Stress is an oft used and misused term. Coupled with anxiety and over work of balancing home and work pressures it is more often than not the reason we go on holidays. To help ease the strain we take to exercise, go on drives or head to spas. But these are just temporary measures. Believe it or not, for a long-term fix to all the strains of life, babel, fish is a great option. Yes, fish. Not as food, but as colourful creatures, shining like jewels, darting around in mesmerising whirls in the water. You may think it a bit unusual, but these aquatic critters can truly provide peace and tranquillity, and it is said that watching the movements of the fish in an aquarium for about thirty minutes calms edgy nerves and helps compose the mind.

Aquariums are becoming increasingly popular at a number of corporate establishments, as they are also easy to maintain. Home spaces should also look at aquariums to provide that harmonic balance. Aquariums give a rich visual effect and an aura of life without being garish. It adds character to a plain room, and makes a delicate style statement. The sparkling blue slice of aquatic life speaks more volumes than any other interior accessory. As S B S Surendran http://www.fengshuiserver.com, a feng shui consultant and vaastu practitioner, says, "It surely makes the space, be it home or office, look different, and the aquarium becomes the highlight, especially if it is well decorated and well maintained”.

Are we hooked? Then let's dive in to explore an easy and fun way to decorate your home.

Testing the waters
Before buying an aquarium Kevin Dsouza of Kevin Fabricators http://www.indiamart.com/kevinfabricators/index.html a company specialising in aquariums, including custom fabrication, installation and maintenance, says a few basic parameters that are essential to keep in mind are space, size, floor strength and design to help decide the kind of aquarium you can have.

Space will include where you would like to install the aquarium: as a stand alone or embedded into the cabinetry; in the lobby to stun people as soon as they enter or in the living room as a fantastic conversation starter; or as a part of your furniture such as your dining table or even your bed for a surreal experience. According to Kevin, an aquarium can be fabricated anywhere: walls, ceiling, in the floor, coffee table, as seating arrangements, reception table etc. But depending on the diorama, choose a space away from sunlight for your nirvana inducers. Direct sunlight can kill some types of fish, but if you have a coral theme, then sunlight becomes essential as coral lives naturally close to the water surface.

Once you have identified the space, you can decide on the size you want your tank to be. If you want a large sized tank, then a specialist has to be consulted. A large-sized tank will require a lot of water, which will make it heavy. So it becomes imperative to check if the floor can withstand the weight of the tank. The design can be chosen to match the interior décor or according to one’s taste. There are a great variety of designs your aquarium consultant can offer you.

'Dear' Dempsey
Aquariums can suit any budget and are classified into freshwater and saltwater or marine. The budget varies depending on the kind of aquarium you're opting for. S B S Surendran says, "The maintenance depends upon the size of the tank and the type of fish. Generally a good water filter to trap floating debris and keep the water clean is alright, but for larger tanks, external filters with 'media' to trap debris, clean the water, purify it and detoxify the water from the floating residual fish food is recommended raising costs considerably".

Kevin says that the least expensive would be the freshwater fish as they are easier to maintain. There are various sizes available starting from a one foot tank or a bowl which could cost anywhere between Rs100, for just the container, to Rs500 including the fish. A medium sized tank measuring about two feet could cost approximately around Rs2,500 with the fish in it.

The design could cost a little more with the price varying for ordinary sand to gravel to any other kind of substrate. A six feet tank could cost about Rs25,000. The fishes too cost roughly from Rs5 to Rs5 lakh. Similarly, tanks of bigger sizes will cost more according to the design.

Kevin recommends at least a fortnightly maintenance for your tank, which will cost approximately Rs125 per sq ft. It is advisable to have an aquarist do the installation and maintenance for the tank, as he would know the details and can do it efficiently. He also suggests that a single person feed the fish as overfeeding kills them.

Fish feed could cost anywhere between Rs5 to Rs100 per feed. Dead fish need to be removed immediately to avoid contamination of the tank. Tanks with a coral reef theme are popular but pricey, as you need to duplicate the natural colourful reef life spiking costs to lakhs!

