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Fish Room

zackcrack00

Members
So, we are not moving and my mom is going to build me a fish room on the property we have now. She wants to put it in the old tack room in our barn, about 8x8' I beleive, I will get exact measurements soon. Anyway, I will be keeping invertebrates like crayfish, small shrimp, mbuna, wild-type livebearers and domesticated livebearers, ancistrus, and other impulse purchases at auctions! :D

So I have a few questions:

1) For my tanks to stay 70+ Degrees F year-round, what is the lowest room-temperature possible? All tanks will have heaters

2) Which is better, metal racks or wooden shelving? I will have many 5 and 10-gallon tanks, a few 40Bs (1-4), some 29-gallon tanks (4-10), and two 75-gallons.

3) What other species are great additions to my fishroom?


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Localzoo

Board of Directors
So, we are not moving and my mom is going to build me a fish room on the property we have now. She wants to put it in the old tack room in our barn, about 8x8' I beleive, I will get exact measurements soon. Anyway, I will be keeping invertebrates like crayfish, small shrimp, mbuna, wild-type livebearers and domesticated livebearers, ancistrus, and other impulse purchases at auctions! :D

So I have a few questions:

1) For my tanks to stay 70+ Degrees F year-round, what is the lowest room-temperature possible? All tanks will have heaters

2) Which is better, metal racks or wooden shelving? I will have many 5 and 10-gallon tanks, a few 40Bs (1-4), some 29-gallon tanks (4-10), and two 75-gallons.

3) What other species are great additions to my fishroom?


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Hey Zack not sure on lowest temp dep on all the fish/inverts in the room (as an average room temp, or individual tanks?)

Metal takes up less space wood is easier to work with/cheaper but that all depends on amount of wood type etc. humidity and metal or wood don't mix

More mbuna lol

maybe you could insulate the whole room before you start. Send pics depending on the room you can do a lot


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festaedan

potamotrygon fan
Awesome!
1) if you have good quality heaters it should be fine
2)I'd go with metal racks because like will said, they take less space
3) maybe some apistos or other dwarf cichlids or in one of the 75s you can have a big wet pet like a trimac or oscar
 
My understanding is that heaters only heat to about 10 degrees above room temperature.

good for you and your mom.

If I were you, I'd visit some fish rooms for idea of how to maximize space and minimize work. If I were you, I'd do a mix of easy to breed but always in demand species and some hard to breed species. Breeding things that aren't in demand leave you with a lot of fish on your hands.

The other question is whether you can get proficient at shipping and can thus use Aquabid to sell fish. If you go that route, I believe there are quite a few club members who would be happy to have you ship their fish for a cut of the profits . . .
 

Ballen0351

Members
Im doing the same in my garage Im walling off a 10x12 section of my garage. My plan is to insulate well and keep a space heater in the room to keep the temps up in winter.
 

dogofwar

CCA Members
That's what I did...but in California (and an area larger than 10'x12'). I kept a space heater in the room (concrete floor) to maintain the temp ~70 and kept heaters in tanks that needed higher temps. Temps were naturally higher on the top rack than near the floor.

Obviously, the greater differential between the ambient temperature and the desired temperature, the more electricity that you'll need to use to keep the tanks warm.

A key is covering your tanks. You can also use styro to insulate the bottom and sides of your tanks. This is most effective if you're using heaters for each tank (vs. a space heater).

Matt


Im doing the same in my garage Im walling off a 10x12 section of my garage. My plan is to insulate well and keep a space heater in the room to keep the temps up in winter.
 

blkmjk

Members
Insulation and heating the room would be the cheapest route imo. Then I would seal the walls with green board, or you could just use Styrofoam board to do the insulation and covering of walls. I would rough in electrical on gfi around the room. 8x8 is not alot of room to work with so I would build in racks out of wood. How are you planning on changing water? Letting the water drain outside is nice but getting heated water to your space may be tricky. I would invest in a hot water recirculation pump for the heated water to the space if it travels outside even for a short distance. May be a good idea heat trace it incase the pump stops working I would do that with the cold water as well. And of course insulate the piping. This is a hefty undertaking good luck! And post pictures as it progresses

Drew
 

zackcrack00

Members
Okay, I will ask my mom about a space heater for cold temperatures. She doesn't really understand the fact that different fish need different temperatures (mbuna like it around 78F year-round vs. Swordtails who like it 70-80 dep. on the season). She thinks that heaters will work up to 80F in just above freezing temperatures. She's a little stubborn, but once I show her that they don't do that ten she will have to do something. I'll probably try a bucket of water with a heater in it in the winter.


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HoleyRockofTex

CCA Members
Zack call or text me if you need help. I am about to make 2 more racks of 40 breeders and can help / offer advice if you need it. Like previously mentioned wood can take a little more room but is cheap and easy to work with. You are more than welcome to come over and check out my room for ideas if you like.
 

kkober

Members
What about the 100 degree weather we see in August... Chillers are pretty pricey.
Let me know when you need help, I'm only a minute away. ;)
 

zackcrack00

Members
Thanks, everyone. I will definitely let you know if I need help. But I don't know if this is really where it's going to be. My mom keeps switching everything up on me. She is going to talk to the electrician about getting electricity and water in that room, so if it can happen than I will probably get that room!


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zackcrack00

Members
Thanks, everyone! I'm starting work on making my fishroom today! Here Is what I will be breeding for sure:
Various guppies
White Clarkii Crayfish
Wild Swordtails
L144 (If I get RO)
Mbuna




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festaedan

potamotrygon fan
That sounds awesome Zack, I'd love to see it when its all done!
How many tanks are you planning on having?
 
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