Bespoke Aquariums: Five Top Tips

2016/5/4 10:31:38

Having an aquarium designed to fit into your home perfectly can be a tricky process for those of us who haven't done it before (probably most of us!). No doubt, you will probably be spending quite a lot of cash on your new aquarium, so the pressure's on to get it right. As with everything that involves spending a considerable amount of money, research is crucial to avoiding common pitfalls and nasty mistakes. This article aims to help you out a little bit with the process of having an aquarium custom made for your home.

1. Brainstorm

The first thing you should so is engage yourself in a full on brainstorming session. Allow your imagination to run wild and try to think of every option you can think of. With aquariums, the sky really is the limit so consider in-wall tanks, coffee tables, kitchen units...just go mad! This isn't the time to think sensibly, the aim is to get as many ideas down on paper as is possible.

2. Narrow Down Your Ideas

Once you have a huge list of wacky and crazy ideas, reality has to intervene at some stage. Try to start thinking realistically about what you can fit in, what would suit your home, and how far your budget will potentially allow you to go. When contacting manufacturers, you need to have a fairly good idea of what sort of tank you want. No one has it 100% sorted, after all they are the experts. Just try to get a good idea so you can get some accurate quotes coming in.

3. Contact Three Manufacturers

A trip to your local aquarium shop, or some time spent on Google should provide you with contact details for some aquarium manufacturers. Call up at least three different companies, explain what it is you are looking for and ask for some quotes. Not only should you be concentrating on money, also try to get a feel for the company. How professional are they? Are they creative? When can they do the work?

4. Finalise Your Plans

Once you have contacted some manufactures, and received their quotes it's time to go back to your plans and finalise what you want. Based on the quotes you have, you should have a strong idea of how much it's going to cost and how much work is involved. If necessary, you may need to revise your plans to fit in with the planned work and budget. Once you are 100% sure, it's worth giving the manufacturer a call to go over the final details. Leave nothing to chance.

5. Schedule the Work

If you are going for something such as an In-wall aquarium, this will require quite a lot of installation work and you will need to schedule this accordingly. Always be open with your supplier as they will know the process inside out, and be able to advise you accordingly. For free standing tanks and table tanks then you will not need to worry so much, just allow your-self the time to get everything settled and start setting up the tank with your decorations/plants etc.