Tropical Fish Keeping
Now that I am retired I am thinking of going back into keeping tropical fish. Its 40 years since I did it! The fish seem pretty similar but tanks and equipment have changed considerably.
In particular there seem to be large numbers of fairly inexpemsive tanks and stands available made of PDF and covered in veneer, but then there is a huge jump in price to the well built solid Oak cabinets/stands which would fit in with the better sort of sitting room furniture.
Any advice/comments?
TF
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Hi tigerfish, all I can suggest is if you have a maidenhead aquatics near you might be worth a pop in, I will hold my hands up and say that a good friend is a manager for them but I always find the help and knowledge at different locations over the years
have been great. Either that or a good independent.0 -
My Son keeps tropical fish and has done so for a number of years, would guess it all boils down to how much you want to spend at the end of the day the cheaper tanks will do the same job as the more expensive ones so to me it is down to ones own preference.
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I think you mean MDF rather than PDF unless you are planning making a stand from a 3D printer.
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Hi TF, I was a very keen aquarist at one time up until about 12 years ago.
The last type I kept were Lake Malawi and Tanganyika Cichlids, as you may know they are some of the most colourful other than tropical marine fish that require a different filtration system.
The type of tank is down to personal choice, I prefer all glass construction with just a wooden hood and simple stand.
One of the main changes over the years has been with the types of filtration systems and pumps. The large external pump/filter like
THIS is my preferred choice.Good luck if you decide to go ahead.
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What has changed though is the very nice Oak finished tank stands etc which help the tank to fit in with other furniture in the living room.
That has helped me to convince the DCOS that the idea is a good one. The new filtration systems and heaters are better too.
Strangely enough The cost of the fish themselves do not seem to have risen compared to other things of 40 years ago.
TF
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Do you want only a display tank or do you intend breeding the fish. I started with a display tank but a pair of my cichlids surprisingly decided to breed, Then had to set up other tanks and the whole thing just snowballed. Great fun mind!
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3Ft (Sorry but I speak English) Display Tank. Like the 110 model in the Aqua oak web site. Very expensive but deals to be had, on kit etc.
Not yet committed as there are less expensive alternatives. Trouble is they do not look as good.
The "Elite" range is a possibility. - As with so many things there appears to be rwo distinct levels, Loads of suitable sized tanks in the cheaper range then a huge jump in price to the higher level. The actual tanks are probably the same!
TF
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One thing to bear in mind TF when going for a large tank is the type of flooring it will stand on. A solid floor is of course no problem but the typical wood floors needs some consideration. A 48"x15"15" complete with gravel weighs a lot. I made my stand out of hard wood and designed the base with a solid slab of wood rather than 4 typical feet, to spread the weight over a wider area. Enjoy the hobby.
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What has changed though is the very nice Oak finished tank stands etc which help the tank to fit in with other furniture in the living room.
That has helped me to convince the DCOS that the idea is a good one. The new filtration systems and heaters are better too.
Strangely enough The cost of the fish themselves do not seem to have risen compared to other things of 40 years ago.
TF
Some of the fish that were imported all those years ago TF can now be bred in this country making them much cheaper. I was once friendly with a shop owner who was also a catfish specialist; he often visited Brazil and returned with polystyrene containers full of fresh water fish. He even found new variations of Corydoras and had them named after him.(You may have heard of Corydoras Davidii)
Good luck with whatever you decide to keep.
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