,¸¸,ø¤º°`° The Unwilling Fish Keeper ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º (Tetra Clear Seal Aquarium)

Name: malibu_jenny

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Product:	Tetra Clear Seal Aquarium
Date:	06/02/08 (638 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Coventional, spacious tank, Great starter kit. Trusted name.

Disadvantages: Doesn't look that cool and doesn't come with a base to sit it on.

Wandering round the special offers in Tesco today, we spotted something that was actually special. A whacking great glass fishbowl for a tenner. I loved the bowl and the retro curvy nature of it, but I was ambivalent about the idea of keeping fish. The Boyfriend loves fish (fish fingers, pet fish, fishing) and they give me the creeps. I can't even walk past the fish counter without feeling a bit sick. It was one of those 'I want the bowl and I suppose we can get fish to go with it if it makes you happy' moments and we carefully lifted it into the trolley.

On the way back, we drove to 'Pets at Home'. They have a fantastic selection of fish keeping equipment including all those little castles and pagodas, lots of aquatic plants and obviously the glass tanks packed with manic little fishes. We pushed our faces up against the glass and watched them swim back and forth with distorted ripples. It was hard to tell a 'good fish' in such crowded surroundings, but The Boyfriend has kept fish before and knows his stuff. You need to look for ones with good upright fins, not too lively and not floating upside down. And there was a perfect little fishy, wiggling away against the glass. The young assistant came over to offer help. "Yes, please. I want two goldfish." I said smugly. One might be lonely of course.

He looked dubiously at us. "Do you already have a tank set up?" We looked at each other. No, but we had a bowl in the back of the van and that was where we planned on putting our fish. Ah, but it would be cruel to keep them in the bowl and we needed a whole bunch of other stuff which might not fit. A filter, gravel for them to dig in, plants, ornaments, lighting, water purifier, special food. According to this boy we couldn't just buy fish. In fact they didn't allow it until the water had been in the container for a week to settle. Whatever happened to winning fish at the fair and keeping them in mixing bowls? It seems that fish-keeping has moved on since I didn't do it as a child.

°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º Choosing A Tank ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø

Trying to be understanding, I stomped round to look at the alternatives to my lovely bowl. The cheapest plain glass tank was £15.99. This was a better size than the small tacky plastic ones. I don't know how he had the nerve to look me in the eye and insinuate that my fish would be any worse off in a bowl than they would be in the pink plastic Dora The Explorer tank. Not only that, but the fish for sale were ram-a-jammed into tiny tanks, each holding several fish. It seemed like putting them in my bowl would in fact be rescuing them from a life of crowded misery, albeit it in a square tank. Do fish honestly care whether or not they have corners?

So, let me clarify regarding my mental state; I'd gone from not really wanting fish; to wanting them right now this minute; now I was willing to get whatever it took to keep them happy. And they say fish are supposed to be calming!

According to The Boyfriend, our fish would be okay in this £15.99 tank. According to the shop assistant they would be okay in the £100 plus Biorbs. Which for the record are ROUND. I chose to go with the square tank. I wasn't overly enamoured with the way the thing looked. The clear, square tank couldn't really be improved upon but the black plastic clip on sides to hide the water mark were not in keeping with my décor theme. Neither was the cheap black plastic lid. I suppose our final reason for choosing this tank was the lack of choice in our price range. The other option by the same manufacturer was a hexagonal tank which reminded me oddly of a Victorian gas lamp. I didn't like the shape or height and I think it would probably have been quite difficult to see fish clearly in this. Most tanks were around the £60 mark, having looked on the internet since I'd say this is pretty average.

Another couple were waiting and the assistant went off to serve them. They claimed to have a tank and cracked on with choosing their fish. The Boyfriend looked at me as if to say that we should have lied about having it all set up.

We picked up the tank. It was fairly heavy, but one of the smaller ones in the range, holding 27 litres. It also had some water purifier (that saved us another £5.50), fish food (£2.50) and a book on how to set it up. I concluded that as we were going to take back the £10 tank and save on the other two bits, the set was £2 cheaper than buying it all separately. I ended up buying the filter and gravel and some chocolate drops for Mydogs - in the end, I left the shop £30 lighter for the sake of the happiness of my future fish - which let's remember, I didn't really want in the first place.

We made a slow exit from the warehouse of animal cruelty thanks to a long queue, but I guess this tale will have to wait until I can be bothered to write a review on Pets at Home. What really irritated us was that the fibbing couple from earlier were in front of us, fish in one hand, tank in the other. Once we got the tank home without smashing it, or the glass bowl, which still had to go back, I was happy. But this was only the beginning.

º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º Setting Up Your Tank ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°

The advantage of picking a tank with flat sides was that the filter fitted on easily, the disadvantage was that it took up a great deal more space. The instruction booklet included was fantastically informative; you need to put your tank in a darkish corner away from natural sunlight. It shouldn't be near a door to avoid disturbance for the fish. The other thing to note is that you will need something to stand it on. Having found just such a corner and a coffee table of reasonable height we were confronted with the next problem - something to go underneath.

They suggest that you use a piece of polystyrene. If they're that keen on you using polystyrene, then they shouldn't include a perfectly sized piece of cardboard in the packaging. Our using cardboard took into account that the cardboard was flat and therefore unlikely to collapse under the weight of the tank or the damp. It also took into account that the coffee table was part of the furnishings which came with the flat and had already been damaged by other people.

The tank needs to be in place before you fill it with water - after this there's no going back thanks to the weight. We covered the bottom in blue gravel, rinsing both the tank and the gravel first and piling it high at the back with a gentle incline towards the front. Apparently this makes the fish poo fall to the front and the tank is easier to clean.

The black plastic sides that I'd hated slid off easily and I think the top could be painted or swapped for another now that we have the hefty glass bit sorted.

The clear glass and the simple design of the main tank couldn't really be improved on and the Tetra Safe water purifier was incredibly simple to measure out. All in all, I was impressed with the quality of the tank and the items included. For example, the Tetra Safe is a high quality brand and I happened to notice that it got a full 5 stars elsewhere on Dooyoo. The book was an invaluable to me as a first time fish keeper and useful to irritate The Boyfriend who thought he knew it all. Finally, the little tub of fish food was a welcome inclusion, taking away the added expense and consternation of choosing the first meal for our new fish

Our tank is destined for coldwater fish and for this reason we didn't purchase the heater or the fluorescent light. These accessories are readily available and fit easily to the tank with plastic clips, so it's worth bearing this in mind if you're considering resale / reuse / keeping tropical fish.


`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º I Shall Have A Fishy....,¸¸,ø¤º°`°

One week on, we have a clear tank of rippling water, no leaks or spills (touch wood) and a great deal of excitement about choosing our fish. Three small ones can live very happily in here and have plenty of space. I'm totally over the bowl. If you're a pro at keeping fish, then you probably want a slightly more flashy tank. If you've got a fancy home you'll probably want a BioOrb. If however, you're a relatively new fishkeeper on a budget or buying for children, this is perfect.

Summary: One of the biggest commitments a young couple can make.