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Future scenario for the home aquarium.
A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium:
If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) -- www.NetMax.tk |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:22:45 -0500, "NetMax"
wrote: A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) Then, why have a personal aquarium, a community aquarium could suffice. Maybe one connected to the net, so people all over the world could enjoy it. then someone could come up with the idea of having a small instence of an aquarium in your very own living room, and start the whole thing over. Besides, I don't have a basement. |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Charles" wrote in message ... then someone could come up with the idea of having a small instence of an aquarium in your very own living room, and start the whole thing over. Besides, I don't have a basement. ========================= Neither do we. Few people I know have basements here because of the rock so close to the surface. And seeing something like a movie is a not like actually viewing the fish through a piece of glass in front of you. -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: NEW PAGE: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
From: "NetMax" Subject: Future scenario for the home aquarium. Date: Sunday, January 15, 2006 9:22 PM A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: =========== Brevity snip! You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: NEW PAGE: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
I don't think you'd actually want the tank very deep, maybe 2-3'
max, max. Easier to clean, lighting is far less of an issue, easier and cheaper to build. If you have fairly large x and y movement you don't care z is less than super showtank height. Lots of small camera heads would be cool too, in all axes, you could pipe the images to displays all over a room and with enough of them it'd feel like you're moving in the tank. -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of
heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. Take a 500 - 1500W space heater. Put a glass table over it. Put the jars on there. Adjust the heater between 500 1000 and 1500W as the season changes or get a thermostatically controlled one. That'll heat a small room, too. We do this with a lizard to keep it at the right temperature. I must have arctic bettas because they don't mind the cold, the lizard does though. That'd probably work for a lot of jars. If you jsut had a few I'd probably try to make something out of xmas lights, incandescent ones. One per jar should be enough, jsut make a small base for each and stuff the bulb inside it. Shim it with rock slices to regulate the temperature if it's too warm. -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Charles" wrote in message ... On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:22:45 -0500, "NetMax" wrote: A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) Then, why have a personal aquarium, a community aquarium could suffice. Maybe one connected to the net, so people all over the world could enjoy it. then someone could come up with the idea of having a small instence of an aquarium in your very own living room, and start the whole thing over. Besides, I don't have a basement. Right on. |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
On Mon, 16 Jan 2006 03:45:16 GMT, Charles
wrote: On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:22:45 -0500, "NetMax" wrote: A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) Then, why have a personal aquarium, a community aquarium could suffice. Maybe one connected to the net, so people all over the world could enjoy it. search Google "fish web cam" It has been done for years already dick then someone could come up with the idea of having a small instence of an aquarium in your very own living room, and start the whole thing over. Besides, I don't have a basement. |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
NetMax wrote:
A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) The drawbacks to this, as I see it, a- 1. I don't have a basement 2. What material would the tub be made of? If not glass or acrylic then what are the impacts on any plants not getting sufficient light? 3. The choice then becomes one of watching TV or movies or watching the fish. In this house I'm sure that I'd be over-ruled and the TV would be on rather than the tank. OK, you could set up a separate system to watch the fish but that would take up as much space, and almost certainly cost more, than having the tank in the first place. 4. We have a house rule, no tank where there is TV - OK I confess I snuck in the 7.5gall Hex but it's not allowed to be anywhere in the line of vision - apparently the lights would detract from the screen. 5. We also have a house rule, no TV where there is a "large" fish tank, as this would detract from watching the fish. The Malawi tank lives in the "office area" and the Community tank I'm about to upgrade lives in the Conservatory....no TVs in either of these rooms. 6. Part of the fun, I find, is sitting watching the tank or walking past one of the tanks and then spotting something happening. Wouldn't work if I was monitoring just certain areas with a camera. So, lots of interesting behaviour would be missed IMO. I think what you are proposing is really a tropical pond which is a fine concept on it's own but couldn't be a replacement for our glass/acrylic tanks.... BTW If you could come up with something to automatically clean algae off of the glass I'm sure that that would catch on much quicker - lol Gill |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
