The passion for an aquatic environment that recreates marine flora and fauna brings with it the awareness and knowledge of a complex and interconnected system. In the following lines, we take stock of the practices and general suggestions that can best keep the whole thing.
The love for fish and the sea is also reflected in the home when you decide to buy an aquarium to stay in touch with your passion. But how to find the most suitable one for your apartment? Let’s see together, which features the right model should have, keeping an eye on the price.
Here we had listed out some of the best models of the best fish aquariums.
How to Choose Fish Aquariums?
Dimensions
The first factor to consider is undoubtedly the place where you intend to place your aquarium: is the room large enough? Must it be relegated to a corner or be the main attraction? Once you have the answer, you will immediately understand which type to choose.
The dimensions depending on the space available: a larger model will not create bulk in a large apartment, while a small one will be perfect for a single home. You will also need to keep in mind the time required for cleaning: for an aquarium of a certain size, it will take more, less for a contained one.
Consider also what type of fish and how many you want to have in your aquarium: the aim is to make you comfortable, and to make all the species you will breed live well.
Materials
Are you worried about your finances? In addition to the size, another factor affecting the price of the product is undoubtedly the material of manufacture. Industrial models use glass and plastic, other times also metal, so they have a lower cost than different types.
The risk, in this case, is to go down to save and thus risk buying an aquarium made with fragile materials, which is therefore easily broken. If you do not want this to happen, it is better to opt for a middle ground, in addition to consulting the reviews of other users, to verify that you are investing your money well.
If you want to experience the aquarium as a piece of furniture, instead, you will have to opt for a handmade model, with attention to the smallest details and perhaps with the possibility of customizing it according to your taste.
The advantage of such objects is proven robustness, while the cost is not recommended for those who do not have an adequate budget.
The Accessories
The aquarium itself is not enough: accessories are essential to make it work properly. The filter can be of different types: mechanical, chemical, or biological. The first removes all solid materials, such as debris, leftover food, etc.
The second occurs through some substances positioned inside the compartments and is useful for eliminating all chemical compounds, such as fertilizers or coloring substances.
Finally, the biological one is not intended to eliminate but rather to create colonies of bacteria that metabolize the nitrogen produced by the decomposition and by the fish themselves.
The important thing is that the model chosen is such as to ensure the smallest footprint and made of a material resistant to any movement or periodic opening.
Lighting is also fundamental, to be preferred with LEDs, because mercury vapor lamps, in addition to being difficult to use, also cost a lot. An eye should also be given to the internal temperature, so it is necessary to buy a heating cable or a tube heater, cheaper and more suitable for those who are beginners.
Do not miss the thermometer, indispensable for monitoring degrees, and other accessories useful for removing debris escaped from the filters, such as a screen.
Bottom Materials
If you want abundant vegetation to grow, place quartz gravel combined with fertilized soil on the bottom of the tank. Do not neglect the aesthetic aspect, so also point to fake decorations, such as plants and caves, to be placed anywhere, to give a more realistic part to your marine world reproduced in scale.
Speaking of materials, also get the essential ones for the mechanical and biological filter: for the former, synthetic fibers, or even wool, or elements capable of retaining waste, are useful. For the second, instead, razor clams will be needed, that is, pieces of ceramic that hold the bacteria.
Style
In addition to the passion for the sea, the ideal aquarium must also reflect the style of those who choose it: therefore, take note of the aesthetic characteristics of the model you like, as it will have to integrate well with your apartment.
A solution to save something more is to opt for a product equipped, for example, with an integrated piece of furniture, which allows you to place it anywhere and to take advantage of this additional part also as a place to store objects.
The advantage lies in not having to go crazy to find an element of the same color, on which to place the aquarium, which will thus already have the base it needs.
How to Set up An Aquarium
If you want to have a piece of the sea at home, but you are a beginner, our tips on how to set up an aquarium can help you create the first one without too much difficulty. The choice is to opt for a freshwater one, for which less maintenance is required: you can then move on to the tropical ones if it is your desire!
The Tub and The Setting
Indeed, the first step is to buy the tank that will contain your fish. Its size depends a lot on how many specimens you want to host because they must have the space necessary to live in good conditions.
