How to set up an Aquarium or a Fish Tank
An aquarium or fish tank, 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 difficultjob 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.
There are several things to consider before you purchase an aquarium such as :
• 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.
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. You should also consider that an aquarium is very
heavy so the chosen spot has to be able to support the weight of the aquarium. Any
aquarium over 10 gallons/ 40 L will weigh at
least a hundred and fifty pounds / 70 Kg when filled and decorated. The weight comes
chiefly from the glass and the water, and decoration such as gravel will further add
to this weight. Heavy aquariums will need to be kept on a sturdy stand rather than a
shelf or a desk.
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