Any suggestions on where to pick up a 60/75gal or larger tank online?

[Brainsponge]

So I ended up rescuing/inheiriting 3 monster Goldfish(Comet I think) and a 12-14"ish Pleco(maybe sailfin). The family member could no longer take care of them due to medical issues and was at a loss on what to do with them so I said I'd come get them and give them a good home. All I was told when I agreed to take them was they were 3 goldfish and an algae eater. Needless to say I was completely surprised to see the massive size of these fish. Long story only slightly longer, I need to get them separated and in their own larger tanks. From what I've read the Pleco(Charlie) needs a 100gal min and the Goldfish should probably be in a pond but a larger tank would work in the interim. I can build the Goldfish a pond when it gets a bit warmer but I was hoping for a quicker, if only temporary solution to give them a better quality of life. They are currently in a 45gal bowfront. I keep up on maintenance, water parameters are stable, when Nitrates get to 40-50 I water change as I've recently added some Java fern and Anubias to try to help and they are doing great, just slow growers. Have a HOB, and two sponge filters that do a good job. So now that this turned into a novel let me get to the point.

I am in need of a 60gal breeder at minimum but I'm really looking for a 75-125gal. My nearest LFS is about 3hrs out. I haven't been able to find a local forum to buy used tanks on. Craigslist is pretty sketchy and not alot of options. Any suggestions on regional(NW Fl) forums, clubs, online retailers for larger tanks? I don't do facebook or instagram. I'm not independently wealthy for the custom tank shipped avenue. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I was hoping with black friday approaching I might have some options for a new/used tank somewhere online but I seem to be coming up empty. Thanks

 

[Patrick_G]

Petco has regular 1/2 off sales on Aqueon tanks. Another option would be a large rubbermaid tub from someplace like Tractor Supply. 

[Brainsponge]

I appreciate the suggestion. I was looking at the 100-150gal stock feeders at tractor supply and will probably go with something like that when it gets warmer for the goldfish. Unfortunately my nearest Petco is about 3 1/2 hours away. It's a shame because I believe they're the ones that have a 75gal bare tank for $125 right now and it's not shippable to me. 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

You can do the Rubbermaid in your garage which I’ve done before I had a 50 g setup but for those monsters you’d need 100-150 g. You could buy storage totes for each fish which would be cheapest and just run an air pump and sponges on each one. I’m doing that presently with some mosquito fish.

[mynameisnobody]

What I used to do was move the 150 stock pond indoors. When it got a bit warmer, I moved it back outdoors. I was lucky enough to have the room to do so. If you can figure something out like this then you only have to buy once. Although having an extra tank is always convenient. 😎

[Brainsponge]

I appreciate it. Here's a picture of the fish in question. Water is cloudier than normal and I don't think it really shows their true size

Yea, I don't have the room any where indoors for the pond. Luckily we only have a month and a half or so of winter. I just want to get them properly situated ASAP

[mynameisnobody]

They’re beautiful. Good luck with them. I have fancy goldfish and they’re way too fragile. You get the best of both worlds, beautiful goldfish and sturdy as a tank. 

[Brainsponge]

Sturdy as a tank is a great description and accurate description. Eat and defecate and they're happy clams

[Patrick_G]

Nice looking fish, the Goldfish don't need heat so a rubbermaid stock tank outside would work. 

[Brainsponge]

Yea, we've been down in the mid 30's the last couple nights. I'm not confident enough to not heat when we get these cold snaps. Probably be back on the beach by the end of January. Even with a heater it sounds like those rubbermaid stock waterers out on the porch are the way to go for the Goldfish

[mynameisnobody]

@Brainsponge 100%

If you go that route, Tractor Supply has another brand Tuff Stuff that comes in 40 gallon and 110. They’re cheaper and house everything with no problems whatsoever. If you want to go the 300 gallon route then the Rubbermaid is the way to go. I have both and love them both, but 300 gallons is 300 gallons. 

Edited November 22, 2022 by Jazz Pizza

[nabokovfan87]

On 11/21/2022 at 8:39 PM, Patrick_G said:

Another option would be a large rubbermaid tub from someplace like Tractor Supply. 

