How to Set Up a Freshwater Aquarium Tank

Once you decide on a freshwater aquarium, you discover there are quite a lot of options about the equipments and fishes. Hence setting up a freshwater tank has to be done with care and caution.

There are lots of analysis of pros and cons of each of the aspects such as tank material, size, filters, fishes and finally the location where the aquarium has to be placed in your house. Note that the types of fishes you want to keep should determine the size of the tank and the filtration equipments as well. In addition to the above you may also need to decide on lighting, heater, gravel and decoration for the aquarium.

Before deciding on the appropriate aquarium of your choice it is better to consider few facts about the basic requirements on keeping a healthy fish tank. The water used in the freshwater tank should be stable in terms of softness/harness of the water, the PH level and the temperature.

The material of the tank can be glass or acrylic. However acrylic is preferred especially for new buyers for their insulation capacity and durability compared to glass tanks. Acrylic tanks retain stable temperature and are flexible which means they are less prone to leakage and do not crack or break easily like glass aquarium. They allow better lighting to the entire tank since acrylic is clearer than glass.

The disadvantages of an acrylic aquarium are that they get scratched easily compared to glass tanks and they are highly expensive as well. Acrylic tanks cost more than double the price of glass tanks. However, these days quality acrylic tanks are available with lifetime guarantees.

Next to tank material, a decision has to be made on the tank size. Larger aquarium can accommodate more number of fishes and better decorative devices and facilitates healthy environment for the fishes and finally requires minimum maintenance. If you are planning to keep only few fishes then a smaller freshwater tank will do.

In terms of filtration there are three types – mechanical, biological and chemical. Mechanical filtration helps to keep the water in the aquarium clear. Biological filtration reduces the level of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates that are toxic to the fishes. Chemical filters keeps the tank water clear and avoid yellowish tinge caused by plant debris, waste and dissolved food.

Once the equipments are decided, next is to decide on the fishes and other creatures to prefer to keep in the aquarium. Keeping too much of fishes contaminates the water and provides unhealthy environment for the inhabitants. An ideal measure would be to keep an inch of fish for every 3 to 4 gallons of water. You may have to research on the fish species that can coexist in a tank. It is important to understand about weak fishes and predatory fishes and how the sizes of fishes matter for a healthy coexistence in the aquarium. It is also possible to decide on a school of the same species if you are not concerned on variety.

It is quite important to decide on a perfect location for the aquarium since lighting and temperature plays a major part in the health and sometimes the survival of the fishes. They should be located away from sunlight by keeping away from windows, doors and heater vents since the temperature rise may be fatal to the fishes. The aquarium should be placed on a firm stand taking into consideration the total weight of the filled up aquarium.

After the purchase of the equipments, it is better to wash them before using it. Chemicals used in the soap are very harmful for the fishes so the fish equipments and the tank should be washed only with plain water or you may even add a teaspoon of salt to a gallon of water. However you have to ensure that traces of salt are removed thoroughly before adding final water. Once the freshwater tank is set, you may run it for 24 hours before adding the fishes.

         

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