My hobby of fishkeeping began back in 1987. A large fishbowl and goldfish were some of the first things I bought with money from my paper route.

Over time I moved to a 10 gallon aquarium and then a 20 gallon before settling on a 30 gallon aquarium in 1999. For years, I thought I would not be able to go bigger due to being limited to a 36x16 footprint due to the space requirements of the hang on back filters. However, during the pandemic of 2020, I learned that 53 and 65 gallon tanks had a footprint of 36x18 and that I could save space behind the tank by replacing my hang on back filters with canister filters. Over the next two years, two canister filters were added and the hang back filters removed. An unintended benefit to removing the hang on back filters was a severe reduction in noise.

Filteration is provided by two canister filters: a Fluval 207 and a Fluval 307. Together, they provide 409 gallons per hour of filtration capacity, far more the rule of thumb 212 gph that a tank my size requires,

A 53 gallon tank requires a heater of between 106 and 265 watts depending on how far above ambient room temperature the water needs to be warmed. I have a Fluval E100 and a Fluval E200. Together, they provide 300 watts of heating power.