Everything You Need to Know About Buying Aquarium Supplies

Want to add a tranquil, calm tone to your home environment? These days, when millions of people are working from home and anxiety levels are running on high, any method of stress relief is helpful. Being surrounded by the element of water has been found to help many people relax. While not everyone can fit a fountain, you can always try to create an oasis with a water plant bowl in your garden or simply bring in an aquarium in your living or home office.

Having an aquarium will offer additional benefits besides the relaxing presence of water. An aquarium means that you get to have some cute and colourful aquatic pets. Owning a pet and the benefits it has for people’s health are typically associated with traditional pets, like cats and dogs. But there is a reason why many modern offices and health clinics have fish tanks in them. According to some studies, aquariums could improve humans’ physical and mental wellbeing and reduce heart rate and high blood pressure.

Fish are often seen as simple, no-fuss pets. They don’t require much care and keeping, but setting up an aquarium is a serious and large project that requires proper planning and adjustment. Keep in mind the space you have available, choose materials carefully and ensure enough swimming space and surface area for air exchange. If you’re working with a heavy aquarium, you’ll need a stand as well. Make sure to use a real aquarium stand designed to hold the weight of your aquarium.

What Supplies Do You Need for a Fish Tank?

If you want to have a beautiful feature, begin with carefully selecting your aquarium equipment. These pieces work together to create a healthy, clean and attractive aquatic environment. You can find a variety of aquarium supplies online, from essential pieces to accessories, maintenance supplies, food and more. Here is a list of the more common aquarium supplies and what you need to know about each.

Light

The aquarium light serves two main purposes – illuminating the aquarium so that everyone gets to see its cute inhabitants, and providing light crucial for photosynthetic life in the aquarium. Check if the bulb is included with the light fixture and if it’s not, make sure to purchase one.

Filtration System

A filtration system is the most important piece of aquarium equipment when it comes to hygiene and keeping the little fishies healthy. It helps maintain the water quality by efficiently removing harmful materials and waste. There are many different filters available, so for an appropriate selection make sure the size of the filter is suitable for the size of the aquarium.

Heater

Stable water temperature is necessary for the health of your aquarium environment. Aquarium heaters keep the water temperature stable and within a safe range. There are many different types and styles to choose from – glass or plastic, hang-on-the-tank models or submersible ones. Some have a numerical setting, while others have an up and down setting. Most heaters come with a suggested aquarium size that can help you choose the right one.

Substrate

A substrate is a material that lines the bottom of the aquarium. Apart from the decorative benefits it provides, it can assist filtration as well, by creating the conditions necessary to colonize microorganisms and beneficial bacteria that can keep the balance of nutrients in the water in check.

Usually, small and smooth dark-coloured gravel is used, but depending on your taste, and whether you set up a salt or fresh water tank, you can choose decorative items to personalise and add the finishing touch of your aquarium. Make sure that anything you place in the aquarium is thoroughly rinsed and safe for the fish.

When looking for aquariums supplies online, you can easily find substrate cleaners and plant purifiers that can help you maintain the quality of your aquarium system and the health of the fish. That way the fish will feel more comfortable and your aquarium will look clean and well maintained at all times.

Water Conditioner

Choose a water conditioner that will take proper care of chlorine, ammonia and heavy metals. You’ll need to apply it to the tap water when filling the tank and for regular water changes as well. It will help maintain the water clean and chemically-balanced, so the fish can be safely added to the aquarium.

Test Kits

To keep the fish healthy, you need to maintain the water quality at the highest level. For that purpose, you can get test kits and monitor important aquarium parameters such as ammonia, nitrate and pH. Also, you can find nitrate, hardness, alkalinity, chlorine tests and more. Regular routine testing will let you know if the aquarium water is within an acceptable range for healthy aquarium system.

Algae Scrubber

Algae can grow in an aquarium, so an algae pad or scrubber is an essential piece of maintenance equipment. It’s a very convenient cleaning tool that can help you get rid of the algae efficiently.

Fish Food

When it comes to fish food, most people wonder how much they need, especially when getting started with aquariums. Very often fish owners buy too much food and overfeed their fish unintentionally. Before you make your next fish food purchase, you should know that fish food doesn’t retain its nutritional value for a long time after the package is opened. That’s why the best you can do at the beginning until you realise how much your fish eat, is to purchase small containers of food.

Most commonly, fish needs to be feed twice and you’re supposed to give them as much as the food they can eat in 3 to 5 minutes. If all the food’s gone before this time, you may give them a little bit more. If you notice that after 5 minutes, there is still food left, it means you gave them too much food. Young fish should be fed more often, 3 to four times approximately. Make sure not to feed the fish too much as overfeeding may cause fatty livers in fish and food leftovers can pollute the aquarium system and harm the inhabitants.

If you’re worried about feeding your fish while you’re on vacation, you can get some fish feeder blocks that will take care of your fish food while you’re away.