You would have to have collision detection for the camera's motion
controller. So, there is added cost. I don't know how you could do such a thing. I think infared would be out (fish are cold blooded). I suppose you could use ultrasonics.... Hey you wouldn't want to squash a fish would you?!? I don't have a basement either. SOOoooo, can't we just have a virtual aquarium? They sell SVGA projectors for your computer. Would that work? Space and maintenance wouldn't be an issue. Initial cost would be about the same, I should think. You could water cool your processor if you wanted the "trickle" sound. No? |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"NetMax" wrote in message
... A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: [snip] If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Reading other posts, it seems many people don't have basements! If I had one, it would become a family/play room, hence would be a perfect location for a fish wall. Here in TX, basements are a rarity. I'm using my living room as a fish room, same place I watch TV. No real conflict but there are just 2 of us (and 5 TVs scattered throughout the house). [snip] If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). I kind of like the idea. I can't see the fish in several of my tanks unless I'm standing/sitting right in front of the tanks. From my usual recliner, however, I can (and do) use small binoculars to observe fish in those tanks. The fish aren't disturbed and I can enjoy the scene. So for me your idea isn't that much of a stretch. 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Sounds lovely. Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. Um, I'm also a pond owner and I like to watch pond fish eat. :) I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. Automated feeding from the comfort of your living room? A remote control feeder. :) 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. Advances in tools could help with that. There are relatively few tools available to use in aquatic gardening compared to terrestrial gardening. If more hobbyists got into aquatic gardening, and your tub notion, the number & kinds of tools would increase. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) -- www.NetMax.tk I like the idea of a Really Very Large tank that I could inhabit with schools of my favorite small fish. :) Gail |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
Koi-lo wrote:
How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. For christmas I got a beverage mug warmer. It doesn't really heat the mug, it just maintains temperature. Are you thinking of something like that? Granted, the setpoint of a coffee warmer is going to be much hotter than that for a betta bowl, but a little tweaking by the manufacturer should fix that. Not the one I got, but gives you an idea: http://www.brookstone.com/shop/produ...ct_code=236117 |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Richard Sexton" wrote in message ... You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. Take a 500 - 1500W space heater. Put a glass table over it. Put the jars on there. Adjust the heater between 500 1000 and 1500W as the season changes or get a thermostatically controlled one. That'll heat a small room, too. It would be too expensive. Electricity isn't cheap anymore. Also, the excess heat would be totally wasted. I want them where I can see and enjoy them, like on the windowsill they're on now. And I don't really have any room for a table in here. We do this with a lizard to keep it at the right temperature. I must have arctic bettas because they don't mind the cold, the lizard does though. My bettas are living at 70 to 74F in winter. A little warmer wouldn't hurt them. That'd probably work for a lot of jars. If you jsut had a few I'd probably try to make something out of xmas lights, incandescent ones. One per jar should be enough, jsut make a small base for each and stuff the bulb inside it. Shim it with rock slices to regulate the temperature if it's too warm. Make a base for each bulb? What's a "base?" I would rather have something like a heat-tape to sit the jars on than Jerry-rig something I may electrocute them or myself with. :-) BTW, those small x-mas lights can get pretty darn hot. -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: NEW PAGE: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Rocco Moretti" wrote in message ... Koi-lo wrote: How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. For christmas I got a beverage mug warmer. It doesn't really heat the mug, it just maintains temperature. Are you thinking of something like that? Not really. I'm thinking more of something like a "heat tape" for pipes but that lays flat so betta bowls can sit on it in a row. I used to sit them all on top of a fluorescent light fixture atop a 30L tank. That fixture keep them warm, but the set-up I have now - that wouldn't work. Granted, the setpoint of a coffee warmer is going to be much hotter than that for a betta bowl, but a little tweaking by the manufacturer should fix that. Not the one I got, but gives you an idea: http://www.brookstone.com/shop/produ...ct_code=236117 That would be too expensive for those of us with more than one or two bettas. -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: NEW PAGE: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
