Tank connections?!

kayak385

kayak385

Member
OK, I know that cleaning the tubes that connect two aquariums would be considered impossible but how cool would it be to setup two aquariums with a connection tube between them that the fish could travel through? Here is a link to an extreme version for fresh water fish aquariums
http://www.fishighway.com/ :thinking:
 
kayak385

kayak385

Member
Originally Posted by ci11337
IDK if i like that, it's really unatural, but kinda cool...
unatural yea, but then again caves prolly have tunnels like that so think of them as tunnels instead of floating connections.
 
kayak385

kayak385

Member
Originally Posted by 1journeyman
Cleaning and getting proper water flow would annoy the heck out of me.......
i could imagine it would, but if i was the fish running through a tunnel that is covered in corallife i would just think its a dimly lit passage from one bay to the next... then again, this is why i'm still considered a kid by most.... imagination runs wild too often... lol
 
kayak385

kayak385

Member
Originally Posted by DragonZim
I can't see how that whole thing wouldnt just drain down into the tanks and cause them to overflow
Have you ever filled a glass by submerging it and then turning it upside down and lifted it up slowly? You'll notice that the water will stay in the glass and it will increase suction on the surface of the water, but when you play with this, don't get the opening of the glass too close to the surface or you'll have yourself a splashdown..
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
This thread is funny, a relative of mine actually wants a large tank downstairs, then a swim "tube" spiraling up to another tank upstairs. I guess the spiraling is so that it isn't a steep climb, and the tube is supposed to be about a foot across or more, so plenty of room to get up there. It sounds cool, but I am not helping her clean that! I told her she will have to send one of the children down the tube once a month to keep it clean! :joy:
 
zman1

zman1

Active Member
Tell her there is no chance that will happen unless the tank downstairs is as tall as the top of the tank upstairs. I drew a stick person quality drawings to illustrate.
First is want and second is what you get.

 
kayak385

kayak385

Member
I think the tanks have to be on the same level or else you have a syphon of gravitational pull much like an overflow to the sump. You could have two tanks next to eachother and a spiral tube going up the staircase and down to the next tank.
 
zman1

zman1

Active Member
Originally Posted by kayak385
I think the tanks have to be on the same level
Agreed (and same tank heights) This is nothing like overflows and returns from/to a sump. This is a channel for fish to swim... I was just replying to sepulatian's relative's desire.
 
zman1

zman1

Active Member
Wait, one exception. The tank on the bottom would have to be a sealed cube (top-water tight cover) for this to work.
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
Originally Posted by zman1
Wait, one exception. The tank on the bottom would have to be a sealed cube (top-water tight cover) for this to work.
LOL Zman, I told her it was never going to happen. She wanted it. I think she was kind of thinking along the lines of a sump/overflow design, but with VERY slow flow. Slow enough and a wide enough tube that the fish could swim "upstream" I still don't see it happening though.
 
maeistero

maeistero

Active Member
:thinking: actually this could work very easily and has for many people. tons of people run their sumps in the basement and tank upstairs. all it would take would be a pump the fish can swim through. it's be pretty stressful and the pumps expensive, but it happens all the time at a certain landry's restaurant chain. even sharks end up in the sumps.

the question is getting the fish to swim into the pump to go back. it wouldn't be slow flow at all.
 
zman1

zman1

Active Member
Originally Posted by sepulatian
then a swim "tube" spiraling up to another tank upstairs. I guess the spiraling is so that it isn't a steep climb, and the tube is supposed to be about a foot across or more, so plenty of room to get up there. :joy:

Originally Posted by sepulatian
LOL Zman, I told her it was never going to happen. She wanted it. I think she was kind of thinking along the lines of a sump/overflow design, but with VERY slow flow. Slow enough and a wide enough tube that the fish could swim "upstream" I still don't see it happening though.

Either train them to jump over the overflow - or port a hole directly in the the tank so any passing fish can be pulled in by siphon for gravity flow drop to the sump. I don't disagree things end up in the sump you don't there, P shrimp have found their way over my overflows before and end up in the sump more than once. I have not been daring enough to pull my strainers off of the return to the pump intake for free ride back to the top. Just afraid they wouldn't be lucky enough to time their pass between impeller blades. LOL
I guess you could put in the old roman rope and bucket belts to lift the water back. However, you have that training issue again to get the fish to get in the bucket -LOL
 
kayak385

kayak385

Member
Originally Posted by zman1
I guess you could put in the old roman rope and bucket belts to lift the water back. However, you have that training issue again to get the fish to get in the bucket -LOL
If you did the roman bucket trick you would either have to:
A) train fish not to try to jump out of the bucket, like we don't jump out of ski lifts... OR
B) put a lid mechanism to close the bucket so they travel safely to their destination.
IMO, this system is only possible and reasonable if you have two tanks and only one wall(both sides) to work with for a proper tank placement in the house.
You would have to cut a hole in the wall instead of just breaking down the thing and putting in a huge tank(2x75 gallon tanks on each side or a 150 going through it).
Then put the tubes through the wall and then place the tanks(debris issues always scare me).
This would be a great idea for someone that doesn't want to worry about getting into the eletrical aspects of tearing out a wall while still having the pleasure of seeing a fish on each side once in a while with different aquascapes.
Personally for me to want to do this, i would have to have a fish that likes to follow me from room to room. I have a flame angel that does follow me right now, but thats for food. then again, any reason for a fish to follow me and does on sight is a perfectly good reason to try this method out.
I mean... why not?
 
mattp098

mattp098

Member
this seems very possible. Once one has the water trapped inside the "fish highway" tube and has gotten the extra air out and a pump would have to be placed in the downstairs tank that will pump water back into the tank upstairs via another tube (a smaller tube that the fish wouldn't use) It's like how a tank and sump work.
I agree that cleaning the tube would be a pain... and a dirty looking tube would defeat the purpose of the whole idea.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top