People have been keeping fish in captivity for thousands of years.
It started with the Sumarians keeping fish in ceramic bowls, it continued in China and Eqypt and by the mid 18th century goldfish kept in wrought iron aquariums could be found all over Europe.
Nowadays, in the United States, fish are second only to dogs in their popularity as pets.
The word 'Aquarium' can be broken down into 'Aqua' meaning 'water' and 'rium' meaning 'building' so it literally means 'water building'.
Enormous aquariums can be found all over the world.
The largest is the Georgia aquarium in Atlanta.
It contains over 8 million gallons of water and over 100,000 fish including four Whale Sharks, four Beluga Whales and four Manta Rays.
The glass is two feet thick.
Of course in the home we would not consider anything quite so ambitious however a 20 to 30 gallon tank is not so large that it wouldn't go into most people's homes.
Something about 36" long x 18" high by 12" deep would stand in many people's living rooms.
So the question is 'Why would you want a home freshwater aquarium?'.
Well it's no accident that we are always seeing fish tanks in doctors and dentists waiting rooms.
There are a number of reasons, not least of them is that they reduce stress and calm people.
Research has shown that aquariums have lots of other beneficial attributes.
They can bring down blood pressure, improve people's brainpower, reduce the symptoms in Alzheimers sufferers, calm hyperactive children, speed up the healing process in the sick and are definitely fun to watch.
In addition to these benefits, fish keeping is a wonderful hobby.
The aquarist provides the habitat for the fish, he has complete control over the environment he gives them and unlike dogs, fish don't need to be taken for walks.
The budding aquarist needs to buy the correct tank, gravel, filter, heater and thermostat.
Provide the correct amount of lighting depending upon the plants purchased and then populate the tank with carefully selected varieties of fish.
There is nothing difficult about starting a home aquarium.
Provided you follow some simple rules and are prepared to spend a few minutes every week in maintaining it then you will end up with an aquarium which always looks stunning and is admired by all of your visitors.
It started with the Sumarians keeping fish in ceramic bowls, it continued in China and Eqypt and by the mid 18th century goldfish kept in wrought iron aquariums could be found all over Europe.
Nowadays, in the United States, fish are second only to dogs in their popularity as pets.
The word 'Aquarium' can be broken down into 'Aqua' meaning 'water' and 'rium' meaning 'building' so it literally means 'water building'.
Enormous aquariums can be found all over the world.
The largest is the Georgia aquarium in Atlanta.
It contains over 8 million gallons of water and over 100,000 fish including four Whale Sharks, four Beluga Whales and four Manta Rays.
The glass is two feet thick.
Of course in the home we would not consider anything quite so ambitious however a 20 to 30 gallon tank is not so large that it wouldn't go into most people's homes.
Something about 36" long x 18" high by 12" deep would stand in many people's living rooms.
So the question is 'Why would you want a home freshwater aquarium?'.
Well it's no accident that we are always seeing fish tanks in doctors and dentists waiting rooms.
There are a number of reasons, not least of them is that they reduce stress and calm people.
Research has shown that aquariums have lots of other beneficial attributes.
They can bring down blood pressure, improve people's brainpower, reduce the symptoms in Alzheimers sufferers, calm hyperactive children, speed up the healing process in the sick and are definitely fun to watch.
In addition to these benefits, fish keeping is a wonderful hobby.
The aquarist provides the habitat for the fish, he has complete control over the environment he gives them and unlike dogs, fish don't need to be taken for walks.
The budding aquarist needs to buy the correct tank, gravel, filter, heater and thermostat.
Provide the correct amount of lighting depending upon the plants purchased and then populate the tank with carefully selected varieties of fish.
There is nothing difficult about starting a home aquarium.
Provided you follow some simple rules and are prepared to spend a few minutes every week in maintaining it then you will end up with an aquarium which always looks stunning and is admired by all of your visitors.
SHARE
