Here at Reef Playground, we get many calls requesting quotes for new aquariums. And what we seem to have noticed is that a lot of people haven’t made up their minds on exactly the type of aquarium they would; A) like and B) that would suite them best.

 

Both these things need to be taken into consideration when deciding on a new aquarium. Many people really want that great looking reef aquarium but forget to take into account the upkeep costs(both time and $$$) associated with keeping a properly designed and maintained reef system. It’s a lot more expensive than most people think! So the first thing to take into account is your budget. Both your “buy” budget and your “upkeep” budget. The first one relates to how much you are willing to spend on a new aquarium and the second is how much you are willing to spend on upkeep (food, chemicals, water, etc) per month.

 

After taking into account the financial aspects, time to consider the style of aquarium. We like to break this down into the following categories:

 

A – Saltwater Fish Only Aquarium

 

 

B – Saltwater Reef Aquarium

 

C – Saltwater Shark / Ray Aquarium

 

D – Jellyfish Aquarium

 

E – Freshwater Community Aquarium

 

F – Freshwater African Cichlid Aquarium

 

G – Freshwater South American Cichlid Aquarium

 

H – Freshwater Ray Aquarium

 

 

I – Freshwater Planted Aquarium

 

J – Freshwater Goldfish Aquarium

 

 

All of these different styles of aquariums have different upkeep regiment and different upkeep costs which we will go into more detail in future blog posts. But for the purpose of this post;  a potential aquarium owner must decide on the amount of money they are willing to spend and the style of aquarium they are looking for. With these two things selected, it will make it a lot easier to pick out the aquarium that is best suited to a particular individual.