The addition of a freshwater aquarium to your home can transform it into a relaxing and beautiful space. Watching the colorful fish swim, interact with each other and feed can be an entertaining as well as an educational experience. Freshwater aquariums are particularly good teaching tools for young children and they bring a natural an organic feel to any room in your home. Many people choose to set up a freshwater aquarium in their living room but you can place it in the study to watch in between working or in a child's room where they can be involved in the feeding and breeding of the fish. Wherever you choose to display your freshwater fish there are some important things you need to know before you set up a freshwater aquarium.
Follow this useful step by step guide and enter an amazing underwater world in no time:
Setting up the Tank
* Clean the tank, gravel and your chosen decorations with non-soap based cleaning products. Your local aquarist will be able to recommend a suitable one
* You should set up a freshwater aquarium in a carefully chosen location. Choose a place where it will be visible to all who use the room, perhaps in view of a couch or dining room table. Never place a tank in direct sunlight or near a window that gets the sun's glare. Naturally it will need to be near an electrical outlet so you can hook up your filter system. Don't place your tank where it will get a draft.
* Install the aquarium's filtration system by following the manufacturer's instructions to the letter. There are different models available and all installations have unique requirements.
* Add enough clean gravel for the tank size - about one pound of gravel for every gallon of water the tank holds. Clean your gravel by boiling it. (i.e. if it isn't plastic!).
* Place your chosen water plants into the bottom of the tank, anchoring each in the layer of gravel.
* If your aquarium tank isn't level place a ¼ inch Styrofoam sheet under it. This will distribute the weight evenly and prevent a nasty accident or wobbly, unstable tank. An unbalanced tank causes the seams to be stressed and a leak will result.
