There can be only one?

[etheonut]

As some of you know I am slowly downsizing my hobby. I should stress the word slowly. I have taken down a couple tanks in the past month. There is still a lot more work to do.

This work has lead me to wonder about a few questions.
1. How many tanks am I going to leave running?

2. What types of tanks am I going to leave running?

3. What fish species will I continue to keep or start keeping?

Wondering about the answers to these questions has lead me to a question for all of you.
If you were restricted to only one ideal aquarium, what would it be for you?

So, take a moment to fantasize about it, then write it down here.

I will wait for a couple responses before giving mine. I don't want to influence any of your ideas.

Kevin

p.s. Yes, unlimited money and unlimited selection on livestock, have at it.

[Jackielee]

Definitely if i only could have one tank it would be an acrylic 300 plus gallon with a minimum of 36 wide by 72 long by 24 tall dimensions. It would be a planted tank and landscaped, have CO2 and appropriate lighting. It would be stocked with a large variety of SA fishes. I would shoot for a situation with large and small fish. Would strive for some sort of partally self perpetuating stocking of fish from reproduction and would pay someone to maintain and re-stock it if funds were unlimited. Would not filter except for some basic biological filtration because it would have automatic water changes of 25 to 50 % daily from the attached 1000 gallon water aging and changing system. Would aerate and provide active water circulation within the tank.

[sskruzr]

"Definitely if i only could have one tank it would be an acrylic 300 plus gallon with a minimum of 36 wide by 72 long by 24 tall dimensions. It would be a planted tank and landscaped, have CO2 and appropriate lighting. It would be stocked with a large variety of SA fishes. I would shoot for a situation with large and small fish. Would strive for some sort of partally self perpetuating stocking of fish from reproduction and would pay someone to maintain and re-stock it if funds were unlimited. Would not filter except for some basic biological filtration because it would have automatic water changes of 25 to 50 % daily from the attached 1000 gallon water aging and changing system. Would aerate and provide active water circulation within the tank."

Sounds like someone has been laying awake at night thinking about this!

[mewickham]

I've always wanted to have a wall-length aquarium. It would be at least 12' long and probably 2' wide and 2' high. Such a tank would let schooling fish really school from one end of the tank to the other. I would heavily light and plant the tank and have some choice rock and driftwood pieces. I would probably have to travel somewhere to collect the rocks I want, as I do not like the way that the gravel never matches the "boulders" in aquariums. In nature, these are usually the same kind of rock, but in different sizes. So I would look for a streambed somewhere, where I could harvest everything from sand to large stones to build the decor. I might build a high-powered flow-through system to make a strong stream enter from one end of the tank and exit at the other.

I'm not sure what species I'd pick, since there are a lot that I'd like. But some kind of danio would be one good choice, and probably various tetras or rasboras. I don't do onesies and twosies, except for really territorial fish. The schools I'd choose would probably have a minimum of 50 per species. The dominant species would have a minimum of 100 in it. There would be a school of 25-50 unusual Corydoras catfish, and another of 25-50 Otocinclus. I'd fill things out with some kind of small cichlid. Perhaps a pair or two of kribensis, or a pair of jewel cichlids. Maybe a dwarf gourami pair. Ooh! 50 marble hatchetfish for the top.

[Okoscar]

Mike what would you use for substrate? Dirt, sand, and rock from river?

[mewickham]

I'd use whatever I pulled from the river, from sand on up-- except that I'd give it all a good rinse to remove mud and detritus. Mind you, I haven't actually tried this. It might be a horrible idea in practice, with sand that never seems to rinse clean. I also like to mix laterite in the lower levels of substrate for my planted tanks, to give the plants some extra iron. Maybe it would be a good idea to leave any bits of mud just mixed in the lower levels to help feed roots.

Sadly, I can't remember if I have seen any streams around here that have the type of stones I want. I want well-rounded rocks, but the local rocks that I can remember seeing aren't spheroids. Even the ones that have somewhat polished edges still appear to be shards that have just had a bit of wear on them.

Kevin, can you think of any streams with rocks like I want?

[etheonut]

My best guess would be to head to the Buffalo River. You need places where the water gets out of the chert/limestone rock and into the granite rock.

Some of the places we took Ted had some rounded stones, but maybe not as much as you are wanting. Eastern Missouri would also have the right rocks to get those stones, but only in a few drainages. You are right though, you aren't going to find them around here with any consistency.

Kevin