The exotic touch
You can let your imagination run wild as far as the themes for aquariums go since you can do virtually anything your mind conjures up; only keep the price tag in mind. A custom made tank will cost a lot more than a tank purchased from a dealer. Kevin shares some of the popular themes that can be embedded in wood, acrylic, fibre, cement plastic, brick or basically any material used in the construction of a house. Aquariums can also be a standalone.

Garden theme:
Garden themes involve making use of real, natural plants. The advantages being they provide a living ornamentation, which looks refreshing, aesthetic and beautiful. They also serve to naturally filter water for the fish, absorbing all the fish waste as food and carbon dioxide from the fish respiration converting it into oxygen for the fish. These plants demand a lot of light and proper foundation to fix in the roots and allow them to grow. Kevin suggests creating an island on top of the aquarium, with all the plants on top and the fish swimming below the 'island'.

Moulded aquarium:
This tank is normally box type, but it can be custom made according to your preference. This type of a tank can be of any shape and size and can have any kind of a theme.

Tunnel aquarium:
As the name implies, an aquarium is built like a tunnel for people to pass under, resplendent with live colourful creatures zipping past. This type of an aquarium is best left to professionals as it has special technical demands involving civil work, metal and glass fabrication and a combination of various types of skills to put this together. The cost of a tunnel aquarium could amount to half a crore, depending on the size. If its just a frame for your doorway it could cost a couple of lakh. The fish will cost extra.

Wall-mounted aquarium:
To create a living picture on the wall, wall-mounted aquariums are a stunning choice. This type of an aquarium brings in an ambience of life, sophistication and class and is a brilliant option for space crunched rooms or offices. Attention is drawn to this immediately as it doesn't require a stand and the fish swimming serenely in water brings in a natural splendour in an eye-catching way. This can be fitted with an automatic filter system which contains germ kill technology, auto water filling system, auto feed and lighting, all hidden neatly in a frame allowing only fish and the decoration of the tank to show through. The price of this tank varies and starts from Rs40,000. A tank size of 8'x3' with a 6" depth can cost approximately around 1˝ lakh.

Marine aquarium:
Marine aquariums are very popular globally wherein a coral reef is created. This is especially seen in restaurants, malls, offices etc. This can also be fabricated to enhance the décor of a home in a subtle way. Synthetic corals, made to look like their natural counterparts, are used and an exact replica of a coral reef is created with plenty of lighting. A green tip: do use synthetic coral rather than a natural one to maintain the fragile eco-balance. Besides, the natural ones die and look bleached while the synthetic and rubber coral comes in a variety of natural shades.

Cleaning up
There are a variety of filters available such as the bio-filtration, mechanical filtration, canister filtration system, automatic filtration etc. Different kinds of filters can be used depending on the nature and volume of the filtration process. Kevin recommends a sump tank for most kinds of aquariums. The cost of the filtration could be roughly around 25 per cent of the cost of the glass tank.

Fish for 'gold' luck
S B S Surendran says that fish are generally considered as good luck. "Simple guppy fishes or gold fishes are considered good and one can even have carps. One fish which is highly revered, and also quite expensive, is the 'dragon fish' also known as the 'arowana'. This fish with its whiskers, prominent scales, which resemble the mythical dragon, large eyes and shape of the body and colour adds grace, authority and grandeur. The arowana is considered to be a very auspicious fish and comes in various colours with the most expensive one being the chilli red arowans. Other than arowana, the other important fish is the 'flower horn' from the Chiclid family. With its prominent forehead and coloured body with some markings, the fish is said to "bull doze' obstacles and bad luck. If you wish to have water ponds, then fish such as the rugged 'Japanese Koi' is considered very good. Arowana and flower horn grow better and bigger when they are given live feed like fishes, worms, shrimp, etc."

Kevin says that any ornamental fish can be chosen, and it is strictly according to one's taste. There are many species and families to choose from and any dealer will be able to help you. But you do need to keep in mind that there are fishes, which are aggressive and might eat other fish, and there are community fishes. You would also need tank cleaners and algae eaters such as sucker catfish, shrimp, snail etc. There are a lot of varieties available besides these.