Fish Tank

Fish tanks always bring serene and colorful aquatic life into your very own home. After a stressful day, it is relaxing to watch the beauty of fish swim and interact with each other. Having a fish tank can also be an educational and entertaining experience. To maintain the habitat’s balanced environment for your fish to flourish, the right equipment is needed.

You would need to select the appropriate equipment for the fish and plant life in your tank. This selection process may sound tedious but once you familiarize yourself with what you need and how each equipment works, it would be a breeze to set up your aquarium.

The decision on the shape and size of your fish tank will usually be based on available home space and the number of fish you intend to keep. It also depends on the time and effort you can devote to the hobby. Bear in mind that your fish tank’s shape and size plays a vital role in choosing equipment.

Examples of Basic Freshwater Equipment

Substrate – this contributes to the biological filtration and shares the load in your actual filtering system. Different types of substrates include gravel, sand, aquatic soil, and river stones. Choosing the right substrate is very important when you are caring for bottom-dwelling types of fish because they will need specific substrates. For example, catfish will require smooth substrates so these won’t harm their skin while they’re swimming at the bottom of the tank.

Filtration – the three main systems are: mechanical, chemical, and biological. Mechanical filtration is responsible for removing bigger particles in the water through the use of a filter floss or a foam filter. Chemical filtration uses activated carbon to eliminate chemicals in the water that can be harmful for fish. Biological filtration makes use of porous media to generate beneficial bacteria to improve the nitrogen cycle in the tank.

Lighting system – lighting complements the whole setup of the aquarium, from its aesthetic value to its importance in the wellbeing of fish. Most fish kept by hobbyists prefer mellow lighting. If you are growing plants, you might need stronger light but bear in mind how these will affect the fish. You can set your lighting system to a 10-12 hour automatic timer so that your fish can have a steady source of light in the evenings. For tanks with plants, you can use a 2-5 watt/gallon lighting system.

Heater – coldwater fish do not need heaters but some of the more colorful tropical fish should have adequate heating in order to thrive. Two examples of heater types are inline and submersible heaters.

Photo: http://i792.photobucket.com/albums/yy210/drnknmnky132/Fish%20tank/Fishes.jpg

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