Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Dream Aquarium


Through a very favourable trade with our plumber, I have become the proud owner of a new aquarium. It is my all time dream aquarium too. It's HUGE!

The full to the top capacity of this behemoth is 44o litres. That's 116 gallons!!

We considered having a salt water or marine aquarium, but our pockets aren't deep enough at the moment and to start one of those, you need a bit of extra equipment and knowledge. My experience is with tropical fresh water fish only.

I've had an aquarium since I was a child and I got a whopping 20 gallon aquarium for Christmas one year. I loved that thing. I spent all my pocket money on fish, aquatic plants, food and accessories. I knew all the Latin names for the fish and plants. I had dreams of becoming a marine biologist. It was my interest in all things connected with my aquarium that I realized that sometimes grown ups don't know everything.

I had gone to babysit one Saturday night for some folks with small children. This is how I got extra money for fish. While the couple were getting ready to go out, I was talking to them about my aquarium. I must have just bought something new for it or checked a big book about tropical fish out at the library because I was pretty gassed about the whole subject. I talked about the plants that I was going to put in it, using the Latin names. When I paused for breath, I noticed that they were giving me a look that said that they really didn't know what on earth I was rattling on about. I back tracked and explained what I had just said and then shut up.

Anyway, back to the new tank . . . .We've decided on a location for this beautiful thing and our pal Eric the Joiner (carpenter) is going to make a sturdy stand for it. It has to be VERY sturdy. When full of water, this aquarium will weigh a tonne! The stand is just the beginning. I also need:

1. Filtration system - to keep the water clean
2. Lights - so I can see the fishies and the plants won't die
3. Heater - they're tropical fish not native Scottish fish
Only after I have all of these things can I start to think about filling it with water and eventually adding in the fish. As ever, I'll keep you posted.

13 comments:

Betty said...

That's one big aquarium! My grandfather had aquariums at one time, and learned the hard way that he should put something over the tops. I found one of his prize fightint fish flopping and gasping on a chair beside one of the tanks one time. Of course, all I could do wassqueal,"Eeeeeeeeuuuuuwwww!" and holler for grandpa.

Anonymous said...

Holy toledo! So happy you're continuing your interest in fish.

xo, ma

Tink said...

Awesome! My Mom and I had an aquarium when I was little. The dang thing needed to be cleaned once a week though. That pretty much did me in. I stopped cleaning it and the tank turned green. The fish apparently loved it though. They grew three times the size they should have.

J-Funk said...

Wow, that's going to be fun! you can create your own world and then sit back and enjoy the view.

J-Funk said...
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Jay said...

Awesome! I can't wait to see what all you put in there.

Joy Des Jardins said...

How great is that Peggy? I love aquariums...though I've never had one like that. I'm drawn to them when I see one in a restaurant or doctor's office, etc.

Have fun with your new toy....and all the great things you'll put inside.

Shammickite said...

Lovely, you'll have so much fun choosing fish and weeds and whatever else you put in it, and watching the fish interact with their new environment. We had a huge tank like that too, but it eventually sprang a leak, and had to be dismantled. Our best fish were the goldfish, all the tropical type fish didn't last very long. My son caught a crayfish in the stream and put it in the tank, but it was quickly returned to the stream when it started munching on some of the other inhabitants of the tank.

Anonymous said...

I love aquariums myself. That really looks like a nice one. Given the family's love of diving I would say it is more than appropriate for one to have a place of honor in your home.

Peggy said...

Betty - there is a scene in the movie Amilie (French) that seems to match what you've just described.

Ma - I'm happy too

Tink - You were overfeeding your fish. Its the most common problem.

j-funk - I love buiding up tanks. We may get a treasure chest that opens and closes!

Jay - I can't wait either. I wonder what it will all look like in the end.

Joy - It is a proper aquarium even bigger than our old family doctor's tank.

Ex- Never had a crawdad, but I did have some sticklebacks for short period of time.

Sally - The William Dafoe fish was a Red Sea Banner Fish - very similar to an angel fish.

Alan - I am so tempted to recreate a diving location in this tank but salt water needs more money to set up.

bigbikerbob said...

Hi, your lucky to have such a large tank and a blank canvass, i love tropicals and kept them for forty years or so, space is now our biggest problem.Lots of luck setting it up and with choice of fish.

Anonymous said...

OMG! Gardening, baking, cooking, dogs, photos and now an aquarium! I think you should remove 'lazy' from the title of your blog ;)

Iowa Gardening Woman said...

Wow, wonderful aquarium, what kind of fish do you want to get? I set up a 55 gallon tank last fall, I got my first fish tank (10 gal) for my 21st birthday (1969), I had a least one tank for the next 30 some years, went without a tank for a couple of years and was not happy without a tank! Good Luck and keep us posted with pictures as you add fish.