Growing up I had 2 tanks in my bedroom and 2 tanks in the dinning room. I was very young and my father helped me build a 20 gal show tank. It was fantastic. Months later while I was at school, elementary school, my mother and our next door neighbor were having coffee in the dinning room and the show tank had a blow out. The front panel blew off the tank and flooded the dinning. Luckily my mom and neighbor scooped up all the fish that were flopping on the floor and threw them in my other 3 tanks. Unfortunately, one of those tanks had oscars in them so that didn’t go very wel
Years later our family moved down to palm beach/lake worth and my collection went from 4 smaller tanks to two 40 gal tanks both were in the dinning room. Luckily no tank Catastrophes happened during that time.
Fast forward a few years later and the family moves to Orlando. I had graduated high school and got a temporary job working on a sailing yacht for 3 months. My tanks had changed from 2 40 gallon breaders to a 55 gal salt tank in our family room and a 15 gallon hexagon tank which was at the foot of one of my single beds in my bedroom and a 20 gallon show tank which was at the foot of my other single bed. Both of these tanks were salt water tanks as well. My parents took care of my tanks for the 3 months I was away working. On my return home I started college and got a PT job.
Next Catastrophe, while I was at my PT job, I got a call from my younger brother stating that our family home was on fire and I needed to come home. He also stated that the fire department was already at our house working on getting the fire out. Now the scary part. It turns out that one of the extension cords that I was using to power one of my tanks-had gotten under one of the coaster wheels of the bed which fraid the extension cord and started the fire. The firemen said that i was lucky that the fire had started in the afternoon and not during the middle of the night while I was sleeping in the bed. Possibly could have been the end of me. Both tanks in the room were destroyed however we managed to get the fish out of both tanks in my room and transferred them to my tank in the family room. They all made it.
My bedroom was the only thing destroyed during the fire. I moved out of my parent’s house that day and moved into my older brothers house which was vacant at the time. Oh, my brother was working out of town for months at a time, so I knew he wouldn’t mind me moving in and I brought my tank with me. The funny thing is my parents gave me $6,000 out of the insurance money to help me replace my clothing and other personal property I lost in the fire. Now the family jokes about that they had to pay me to get me out of their house.
Please note that I got rid of that tank the next year and I was out of the hobby for many many years until 18 months ago I purchased a WB 170 and it has been smooth sailing. Fingers crossed. LOL. Also I voted other. Living, dining & bedroom.
Scott R, I bet you didn’t expect some long boring story. Sorry
def helps in winter to keep humidity down
