Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Buying Aquarium Substrate

Now that you have already set up your tank and have chosen the types of fish you want to keep as pets, it’s high time that you start decorating your aquarium. Aquarium decorations add more aesthetic appeal to your tank and also provide artificial shelter for your fish. Having a plain-looking aquarium is fine, but if you want to create a stunning vista out of your fish tank, you need to get the right aquarium decorations.

You need to remember that you just can’t carelessly use some kinds of substrates with certain types of aquariums. If you have a planted aquarium, for example, you should use a nutrient-rich layer for the plants to survive. Aquarium gravel is used by many aquarists, especially those who own tropical and fish-only tanks.

Some aquarium owners may find decorating the fish tank quite challenging. With the wide array of decorations sold nowadays, from fake plants to decorative rocks, choosing specific accessories and decor can be difficult. If you have some difficulty in choosing aquarium decorations, you can start by choosing a theme.

When you have a theme in mind, it will be easier for you to choose aquarium decorations. Perhaps you want to recreate a rock landscape for your fish tank. There are many rocks and stones ideal as fish tank decorations. You can also find fake ones, which may be slightly expensive.

If you only have fish in your aquarium, you can use aquarium gravel since it provides an ideal environment for the growth of beneficial bacteria. You can find coarse options and finer varieties of gravel in pet stores, from 3mm to 4mm in sizes.

One of the most effective ways to lend a more natural look to your tank is to add plants. You can choose among real plants and artificial decorative plants. Artificial plants as aquarium decorations are ideal if you have a fish-only aquarium.

If you have a planted aquarium, however, you can use live plants to create a unique and natural landscape for your tank. You need to make sure, however, that you use the right substrate when having live plants in your tank. While gravel is ideal as a top layer to provide anchor to your plants, the first layer should be a nutrient-filled substrate.

Fine gravel is more ideal for bottom dwellers or bottom feeders. If you have a planted aquarium, you will need to use a nutrient-rich layer as the base. Gravel may be used for the upper layer. For fish tanks with crustaceans such as crabs, aquarium gravel is also recommended.

Sean Kerring is an aquarium enthusiast and breeder who has been working with fish for more than twenty years, when his parents gave him his very first fish tanks. He always tries to use innovative and changingly colored aquarium lights to change the themes of each of his tanks, including changing aquarium substrate compounds.

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