Tropical fish beginner's guide

How to set up an aquarium


An aquarium, to put it simply, is a container that can sustain fish and other aquatic life for
a longer period of time. Acquiring a good aquarium for your fish is not a very difficult
job as long as you give it some thought before you actually get it. There are some obvious
considerations to be taken into account. Setting up and fully stocking a good aquarium
will take anywhere between a couple of weeks and a month. The time that you spend with
these basic steps will save you a lot of time and trouble at a later stage.

 

A good and well stocked aquarium needs quite a bit of equipment. Here is a simple list of
the items that you will need for a basic freshwater aquarium:

An aquarium tank
An aquarium stand
A hood
Lighting equipment
Air pump
Heater
Thermometer
Filters (internal or external)
Gravel
Decorations (optional, but interesting if you have these)
Maintenance items like scrubber, siphon tube etc.

Choosing a spot for your aquarium

First, you will need to think about how much free space you have for your aquarium,
whether that free space is open to sunlight, and which shape that is best suited for that
free space. Never place an aquarium in direct sunlight and keep the aquarium away from
any heating or cooling surfaces. Sunlight and heating or cooling surfaces will cause
sudden and drastic changes in the temperature within the aquarium, and sunlight will also
promote the growth of algae in the water.

Keep your aquarium away from machines that give out a lot of sound or cause vibration,
like the washing machine, since this will stress the fish. Water accessibility and easy
disposal of dirty water and waste are some other important factors to consider while
selecting a good spot for your aquarium as you don’t want to run around with buckets of
water in your entire house. You will need to clean and change water at least monthly and
better once a week. So, choose a place where you can work easily and without any
interference. In a family with children, special care has to be taken to keep the aquarium
away from areas of frequent activity. You do not want your children to push or fall on the
aquarium while they play and injure themselves or break the aquarium glass.

Any good home has a certain décor. While choosing a spot for your aquarium, you must
consider whether the general décor and lighting in the room will make it an attractive
place for the new aquarium. Take the type of biotope you plan to have in your aquarium
into consideration when you decide if an aquarium will work with the décor of the chosen
spot. Different types of biotopes works with different decors. A saltwater reef aquarium
will for instance have a very different look than a well planted South American biotope.

There are several things to consider before you purchase an aquarium. How much time
you are willing to spend on the aquarium? What kind of aquarium do you want to buy?
What is the ideal spot for your aquarium? What kind of fish should you put in your
aquarium? How do you keep your fish and their environment healthy in the easiest and
quickest way? How much time would it all take to maintain? What should you feed your
fish and how much? What should you do when diseases strike? These are just some of the
many questions that you need to think about.