Aquariums in The Villages

[bgamble3]

This is a survey to try and determine how many Villagers have an aquarium or would like one. Also do you have an aquarium maintenance vendor, or do you perform your own maintenance. Please specify size of tank (gallons) and salt or fresh water.
Thank you for your response.

[CWGUY]

:icon_wink: Check with ARC and make sure about the number of pets you can have. :rolleyes:
For the people with no sense of humor.....that was a Joke. :popcorn:

[retiredguy123]

I never heard of an aquarium maintenance vender. How much do they charge? I may consider buying an aquarium.

[CWGUY]

I never heard of an aquarium maintenance vender. How much do they charge? I may consider buying an aquarium.

Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo - Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deuce_Bigalow:_Male_Gigolo) :popcorn:

Fish tank cleaner and gigolo. :1rotfl:

[Stu from NYC]

We have a small pond that at one time the previous owner put in fish.

Contemplating what to do with it but like the sound of running water with waterfall.

[retiredguy123]

We have a small pond that at one time the previous owner put in fish.

Contemplating what to do with it but like the sound of running water with waterfall.
Your neighbors might not. You may want to ask them. Just a suggestion.

[Bjeanj]

We have a small pond that at one time the previous owner put in fish.

Contemplating what to do with it but like the sound of running water with waterfall.

I have one, but use chlorine tabs to keep it clean. If you put fish in, any number of wildlife will keep eating them. :-(

[Stu from NYC]

I have one, but use chlorine tabs to keep it clean. If you put fish in, any number of wildlife will keep eating them. :-(

I have heard that we would be providing lunch to the local wildlife. Wonder what would happen if we introduced pirranha? Would that make it a fair fight?

[drbales]

Would consider a salt water tank if a reputable outside maintenance and set up service were available. 50 -100 gal.size

[JSR22]

I have heard that we would be providing lunch to the local wildlife. Wonder what would happen if we introduced pirranha? Would that make it a fair fight?

We had beautiful Koi that were massacred. We still have pond with a running waterfall and frogs have moved in!

[OpusX1]

We had a 100 gallon salt tank for about 15 years up north.Only had about 6 fish but many invertebrates, a couple cleaner shrimp, some stars and lots of anemones.

I’m too lazy to do the work in retirement and we travel much more now.

Have you watched tanked on animal planet? Some amazing tanks in the $50,000-$250,000 range.

[Bjeanj]

We had beautiful Koi that were massacred. We still have pond with a running waterfall and frogs have moved in!

I forgot to add chlorine tablets once, and suddenly I had hundreds, if not thousands, of tadpoles!

[Carla B]

I found a low-maintenance version, the Aquarium channel on Roku. They only feature one tank so far, "Aquarium of the Pacific," in Long Beach, CA. Love the big grouper (one).

[CWGUY]

I found a low-maintenance version, the Aquarium channel on Roku. They only feature one tank so far, "Aquarium of the Pacific," in Long Beach, CA. Love the big grouper (one).

Was it the SPECIAL? :duck:

[Carla B]

No, wasn't that one, but he looks to be high-maintenance.

[retiredguy123]

Was it the SPECIAL? :duck:
No, they need to raise the price to make it the special.

[Nucky]

Maybe one of the nicest hobbies I've ever enjoyed in my entire life. I've only dabbled in Salt Water Fish because of the heartbreak when they die because of the cost of purchasing them. WOW! It was mostly our fault because we could never get the water just the way the little darlings liked it.

Freshwater tanks are a walk in the park to maintain and we had much better luck with the Longevity if the fish. Each one of our boys had a 20-gallon tank in their room and really took care of them to my surprise. We shared a tank that was either 225 or 250 gallons and had a person come once or twice a month and clean it up and drain water out and refill with water that came in a box. It was quite the setup. I'm pretty sure it was under a hundred a month all in. It was in the basement because of the weight of the tank and we had the perfect spot where all the heating and filtering equipment could be plumbed in behind the wall out of site and nice and quiet. Thanks for bringing this up, lots of great memories.

I wish I could help you with a great maintenance company here but don't have a tank big enough to need a service anymore. I wish you luck.

[Stu from NYC]

We had beautiful Koi that were massacred. We still have pond with a running waterfall and frogs have moved in!

Previous owner had kai but apparently egrets have a constitutional right to eat them.

[camaguey48]

This is a survey to try and determine how many Villagers have an aquarium or would like one. Also do you have an aquarium maintenance vendor, or do you perform your own maintenance. Please specify size of tank (gallons) and salt or fresh water.
Thank you for your response.
Good grief! A survey, really?

