How to build an aquarium

Author: Peter Berry
Date Of Creation: 20 February 2021
Update Date: 23 December 2024
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Content

Before choosing to set up an aquarium, the tutor must consider the animals' welfare and answer some questions such as: do they have enough space to move around? Do you have quality food? Are there places to hide? Are the lighting and temperature adequate? What kind of aquarium should I have? How many different species of fish can I have in the same aquarium? These are some of the questions that need to be answered from venturing into aquarium hobby.

As you can understand, setting up and maintaining an aquarium and its ecosystem is not an easy task and it is not limited to putting only water, plants and fish in a container. An aquarium demands a lot dedication time, knowledge and patience. To set up a successful aquarium, your concern will have to cover all the constituents of the aquarium, such as aquarium format and material, location, substrate, filters, lighting, water temperature, types of fish, etc.


To know what kind of aquarium to choose, which is the most suitable for someone beginner and how to maintain it, continue reading this article by PeritoAnimal about How to build an aquarium and how to get started in the art of aquarium hobby.

Building an Aquarium: Basics

Before starting, you must understand that an aquarium is not just a decorative and relaxing object, it contains an ecosystem that you will be responsible for managing and maintaining its balance. Preventing fish from dying, from getting along well and from overgrowing plants is no easy task.

O fishkeeping or aquarium hobby and the art of raising fish, plants or other beings in aquariums, with ornamental or study finish. It is one of the most interactive and educational hobbies of all.


There are two types of aquariums:

  • aquariums of fresh water
  • aquariums of salty water

Which can still be:

  • aquariums of cold water
  • aquariums of hot water

Each of them has specific species, check which cold water fish and salt water fish you can have at home.

Don't forget that some exotic species can be majestic to admire, but should not be purchased as they are very demanding in their maintenance and are in danger of extinction. Do not collaborate with illegal trafficking.

In the next topics we explain how to set up an aquarium and what are the main issues to be aware of.


Choose the ideal aquarium

First of all, the tutor must think about the size of the aquarium. Your size will depend the number of specimens and species you want to have. However, it is advisable to always start with an aquarium with more than 40 liters. An aquarium with a capacity of 200 liters is also a good place to start and allows you to have a considerable number of fish.

  • O rectangular shape it's the glassware are always one of the best options.
  • Regarding the type of aquarium, those of fresh water are easier to handle, being most recommended for beginners in aquarium hobby. already those of salt water require much more dedication, and should be reserved for the most patient and experienced.
  • Aquariums must not be washed with chemicals.
  • Never buy fish and aquarium at the same time. First buy the aquarium and set up the perfect environment.
  • You should test pH and ammonia regularly to ensure water quality.

Location and setup of the aquarium

Here are some important recommendations for where you should set up the aquarium:

  • Avoid direct sunlight or completely dark environments, extremes are not recommended. Prefer a bright place but no direct light.
  • If possible, the aquarium should be away from the other animals in the house like cats or dogs, as they can be a source of stress for fish, and may even cause their death.
  • Avoid places with a lot of vibration, noise or large variations in temperature.
  • The larger the aquarium, the more stable the furniture that supports it. Don't forget that each liter is equivalent to almost a kilo of weight.
  • Also, the location must be from easy access for changing filters and renewing water and near a power source for enlightenment.

Aquarium Filter

You filters ensure cleanliness and water quality, the environment of fish and aquatic plants. Each filter must be suitable for the aquarium's water capacity, as it will have to be sufficient to ensure effective water filtration.

Filters can be:

  • Internal, generally the best known in Brazil are the background biologicals. These filters consist of a kind of plate with perforations that are kept at the bottom of the aquarium together with a pump or a curved piece through which the water source and a porous stone pass. This type of pump causes a lot of noise, so if you choose this type of filter, you should choose a submerged pump to be as quiet as possible. In addition, the simultaneous use of an external filter is essential.
  • External and electric. They filter the entire environment, retain dirt (mechanical filtration), absorb toxic elements (chemical filtration), move water to prevent its stagnation and allow its oxygenation (biological filtration.

aquarium lighting

THE lighting is essential so that natural aquatic plants, if any, carry out photosynthesis and oxygenation of water. Furthermore, it ensures that provitamins and calcium are fixed in the fish's organism. It is usually advisable to resort to a artificial fluorescent light, through special lamps, which must be about 10 centimeters above the water level.

The lighting time should be between 9 to 10 hours on, as too much light leads to overgrowth of natural plants.

Heating and thermometer

THE water temperature is an extremely important factor, as the lives of animals are at stake:

  • Generally, the heat source must be close to the water outlet to homogenize the temperature of the water as it reenters the environment.
  • Hot water fish must be at a controlled temperature between the 21 and 25º C.
  • O thermometer It is an important tool to control the temperature, as well as the thermostat to prevent temperature fluctuations.

Aquarium substrate

O substrate it can be of various colors and shapes. THE fine neutral sand it is the most recommended substrate (river sand and basalt gravel), however it must be moved frequently. It should have a slight slope towards the back of the aquarium and about two inches high. Contrary to what it might seem, using more substrate is not an advantage, on the contrary, it causes debris accumulation and makes cleaning difficult.

Heads up: some substrates can change the pH of the water, putting the lives of living beings at risk.

Aquarium Decoration

Always give preference to natural decoration such as stones, logs and plants. Don't forget that the more you mimic the animals' natural environment, the better for them. Find out which freshwater plants are best suited for your aquarium in this article.

Insertion of fish

Having almost all the elements ready to have an aquarium, the next step is choose the fish. Fish need a biologically stable environment. Below, we indicate some recommendations for inserting fish in your new aquarium in a balanced and safe way:

  • Before buying the fish, you must define right from the start. which and how many fish will you want.
  • After setting the number of animals, acquire the animals little by little. You should never put them all in the aquarium at once!
  • If you want more different species, you must have fewer animals.
  • If you want less species, you can have more animals.
  • When buying animals, it is important to know that they only last 2 hours in the bag, so avoid very long journeys.
  • Do not immediately open the contents of the bag into the aquarium, in fact you should collect some of the aquarium water and place it inside the bag so that the animal(s) get used to it. Never pour water from the bag into the aquarium, it can come contaminated or with parasites. Discard the water, previously transferring the animals with the help from a network.
  • The first fish to inhabit the aquarium must be a fish from a small species. Let him get used to the environment and only then place the second largest fish, and so on. This procedure is very important to reduce the stress of the animals, respect their limits and minimize predation on the little ones, in addition to avoiding overloading the filters.
  • It is important that you know the size of the fish as an adult so that you know the space it requires.
  • Small fish live an average of 3 years and the largest can reach 10 years or more (if they live in a balanced environment).
  • Check our article for the main errors that lead to the death of aquarium fish.
  • THE food it can be done automatically or manually. You choose. However, it is more practical and controlled if you choose an automatic feeder, which feeds with a certain frequency and quantity you want.

If you want to read more articles similar to How to build an aquarium, we recommend that you enter our Basic Care section.