How many tanks are too much???

[Scotts Guppy Haven]

I am very curious on how many people this affected and what you did to enjoy the hobby again. In my opinion there is a problem with too many fish tanks, it takes the hobby from enjoyable to a lot of work and less enjoyable. When I was heavily into breeding in the early 90's I had over 85 tanks ranging from 10 gallons all the way to 125 gallons. After I would get home from my full time job I would spend up to another 6 hours a day just taking care of all my tanks. This caused me to get burned out of the hobby and definitely not enjoyable anymore. I quit breeding for a long time but always kept a tank or two as community tanks. Just 2 years ago I decided to get back into breeding again and went with IFGA fancy guppies since I have always liked them. Before setting my racks up for this I made myself a promise that this will be a small hatchery setup so this won't be considered work again like the past. My current setup will hold a total of 8  2-1/2 gallon tanks, 16 5.5 gallon tanks and 20 10 gallon tanks. I know that would be a total of 44 tanks if my stands were fully filled. I only have a total of 16 tanks set up on my stands, the rest would be for future expansion if I wanted to or needed to. With only 16 tanks being only 5.5 gallon and 10 gallon tanks right now makes everything easy and doesn't take long at all to clean them and do water changes. I wanted to keep this fun for me and not feel like a second job. Just wanted to know if other people temporarily got out of the hobby because they had too many tanks and it was too much work and when you decided to get back seriously into the hobby again how many tanks did you down size to?

[Hannah Parker]

It doesn't hold a candle to your amount of tanks (that's insanely impressive!) but for me 5 community tanks was too many. I think it definitely depends on the person. With seasonal depression kicking my butt, going to school full-time and working almost full-time, and having just bought a house with my fiancé I just couldn't keep up with their maintenance. They were all 20 gallons and under as well so they needed weekly water changes. And one of them were pea puffers that needed fed live food every day, not to mention the special food and training I was having to do with my dog and making my dog and cat's food from scratch. So I had to combine community tanks and rehome the pea puffers, and now I have 2 larger community tanks and am finding the maintenance to be almost the same as having 1 tank and being much more manageable. It definitely went from work to an enjoyable hobby for me again 😊

[IanB]

On 6/29/2022 at 12:56 PM, Hannah Parker said:

It doesn't hold a candle to your amount of tanks (that's insanely impressive!) but for me 5 community tanks was too many.

Five was my "too many" number as well. I am now down to one and plan to plateau at 2 (one small 9 gallon shallow and one 75g) community tanks. Not having so many tanks eliminated a lot of stress that I did not know I had and allowed me to put time (and money) into the one (soon to be 2) tanks that I do have to make them what I wanted to them to be.

[Wrencher_Scott]

How many are too many? 

Sometimes I think one.

aahaha

[Anjum]

It's a good topic to think about. I have a renewed interest (passion?) for the hobby. I've kept a tank here & there over the years since I was a kid. But it was always just a show piece, never a living ecosystem. I got an impulse Betta a little over a year ago & set up a community 10g. And it stayed like that for a year. But then it started having problems so I went researching & came upon this world of living aquariums. And now something that was just nice to look at has become something I'm fascinated by. And now I have 5 tanks, a 6th on the way & dreams of a really big tank. And I now have interest in breeding 3 different kinds of fish, plus shrimp & micro-fauna. 

BUT! I know I have limits. I have a very full life, family, full time job, other pets & plans for the hobby farm. I know realistically I can't do it all. So I'm trying to slow it down, not do any more impulse purchases & really evaluate what's important to my enjoyment of the hobby. I think I'll probably settle to fewer, but larger tanks. 

 

[JettsPapa]

Up until last week I had 9 tanks, ranging from 5.5 gallons to 65 gallons, along with four tubs outside.  I plan to start working from home in a couple of weeks, so two had to go to make room.  I haven't missed them.  While I'm working full time the remaining tanks are plenty for me, and I may reduce it by one or two more later.

If/when I retire I have tentative plans to turn a 14' x 12' storage building into a dedicated fish room, but I don't know if it will ever happen.

