office tank...what would you do

ctreefer

New member
Long story short, I've had no time at home to work on fish tank projects so I was thinking about setting up a pico tank at work(maybe like a 5.5 gallon custom). :cool: Fortunately my tank at home has been doing well all this past year with minimal effort.

First question, does anyone have one and if so, pics...(and no, working at a pet store and showing pics of your stores displays doesn't count.;))

Second, this is a corporate company and I'm not certain the rules, but I know someone had a bowl with a betta for quite awhile (before she got let go....) I'm not sure if I should ask first if its OK or just set one up out of view in my cube and play dumb.

I feel fairly confident if I ask building maintenance they'll take the no stance. I might ask my direct boss as he's pretty cool and is pretty high up on the ladder so to speak.

Any thoughts?

(oh and btw, this was composed during my lunch hour....:lol:)
 
I had a 10G on my desk back when I had to actually go to an office. :D

It was never a problem, until one day I was checking CA levels. With the standard syringe. And was quickly called into the manager's office to explain myself. :lol:

Don't ask, just do it. If there is no rule in the employee manual/handbook/whatever, then what have they got on you? And if they do change it, tell them that you're grandfathered in! :lol:
 
Alright, you've got me convinced. Looks like my lunch hours will be spent in the shop making a nano tank.

thanks, I look forward to getting into this again.
 
Here is what i had in my office before i went to iraq....

I built a 12X12X12 Cube, drilled the bottom and attached a closed loop filter(canister) and modded the canister filter to add a small 50W heater in it. I hung a 70w MH DE bulb over it(viper light). The boss had no problem at all since there was just water in 1 tank no sump lol.

I think you saw my tank? it was TOTM for CTARS last year i think? I would say go for similar design, less mess. To topoff i used an industrial type dosing pump that had tons of pressure. I cant remember the exact amoun ti used to dose but it was enough to keep the water level steady. I did a .5G water change every friday and everything was looking great!

GL :)
 
Thanks Rich, Yes i do remember your tank but forgot about the canister. I may have to incorporate something like that into the design. I like the storage of the heater and stuff for that and still have a magnum 350 lying around that I might be able to throttle down for just such a thing.
 
OK, Rich, I just pulled up your presentation for the CTARS site. How did you seal off the heater in the canister? Did you have any problems with surface scum? I like the idea of seeing no plumbing at all but I'm wondering about pulling the scum off the surface of the water. I'm also kind of second guessing the heater. The building runs at a constant 75 degrees and if I have a powerhead submerged in there i'm guessing I can boost a 5-8 gallon tank another degree or two.

I have no idea what to do for the light. $$ is definitely an issue, but at the same time if this is an office tank I want it to look like it belongs. I've been eyeing thos par38 LED bulbs for nanos for about $100. I'd just have to do some nice reflector for one. Maybe I can find a used cheap viper or just settle for now for some PC's.
 
I actually took apart the housing(where the motor goes) and i found a nice spot that would let me run the power wire easy enough. I drilled a hole and ran the wire which was then insulated(water tight of course) with 100% silicone. In the 6-8 months that the tank was up i never had any problems with leaks. Just remember when you do maint. turn off the heater and make sure u let it balance to the waters temp before pulling it out or you will end up like me(broken heater since i did not disconnect! lol). surface scum was not much of a problem since the canister filter move almost all the water.... when ever i cleaned the inside of the tank i would clean any build up that would end up on the edges of the tank(only real surface scum.

I would def consider one of those LED setup they are very nice and would keep your temps down for sure!! I also did not need any powerheads so the inside of the tank was real clean... the canister filter did about 250gph in a tiny tank that only had rics, acans and a few other softies it was more than enough flow.

hope that helps and if you need some help with your canister filter let me know i would be glad to help :).

Annick just tell them that the fish people said it was ok.... :)
 
Thanks Rich,

Annick, AARGh, what did you have to go and tell me that after I made up my mind? Was it kind of hidden out of view?

Kid's cute btw just a little messy you need to practice your target feeding. How have things been?
 
I have a 12 gallon Aquapod in my office. I never asked my boss but he is a nice guy and the owner of the company.











 
whats up vince long time no see. how have you been?

Hey Brian, How's it going? I'm finding myself drawn as usual back to my tank now that its winter even with all the house projects going on.

How's your tank(s) doing? Hope the kegerators are full for the Holidays. I just helped empty my buddies Octoberfest this weekend.

Luis, nice office tank. I might just tell my boss as well as I'm pretty confident he'd say go for it. Problem is he doesn't own the company.... :)
 
pico 3g..
P9120537.jpg


requires daily top offs..
 
Thanks Rich,

Annick, AARGh, what did you have to go and tell me that after I made up my mind? Was it kind of hidden out of view?

Kid's cute btw just a little messy you need to practice your target feeding. How have things been?

The funny thing is that the tank was set up with a betta fish for months and nobody noticed. Once I set it up as a mini reef, I had to turn the lights on and that's when it was noticed. It was tucked away in the corner of my cubicle but keep in mind that I only have a semi-private cubicle so if yours is more private, you might not have to worry about people noticing it.

Things are great. Busy as you can imagine what with a one year old running around the house. You?

And if you think the picture in my avatar is messy, take a look at him after he finished his birthday cake.

IMG_5927.jpg
 
Hey Vince,
Go for it!! I put a 12 g CAD tank in my office last summer and I haven't heard a negative thing about it and you know that I work for a huge corporation. People come by just to look and one man even "sponsored" a new tiger pistol shrimp when the first one was taken by a huge worm. I didn't ask permission, but I certainly didn't keep it a secret that I was going to put it in. It's so relaxing - a really nice study break. We have Krusty the Clown (false perc), Toby the Goby (yellow watchman), Bob the Builder (tiger pistol shrimp, lives with Toby) and Rainbow Muffin (purple firefish). I've also got 3 sexy shrimp, hermits and snails. I've stocked it with zoas and LPS from my main tank. Luckily I have access to RO/DI water and any lab equipment I might need - syringes don't raise any eyebrows around here :rollface:
 
We have a 20 gal FW tank in the office and I had a small beta bowl on my desk for a while. Just ask before you do. You don't want to spend the time and effort setting it up to have to rip it down.

Managment is starting to become more sensitive to utility use these days than they have in the past.
 
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