When Did You Get Your First Aquarium? What Was It Like?

[Love Discus]

When did you get your first aquarium? What size was it? What kind of fish did you have? Describe it, gravel, decore, background, troubleshoots?

I got my first aquarium when I was 6 or 7. I got it for Cristmas. It was 5.5 gallons I believe, and it came filled with 6 goldfish. It had neon green gravel, and a little sunken ship with 2 holes in each end for fish to hide in. The family and I went out of town for 3 days to eat tukey at grandma and gramp's place. Came home and all six were dead. After the holidays my dad and I went and got 6 more GF, and a filter meant for a 20 gallon :p. 4 died and the other 2 lived another year or more. Somewhere along the line it developed an algae problem and my dad and I got 2 SAE's. they lived quite awile and got really fat. After the 2 goldies died I got a 10 gallon and kept angels and neons.

I've been addicted to the aquaria ever since that Christman. I am now 18 years old, and don't think I will ever quit keeping fish. Aquariums are my replacement for heroin. What euphoria and serenity my aquariums bring me...:angel:

Let's here it!

[Scribbles]

My first fish were goldfish that I won at a school fair in kindergarten. I've had fish ever since. I slowly graduated from a bowl to a 10 gallon community. The typical couple of neon tetras, platies, guppies, and mollies which turned into ALOT of guppies, platies, and mollies until the little ones became lunch. I had an undergravel filter and a cheap nonsubmersible heater that fried some of the fish. It had plastic plants and a ceramic bridge that one of the guppies liked a bit too much. I cringe when I think about dumping those fish in that tank without cycling it first.

Chris

[KeonTheKing]

One day when i was 6 My dad suprised me. He bought me a 10 gallon aqarium And i put a few goldfish and plecos inside It later cracked. So then my dad got me a 20 gallon kit when i was 8 that i still have running ( LOl)

[Yboat]

well I've had gold fish since I was 3, My 1st real aquarium, was a 10 gallon "heartz" brand kit. I saved up for about year to buy it when I was 7. I sadly broke it this year.

It took on just about every form of fresh water tank you can think of, It made me very sad when I broke it this year. I was using it to produce some peat water for some apistos, when I bumped the corner with bucket and pop, cracked it all the way across.

[matt2426]

my first aquarium. is the one i have today. a 125 gallon discus show tank.I just got in the hobby a year ago. so when i started i had absoultely no idea what i was doing. but ive had the tank set up for a year now and everything is going great with the tank but not at first. My tank has 10 discus arranging from 4 to6 inches. The tank has estes sand for substrate a nice piece of driftwood a few rocks and some nice fake plants on the back of the tank to hide the filters etc

[deepflyball]

1957 A 10 gal. Had a angel 2 sword tails and a couple mollies.

Jerry

[kaceyo]

I had various goldfish bowls and small Guppy tanks as a kid but didn't get a real tank untill I was 19 or 20. It was a 45 long "oddball" tank that went through many stages untill I eventually got into discus a year or two later.
It had mormyrids, rope fish, butterfly fish, and many knife fish and eals to name a few.
I particularly liked the mormyrids as they are so playful and seemingly intelegent.

[Ed13]

It was a circular 3 gal acrylic tank with 5 tuxedo platties, blue gravel and a single fake vallisneria plant. I think I was barely 13:confused:

About a year later I had saved enough for a 10 gal tank, hood, filter, gravel, fake plants and fish;). From time to time I even had some shrimp and guppies collected by me from a river that was really close from my house.

I've just realized those tanks have been the most enjoyable I've ever had in my life. Probably because everything was new and exciting plus I had to earn every penny I put into them, and subsequent tanks too.;)

[Darrell Ward]

In 1966, a friend from school gave me a 10 gal. meta-frame tank filled with guppies. I supplied nearly every kid in the neighborhood with guppies for several years. I imagine the neighborhood parents were glad when my family moved some 20 miles away. :D

[danny2013]

I got my first fish from the carnival when i was 7. I won 6 gold fish playing a ping pong type game and had them for almost a year. When i was 10 i got mollies and platies and keept them for a few years. Then whe i was 13 i upgraded to angelfish and a 29 gallon aquarium. Now I am 16 and I have my first discus(a pair) in my 29 gallon tank. They lay eggs once a week.

