# children and fishtank



## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

Im upgrading to a 75g from a 46g bowfront in my living room.........right now my son is 7 1/2 months old so he will be up and walking in a few months.........should i be worried about the tank? should i attach it to the wall somehow (open to suggestions) or do you think it will be okay? im trying to avoid HOB's so i can get it as close to the wall as possible, but i might end up using one anyway.............anybody else with little ones that have any tips?

Thanks,
Robb


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## Steve St.Laurent (Oct 2, 2008)

I wouldn't worry about it. I have a 3 year old and the big tank is FAR too heavy for her to even begin to move. By the time she's big enough to be able to topple it over (if she's ever that strong) she'll be old enough to know not to do it. Your 75g tank and stand are going to weigh at least 800 lbs.


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## maddyfish (Jul 23, 2004)

Worry about it, probably not, but it doesn't hurt to attach it to the wall. So if you worry about it, just do it


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## imusuallyuseless (Dec 28, 2005)

You should be fine, but if you really are worried, stands that have a wider footprint than the tank itself will generally add some stability to the setup.


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## Hoosier Tank (May 8, 2007)

After raising my daughters and now my first grand-daughter being almost 2 I can say that you can teach her from the start not to mess with it. It's a fine line between trying and promote thier intrest and keeping them from harming themselves or the fish. But it's do-able...
The hard part is when their FREINDS come over who have never been exposed to an aquarium. Banging on the glass, wanting to feed the Pretty fishies, even climbing on the stand to get a better look! Some kids are diabolical at figuring out how to do what you think they can't... especially in numbers! :lol:


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## punman (Oct 24, 2003)

Never had a problem with a filled tank when our kids were little but our son pulled over a stand with a 10 gallon tank that was empty. Of course the tank broke but luckily our son was not hurt.


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Its probably just fine. I attach mine to the wall as a just in case. I've never had problem with my son climbing on it, but I did have to put child-locks on the cabinet doors because he likes to get in the filter compartment and play 'hide and seek'


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

tannable75 said:


> Its probably just fine. I attach mine to the wall as a just in case. I've never had problem with my son climbing on it, but I did have to put child-locks on the cabinet doors because he likes to get in the filter compartment and play 'hide and seek'


how did you attach it? do you have HOB's on it?


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## travis2k (Apr 23, 2008)

I've never had a problem with tipping over, but I caught my 4 year old nephew on a chair with a net, right after he knocked the hood and lights off the tank down the stairs.

I really need to child proof my house b4 I have kids


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

My biggest thing to worry about when I had 2 toddlers running around the house was them throwing things at each other. This immediately gets a rage response from me and they got the clue not to make dad/grandpa angry and took their throwing outside.

I never raised a hand to either one but the red face, loud voice and spittle flying everywhere always got their attention. :lol:


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

iceblue said:


> My biggest thing to worry about when I had 2 toddlers running around the house was them throwing things at each other. This immediately gets a rage response from me and they got the clue not to make dad/grandpa angry and took their throwing outside.
> 
> I never raised a hand to either one but the red face, loud voice and spittle flying everywhere always got their attention. :lol:


 :lol:


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## 12 Volt Man (Sep 22, 2008)

I really don't think you need to do anything.

I couldn't pull over my 90 or 65 gallon tanks even if I tried with all my might. its way too much weight and the tanks have a big enough footprint I think it would be impossible for one person to do.

the 75 has a 48x18 footprint just like my tanks - it should be very stable.

I can shake them if I try but thats it. nowhere near close to ever pulling them over.

if the stand is proper and level, this should be a non issue IMO.

now, if the tank was 4 feet long and only 8 inches wide, then I could see the problem.

but I think your tank is going to be very stable.


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## ksane (Mar 19, 2008)

Sure, go ahead and "teach" her the best you can to stay away from it but in the meantime worry about it, attach it to the wall and maybe park a pretty wooden trunk in front of it to keep her away from it. I've raised 3 kids and they're unpredictable little critters. They're going to do the ONE thing that hadn't even occurred to you, and they're going to do it in a way you'd have never imagined. Better safe than sorry, you only have 1 of her.


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

what about on a carpet, is there anything i can do to make it more stabel?