[Scotts Guppy Haven]

I agree with what everyone has said about this topic, it can be very tough with a full time job, or school or anything life has to offer. Impulse buying is a very bad habit to break, trust me we have all done it. This can lead us into diving in head first into this hobby and getting into trouble with too many tanks for sure. Come on lets hear from as many people as possible on this, I know there are a lot of stories out there about this.

[cavdad45]

I think 3 tanks is good for me;

My 55 gallon community;

My granddaughter's 29;

and a ten gallon special needs, breeding, etc

but I may one day do a 40 long for shelldwellers

[lefty o]

i do up to 4 now and then depending on mood, but im quite happy with 2 large tanks. right now 120, and 55gal is enough.

[anewbie]

I currently have 5 1/2 (10gallon, 29gallon, 29gallon, 40gallon, 120gallon) AND a 5 gallon terrarium. I would setup a couple of more IF i was allowed. Next year after i move I'll have 420,420, 120,120,120,120, 80 AND the above tank plus a few 20 long... Will it be too many? I'll find out next year !

[SandBkeeper]

Right now I have 5, ranging from 20 gallons to 3.5. I only have shrimp and snails, so maintenance isn't really too much of a problem. Though we'll see when I get some fish and a few more tanks 🤭 

Edited June 29, 2022 by SandBkeeper
grammer

[Patrick_G]

I have seven display tanks and three in the planning stage. I’m sure that’s my limit given the layout of my house. I’m not allowed to take over the guest room or my wife’s work from home office! (How rude 🙂, I know) 

Another part of the problem with getting more is not having an  auto water change system. I’d love to have a big rack of tanks, but a completely automated or semi automated system will be absolutely necessary. A small version of Dean’s room would be be perfect.  

[PineSong]

Great topic! I think the right number of tanks for me is 2-3. I've had as many as 7 tanks plus 4 betta bowls in the past.

Right now I have 5 tanks: two 10g guppy colonies, two 20g display tanks, one 29g 'in transition' tank.

Moving from many years of goldfish (three fish in a 55g), when I started with livebearers I was psyched that I could have dozens of fish in one tank. And because I had a ton of plants, I could even 'overstock' them. It was exciting. I wanted to breed this kind of guppy and that kind of guppy.

Now I think what I'd like to move to eventually is two display tanks and one breeding colony tank--and to switch out what I breed every year or so--one year with this kind of guppy, then one year with that kind of molly, etc.

Even with 7 tanks, it wasn't the water changes that made me want to downsize, it was sexing the darn fry. That's why I moved to colony breeding my guppies and I'm happier that way.

 

[nabokovfan87]

On 6/29/2022 at 9:42 AM, Scotts Guppy Haven said:

My current setup will hold a total of 8  2-1/2 gallon tanks, 16 5.5 gallon tanks and 20 10 gallon tanks. I know that would be a total of 44 tanks if my stands were fully filled.

For me, honestly, once I'm past 2 it's too much for me. I don't have any auto anything and everything is on me. I'd rather have one big tank, one small tank, that's it.

On 6/29/2022 at 9:42 AM, Scotts Guppy Haven said:

I wanted to keep this fun for me and not feel like a second job. Just wanted to know if other people temporarily got out of the hobby because they had too many tanks and it was too much work and when you decided to get back seriously into the hobby again how many tanks did you down size to?

If I had a rack, I'd have maybe 4-5 tanks with corydoras for each one and that's literally it. One QT tank, one brackish for amanos that are generally not used at all. That would be the extent of what I can really handle.

[Flumpweesel]

For me it definitely depends on the tank when I was keeping goldfish with a nice high maintenance rate one tank was enough.  Now I am using the same set up but it is now a  planted tropical tank which can go months without the need to do any maintenance if life gets in the way.  So I have added a nano shrimp set up and I am contemplating a 3rd tank if I can squeeze one into my tiny house with hardly any power outlets. 

[Katherine]

One tank and a quarantine is my limit, I'm fairly certain. Life got really hard for several months at the end of last year and it was all I could do to remember to feed them most days and occasionally put in some fertilizer for the plants. I don't want to have more going if something similar ends up happening again.

