Stabilizing Your New Aquarium Against Quakes And Clumsiness

Most people think of stabilizing an aquarium in terms of water pH and fish population, but stabilization also means ensuring the physical setup is secure. Whether you face a quake risk or just have clumsy people in your house, you need to be sure the aquarium is set somewhere -- and reinforced -- so that it doesn't tip over or lead to harm in any other way. It's not that difficult to do, but it does require careful placement and installation. 

Freestanding Aquariums Are More Dangerous

In terms of placement, you can put the aquarium along a wall, or, as many like to do, sticking out into the room, essentially freestanding. These aquarium placements look very nice and allow you to observe the fish from different angles, but they also become another piece of furniture in people's way. It is easier to bump into an aquarium that is not against a wall, just as it's easier to bump into a coffee table that is sitting in the middle of the room. To reduce the possibility of accidents, placing the aquarium along a wall is safer.

One option, if you really want the aquarium to stick out into the room, is to construct a partial wall or display case that is a permanent fixture running from the floor to near the ceiling, if not up to the ceiling itself. The wall or case's structure will help protect the aquarium, and people are usually better about avoiding larger structures like that, compared to smaller pieces of furniture. The aquarium itself would also need to be installed in the partial wall and not left loose, where it could be pushed out by accident.

Wall Bracing Helps to Protect Your Aquarium

Even an aquarium that's right by the wall needs to be leashed or bracketed to the wall. The aquarium is like any piece of furniture in that it can tip over in shaking from an earthquake (and before you say you aren't in a fault zone, remember that the shaking from a quake can extend for many miles away from the epicenter).

If the aquarium is installed as part of a large display case, the entire case needs to be bolted to the wall, and to the floor if possible. If the aquarium is a single, freestanding tank that is sitting on something like a table or bookcase, the furniture needs to be bolted to the wall, and the aquarium tank needs to be fixed to the top of the furniture. You can also add cable restraints that connect the tank to the wall and prevent the tank from sliding around.

Stabilizing the tank physically keeps both the fish and you safe. While you can't prevent all accidents or natural disasters, you can take steps to minimize the potential damage.

For more information, contact a company like Neptune's Tropical Fish.


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