It might work for some, but I like my fish up close and personal like
:-). Even the best video pictures couldn't do justice, to the beauty of our tropical friends. You've got a great imagination friend, and a great deal of knowledge and experience. I enjoy reading your input, to this group. Take Care Ross T |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
Koi-lo wrote:
You have too much time on your hands.**;-)**How*about*inventing*some kind*of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated?**You*know, like*a*heat*tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them.**I'll*be*your*first*customer. Have you looked at the heating mats for starting seeds in flats? They sit under the flat and the temperature should be in the 75-85 degree range. -- It's turtles, all the way down |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
In article , Koi-lo Do Not Reply wrote:
"Richard Sexton" wrote in message ... You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. Take a 500 - 1500W space heater. Put a glass table over it. Put the jars on there. Adjust the heater between 500 1000 and 1500W as the season changes or get a thermostatically controlled one. That'll heat a small room, too. It would be too expensive. Electricity isn't cheap anymore. Also, the excess heat would be totally wasted. I want them where I can see and enjoy them, like on the windowsill they're on now. And I don't really have any room for a table in here. That setup would do hundreds of jars. Scale down as required. -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
In article , Koi-lo Do Not Reply wrote:
"Rocco Moretti" wrote in message ... Koi-lo wrote: How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. For christmas I got a beverage mug warmer. It doesn't really heat the mug, it just maintains temperature. Are you thinking of something like that? Not really. I'm thinking more of something like a "heat tape" for pipes but that lays flat so betta bowls can sit on it in a row. I used to sit them all on top of a fluorescent light fixture atop a 30L tank. That fixture keep them warm, but the set-up I have now - that wouldn't work. Heasters meant for lizard tanks stick on the the underside of tanks and look a bit like tape. Maybe you could stick one of them (about $20) on a piece of glass and put the bowls on them. Of course you'll have wasted heat but unless you heat them individualy this is inevitable. -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
In article ,
Gail Futoran wrote: "NetMax" wrote in message .. . A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: [snip] If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Reading other posts, it seems many people don't have basements! If I had one, it would become a family/play room, hence would be a perfect location for a fish wall. Here in TX, basements are a rarity. A jackhammer and a few day laborours changes that. The house I live in was built in 1860 or something, by an English Colonel. He'd never heard of a basemnt either, that or the solid rock it's built on deterred him somewhat. From an engineering perspective, thisis not insurmountable, but it's not conventional in the way you can, say, walk into a bank and get a loan to build a miniature Marineland of the Pacific in your basement that doesn't exist. Yet. What you could do though is cut a great whacking hole in the floor and build a foundation on the ground, which is typically giong to be 2-3 feet lower than the gorund floor. Now, if you make this bugger big enough the thermal mass becomes an intersting property. -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Richard Sexton" wrote in message ... Heasters meant for lizard tanks stick on the the underside of tanks and look a bit like tape. Maybe you could stick one of them (about $20) on a piece of glass and put the bowls on them. Of course you'll have wasted heat but unless you heat them individualy this is inevitable. ======================= Thanks. I'll check them out the next time I go to the big aquarium store that carries lizards. :-) -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: NEW PAGE: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Larry Blanchard" wrote in message ... Koi-lo wrote: You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. Have you looked at the heating mats for starting seeds in flats? They sit under the flat and the temperature should be in the 75-85 degree range. ======================== Hey, thanks! I never thought of them although I've seen mention of them in gardening books. In fact I've never even seen one! :-) -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: NEW PAGE: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
Or you could get out the dynamite and build a fish grotto,using the
natural stone as a backdrop.... ;o) Ross T |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium:
