Buying used aquariums is a bad idea

Right now this is what I'm thinking:

fill it halfway with soil

plant grass in it.

let grass grow tall

insert gerbil or hamster (whichever likes to tunnel more)

I think that set up would make a great play space for a gerbil or hamster. It would be too hard to keep adequately clean for a permanent home, though. How big is the tank? Bigger than a breadbox? Smaller than a bathtub?

How about using it for an herb garden?

 

20 gal.

paid $30

 

Lets not over simplify the care for any animal. Gerbils and hams need more then just a planted tank with grass. There is a ton of work and research to put forth before buying any animal.
If you want, sell the tank. Put it up at $15 which is what its worth. Someone with a snake or gecko is bound to come a long.

 

Plenty of research would have to be done, yes, but a gerbil could be housed in a 20 gallon as long as it is kept very clean and is not kept planted with dirt.

 

id get me a leopard gecko, some firebellied toads, or a firebellied newt. maybe a crested gecko if its a 20 tall.

 

I'd use it as a terrarium....

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Taiwwa...if you try it out and it holds water...perhaps you could use it on a deck or patio as a place to house/grow aquatic plants during the warmer months, possibly grow enough to trade with an lfs or here on FL. It could make an interesting conversation piece in the middle of a deck table if it was filled with plants (I probably wouldn't put any critters in it if I were keeping it outside though since it is a small tank and in the sun, temps will fluctuate a lot day to night to day).

 

20 gal.

paid $30

Ouch. This goes back to "What makes people think their used tanks are gold?" That's almost what a 20 gallon goes for at Petsmart.

Okay, so we're dealing with a 20 gallon (long or tall?) that has a chip in it so you're not sure that it's a good idea to fill it all the way.

If you've ever had interest in keeping any sort of crabs, this would be an excellent place to set up a palladarium (most crabs in the aquarium hobby need both land and water).

Smaller reptiles or amphibians would probably do well in the tank (as was noted above, whether the 20 gallon is a long or a tall will determine what would go best in there).

Personally would not house a rodent in that size tank. To give you an idea of how much they like to roam: I had a hamster who would get out of his cage almost every day, and he explored every room in two of the three levels of our house. He particularly loved the piano in the opposite corner of the house from my room (first floor southwest vs second floor northeast). My second hamster wasn't quite as adventurous, but he, too, would escape and explore the house (usually just the level he was on).

 

Crabs are cool....though many of them need their water to be salt....something to consider

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not salt. brackish.

 

I've kept crabs, and as a word of advice, make sure they cannot escape, should you choose to go that route. You can't seal it because it starts to smell something terrible, but I woke up one night to see a large dark thing skittering across the floor, which just about gave me a heart attack.

I think semi-aquatic frogs would be fun

 

not salt. brackish.

There are both marine and brackish crabs. There are some that are both.

I've kept crabs, and as a word of advice, make sure they cannot escape, should you choose to go that route. You can't seal it because it starts to smell something terrible, but I woke up one night to see a large dark thing skittering across the floor, which just about gave me a heart attack.

Yep. Tight-fitting mesh that goes over anywhere the lid doesn't cover. Otherwise, they will escape.

 

There are both marine and brackish crabs. There are some that are both.



Yep. Tight-fitting mesh that goes over anywhere the lid doesn't cover. Otherwise, they will escape.

yea, but I don't think saltwater crabs are semiaquatic (not sure). I was thinking he was referring to red claw, fiddler, and vampire crabs.

 

well brackish or full saltwater....you have to use some kind of salt product for them. which is something a lot of pure freshies don't really know about....which I would be one.

 

For something fun and different - why not try Terrestrial Hermit Crabs

https://www.hermitcrabparadise.com/

 

yea, but I don't think saltwater crabs are semiaquatic (not sure). I was thinking he was referring to red claw, fiddler, and vampire crabs.

Fiddler crabs are marine. Some of them also live in brackish water. Red claw crabs prefer to live in brackish areas. Vampire crabs are terrestrial and don't belong in aquaria at all.