You gaze in amazement at the stunning scene a few feet away, a wondrous live theater of crystal clear saltwater with dozens of brightly colored tropical fish swimming lazily around a reef draped with lush sea vegetation. Are you in the Cayman Islands? Australia? Or some other world-renowned diving Shangri-la? No, if you own a custom exotic aquarium, you could easily enjoy the underwater panorama from the comfort of your living room.

For fish lovers and others desiring a small slice of the outdoors in their home, the high-end, furniture-quality aquarium, ranging from 200 to 700 gallons, has quietly become a highly desirable amenity. By combining fine wood cabinetry, marble, or stone, museum-style presentation techniques, high-tech lighting, and a new technology that allows tanks to be silent and easier to maintain, the custom aquarium is well on its way to a living room or office near you.

"Customized aquariums are living artwork," says Craig Beital, owner of Beital’s Exotic Aquariums in Pearl River, New York, who has built custom aquariums for celebrities including Saturday Night Live creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels, radio personality Howard Stern, singer Mary J. Blige, and the Prince of Morocco. "People are looking for something different than the basic framed wall art. And the custom aquarium, which serves as an impressive piece of furniture and artwork, is gaining popularity, especially with people who have never had an aquarium before." Beital recently designed and built a 600-gallon tank that was so large a crane had to hoist it up to the 27th floor of a Manhattan apartment building.

Nearly one-in-eight U.S. households keep fish as pets, so home aquariums certainly don’t qualify as the latest pet craze with Americans. Custom aquariums, however, are an emerging trend and becoming more acceptable as a home accessory and not a quirky conversation piece. Homeowners have taken their cue from airports, hospitals, restaurants, and even shopping malls that use large aquariums in their decor to create a view of nature and an oasis of calm.

AGE OF AQUARIUM
The emergence of improved filtration systems and easier-to-maintain equipment has helped propel the popularity of custom aquariums. Some homebuilders now offer them in their new houses, and Beital says homebuyers are increasingly requesting filtration and drainage systems installed during the construction process.

Not to be overlooked as a motivation for a home aquarium is the recognized therapeutic benefits. Reliable research and experimental evidence indicates that aquariums can lower blood pressure and provide stress relief. A popular place for custom aquariums is in the master bedroom where owners prefer to stare into peaceful waters that promote a restful night’s sleep rather than watch the latest gut-wrenching news report on a bedside television. "Most of our clients are successful business people, professional athletes, or entertainment stars who have lots of stress in their lives," says Mat Roy, director of the aquarium division for Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based Living Color Enterprises. "Several of them have told us the best way they relax is by staring at their aquariums."

While living rooms are still the most desired place in a home for a custom aquarium, interior designers are using them more frequently as innovative floor-to-ceiling room dividers, as well as centerpieces in home offices, libraries, and media rooms. Recently, Living Color Enterprises built an 8-foot-wide cylinder aquarium in a Long Island, New York, home that started in the basement and elevated 22-1/2 feet to the master bedroom.

One of the hottest names in New York City’s art and design scene is Justin Muir, principal designer for City Aquarium. The company has a client roster that includes the Sultan of Oman, billionaire Michael Barrington, and New York’s majestic Dream hotel. Last year, Muir customized a $40,000 aquarium in Barrington’s wine cellar at his Nantucket Island estate. Standing 6 feet tall and built into a wood wall, the aquarium features a dramatic handmade reef sculpture and exotic tropical fish.

Muir, who has a degree in marine biology, utilizes a team of interior and furniture designers, architects, sculptors, visual artists, and marine biologists to design one-of-a-kind aquariums that are expressions of water, light, space, and marine life. His residential custom aquariums start at $20,000 and his signature jellyfish aquariums start with a $150,000 price tag.

"High-end customized aquariums have become status symbols just like other expensive pieces of art or sculpture," Muir says. "For that reason, the fish and water are only one part of the total package."

A minimalist designer, Muir places strong emphasis on the wood or other material encasing the aquarium. Typically, the furniture cost of a Muir-designed custom aquarium is nearly 70 percent of the total price. The centerpiece of many of his designs is the man-made reef and he also uses rare objects and statues in his aquascape designs.

FROM DREAM TO REALITY
When considering a large, custom aquarium in your home, imaginations and budgets can run wild. Besides the size, style, design, and placement of the tank, much thought has to be put into the type of fish and decorative elements desired to complete the aquascape.

According to Beital, a small, custom aquarium starts at $4,500 to $5,000, with most larger, high-end residential aquarium projects in the $20,000 to $50,000 range and some as high as $500,000. Two of the more popular woods for encasing are cherry mahogany and oak, which can be stained in a variety of shades. Other materials used for encasing include synthetic coral stone, marble, and tile.

In recent years, octagons, pentagons, and everything in between have become more popular shapes. For a sense of scale, a typical, rectangular 300-gallon aquarium would measure approximately 8 feet long, 2-1/2 feet high, and 2 feet wide; a 700-gallon aquarium measures approximately 10 feet long, 3-1/2 feet high, and 3 feet wide.

Beital says a 300-gallon aquarium should be serviced at least twice a month. Owners typically feed their own fish unless other arrangements are made.

Ah! Feeding your own fish in your floor-to-ceiling custom home aquarium. Rest assured, you can cancel those flight reservations to the Caymans.

Orlando, Florida-based Edward Schmidt Jr. is a snorkeling enthusiast who has seen a multitude of exotic fish up close and personal.