Tank Question

[froggiez]

At the risk of asking a stupid question...lol, I been wondering if it is at all possible to combine two 10 gal tanks together to make one big 20 gal? I was thinking you would remove the bottom and set it on top of the other and apply some sealant , I thought I saw a post where someone did that but realized they were just two tanks on top of each other, not combined would this be possible to do? if so how would you remove the bottom out of one without busting the glass?

[pixiefrogman]

If I were you, I would save the time and just buy a 20 gallon tank.

[froggiez]

maybe, but 10 gals are a lot cheaper than 20 gal and I have a cheap hubby...lol, I can get a 10 gal, tank only, for about 10 $$ plus if combined they would be taller than the regular 20 gals...ah well, just thinking out loud I guess...lol

[bshmerlie]

Someone said Petco was going to have the $1 sale again. 20 gal for 20 bucks.

[froggiez]

yeah but the closest petco from me is about an hour or more a way...*sighs...I may call and find out if they are and when it is and see if I can get out there...I live in a small town the biggest store we have here is wal-mart and the pet store is We Love Pets which is pretty overpriced...phooey...LOL

[bshmerlie]

I'm here in California and an hour away is nothing. We drive that just getting to work everyday.

[jackdogga]

if you had a exo terra tank with the swing doors that would be much easier.

[froggiez]

LOL yea I would have to agree with you there, but I am on a tight budget so was hoping to be able to cut some corners somewhere, maybe I will have to ask santa clause for one ...LOL

[Rat The Unloved]

You could theoretically have a glass-cutting shop just cut a hole/grind the edges in one side of the 10gl bottom. A little bit of silicone and some creative decoration would make them link together, but be easily separated for cleaning and care.

[Deku]

I once thought about this too. Its more of the black top and bottom borders. You know the thing made out of plastic. Thats one thing that keeps the tank together. So if you get that out and replace it for a bigger one??? You could try making a wooden frame. Well thats just what I think. If you did attempted to do this you would need to let the glue dry for atleast a day or two and then throughly rinse out the tank and scrape off any extra bits of glue. Itd look weird though but awesome.
good luck if you ever attempt it.

[froggiez]

thank you all...not really concerned with the divided look on the outside just as long as the little guy is a happy frog I did think about the question from John more and I realized he was right it would be hard to reach to the bottom to clean, but maybe if I popped the side glass out and integrated a hinge of some sort for a swing open side at the top to be able to clean? I may try it later down the road, but it seems it would be better just to buy one for now then maybe experiment with making or combining tanks . little gray will have to do in what he has for now.

[UncleChester]

I'm positive I've seen someone attach two tanks together like you've described, but I can't seem to find the link now. The bottom glass and trim from one tank was removed, and was then siliconed onto the top trim of the other tank. This wouldn't be safe for water, but worked for a terrarium.

It's probably cheaper/easier to keep an eye out on Craigslist as already mentioned, also garage sales and flea markets. A bonus for you is the tank doesn't need to be watertight (assuming no false bottom or water feature), so keep an eye out for 'as is' tanks. In any case, you can also re-silicone a leaky tank and it's less of a disaster if this goes wrong for a terrarium than an aquarium, so you can be bolder than a fish person.

You could also extend the height of your 10 gallon with a wooden/pvc pipe/other frame and screen mesh instead of another tank.

Or you can turn the tank on it's side if height is your primary concern (no space increase this way). Lots of info on the web on these conversions, as well as some ready to use kits. Though dart frog specific, here's a fine example: http://www.frogforum.net/vivarium-te...struction.html

Its more of the black top and bottom borders. You know the thing made out of plastic. Thats one thing that keeps the tank together.

From what I've read while researching how to build my own tall tanks, if the plastic trim is holding your tank together, you're in trouble. Silicone on it's own does the job. As I understand it, the trim will be for looks, protection from bumps on the corners/edges, even dispersion of the weight to the edges of the sides of the tank, and a place to rest the lid.