A 100 gallon aquarium is a real dream of each person, who loves fishes or corals as pets and is willing to grow the marine environment they already have and introduce new species to their collections. However, purchasing one of them is not a good idea for a beginning aquarist who’s just learning to make his way through the aquarium practice and figures out the best ways to take care of different fishes, corals and doesn’t really realize what it takes to maintain a healthy fish tank of such a size. Committing to a 100 gallon marine aquarium is a decision you shouldn’t take overnight. First of all, you need to consider if you’re ready for such a responsibility and if you have necessary resources and knowledge for such a hobby. But, if you really want to have such aquarium in your house, do your research and start preparing to make your dream come true.
First of all, you need to understand that this tank is quite big. The standard 100 gallon aquarium dimensions are: 73 inches in length, 19 inches in depth and 20 inches in height. Don’t forget to include the free back space that is required to keep all the equipment and cords. And, it’s quite heavy (the water weighs 830 pounds only, without all the gravel, decorations, stones, filters, temperature regulators, plants and the tank itself). So, the stand for such tank has to be appropriate as well.
Then, you need to decide whether you want to have a 100 gallon saltwater aquarium or a fresh water one, as it will not only influence your expenses, maintenance and cleaning routine and the type of filters and other supplies you’ll need to install, but also the kinds of fish you’ll be able to keep in it. The fresh water tank is significantly less expensive than the one that is filled with salt marine water, and you won’t have to regulate the pH indexes. But it also limits the species choices, as more fish (especially those colorful tropical ones) and almost all corals are meant to live in marine-like water. The equipment you’ll have to buy depends on this choice, as well as your fish choice.
