LIVING MEDIA IN ARCHITECTURE : AQUARIUM

An aquarium adds a dash of live and plumage to a room, giving it a distinctively refreshing look .It can be an aesthetic asset to the home as well as a source of enjoyment and recreation to the family members. Maintaining an aquarium is emerging as a favorite pastime .The very sight of an aquarium with colorful fishes and green underwater plumage can be relaxing and soothing to the eyes. Avid collectors go to great pains to rear exotic species. According tot-changing trends, a number of architects and interior decorators are willing to offer advice on setting up an aquarium to create the right ambience. There are professional firms that will design, install and maintain an aquarium. Clients often want interior designers to build aquariums into walls, recesses or as room dividers. Serious breeders are choosy about the species they buy and go to great lengths to maintain a special water habitat with soft lights, special equipment for filtration and aeration and waterbed landscaping. Aquarium services offer technical support for the selection of species and the kind of equipment needed to set up a fish tank. 

Vasthu and Feng Shui: 
The popularity of the aquarium is partially, driven by its application in Vasthu and Feng Shui, the ancient systems of architecture and interior design.Vasthu practitioners claim that positioning a fish tank in a particular location in the house will promote harmony with nature. There are certain species of fish which are believed to ward off evil and bring good luck 

Popular species:
The single most popular species found in home aquaria is the Goldfish. Other common varieties include the Guppys, Mollies, Plattys, Sword Tails, Tetras, Gouramis, Rainbow Sharks, Blue Morfs, Fighters, Angels and Suckers. Among the exotic and imported varieties are the Discus, Parrot Fish, Bubble Eye Gold, Feather Fish, Elephant Nose, Arowana, Oscars and Piranhas. Many of the sharks found in home aquaria are in fact, varieties of catfish and not freshwater versions of the cartilegenious shark species found in the sea. The exotic discus, originally hailing from the Amazonian rain forests, is the rage among ardent home aquarists. 

Maintenance of Aquariums:
Choosing the right kind of tank is as important as installing proper under-gravel filters, fluorescent lighting and aeration. This where technical support is necessary. One could landscape the tank with pebbles, gravel, colour stone, coral sand, driftwood or aquatic plants. The latest biological filters are capable of maintaining the water quality in a tank up to a year without replacement.
Attention has to be paid to species compatibility and the environment suited for each. Predators like Piranhas and Oscars should be put separately. Male Fighters attack each other and so should always be provided mates.
Fishes are susceptible to fungus attacks and infections and require close monitoring to identify the symptoms. The rising demand for aquarium products 

Cost factor: 
Decorative fish tanks with carved wooden supports and frames cost upwards of Rs.10,000 but a normal glass reservoir can be installed for less than Rs.5,000. Such is the craze for custom-made aquariums that these days, fish tanks are less about fish and more about design