If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) I actually saw the picture of one guy did more than this, not the TV part. He dug out his basement and put in a solid base, then put up to 9 feet high glass all around for a huge tank. He had to use steel beams to strength the glass. It is the size of a not so small pool! He was still trying to cycle the tank at the time the pictures were taken because the water was cloudy and there were no fish in there. He installed pumps to change water and so on. I think it was really good but not everyone has that kind of money. I wonder how much he has to pay for fish to put in there. Too rich for my blood. I would pay for fish tank that is about 2 fee wide but the whole side of my wall. I'm talking about 10 to 15 feet long, 9 to 10 feet tall depending on the size of your wall. Somehow we have to get the oyxgen in the tank (like a CO 2 injector) so it can support more fish with the relitively small surface area. Imaging that you come home and the sight of a whole wall with swiming Discus! I would pay really good money for that! Water change needs to be automated for sure :-) |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"NetMax" wrote in message ... A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) -- www.NetMax.tk Or you could put an aquarium screen saver on your computer, connect to your big screen, and watch. No maintenance feeding or anything else. Most of what I enjoy is the up close interaction with my "pets". Feeding time is great, they wag their tails (I tell myself) and get all excited to see me. Up close and personal. |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"spiral_72" wrote in message
oups.com... You would have to have collision detection for the camera's motion controller. So, there is added cost. I don't know how you could do such a thing. I think infared would be out (fish are cold blooded). I suppose you could use ultrasonics.... Hey you wouldn't want to squash a fish would you?!? The camera(s) would move very slowly (unless you get the optional camera which snaps on the motorized toy shark ;~). -- www.NetMax.tk I don't have a basement either. SOOoooo, can't we just have a virtual aquarium? They sell SVGA projectors for your computer. Would that work? Space and maintenance wouldn't be an issue. Initial cost would be about the same, I should think. You could water cool your processor if you wanted the "trickle" sound. No? |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Gill Passman" wrote in message
.. . NetMax wrote: A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: snip The drawbacks to this, as I see it, a- 1. I don't have a basement Apparently many others don't as well. It must be a northern thing. Most houses have basements here. 2. What material would the tub be made of? If not glass or acrylic then what are the impacts on any plants not getting sufficient light? They are available now. They are sold as pond liners, but many are self-supporting and do not need to be in the ground. It's a black plastic. All the lighting needs would need to be from overhead. 3. The choice then becomes one of watching TV or movies or watching the fish. In this house I'm sure that I'd be over-ruled and the TV would be on rather than the tank. OK, you could set up a separate system to watch the fish but that would take up as much space, and almost certainly cost more, than having the tank in the first place. Games, TV, aquarium, you have multiple walls ;~). This would be when projectors were the cost of a good gaming station. I originally had this idea when fibre optic cables were invented. My idea was to connect one end of a fibre bundle to a buoy, and the other end to the submarine (which would drag the buoy behind it). I had thought it might be possible to project an outside view to a wall in the sub, reducing the psychological stress of close quarters and having a real-time practicality of above-water visibility. 4. We have a house rule, no tank where there is TV - OK I confess I snuck in the 7.5gall Hex but it's not allowed to be anywhere in the line of vision - apparently the lights would detract from the screen. LOL, but a virtual view could be turned off without bothering the fish. Also the sound of home theatre would not bother them as it potentially does now. Pros/cons to everything. 5. We also have a house rule, no TV where there is a "large" fish tank, as this would detract from watching the fish. The Malawi tank lives in the "office area" and the Community tank I'm about to upgrade lives in the Conservatory....no TVs in either of these rooms. 6. Part of the fun, I find, is sitting watching the tank or walking past one of the tanks and then spotting something happening. Wouldn't work if I was monitoring just certain areas with a camera. So, lots of interesting behaviour would be missed IMO. Potentially, you could see much more with cameras than you could from your current vantage point. All depends on the setup. For example, have camera pointing at each other, installed into the sides (disguised under silk plants). No blind spots. I'm just being devil's advocate in my position though. I think what you are proposing is really a tropical pond which is a fine concept on it's own but couldn't be a replacement for our glass/acrylic tanks.... BTW If you could come up with something to automatically clean algae off of the glass I'm sure that that would catch on much quicker - lol But I'm not trying to sell anything *sigh*. It was just an idea. Design a UV lamp in the shape of a long thin glass fibre, and install it under the cosmetic black plastic trim which sits on top of your aquarium's glass sides. Strobe the UV. It should radiate down the pane. That might do it. Gill -- www.NetMax.tk |
Thanks You! Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"NetMax" wrote in message