Once this fundamental point has been established, proceed with the first cleaning of the tank, so as not to let the fish come into contact with the dirt. Place on the bottom a layer of gravel mixed with sand, which must be at least 5 cm, to increase according to the size of your aquarium.
At this point, you can proceed with filling with water, being careful to leave about 8 cm from the edge. Now you can think about how to recreate the marine environment: the choice is varied as on the market, you can find as many fake plants, with lots of rocks or caves, as the real ones, very often essential to ensure the oxygenation of the water.
Regardless of your taste, it is appropriate to create environments in which fish can hide, to rest, or to feel safe when they request it. The idea of placing even a small amphora can give a vintage idea and constitute a good refuge for animals.
Which Fish to Choose?
Whatever your preferences, it is advisable to opt for fish that have the same habits and consume more or less the same foods, so as not to create problems inside the aquarium.
To understand this, those who are beginners should opt for goldfish, which do not involve significant management problems. The water in which they grow is cold, so you will not have to take degrees into account with a thermometer, and there will also be no need to purchase a filter to remove the waste they produce.
Also, the size of the tank must be medium, with a meager cost on your part. Tropical fish, on the other hand, need water at least 24 degrees and therefore need other elements to ensure that the temperature remains within this range.
Cleanliness and Behavior of Fish
You must ensure that the water is always clean and check its pH, which must never drop or vary in level if you want to guarantee the life of the fish you host. It will also be advisable to change a part of the water, about 20%, every two or three weeks, replace the filter, clean the pump and lights, which in many cases are essential for the proper development of the ecosystem.
How to understand if you are doing everything right? Simple, with fish behavior. If they are in good health, they will eat and behave normally; instead, they will lose their characteristic color and become unappetizing when something is wrong.
It will be necessary to understand what the problem is: it could be as much due to an infestation by parasites as to the habitat, which does not fully respond to their needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Does the Aquarium Filter Work?
The filter is an indispensable element to make an aquarium work well. It is, in fact, responsible for the elimination of all the waste that can compromise the health of the ecosystem and the fish. There are different types: internal and external.
The name itself determines the place where it will be placed, but the operation is more or less this: it is based on the presence of a pump, a sponge or wool, and, when necessary, even razor clams.
The pump must be such as to guarantee proper drainage, so it must be chosen based on the size of the aquarium and, of course, also on the quantity of water contained inside it. The sponge is what gives life to the so-called “mechanical filtration,” i.e., it traps the debris. At the same time, the razor clams are useful for the biological one because they capture bacteria.
With these premises, here’s how the filter works: the water passes first from the sponge and then from the razor clams (although in some aquariums the opposite happens) before reaching the pump, to be as clean as possible.
How to Lower the P H in The Aquarium?
The pH is an essential element because it makes the water acidic or basic. For this reason, it must be kept under control, if you want to avoid damaging the species that inhabit your aquarium.
In freshwater, the pH must remain fixed at 7, while in marine ones, it can oscillate between 8.2 and 8.5. How do you keep the required value? Most often, peat, catappa leaves are used, or a certain amount of carbon dioxide is directly inserted.
To monitor the pH, first of all, it is necessary to use a test, usually with a liquid reagent. When it is required to intervene, you can first insert 1 g of peat per liter of water and then place bags with this material inside of the filter, so that it periodically reduces the ph.
It is also essential to periodically clean the filter, which is the fundamental element capable of keeping the aquarium in good condition.
How to Clean the Aquarium?
There are a few steps to follow in cleaning your aquarium well. First of all, it is essential to know that you will have to replace about 20% of the water every two weeks to guarantee the fish a good life.
To do this, you can use a gravel aspirator characterized by a siphon, which manages to eliminate a part of water but also to clean the gravel, which will then be put back in its place. To remove algae, it is useful to use the magnetic cleaner, consisting of two felt coated disks, to be positioned one inside and one outside the glass.
Just move the one placed outside to allow the internal one to clean the surface of the algae accumulated during the weeks. As for the filter, and in particular the sponge, it is advisable to rinse it inside the aquarium, since tap water could eliminate beneficial bacteria.
