Swimming Tank?

[MermaidCelesteFL]

I know that my mermaiding season has been slowing down immensely and my manager and I have been pondering over how difficult it would be to obtain a swimming tank to continue pushing my services to indoor parties and such. To those mers who do have a tank- where did you get it? How much does it usually go for? What dimensions is it? How easy is it to move from place to place? Should I start up a kickstarter to fund it, or should I just go along with my dry gigs and wait until summer for the swimming pools to open back up?

[Winged Mermaid]

Acrylic tanks are extremely expensive. No one has ever talked actual numbers for tanks that I've seen. But I've browsed various tank builder sites and they say to have a 1,000 gal tank built, expect to spend no less than $10,000. For size reference, Raven's tank (for the Live Mermaid Exhibit & Show (https://www.facebook.com/TheMerbellas)) it's 1,000 gals. You also have to purchase a trailer to keep and transport it in (and a vehicle that has a hitch), and if you're performing outdoors in the winter you'll need a heater for it. If you don't want it to get all foggy, a filter as well. It's not a cheap operation, otherwise we'd all have one!

[Anahita]

Tanks can cost as much as a new car, and weigh over a ton dry... Filled, they weigh several times that. Which means that not only does moving them require some serious power, but they can also only be put in certain places that can bear their weight once they're filled. Also, the heaviness means they require a good and stable stand, since all that weight and pressure means the bottom can warp, leak, and break if not properly supported. Add to it the cost of filling it up (which I would imagine doesn't come too cheaply - not sure of the actual cost of water, as it varies from location to location) and you're looking at a not-so-easy price tag.

[AniaR]

I know how much the merbellas tank cost and it's more than I make working as a daycare teacher in a year...

We've been researching doing it here, and the only way we can do it is if we obtain a business grant.

[Mermaid Kelda]

This has actually been discussed in-depth here (http://mernetwork.com/index/showthread.php?437-Acrylic-Mer-Tank), with a couple of mers tallying up the cost of building one, I'm pretty sure.

[AniaR]

And it still wasn't accurate. ;) just a guesstimate

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[Meurgen]

Hey, I found out the exact price of a tank by www.livingcolor.com - they quoted me $20,000 for a 10x4x4ft acrylic tank (so pretty damn big!), potentially with a frame and wheels. He also said that was just under 1,200 gallons (if that's any help).
I had a feeling it would be more than 10k, and I was right! I wanted to find out for definite from someone though, and these guys were the ONLY ones to get back to me.

[Mermaid Lorelei]

I've been quoted $15,000 while researching.

[Echidna]

15k sounds like a bit too less, since it costs already 6k or more to make a small pool's front side with glass.

I totally get the advantage of a portable tank, but for that money you could build a veritable pool, around 8m long, 4m wide, and 2m deep.
It seems like too much for something you can barely crouch in and not swim :(

How about a stationary aquarium, large enough to hide a whole pod? :p

[Merman Dan]

If you want glass you can get a 10'10"x3'1"x3' aquarium for $3,675 at Glass Cages (http://www.glasscages.com/?sAction=ViewCat&lCatID=47) . I would not consider that to be entirely portable, though.