... A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: big snip I'd like to thank everyone for sharing their opinions. The responses were a bit more visceral than I had anticipated, but I wasn't looking for long intellectual debate on the technical aspects either. Many of you don't have basements, but this might be a Red Herring (if you'll excuse the pun), as the ability to have a large tank in a more remote location, away from the prime recreation area, remains unchanged. I think the bottom line with many of us, is that we like to tinker. We walk by the tank, and make a note to do something, or just do it (move a rock, clean some algae, feed the fish, replant something, pull some dead leaves out, watch some new behaviour, check how the fry are doing etc etc). The suggested scenario took away your ability to tinker. For that I don't like it either, though I suspect most fish would prefer it. Generally speaking, messing in a tank too often is a bad thing. Shadows and sudden movements can also be disconcerting. Most fish tend to like nice quiet corners for a community setting. It's a good thing they don't have a vote ;~), and besides, who knows what the future will bring? -- www.NetMax.tk |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
NetMax wrote: A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Also more money is being spent on them, and there are many more complex features available (lighting, filtration, CO2, aquatic gardening going more mainstream etc) If a solution to the constraints existed, then the natural trend would continue towards having larger & more complex aquariums, and I think I have a solution :o). I got the idea from a friend's home theatre system, where one entire wall of the room was dedicated to the TV projection. The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). 1. Cost goes down (no glass, no manufacturing assembly, reduced shipping cost (lightweight and stackable)). 2. Space is less critical, physically located in low-use area of the house, 'beamed' to living room wall (also frees space upstairs for other things). 3. Moving is relatively easy, drain and throw in the back of a van (not fragile). 4. Weight is a non-issue (no floor reinforcement needed on concrete floor). 5. Algae maintenance? (no glass to clean algae off of, camera could be raised from water when not in use). Perhaps wipe the lens cover periodically. 6. Filter maintenance (simplified as components do not need to be hidden away). 7. Water changes (with external pumps/filters and less restriction on the placement of supply/drain piping, water changes could be greatly simplified, draining from below the gravel (gravel-vacuum) and refilling through filter return lines). 8. Operation (filter/fan noise non-issue, cooling should be non-issue) 9. A bonus would be that the observed fish behaviour would be much more natural (and interesting). Problems 1) Feeding, unlike pond owners, aquarists like to watch the fish eat. I'm assuming this will be an acceptable adaptation, evidenced by pond folks always feeding from a top view. 2) Other tank maintenance (trimming plants, arranging rocks, driftwood etc). This is potentially the biggest constraint. I wouldn't want to hang upside down in the middle of a tub to re-arrange the stuff inside. This would be partly addressed by the tub being moulded into shapes, so much of it would not be movable (tiers for planting, plugs for pushing driftwood into, caves, rockwork etc might even be incorporated into the mould). Another method would be to have a camera feed locally to a small monitor. This would be acceptable, though a bit of a nuisance (though I've worked on large tanks where I had to get out whenever I wanted to see what I'd done, so a monitor would've been handy to have). A monitor would also address the feeding issue (providing a side view on the action). Please note that I'm not selling this concept. I'm just putting circumstances and emerging technology together in a particular application. This will never replace the small counter tanks, only the big 55g+ community tanks in our living rooms (which could now become 400-500g circular pre-moulded tubs). If nothing else, it would be interesting to put 2 or 3 cameras in there, and have the inside of your tub-aquarium projected on to 2 or 3 walls simultaneously. could be very kewl :o) -- www.NetMax.tk |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
What kinda stupid message is this? Did you write this tripe out of
boredom or you are a little off center? Nothing is ever going to change as you predict. People will always have "normal" home aquariums. Yes there are some people that go to extremes but the normal owner will realize their litiations and have "normal" setups. Next time save your predictions and do something more productive and constructive....... |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:22:45 -0500, NetMax wrote:
If we start by examining the constraints, I think the 4 biggest are the purchase cost (people don't complain so much about the running costs), the space (large footprint in prime real-estate in the house, and difficult to move), the weight (we want bigger aquariums except for the cost and the space it takes and eventually moving it), and finally the maintenance (primarily cleaning algae off the front glass and water changes). Does that sum it up adequately? Other possible constraints are noise and water cooling (when needed). That's an excellent summary! The aquarium becomes a large moulded tub sitting in a corner of the basement, with an underwater camera controlled by joystick from the living room (controlling x, y, z and focus). Ah. Now you're assuming I have a basement. Which in this house, I don't. Also, what would be the effect of all this damp air in the basement, would it not rot the foundations of the house? When I did live in a house with a basement, it was all crumbly and rat infested, with cold air and rats coming in off the road via an airbrick. I put a few boxes