Equipment Review and Discussion :: Rubbermaid storage bin

[crocs27]

I just bought a 50 gallon rubber maid storage bin. It's not inteded to be an aquarium and it does bow out. I have bungee cords at the top to help support it. It has done it's job so far and it was only 15 bucks at Target. I was thinking of making this a temporary move until i saved up for a big tank but now i'm thinking of it being more of a long term setup. Any thoughts?

[marisa]

Some people do keep their turtles in the Rubbermaids you described, me being one of them for a time. But, I went through four of them in 9 months. I don't know if you were able to get clear ones (hard to find); the ones I used were pale gray and navy. I was able to control the bowing to a greater extent, but all inevitably developed cracks and slow leaks in the bottom near the corners where there are little protrusions/feet. If the bottoms are not flat, the parts that are raised have to be supported or eventually the weight of the water will cause this. The clear ones, I'm told are somewhat stronger/more pliable. I've since gone on to mostly stock tanks, which are made to hold water. Depending on what you have, it may last longer--others have had similar experiences to mine, yet some people have reported no problems with theirs.

[tini]

you could always get two cheaper than a tank and double them up. . . .

[marisa]

I've tried that and it doesn't work--if you put one into another there's a small gap between the bottoms, and the weight of the water will just cause the bottom of the first one to crack. And likely crack even more quickly because none of the bottom of the inside one is being supported by anything. I tried putting a thick towel in between the two to take up space and still wound up with a leaky Rubbermaid.

[tini]

oh . . . just trying to come up with something to help

[marisa]

That's OK--I thought I had discovered a solution to the problem when I first though of it too.

[crocs27]

Well it's only been a week so far and it's held up. I still think i'm going to get a 125 for my two turtles though. Possibly 150

[marisa]

Do you mean 125-gallon Rubbermaid storage container or stock tank?
I've never seen a Rubbermaid storage container that big...

[daredevilgirl013]

Go to your farm supply store like TSC or something and get stock tanks! Those hold up fine, are used for the outdoor ponds, are meant to have heaters in them, etc etc etc, so those should hold up well and they really aren't that much.

[crocs27]

no, not a rubbermaid. I'm going to shell out the money for my kids...(that's what i call them) and get them a nice big aquarium. I'm trying to get a 150 gallon for around 300 bucks. It's going to be a stretch but i'll try. I also plan on building an aquarium holder for underneath it.

[marisa]

If you find you need something more sturdy in the meantime, don't overlook classified ads. I just returned from purchasing a 100-gallon Rubbermaid stock tank that was advertised in todays local paper--it was only $10.00 as opposed to buying one new for about $70.00.

[steve]

$10? Did you get me one too?

[marisa]

Can you believe it? I picked up the paper and my eyes just fell on an ad: Stock tank, Rubbermaid, $100, phone number. I called thinking that for $100 it was going to be more like a 200-gallon one. When I was told it was 100 gallons and the price was really $10.00, I was over there within a half hour to pick it up (the sellers even live in the same town I do--some things are just meant to be). And I spend almost $60.00 for a 50-gallon one about a month ago.

I'm not crazy about Rubbermaids, but for the price it will certainly do. (Oh, the collection of turtle "stuff" grows!)