I nevertheless recall the sound. It wasn't a snap or a bang. It was a slow, agonizing groan coming from the floorboards of my third-floor apartment. I had just curtains scaping a delectable 55-gallon long. It was my self-importance and joy. Id spent three months salary on imported Ohko rock and high-grade ADA Amazonia soil. I felt next a king. That is, until I realized my "king" setup weighed as much as a baby elephant. I hadnt used an aquarium weight calculator incite then. I just assumed "Its solitary water, right?" Wrong. categorically wrong.

When you get into this hobby, you think nearly fish tank sizing. You think just about plants. You think just about the perfect CO2 levels. You rarely think just about the structural integrity of your joists. But if you ignore the math, gravity will eventually introduce itself to you in the most costly quirk possible. If you want to avoid a literal indoor swimming pool in your active room, you need to comprehend how to calculate the full weight of your setup aquarium. Its not just very nearly the glass and the liquid. It's the sum of its parts. And those parts are heavy.

Lets be honest. We all eyeball things. We look at a 20-gallon tank and think, "I can carry that." Sure, empty, its a breeze. But water is a dense, unforgiving mistress. One gallon of well-ventilated water weighs vis--vis 8.34 pounds. Saltwater?