Old reef guy starting freshwater

[waterloomarc]

I've been out of the hobby for about 10 years or so now. My 10 year old has been asking a fish tank so we got "her" a 75 gallon tank for Christmas. Obviously it's still cycling but has a few plants in it for now. I had kept saltwater & a reef tank for about decade prior to having kids. A lot sure has changed since I've been gone! Between product evolution and going from all the saltwater equipment to freshwater side of things it's a bit of a head trip! Anyway my hope is to get it up and running as a planted tank eventually but I'm basically starting from scratch as far as my knowledge of plants go.

I built the stand myself and managed to get it knocked out before Christmas. It looks black in the picture but it's painted a navy blue.

Looking forward to learning from everyone here.

Marc

 

[MuddyWaters]

Wow you are Dad of the year! 75 gallons? That's fantastic! My first tank was an old 20 gallon with metal rim that my neighbor "sold" me for cutting his grass. The filter had a magnet that spun the impeller through the plastic of the filter body lol. I had SO much fun with that tank.

Your daughter is going to have a complete blast with 75 gallons to work with!!! I'll be interested to see how it goes. Get her the lighted volcano aerator, the Sponge Bob pineapple house, the diver and the treasure chest!

 

[waterloomarc]

lol. She had two betta tanks leading up to this which is where the pagoda in the picture came from. Surprisingly, and to her credit, she didn’t want to put the pineapple in the new tank. It is obviously still new but I have to say I’ve been pleasantly surprised at her level of interest. I’ve taken her to a few fish stores (we don’t seem to have that many in Birmingham) to look at fish and she’s made a list of ones she likes and has come home after each visit and researched and made her own little data sheet each one. We’ll see how long her enthusiasm lasts when it’s time to clean that canister filter

 

[Lcc86]

Wow loving the stand! Looks very professional! Looking forward to see what you stock with.

 

[waterloomarc]

Wow loving the stand! Looks very professional! Looking forward to see what you stock with.

Thanks! Yep it seems as though with all the progress they’ve made with most aspects of the hobby that particle board store bought stands are still the standard . I built this one 36” tall since it’s in the living room. I didn’t want to have to stoop too much to look in it.

 

[The603]

Very nice, and welcome to the forum.

 

[emeraldking]

What a loving parent you must be...
And welcome to our forum...

 

[Back in the fold]

Can I send you my mailing address ?

 

[jeremy25]

That stand looks amazing! Lucky daughter!!

 

[TheFishWhisperer]

Welcome! I love the stand! I too am getting back into the hobby for my kid. My son is 13 and we are learning the how to's for a planted aquarium too! Also I am big into woodworking so I really REALLY love your stand! So cool. Anyway I think it is awesome that your daughter comes home from the pet store and researches the fish she likes! I'm hoping my son will be as enthusiastic about it too!