This would be my go to right now. The large rubber "ponds" and just use that. All the fish can go in there and depending on placement, might be a great yard feature.  Avoid the galvanized ones.

@Brainsponge Welcome to the forums.  I also wanted to mention that once you hit 50 posts the buy/sell section opens up.  If you need to find them a home, that might be a place to go too!  There is Free/RAOK as well on offer just to get the fish to a place locally.

[Brainsponge]

On 11/22/2022 at 1:40 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

This would be my go to right now. The large rubber "ponds" and just use that. All the fish can go in there and depending on placement, might be a great yard feature.  Avoid the galvanized ones.

@Brainsponge Welcome to the forums.  I also wanted to mention that once you hit 50 posts the buy/sell section opens up.  If you need to find them a home, that might be a place to go too!  There is Free/RAOK as well on offer just to get the fish to a place locally.

That's awesome. Thanks for the info. I picked up a 75 gallon tonight and I'm going to be making it specifically for the Pleco. I've got a line on a 125 from an individual but they're dragging their feet and going back and forth on the price and they're real spotty on the details so I picked up the 75 to get hom taken care of as soon as possible and will upgrade him when it's possible. It also looks like I'll be going with a pond for the goldfish and should be able to have that going in a month or two. I greatly appreciate everyones input. It really helped. I'll probably be starting a new post to ask about substrate, driftwood, and any other suggestions for the Pleco since he'll be getting his own little world once it's cycled and seeded so it's a good transition for him. Thanks again to everyone who chipped in on this one. Ya'll are great

[nabokovfan87]

On 11/25/2022 at 7:33 PM, Brainsponge said:

I'll probably be starting a new post to ask about substrate, driftwood, and any other suggestions for the Pleco since he'll be getting his own little world once it's cycled and seeded so it's a good transition for him.

Definitely some wood in there is good for em, just not anything too pokey. My go to is usually mopani

[1moretank]

@Brainsponge  Have you considered the biggest rubbermaid type stock tank outside with 1 or 2 100 watt heaters in it set to 60 - so they only kick on if your outside temp drops too low?  My pond gold fish come in every winter when the water temp gets down near 60, and they live in a 100 gallon plastic stock tank in a back room that isn't directly heated (barely warmer than a garage).  My stock tank is full of Val (in and out of little planters), and the fish are from 2 to about 7 inches in size.  I have more than 3.

Good luck with whatever you decide on.

[Brainsponge]

On 11/26/2022 at 12:20 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

Definitely some wood in there is good for em, just not anything too pokey. My go to is usually mopani

I'll check out the mopani. Thanks

[Brainsponge]

On 11/26/2022 at 2:04 PM, 1moretank said:

@Brainsponge  Have you considered the biggest rubbermaid type stock tank outside with 1 or 2 100 watt heaters in it set to 60 - so they only kick on if your outside temp drops too low?  My pond gold fish come in every winter when the water temp gets down near 60, and they live in a 100 gallon plastic stock tank in a back room that isn't directly heated (barely warmer than a garage).  My stock tank is full of Val (in and out of little planters), and the fish are from 2 to about 7 inches in size.  I have more than 3.

Good luck with whatever you decide on.

That's probably what I'm going to go with. Checking out the 150g and will probably put it on the porch since I already have some fans out there(for the FL summers). We only have a month or two of on/off winter so cooling will probably be a bigger issue than heating by the time I get the pond up and running. I'll have to wait a bit as I just picked up a 75g for the pleco. It's cycling and seeding now so that will free up some room relatively soon. Thanks for the input

[Brainsponge]

Figured I'd share the progress on the 75g I picked up.

Sparsely planted right now but I have another sponge filter en route and am planning on some dwarf hairgrass for in front of the pleco cave I made , maybe some vallisneria for the background on either side of the cave. Progress

[JettsPapa]

On 11/21/2022 at 11:28 PM, Brainsponge said:

Yea, we've been down in the mid 30's the last couple nights. I'm not confident enough to not heat when we get these cold snaps. Probably be back on the beach by the end of January. Even with a heater it sounds like those rubbermaid stock waterers out on the porch are the way to go for the Goldfish

I keep goldfish in cattle troughs to control algae and mosquito larvae.  They do just fine when there's a layer of ice on top for several days.