[Scotts Guppy Haven]

Here is my rack system, it is an L shape with 8 feet on each end. I have it setup as a small operation right now but big enough to expand more tanks in the future if I need to.

 

[Guppysnail]

On 6/29/2022 at 12:42 PM, Scotts Guppy Haven said:

it takes the hobby from enjoyable to a lot of work and less enjoyable

I have crossed that line several times. The first time it was more insidious because I did not see it. Now it’s a red flag for me because I can recognize what is happening.  I want all the fish and I want to breed all of them but it’s not realistic and still be enjoyable.  I now scale back as soon as I see it.  Now I take time each day to watch and enjoy all the smallest behaviors.  It I don’t get time to sit and watch each tank and fish each day I know I’m getting close to that mark.  I’m at that still enjoyable mark right now but know 1 more tank will put me to far. I recently had the opportunity to obtain a species I really wanted from a local club.  Knowing my limits allowed me to say someday but that day is not today. I’m glad I chose no. 

[sairving]

I've been thinking about this. Currently, I have one 10 gallon tank. Would I like more tanks in the future? Yes. The conclusion I came to was one more tank. Maybe a 20 long or 40 breeder? It would be planted, have a co2 system, and full of nano fish. As fun as keeping bettas are, I wish my 10 gallon was a little livelier. For some reason, none of the lfs in the area can get pygmy cories. So I still just have one. My betta has also become more territorial as time goes on. 

[Hannah Parker]

On 6/29/2022 at 2:47 PM, Scotts Guppy Haven said:

Impulse buying is a very bad habit to break, trust me we have all done it. 

That's how I started out before we bought the house or added the cat, I could impulse set up a little betta tank easy. So much fun. Now I only have a tropical community tank that had a male king betta as a centerpiece, and once he died I said I wasn't getting anymore bettas because they had been so sickly and I was having really bad luck with their longevity. However, because I had the room in the community tank again I did end up impulse buying another beautiful male who seems extremely active and healthy, so I'm hoping it will continue to work out 🙂

[Tanked]

I have four tanks in operation and I could have two more ready for occupancy before lunch.  How many tanks are too much?  When does passion become obsession? 

• you have a parking place with your name on it at the LFS,
• aquarium stuff is in the closet and your clothes are on the back of the chair,
• you remove furniture to make room for another tank,
• you spend more time with fish than family/friends
• The first time normal aquarium maintenance becomes a chore,
• The first time the joy derived is overshadowed by the expense

[Brandon p]

I don’t have quite as many as you but Have way more than most. I think the answer is a moving target, but I think when it’s not fun anymore. Most have heard the saying and I’m paraphrasing  “ find something you love and do it and you will never work a day in your life”, but I don’t think that. I loved my job but it was not some I loved before I started doing it. I have several hobbies that I loved but when it was my job I hated it. For me I think I’m at my limit at 20+. Breeding is fun now and when it stops being fun I’ll stop. I like the do different things and experiment just to see what happens(no mad scientist stuff). I think your right and I have talked to lots of LFS owners that open stores because they loved the “hobby”. Once things stopped being a hobby and it’s work they hated it. Sometimes it took a short time or years, but most stopped because they stopped liking it. I don’t think it’s impossible to turn a hobby in to a business but I think you need to keep things fun and be a good business person. There is a balance. I don’t know Cory be he appears to have achieved that though what every means he has and I hope he still finds things fun. Business is not inherently fun.  So short story long, when taking care on tanks is not fun,enjoyable, or awesome then my you need a change.

[ccc24]

I think the number is different for everyone. I personally probably wouldn’t do more than a large tank or two at this point in my life. Once young children grow up - that number might be 10, once I retire, it might be 20. I think the number ebbs and flows, just like life. If you aren’t enjoying it and it is taking you away from other important parts of your life, it’s too many. 

[Scotts Guppy Haven]

On 6/30/2022 at 1:30 PM, ccc24 said:

If you aren’t enjoying it and it is taking you away from other important parts of your life, it’s too many. 

I totally agree with this statement.

[cavdad45]

I guess the real question is how many tanks can you keep up on the maintenance?