A lovely hobby to explore is that of having a fish tank.
However, you will need to know exactly what you need in order to get started.
I have included in this article a few basic things that you will probably need to have for a fresh water fish tank in your home.
10 Items You May Need for your Home Aquarium The first thing that you need to purchase is an aquarium, or fish tank.
Here are some questions that you will need to personally answer: What size of tank do I want? Where am I going to place my aquarium? Do I want a glass tank or one made of acrylic? Do I need an aquarium stand to hold the tank? Do I want a pre-made tank or a custom built one? The second thing that you may need to purchase is substrate.
Here are some questions that you will need to personally answer: Do I want substrate, such as coral sand, live sand, gravel, or stones in my tank? Or do I want no substrate? If I want gravel or stones, what kind, or what colors, do I want? How much substrate do I want? Item number three involves filters.
So this brings up a few important questions: Do I require a filter for the size of my tank, if so, what type(s) are available? Mechanical, chemical, or biological filter? Diatom, HOB(hang on back), submersible, wet/dry, under-gravel, canister, etc.
which filter(s) are best for me? Considering the size of my tank, how big of a filter do I need to match it? A 4th thing that you may want to have for your fish tank is a background of some sort.
Question: Is it possible to paint the back of my tank for a solid background? Where can I buy background pictures to tape to the back of my aquarium? Am I crafty enough to make an in-tank background? Do I need a background or can I go without one? A definite fifth item that you will have to have is a heater.
Questions under consideration: To maintain an even temperature in my tank what wattage of heater is required? What style of heaters are offered for aquariums? 6th item essential for you new aquarium is a thermometer.
Question: How many thermometer options are there and which one is right for my tank? 7th item that you will probably need for your home aquarium is lights.
Questions: Since I am wanting a freshwater tank, what kind of lighting do they recommend? How many watts is it going to take to light my tank successfully? Is it necessary to have my lights on a timer? What is all the hype about moon lights? A good test kit(s) is the eighth item needed for a freshwater tank.
Question you will need to ponder: What is the best kit to have and why? 9th thing that you should have on hand is freshwater aquarium chemicals.
Questions: Could there be chemicals in my tap water that could harm my tank mates? What chemicals can help me to reduce the danger? What serious situations could develop overtime in my aquarium that may take some chemicals to fix? The tenth thing that I will need to purchase for my tank is livestock.
Here are some questions that you will need to personally answer: What type(s) of fish am I going to add? If I put in different species, are they compatible with one another? How many can I stock without harming the ecosystem? Do I need creatures that are considered cleaners of the tank? What types of food do I need? What special parameters are needed to keep my fish healthy? Home Aquarium Conclusion These are just some of the basic things that you will need or may need to have in order for you to have a successful home aquarium.
Obviously there could be a few more things needed, and some of the listed items may not be needed at all, but it is still good to be aware of what is available.
Always do research ahead of time and if you have any questions search the Internet and/or ask your local fish store experts.
However, you will need to know exactly what you need in order to get started.
I have included in this article a few basic things that you will probably need to have for a fresh water fish tank in your home.
10 Items You May Need for your Home Aquarium The first thing that you need to purchase is an aquarium, or fish tank.
Here are some questions that you will need to personally answer: What size of tank do I want? Where am I going to place my aquarium? Do I want a glass tank or one made of acrylic? Do I need an aquarium stand to hold the tank? Do I want a pre-made tank or a custom built one? The second thing that you may need to purchase is substrate.
Here are some questions that you will need to personally answer: Do I want substrate, such as coral sand, live sand, gravel, or stones in my tank? Or do I want no substrate? If I want gravel or stones, what kind, or what colors, do I want? How much substrate do I want? Item number three involves filters.
So this brings up a few important questions: Do I require a filter for the size of my tank, if so, what type(s) are available? Mechanical, chemical, or biological filter? Diatom, HOB(hang on back), submersible, wet/dry, under-gravel, canister, etc.
which filter(s) are best for me? Considering the size of my tank, how big of a filter do I need to match it? A 4th thing that you may want to have for your fish tank is a background of some sort.
Question: Is it possible to paint the back of my tank for a solid background? Where can I buy background pictures to tape to the back of my aquarium? Am I crafty enough to make an in-tank background? Do I need a background or can I go without one? A definite fifth item that you will have to have is a heater.
Questions under consideration: To maintain an even temperature in my tank what wattage of heater is required? What style of heaters are offered for aquariums? 6th item essential for you new aquarium is a thermometer.
Question: How many thermometer options are there and which one is right for my tank? 7th item that you will probably need for your home aquarium is lights.
Questions: Since I am wanting a freshwater tank, what kind of lighting do they recommend? How many watts is it going to take to light my tank successfully? Is it necessary to have my lights on a timer? What is all the hype about moon lights? A good test kit(s) is the eighth item needed for a freshwater tank.
Question you will need to ponder: What is the best kit to have and why? 9th thing that you should have on hand is freshwater aquarium chemicals.
Questions: Could there be chemicals in my tap water that could harm my tank mates? What chemicals can help me to reduce the danger? What serious situations could develop overtime in my aquarium that may take some chemicals to fix? The tenth thing that I will need to purchase for my tank is livestock.
Here are some questions that you will need to personally answer: What type(s) of fish am I going to add? If I put in different species, are they compatible with one another? How many can I stock without harming the ecosystem? Do I need creatures that are considered cleaners of the tank? What types of food do I need? What special parameters are needed to keep my fish healthy? Home Aquarium Conclusion These are just some of the basic things that you will need or may need to have in order for you to have a successful home aquarium.
Obviously there could be a few more things needed, and some of the listed items may not be needed at all, but it is still good to be aware of what is available.
Always do research ahead of time and if you have any questions search the Internet and/or ask your local fish store experts.
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