[bruce213]

I have a 45 Gal fresh water so no real need for a service guy. I had a wheelchair bound neighbor here in TV. Had a beautiful 90 gal fresh and did have an outside service man. Don't know any info on him.

[camaguey48]

Previous owner had kai but apparently egrets have a constitutional right to eat them.
Funny.

[scottvs1961]

This is a survey to try and determine how many Villagers have an aquarium or would like one. Also do you have an aquarium maintenance vendor, or do you perform your own maintenance. Please specify size of tank (gallons) and salt or fresh water.
Thank you for your response.

Yes, I have a 150 gallon mixed marine (saltwater) aquarium. Had it before we moved here and it came with us when we moved.

Had a wonderful guy from Ocala come to our house in Wesley Chapel and move it to TV for us.

I am taking care of it myself, including partial water changes every two to three weeks, cleaning the glass from algae, periodic sand cleaning, etc.

[UseYourBrain]

No thanks to aquariums. Way too much work, you have to worry about it when you leave on a trip, the fish are in a jail of sorts and subject to you starving or suffocating them.
Like so many things, they might be nice in the beginning and then you forget it’s there and it becomes more of a pain than a joy.

[scottvs1961]

No thanks to aquariums. Way too much work, you have to worry about it when you leave on a trip, the fish are in a jail of sorts and subject to you starving or suffocating them.
Like so many things, they might be nice in the beginning and then you forget it’s there and it becomes more of a pain than a joy.

Of course that is your opinion. To each their own.

There are good and bad things with every hobby, some more demanding than others. Once again everyone can have their own opinion.

I have an automated feeder that works wonderfully when we want to go somewhere.

[scottvs1961]

I don’t want to make it sound like they are not work. That is untrue. It is really about what do you enjoy.

I am rewarded when I get done with my weekly or monthly maintenance with a beautiful addition in our family room.

Also, as many of the corals in the wild are dying due to pollution and climate change the aquarists are saving some species from extinction and have even contributed to the reestablishing some coral species back into the wild.

Coral Ark - Your Tank is the Seedbank (https://coralark.org/)

[BoatRatKat]

Saltwater tanks are beautiful and a great hobby, we had a huge one for many years but they are expensive to maintain and very time consuming. There is a learning curve and even then one tiny thing may be off and your entire tank can wipe out and saltwater fish are not cheap at all. Probably a good thing too to have an extra tank to quarantine new fish so you don't risk you're entire tank. It's work for sure.

[PugMom]

such an excellent idea. ive worked with all kinds of critters for a good portion of my job/career. when it came to fish, an extra tank was most important. we never let 'new' fish into an aquarium without observing them in a 'hospital' tank for almost 2 weeks before allowing them to join their new friends. you can watch for any type of illness this way, & if 1 or 2 should die within purchase time, you can confidently assure the seller this new addition did not catch anything from your current fish residents. i say that because some fish can be very costly, & some sellers have a warranty, so look into that too when purchasing. i do know it was tough to maintain brackish h20, it required constant attention, & some of the toughest critters to keep an eye on were puffers. so cute, but they like to eat almost any other fish within their size. keep community fish in community tank, agressives need their own space. good luck & have fun!!:coolsmiley:

[JanetMM]

:icon_wink: Check with ARC and make sure about the number of pets you can have. :rolleyes:
For the people with no sense of humor.....that was a Joke. :popcorn:

Enjoyed your answer. It’s a shame you had to explain it was a joke in case someone takes your comedic statement as gospel and gets offended.

BTW - I HAVE smelled the color nine. It is very similar to climbing the music.

[stephen.q.pankow]

I'd love to start a small tank -- probably something in the 10 gallon range -- stocked with something like a few corries and a betta.

Are there any specialty aquarium stores in the area? I'd like to be able to visit somewhere with a larger selection of tanks and fish than the local Petsmart, and where I would expect the staff to be more knowledgeable about fish keeping.

[Carla B]

Tri-County Podiatry at Colony installed a beautiful aquarium when they opened that office.

[Bjeanj]

Yes, I have a 150 gallon mixed marine (saltwater) aquarium. Had it before we moved here and it came with us when we moved.

Had a wonderful guy from Ocala come to our house in Wesley Chapel and move it to TV for us.

I am taking care of it myself, including partial water changes every two to three weeks, cleaning the glass from algae, periodic sand cleaning, etc.

I dug out a small, deep (4’) pond in my backyard years ago, and stocked it with goldfish. Refreshed the water from our rain barrel. At the start of winter, I netted them out to a temporary aquarium as I wasn't sure how much/deep the water would freeze.

