Aquarium Design

Tips For Choosing An Aquarium

There is a wide range of sizes and shapes of aquariums as well as a choice of glass or acrylic aquariums, so how do you choose the best aquarium for your home and for the fish you intend to keep? We have put together a guide to help you to choose the perfect aquarium.

Where to Locate Your Aquarium

The first thing to decide before you make a purchase is the location for your new aquarium. You must take account of the final weight of the aquarium when filled with water if you intend to place it on a shelf or table. A twenty gallon tank, once filled, will weigh about two hundred pounds! Do you need a stand or a specially designed cabinet?

Aquarium Size

Aquariums for the home come in a huge range of sizes from tiny glass bowls to huge five hundred gallon tanks. You will want an aquarium that is the right size for your home and for your fish. The first thing to consider is the location you intend for the aquarium. Measure the area to ensure the aquarium you choose will fit.

One thing to consider is that a bigger aquarium requires less maintenance. Small aquariums are much harder to keep the water balance correct, are easy to overcrowd and rotting food or vegetation can have an immediate affect on the health of the fish. A good size for a beginner is between twenty and thirty gallons. Decide how many fish you wish to keep. Very roughly you can keep one inch of fish to every gallon of water, but remember this is a rough estimate and a lot will depend on the type of fish and how well maintained the aquarium is. Always understock a tank rather than overstock!

The best way to choose the size of the tank is to purchase the biggest tank within your budget that will fit comfortably in the location you have chosen.

Aquarium Shapes

Since the introduction of acrylic aquarium, different shapes have been added to the traditional rectangular shape including cylinder, hexagon and round aquariums. There are also aquariums designed to be wall mounted and coffe table aquariums. Despite all these innovative designs the rectangular aquarium is still the best as the the area of water surface compared to the water volume is large which is important for allowing the exchange of gases with the air. Other shapes, with a smaller surface area compared to water volume, will often need more frequent water changes and more maintenance.

Do You Need a Glass or Acrylic Aquariums?

Both materials for aquariums have their advantages and disadvantages. The traditional glass aquarium is heavy and can spring leaks at the seams. Leaks are easy to fix however and usually only occur in an older aquarium. They are usually cheaper than acrylic aquariums. They only come in rectangular or square shapes.

The newer acrylic aquariums are lighter than glass and come in all sorts of innovative shapes. They rarely spring leaks as there are no seams. They are more expensive than glass aquariums but generally last longer. They are easy to scratch however so never clean with any kind of abrasive chemical or other chemicals which can fog the glass. Acrylic aquariums used to yellow with age but the newer materials stay clear throughout their lifetime.

Advantages

Acrylic Aquariums : long lasting, leak free, innovative shapes

Glass Aquariums : Cheap

Disadvantages

Acrylic Aquariums : expensive, easily scratched

Glass Aquariums : Heavy, tend to spring leaks

About the Author

For more information about aquariums and fish keeping and some good deals on aquariums check out
Cheap Aquarium
or
Cheap Acrylic Aquariums

Visita a Aquarium Design Amano

Aquarium Fish Tank Curve Design Green Plastic Plant Ornament 11.8″ $21.92

Green Artificial Curved Design Aquascaping 9.8″ Width for Aquarium $8.65

Pine Design Aquarium Fish Tank Plastic Plant Ornament $8.83

12.6″ High Coconut Tree Design Aquarium Plastic Plant Decor w Ceramic Base $11.99

Aquarium Starfish Design Base Green Plastic Grass 4 Pcs $9.27

10″ Bar Design Aquarium Tank Air Stone Airstone Green $6.20

Dark Pink Coral Design Decorative Ornament for Aquarium $4.30

Orangered Crab Design Ceramic Decor for Fish Tank Aquarium $5.17

Green Coral Design Decration Aquarium Decor Ornament $3.51

Aquarium Green Fin Design Artificial Fish Ornament 3Pcs $3.21

2 Pcs Green Lotus Leaf Design Plastic Grass Decor for Aquarium $9.26

NATURE’S DESIGN XSMALL STARWORT AQUARIUM PLANT $0.99

Green 12″ Bar Design Aquarium Tank Air Stone Airstone $5.90

Fish Aquarium Arched Design Green Plastic Plants Decor $15.92

Releases Bubbles Column Design Air Stone for Aquarium $3.97

Dosing pump, Peristaltic dosing pump for aquarium DIY suction cup new design $29.99

Reptile/Aquarium Heat Mat – Safe Carbon Fiber Design $13.50

Murano Italian art glass SEGUSO swimming fish AQUARIUM DESIGN 2 pc cigarette set $525.00

Fish Aquarium Tank Green Plastic Lawn Design Decor $12.32

Tortoise Shape Design Bubble Air Stone Blue for Aquarium $4.95

Eclipse Seamless Aquarium Systems Kits (3 designs to choose from) Lot of 2 $149.99

Eclipse Seamless Aquarium Systems Kits (3 designs to choose from) Lot of 2 $144.99

Eclipse Seamless Aquarium Systems Kits (3 designs to choose from) Lot of 2 $149.99

Fish Tank Aquarium Green Plastic Lawn Design Decor $4.89

Tree Design Underwater Ornament Fuchsia for Aquarium $9.72

Ceramic Base Colorful Leaves Purple Ball Design Decor for Aquarium $9.44

Coral Design Purple Silicone Ornament Aquarium Decor $3.91

Aquarium Landscaping Short Leaf Design Red Green Plastic Plants 10″ $11.75

Curve Design Plastic Water Plant Decoration Green Fuchsia for Aquarium Fish Tank $7.43

Curve Design Plastic Water Plant Decoration Green Fuchsia for Aquarium Fish Tank $8.08

Fuchsia Green Aquarium Fish Tank Curve Design Aquatic Plastic Plant Ornament 6″ $8.08

Parallel 11 Gallon Designer Glass Aquarium $99.95

Aquarium Fish Tank Aquatic Curve Design Green Plastic Water Plant Ornament $7.59

Fish Tank Cylinder Design Aquarium Gray Air Stone $5.11

Releases Bubbles Round Design Air Stone for Aquarium $16.80

Aquarium Wht Mouth Design Plastic Fish Decoration 3 Pcs $4.23

Echinoidea Design Aquarium Silicone Ornament Yellow $4.48

Cylinder Design Fish Tank Aquarium Air Stones 2PCS $9.33

SAND Flattener Razor Blade stainless steel layout Tool aquarium landscrap design $9.77