Once upon a time keeping an aquarium meant that you needed to master water chemistry or sacrifice large amounts of space in your home but times have changed. Now you can get designer aquariums tailored to your individual tastes that will also add a touch of style to your home.

What is a lifestyle aquarium?

Lifestyle aquariums are for everyday people who want to bring the pleasure and beauty of keeping fish into their homes, without the hassle that can sometimes come with larger fish tanks.

With a huge range of designer fish tanks that are as varied and unique as the people who own them, there are styles to suit almost every lifestyle, especially modern tastes.

When it comes to larger fish tanks, aquarium setup and care can be a huge and costly undertaking. While most fish keepers are happy to accept this as simply a labour of love, designer aquariums have been built not just for style, but also convenience.

What are the advantages of a designer lifestyle aquarium?

The key reasons for the popularity of designer fish tanks come down to simplicity, style and affordability.

Perfect examples are the highly popular range of Biorb aquariums and Aqua One. Although Biorb aquariums come in variety of designs, such as the Biorb Life, Biorb is most commonly known for their iconic spherical design.

Not only does the Biorb range offer a unique alternative to the traditional fish tank design, it also incorporates all of the aquarium’s essential equipment in a way that doesn’t intrude on the internal setup. This means you have everything you need to get started in one cost-effective kit, without disturbing the aquarium.

For example, most modern Biorb aquariums will include a sleek LED light unit that is built into the top of the aquarium, with the water filter and pump discretely hidden away in the base. This allows the aquarium to provide an uninterrupted, 360 degree view of the aquarium’s inhabitants.

BiOrb fish tanks

As well as the highly popular Biorb aquarium range, some of the other popular designer aquarium kits include the Fluval Chi and the Fluval Edge. The Fluval Chi offers a unique panoramic view of the aquarium, drastically different from the traditional aquarium designs. This fish tank is a real space saver and even in the larger version it still has the same foot print as the smaller model.

Another great attraction of the Fluval Chi is that it offers an extensive range of attractive accessories to fit in perfectly with the modern, sleek design of the aquarium. This also allows you to personalise your aquarium to exactly how you like it, or even to swap around the accessories to help keep a fresh look.

Not only does the Biorb range offer a unique alternative to the traditional fish tank design, it also incorporates all of the aquarium’s essential equipment in a way that doesn’t intrude on the internal setup. This means you have everything you need to get started in one cost-effective kit, without disturbing the aquarium.

For example, most modern Biorb aquariums will include a sleek LED light unit that is built into the top of the aquarium, with the water filter and pump discretely hidden away in the base. This allows the aquarium to provide an uninterrupted, 360 degree view of the aquarium’s inhabitants.

What’s so unique about the Fluval Edge aquarium?

The Fluval Edge Aquarium is a pioneering fish tank design. Whereas most aquariums sit directly on your cabinet and have a hood, this one has a built in podium in the centre that means not only can you see the front, but also the underneath. And because it is designed to be filled to the brim, it looks great from above.

A perfect example is the Fluval Edge 46 Litre Aquarium, which has a 46 litre capacity and is purpose built to require low maintenance, with low running costs. It has a shimmering lighting effect powered by a powerful retractable LED lighting system. The LED system is both economical and powerful and with a flick of a switch you can activate the night mode, where three blue LEDs cast a cool moonlight glow.

How do lifestyle aquariums differ from larger fish tanks?

Owning your first aquarium can be an expensive and sometimes daunting experience and in some cases the effort of taking on board so much new information can leave your aquatic ambitions sleeping with the fishes.

Part of the great attraction of designer aquarium is that it allows you to get started right away, while still usually being much cheaper than traditional aquariums. Lifestyle aquariums are also perfect for your use with younger fish keepers and cater for the beginner who perhaps can’t afford to invest in large amounts of equipment and maintenance materials.

Is a designer aquarium for me?

The designer aquarium makes the perfect fish tank for people who want to enjoy keeping fish, but don’t necessarily want to devote all of their time to the fishkeeping hobby. Lifestyle aquariums are not only built to look good, they are also designed to include almost everything you need to get started in the fish keeping hobby, including essential equipment, fish tank, substrate and aquarium décor. All you have to do is decide which kind of fish, or other aquarium dwellers you want to populate your watery kingdom.

The benefits of keeping pets are well known and while a Great Dane might be welcome in a larger house, aquariums are the perfect alternative if you are a bit short on space, or time to devote to your pet.

Unlike more demanding animals the designer aquarium will provide you with years of pleasure in a way that will enhance both your life and your home. And don’t forget that these funky new designs are highly economical on space. They provide maximum viewing pleasure, without taking up all of your living space and makes them perfect for living spaces like apartments, where space is at a premium.

So if you’ve ever thought that perhaps your lounge, kitchen or even office could benefit from an aquarium, then a designer aquarium could be just what you’ve been looking for.