Decorating Your Tropical Fish Tank

Tropical fish not only add to a home environment but they enjoy living in a pleasant environment in their own right. Choosing the right tropical fish tank decorations is not only a pleasant aspect of the hobby of keeping and raising them, but they will enhance your fish's daily lives.

Some decorations depend on the size and the volume of your fish population. If you have only one or two small fish in a modest-sized fish bowl, a bottom of marbles with one or two small pieces of driftwood and perhaps a single line of sea vegetation planted on that bottom will make a pleasant enough environment. Many fish keepers use artificial vegetation, but if you have a fishbowl or tank with a firm flat bottom you can actually bring in sea soil and real water plants for your fish and allow nature to take its course.

If you have a large aquarium with several fish, you should feel free to bring in much more. Driftwood and stones will work well for the tank bottom and rarely disturb the proper pH balance of your tank. If your stones and woods have large openings, your fish will enjoy these even more, though you can also arrange the stones or woods into small structures that still allow your fish to pass through or even rest inside. In the wild or in captivity, tropical fish love to feel as though they are exploring. When you clean your tank and replenish its foundations, be sure to re-arrange the stones, woods, and vegetation in a different way each time.

Though many aquarium owners still enjoy putting humorous items such as water wheels, plastic sunken ships, plastic deep-sea divers, and the like into their aquariums, the best tank decorations are nature's own. Because some water plants may be damaged or otherwise respond negatively to the aquarium's filtration system, you should consult with your fish dealer or expert to determine which plants are best placed where. Most, however, will likely advise that taller plants are best placed in the middle or to the rear of the aquarium while shorter plants are best placed toward the front or the sides.

Finally, many aquarium owners prefer to line the rear wall of their tanks with one or another image sheet. If your fish respond well to natural surroundings, a sheet containing a photograph of a natural underwater habitat should make them feel even more at home.