[pcsb23]

It was a 36" glass aquarium. The aquarium glass was in a steel frame that was painted with a lead based paint. It had gravel, real plants a sponge type filter and some rocks. The fish were guppies, swordtails, mollies and platys and also what was then called a chinese algae eater.

I was 8 years old, that was 45 years ago - damn I feel old :(

[Jennie]

Shhhhh, only as old as you feel!

My first aquarium in my 20's was with gold sailfin mollies mostly and few other fish like neons. I was devestated when they all got sick and didn't keep another aquarium for years. have had them off and on since but never had to think so hard about water quality till now with keeping discus.

as a really young kid I kept tanks with frogs, tadpoles and snapping turtles, sometimes garter snakes that I would catch, but well I was a tomboy
It was a 36" glass aquarium. The aquarium glass was in a steel frame that was painted with a lead based paint. It had gravel, real plants a sponge type filter and some rocks. The fish were guppies, swordtails, mollies and platys and also what was then called a chinese algae eater.

I was 8 years old, that was 45 years ago - damn I feel old :(

[zamboniMan]

I was 8 when I got my first tank. I patiently cycled it for 8 weeks (which for an 8 year old seems like an eternity) before adding 4 juvenile angels, a pleco, a Betta, and some tiger barbs, and a rope fish.

Josh

[Love Discus]

I'm surprised that a few of you started out with 3+ foot tanks!

Here is my first "big tank" 55 gallon that I got Christmas of 03. It's hard to believe that was almost 7 years ago! And I still have one of those piranhas'. He is one old fish!
http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/5544/dsc00790l.jpg (http://img826.imageshack.us/i/dsc00790l.jpg/)
Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

[snowflake311]

About 13 yr ago I bought a 5 gal tank at a Tag Sale. I got guppies but did not cycle it so they did not make it. I got mollies and they bred like crazy. I have been keeping fish ever since.

[Eddie]

It was a bowl, made of glass, some pebbles and a fake plant. :D

[Disgirl]

I had a 5 gal tank of guppies when I was 13, right next to my parakeet.
Barb:)

[keef]

It was a little 2 ft metal framed glass tank with an undergravel filter and ceramic No fishing sign! Filled it with whatever I could catch from my local pond/river. There were sticklebacks and tiny carp & tench that I found could be caught by dragging my pond net through the thickest weed beds I could find.

[Jennie]

somehow I feel this didn't sit well with you for too long??:p
It was a bowl, made of glass, some pebbles and a fake plant. :D

[kaceyo]

It was a bowl, made of glass, some pebbles and a fake plant. :D

Not even a fake fish to go with the fake plant?;)

[bidnerkeo]

my first was a 20 gal when I was 13. I filled it with african cichlids. I remember my first cichlid was a Mel. exasperatus, I loved that fish. He was so fascinating to me, I loved how intelligent he was in comparison to the guppies and white clouds my friend had. My parents were very encouraging with my hobby and 2 years later got me a 135 gal which I still have 13 years later with some Para. polleni and a Tilapia mariae.

[Love Discus]

my first was a 20 gal when I was 13. I filled it with african cichlids. I remember my first cichlid was a Mel. exasperatus, I loved that fish. He was so fascinating to me, I loved how intelligent he was in comparison to the guppies and white clouds my friend had. My parents were very encouraging with my hobby and 2 years later got me a 135 gal which I still have 13 years later with some Para. polleni and a Tilapia mariae.
Very cool, my parents have also been very supportive of my hobby. I am 18 now, and they are encouraging me to get a degree in buisness managment and open a fish shop. I think that would be a great career for me, but I'm still not sure about it.

[Jennie]

Great plan. Start small and go from there. :)