tank?) Then the part with holes would be the back. You could use the holes to attach it to the wall in some way. I would be very worried about it falling over, too