of stuff in there for storage, and they had rotted when I moved house 4 years later. Also, it was where our electricity bulk head was. I really can't see the Electric Co being happy with the safety implications of so much water next to the mains supply. And how would I get the water there? I'd have to lower it down the rickety wooden steps, but the only way I can get up and down them when my hands are *empty* is by sitting on my behind and bumping down. And if I did have a basement which wasn't all ratty and crumbly it would be a server room... the computers have about as much "real estate" in my house as the fish... :) The idea would be ok in new builds I guess, but I only like to live in a house over 100 years old. The one time I was in a new build the walls were too thin and the rooms were very functionally designed but far too small. Neat idea... but I can't be sure it would work. What about a shed with the tank in it? So people could buy it as an add on without *too* much building work? -- Flash Wilson - Web Design & Mastery - 0870 401 4061 / 07939 579090 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Work: www.wdam.co.uk Personal: www.gorge.org |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:40:59 -0600, Koi-lo wrote:
You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. You can buy heated pads for mouse cages and similar from pet shops... -- Flash Wilson - Web Design & Mastery - 0870 401 4061 / 07939 579090 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Work: www.wdam.co.uk Personal: www.gorge.org |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
In article .com,
Curt wrote: What kinda stupid message is this? Did you write this tripe out of boredom or you are a little off center? Nothing is ever going to change as you predict. People will always have "normal" home aquariums. Yes there are some people that go to extremes but the normal owner will realize their litiations and have "normal" setups. Next time save your predictions and do something more productive and constructive....... It's always 4:19 somewhere isn't it? -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Flash Wilson" wrote in message ... On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:40:59 -0600, Koi-lo wrote: You have too much time on your hands. ;-) How about inventing some kind of heater for betta bowls to sit on and be heated? You know, like a heat tape that runs along the window sill, table or shelf with the bowls sitting on them. I'll be your first customer. You can buy heated pads for mouse cages and similar from pet shops... ============================= Yes, thanks... but I always have 6 to 8 betta bowls in a row and want something like an unobtrusive strip to run along the windowsill. There's no way I can afford that many little heaters to go under each one. Also, the wires would be ugly and in the way. -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
You can buy heated pads for mouse cages and similar from pet shops...
============================= Yes, thanks... but I always have 6 to 8 betta bowls in a row and want something like an unobtrusive strip to run along the windowsill. There's no way I can afford that many little heaters to go under each one. Also, the wires would be ugly and in the way. What you really need is a solar powered micro ground source geothermal unit for your winddow. A little teeny tiny one. -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Richard Sexton" wrote in message ... You can buy heated pads for mouse cages and similar from pet shops... ============================= Yes, thanks... but I always have 6 to 8 betta bowls in a row and want something like an unobtrusive strip to run along the windowsill. There's no way I can afford that many little heaters to go under each one. Also, the wires would be ugly and in the way. What you really need is a solar powered micro ground source geothermal unit for your winddow. A little teeny tiny one. ======================= Nah, someone needs to invent a heat TAPE for those with bowls or tanks in a row. The reptile folks would probably buy it as well as the fish people. I could be sold in several lengths to suit different needs. -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
Flash Wilson wrote:
When I did live in a house with a basement, it was all crumbly and rat infested, with cold air and rats coming in off the road via an airbrick. I put a few boxes of stuff in there for storage, and they had rotted when I moved house 4 years later. That's not a basement, that's a cellar! -- It's turtles, all the way down |
OT geothermal, was Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Richard Sexton" wrote in message
... In article , Gail Futoran wrote: "NetMax" wrote in message . .. A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: [snip] If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Reading other posts, it seems many people don't have basements! If I had one, it would become a family/play room, hence would be a perfect location for a fish wall. Here in TX, basements are a rarity. A jackhammer and a few day laborours changes that. The house I live in was built in 1860 or something, by an English Colonel. He'd never heard of a basemnt either, that or the solid rock it's built on deterred him somewhat. From an engineering perspective, thisis not insurmountable, but it's not conventional in the way you can, say, walk into a bank and get a loan to build a miniature Marineland of the Pacific in your basement that doesn't exist. Yet. What you could do though is cut a great