About a month later, I was cleaning it out, and noticed it needed more water, so (stupidly) I got a bucket of water from the bathtub and poured it in. Sadly, the fish did not survive the water FROM A SALT WATER SOFTENER! I’ve never seen fish bloat up that fast, and boy did I feel bad.

[villagetinker]

I dug out a small, deep (4’) pond in my backyard years ago, and stocked it with goldfish. Refreshed the water from our rain barrel. At the start of winter, I netted them out to a temporary aquarium as I wasn't sure how much/deep the water would freeze.

About a month later, I was cleaning it out, and noticed it needed more water, so (stupidly) I got a bucket of water from the bathtub and poured it in. Sadly, the fish did not survive the water FROM A SALT WATER SOFTENER! I’ve never seen fish bloat up that fast, and boy did I feel bad.

I am going to guess there was something wrong with either your softener on there was something in your bucket. We have had a 35 gallon fresh water tank for 6 years with a salt based water softener, and I have changed the water dozens of times, and never lost a fish, 5 or 6 of the fish are original to the tank, 6 years old.

[bgamble3]

I never heard of an aquarium maintenance vender. How much do they charge? I may consider buying an aquarium.
Thanks for your reply. The vendor can help or do the set up for you then maintain it monthly. The costs of course would depend on how large a tank, if you want it custom built, salt water or fresh water, number of fish etc. If you would like to talk to the vendor please let me know and I will give him your information

[Bjeanj]

I am going to guess there was something wrong with either your softener on there was something in your bucket. We have had a 35 gallon fresh water tank for 6 years with a salt based water softener, and I have changed the water dozens of times, and never lost a fish, 5 or 6 of the fish are original to the tank, 6 years old.

Could be. Too late now. I think I got traumatized.

[Jay1891]

No thanks, just another responsibility I dont need. I have no dogs cats hampsters bunny rabbits, etc. like it like that. Had a pet rock for 40 years acted a a boundry marker. It was no trouble at all. It didn;t require any care or feeding. One day I added another rock on the other corner of the property. Next thing you know they formed a rock band and were on the road never to be seen again.

[normgreg]

We have a 90 gallon African Cichlid aquarium, well stocked with a variety of fish. We also do our own maintenance. Tank cleaning & filter refurbishing is done on a regular schedule.

[Quixote]

If anyone has an aquarium stand (just the stand) not needed and willing to sell, please PM me. It must be at least 30” long. Thanks!

[Girlcopper]

Your neighbors might not. You may want to ask them. Just a suggestion.
If the small pond is yours and you want to put in a small waterfall, I dont feel your neighbor has a say so. Your property. Your decision.

[Mfrench]

I had a magnificent Tall salt water aquarium in California. With the most beautiful fish . I had a specialist maintain it every two weeks because it required so much work . When I moved to Maryland there was no one available to maintain it so I tried to do it myself. Bad idea! filled it with too many fish and tried to keep a balanced salt water environment. It is very complicated and I didn’t succeed . . I would never go through that upsetting situation again. I urge anyone thinking about having an aquarium to have a fresh water one and hire someone to maintain it regularly, for the sake of the beautiful little creatures.

[luvmagic2]

Had larger tanks before moving here but now just a small 20 gallon community friendly freshwater tank.

[Ralpha]

My only advice to those of you who are contemplating getting an aquarium; please do your research. They can be a bottomless pit. I had a saltwater aquarium and I spent a fortune in trying to keep it balanced, replacing dead fish and corals. Forget about the equipment; aquarium tank (40 gallons), filters, pump, food, etc.
I lived in Ft Lauderdale where I had access to a multitude of aquarium shops and advice. You will find it more difficult to get your supplies and fish. For me, it was like buying a boat, I was happy when I got it and even happier when I got rid of it.
I’m sorry for being cynical, but just wanted to pass on some food for thought. Maybe I had bad luck and those of you who elect to get one will have a much better outcome than I did. Good luck!

[Marshaw]

Nope. Gone to long in summer

[JFoxTV]

We use Aquatic Reef Design in Ocala. They are wonderful. They has a great selection of saltwater fish, are super-knowledgeable and helpful. They also create custom aquariums (they built one into our wall/wine cellar and we love it). When we first had the tank built and were learning, they came to our house to clean/provide maintenance and check the water. Definitely check them out if you're looking to get an aquarium :)

[JFoxTV]

We have a 170 gallon saltwater tank that was custom built, into our wall, by Aquatic Reef Designs in Ocala. We have since taken over maintenance ourselves, but when we were first learning the hobby, they came to our home every two weeks to clean and test the water etc. Their store in Ocala is one of the best fish stores I've ever been to -- a great variety of fish and everyone is helpful and knowledgeable. :)