Modern Reef Aquariums

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<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11686626#post11686626 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by WZHANG
I know what you mean, but that would be considered revival of periods, which are not modern in aesthetic or ideals. This thread was pertaining to the modern era or contemporary.

+1, could not have said it better.
 
This is a great thread! Very interesting...

I think another thread discussing a wide variety of design ideas and styles would also be great. It would be nice to see peoples unique or custom tanks (plus the room because to me the room is just as important) of all styles and hear a bit about them...or just hear the comments on overall design and style. Some of us would learn (or remember) a thing or two!

Great thread though!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11687121#post11687121 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by justinpsmith
This is a great thread! Very interesting...

I think another thread discussing a wide variety of design ideas and styles would also be great. It would be nice to see peoples unique or custom tanks (plus the room because to me the room is just as important) of all styles and hear a bit about them...or just hear the comments on overall design and style. Some of us would learn (or remember) a thing or two!

Great thread though!


Thank you i thought this would bring some interesting response. But i wont lie i really did it for ideas i live very in a very modern house and am needing some new ideas for a new tank he he
 
Just look at most stuff that is made overseas and you will see plenty. For some reason, the US is caught in some 'revival' mode that nobody else is. Seriously, go to Home Depot, and most of the stuff on the wall is 'country', 'traditional', etc. Go to B&Q (HD-UK) or some shop there, and you cant even find that gaudy crap over there. Their 'common' stuff is the ultra contemporary stuff that we pay high dollar for here in the US.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11687390#post11687390 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by CamBarr
Thank you i thought this would bring some interesting response. But i wont lie i really did it for ideas i live very in a very modern house and am needing some new ideas for a new tank he he

Do you have any pics of the room you have/want to have the tank in?




I was also thinking the same thing about the Japanese thread and this one. I love the style of those Japanese tanks!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11687490#post11687490 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by seapug
This thread should be combined with the Japanese Tank thread from earlier.

Check out these tanks from Japan:
http://www.trio-corp.jp/aquarium/vivaria_tank_5.html

and these, especially the "upright tank" with a built in upstream refugium:
http://homepage2.nifty.com/aqua-nics/syouhin-annai.html

Many of the Japanese tanks do fall under 'ultra modern', but they are a bit different than what you see coming out of Europe. I think the Japanese style has a certain 'flair' that Europeans dont strive for. The Japanese ones are more form than function... with spotlights over designated areas for an overall effect. Many of the European designs achieve their look more from form following function. The look of many German tanks is very functional, like the technology is arrived upon first, and then the tank designed around that. For instance, some T5 lit tanks, with their low profile lighting hanging over an open tank top on even a large tank... it looks the way it does because 'thats how they build tanks there' and 'thats what the lighting looks like'. Some Japanese tanks are the opposite in that they arent even designed with efficiency in mind. The reflectors are spotlights sometimes, and housed far above the water of the tank at angles (not evey efficient) with blinders to cut down glare... but its all to get a desired effect rather than the final effect being derived from the technology. In that respect, I would not lump Japanese tanks in with European/German ones.
 
hahnmeister- to show an example of your example of lighting how its built for more effect and not design/efficiency


Japanese lighting typically looks like this






P1030607.jpg
 
Looks like many of the Japanese tanks use very thick glass to avoid any bracing or trim. I love the clean look. Sometimes it looks like a section of the ocean is just floating in a room. Very cool.

Yeah I love that stand. Comes in three pieces too! Easy to move and maybe possible to set up in multiple ways?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11687452#post11687452 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
Just look at most stuff that is made overseas and you will see plenty. For some reason, the US is caught in some 'revival' mode that nobody else is. Seriously, go to Home Depot, and most of the stuff on the wall is 'country', 'traditional', etc. Go to B&Q (HD-UK) or some shop there, and you cant even find that gaudy crap over there. Their 'common' stuff is the ultra contemporary stuff that we pay high dollar for here in the US.

I think it has to do with the fact that the majority of Americans are still pretty conservative and traditional.. So, the hardware store for the masses reflects the consumer's wants. Funny thing is that I did some research and of all the hardware that homedepot carries, the one Modern one that looks just like a very common design,(even Ikea has had a version of it forever) is their hottest seller... makes me think that Americans would buy modern products if they were more available.. Especially Men, as they/we have this attraction to Modern style.

8f35b6c6-2d88-4da2-ae01-363de9a07c5b_300.jpg
 
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Yes, the japanese tanks are very different from the European and North American styles, but they have a lot of small sized, high powered pumps and plumbing systems we haven't seen yet. They do tend to have a different lighting style, but just because they look like the spotlights you may be familiar with, don't assume it's inferior. They're the ones pioneering LED and cold cathode lighting systems that we have yet to even see.

Not to mention their, livestock....do some searching around and see some of the fish and corals they are breeding and propagating!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11688260#post11688260 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by CamBarr
I agree look at high end German/European cars vs high en Japanese perfect example^^^^^

hah. i absolutely agree. <3 the analogy.
 
What's in the tank and what's outside the tank are two different issues.

American tanks tend to have "traditional" stands which means they look like aquarium stands. There's no way to make a fiberboard stand look contemporary so those tanks are out of the game.

So I looked at the Aisan tank links, they emphasize what's in the tank. They looked great but the environment isn't shown so what does that tell us? Nothing. For all we know they're sitting on empty beer cases. The interior may be contemporary (or temporary based on the lack of coraline algae in any tank) but does that make a modern setup ?

European tanks seem to emphasize streamlined lighting and eurobracing without showing the whole environment. Maybe they're also sitting on empty beer cases :lol:

If you're into "modern design" you have to look at the complete environment and determine how an aquarium fits into the greater plan/scheme of the home.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11685004#post11685004 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by justinpsmith
I would say more than "some" of them are less than "modern". I find many of them to be less than modern.

I have to disagree with that 3rd pic in the last post being anything close to modern. The last few pics are closer to what the original poster was looking for I think although the rest of the room besides the aquarium is not really modern at all.

I studied interior design before getting into the film industry and we spent quite a long period of time studying "modern" design. That was years ago and I do not consider myself a designer anymore but I think I have a basic idea of design still :) Here for example is a better idea of what a modern room would look like. You can imagine how these elements and designs can be used in an aquarium. I would say that most of the aquariums in this thread would NOT fit in this room...

Interior-Design-Ideas-Screensaver.jpg

Just a comment on that the reference pic, It looks more of a interior design concept, but not something that would ever be used as a practical living space, its more of a desing showcase than anyhting else.
The pics provided in this thread are from peoples homes and other real places, they represent the different approaches of modernizing the reef into the living space instead of the gloomy basement fishrooms.
Also yes, I agree some are more "modern" or simplisticly clean looking than others but all still fit this criteria as most of them are inovative and surpass the norm in the typical setup.
 
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