My son's lizard recently died and we were thinking of using the 30 gallon aquarium for fish. A friend of ours mentioned that she had heard that you CANNOT use an aquarium for fish after it has housed a lizard.. period! I have a hard time believing that but would rather put the question out there. Any thoughts or knowledge?

Thank You :)

Only difference I can think of is that it might have been a terrauim and not an aquarium. You can use either for dry but not for wet. Check the caulking at the glass joints.

It was a fish aquarium previously. The story is that once a reptile has inhabited it, it is no longer fit for fish. This was new information for me and I doubt the validity of it.

Thanks for responding!

When I got my sailfin lizard her 120 gallon tank, I put fish in her former 40 gallon tank. And when the lizard was a baby, she was in a 20 gallon which was and is used for fish afterwards. The first thing you need to do it clean it by hand and fill it up to be sure it holds water. There's a simple solution to residual reptile bacteria, etc. in the tank. Soak it in dilute bleach for a day or more. I pour in about a cup of bleach per 20 gallons or so. After it's soaked, everything in there is dead, totally dead. Then, rinse it out and fill it with fresh water. Add a double dose of dechlorinator. Let that sit for as long as you let the bleach sit. Then, dump that and rinse again. You shouldn't smell any more bleach. Now, it's like a brand new tank!

Thank you very much! I figured a good soaking with bleach should cure any issues but I had to be sure. We already started the cleaning process and will hopefully give my son a nice fish tank to help ease the loss of his lizard.

These forums are wonderful and I appreciate the responses.

Have a good day!

Beverly