whacking hole in the floor and build a foundation on the ground, which is typically giong to be 2-3 feet lower than the gorund floor. Now, if you make this bugger big enough the thermal mass becomes an intersting property. At the risk of getting too far OT from aquaria, I have wondered what volume of subterrainian water would be required to cool and heat a home to an average comfortable temperature. Given my latitude (Canada), I don't think it's practical, but a bit further south might have possibilities. Build a road to the edge of a short steep rockface (coastline, riverfront etc), build a foundation to hold some water (200,000g?), grade with enough earth for insulating the exposed side, add house on top. You would need some energy to run the heat pumps, but rockface/coastlines are sometimes suitable for a combination of wind power and solar (divided between electricity generation for batteries and water heating to supplement the thermal energy of the under-house sump. An interesting angle is that the water would either need to be chemically treated to be inert, or you could intentionally incorporate a complete nitrogen cycle (fishies :o). I don't know which would be more practical, but I know which I would investigate first ;~), though I suspect the temperature range would not be compatibility to fish. lol, this should lay to rest any niggley doubts about my being completely wonkers, - but I still have lucid moments and I'm generally helpful & harmless ;~). -- www.NetMax.tk -- Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net |
OT geothermal, was Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"NetMax" wrote in message ... lol, this should lay to rest any niggley doubts about my being completely wonkers, - but I still have lucid moments and I'm generally helpful & harmless ;~). ======================== LOL! :-D I was starting to wonder. Since you're as much a fish-addict as I am, how come you don't have at least one pond? -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
Future scenario for the home aquarium.
"Larry Blanchard" wrote in message ... Flash Wilson wrote: When I did live in a house with a basement, it was all crumbly and rat infested, with cold air and rats coming in off the road via an airbrick. I put a few boxes of stuff in there for storage, and they had rotted when I moved house 4 years later. That's not a basement, that's a cellar! ================================ It's sounds more like a crumbling dungeon. :-( -- Koi-Lo.... frugal ponding since 1995... Aquariums since 1952 My Pond & Aquarium Pages: Aquariums: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastada...ium-Page4.html http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o |
OT geothermal, was Future scenario for the home aquarium.
NetMax wrote:
"Richard Sexton" wrote in message ... In article , Gail Futoran wrote: "NetMax" wrote in message ... A possible scenario for the evolution of the aquarium: [snip] If we look at the trends, despite the weight, cost & space, aquariums are slowly getting larger, however this makes their best location to be concrete (basement) away from prime viewing area (living room). Reading other posts, it seems many people don't have basements! If I had one, it would become a family/play room, hence would be a perfect location for a fish wall. Here in TX, basements are a rarity. A jackhammer and a few day laborours changes that. The house I live in was built in 1860 or something, by an English Colonel. He'd never heard of a basemnt either, that or the solid rock it's built on deterred him somewhat. From an engineering perspective, thisis not insurmountable, but it's not conventional in the way you can, say, walk into a bank and get a loan to build a miniature Marineland of the Pacific in your basement that doesn't exist. Yet. What you could do though is cut a great whacking hole in the floor and build a foundation on the ground, which is typically giong to be 2-3 feet lower than the gorund floor. Now, if you make this bugger big enough the thermal mass becomes an intersting property. At the risk of getting too far OT from aquaria, I have wondered what volume of subterrainian water would be required to cool and heat a home to an average comfortable temperature. Given my latitude (Canada), I don't think it's practical, but a bit further south might have possibilities. Build a road to the edge of a short steep rockface (coastline, riverfront etc), build a foundation to hold some water (200,000g?), grade with enough earth for insulating the exposed side, add house on top. You would need some energy to run the heat pumps, but rockface/coastlines are sometimes suitable for a combination of wind power and solar (divided between electricity generation for batteries and water heating to supplement the thermal energy of the under-house sump. An interesting angle is that the water would either need to be chemically treated to be inert, or you could intentionally incorporate a complete nitrogen cycle (fishies :o). I don't know which would be more practical, but I know which I would investigate first ;~), though I suspect the temperature range would not be compatibility to fish. lol, this should lay to rest any niggley doubts about my being completely wonkers, - but I still have lucid moments and I'm generally helpful & harmless ;~). Think that it might have been done before...and then adapted to pump the hot water around the home and lost the reservoir and just takes water in when necessary...works great in my house g Gill |
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