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## ksane (Mar 19, 2008)

I would think it'd be LESS stable on carpet. That's why it's normally recommended to pull the carpet back and set it on solid wood or concrete.


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

ksane said:


> I would think it'd be LESS stable on carpet. That's why it's normally recommended to pull the carpet back and set it on solid wood or concrete.


could i just cut out the footprint and expose the wood floor that i need?


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## ksane (Mar 19, 2008)

Yep. That's exactly what I do except our floor is concrete. I'd have suggested that but didn't think you'd really be willing to do it lol I get a lot of flack from non-fish people for doing it


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

does it look bad? is it really noticeable?


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## ksane (Mar 19, 2008)

Just cut the carpet with a razor right up next to the bottom edges of the stand. No one will ever be the wiser. People won't know unless you tell them. That was my mistake-telling them.


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

Thanks, i think thats what ill be doing........


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

Thanks, i think thats what ill be doing........


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## spotmonster (Nov 23, 2006)

95% of my tanks are on carpet. Carpet is a non issue for the most part. What is an issue are the tack strips that hold your carpet in place near the wall. If you put the tank too close to the wall it will be unlevel because it's sitting on the strip of wood under the carpet. I see no reason to cut your carpet. What if you want to move it, sell it, sell your house? Cutting the carpet sounds crazy to me. Unless the carpet is trashed anyway.

The only time I'd worry about any of this is with small tanks and or very rowdy kids. I had the same worry when I put 20 GAL in my living room with my 5 and 8 year old. I've had no problems. Now I will add my kids are pretty laid back, they don't climb on things, break things etc. There would definately be some kids I would not bother setting up a tank at all :roll: But it's not because I'd worry about them tipping over a large tank. It' more about breaking the glass.


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## 1TOOMANY (Oct 13, 2008)

How would you attach it to a wall?

That's a lot of mass, and if it gets going you'd better have some kind of ridiculous brace in the wall to keep it from going anywhere.

I have a 3 year old, and I just keep his attention away from the tank. Keep him from playing around it, if he walks up to it and points at the fish I get his attention on something else before he starts beating on the glass.

We don't have too many rules that we are really strict with, don't sit on the dog, don't reach up to the stove, don't mess with the blinds, keep your hands off the TV, don't raise a commotion around the aquariums.

It's like every other rule, you enforce them the best you can.

I do whole heartedly agree with the person who said that kids will do things you wouldn't imagine, and they'll do them in ways that wouldn't make sense to you. I just have a hard time seeing my 40 lb kid pulling over an 800 lb tank.

If you don't think your stand is overbuilt for the tank you have, now might be a good time to change that.


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

TrashmanNYC said:


> tannable75 said:
> 
> 
> > Its probably just fine. I attach mine to the wall as a just in case. I've never had problem with my son climbing on it, but I did have to put child-locks on the cabinet doors because he likes to get in the filter compartment and play 'hide and seek'
> ...


Eyebolts into the studs and eyebolts into the frame members of the stand connected with cable.


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

1TOOMANY said:


> If you don't think your stand is overbuilt for the tank you have, now might be a good time to change that.


its an AGA pine stand........


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

When our granddaughter was little I, too, had concerns about her "pulling up" 
on my 90G and it falling over on her.  
So we attached L brackets to the stand and floor.

After carefully measuring and allowing for the "smash of the carpet and pad" we screwed the L brackets up the back of the rear stand legs. 
Then we set the stand where we wanted it and screwed the L bracket through the carpet into the subfloor. 
After the tank is filled you can probably tighten the floor screws.

If you attached the L bracket to the sides, not behind, you could attach it to the floor first
and get it nice and tight.

If your stand is metal, drill holes and bolt the bracket to it.
If you are worried screws won't hold, you can use lag bolts instead.

I know this bit of effort made me feel better about her safety.
hth,
Alicem


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

Sorry, double post.


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## TrashmanNYC (Dec 10, 2007)

alicem said:


> When our granddaughter was little I, too, had concerns about her "pulling up"
> on my 90G and it falling over on her.
> So we attached L brackets to the stand and floor.
> 
> ...


sounds like a good idea........ 8)


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