Decor Advice

[Linway]

Hey all,

So me and my girlfriend picked up our first freshwater tank (95 litre glass aquarium W80 x D30 x H40cm) the other day and I'm going on Monday to buy decor for it and wondered if anyone can offer any ideas/experiences when it comes to decor?
Any dos/don'ts?
Tips regarding live plants?
Which materials (plastic, wood, rock, etc) are best to use?

With regards to live plants, I ordered this sand and it me films live plants but just wanted to ask about it before buying any... Would I need to add anything to it for live plants if we were to use them?
http/www.swelluk.com/aquarium/substrate-1695/sand-1696/swell-aquarium-silver-sand-377141.html

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated

 

[Chad]

A lot of décor is personal taste. I only do a natural Aquascape with live plants, driftwood, rocks, etc. But many people love the old fashioned treasure chests and sunken boats. If an item like that is made for aquariums then in terms of materials it's okay to use. Wood and rocks are a little tricky. Plants depend on light.
 
So...there's the factor of how much money and work you are willing to put into it. Tossing down some colorful gravel and a resin skull is cheap and quick but for many people it's not an environment they want to put their fish in.
 
Growing plants requires the right light and in many cases the right substrate. Gravel won't cut it for all plants.
 
Same goes for all fish. For example if you wish to keep corydora you will want sand, or at best rounded gravel as standard sharp-ish gravel can harm the fish.
 
All that above means the answer to your question really depends on what kind of tank you want to keep, what you want to keep in it, and your level of commitment to the hobby. Is it a hobby for you or are you just wanting to keep a few lovely fish to relax by?

 

[Megalodon]

im a fan of scenes...
sunken ruins, ship wrecks,underwater kingdoms...to me though,it has to maintain theme...
 
i also really appreciate the natural scapes...those can be so beautiful.
 
especially when they look like little trees on hills,i guess that falls into scenes lol

 

[Linway]

Same goes for all fish. For example if you wish to keep corydora you will want sand, or at best rounded gravel as standard sharp-ish gravel can harm the fish.

I have ordered sand (should be delivered today), I linked it in the original post

 

Growing plants requires the right light and in many cases the right substrate. Gravel won't cut it for all plants.

What are the benefits to live plants over plastic ones?
 

All that above means the answer to your question really depends on what kind of tank you want to keep, what you want to keep in it, and your level of commitment to the hobby. Is it a hobby for you or are you just wanting to keep a few lovely fish to relax by?

I guess somewhere in between those 2 things... We want the "lovely fish to relax by" but we both decided it would be a small hobby we could do together.

 

[mitch70]

I am in process of moving over from plastic to real plants, as stated above it all depends on your lighting , substrate etc to what plants you can keep. I am going along low tech route and have started out with Java Fern, Java Moss and Anubias. The movement comapred to the plastic is great, and they also help with oxygen exchange etc.
 
some plastic or silk though are very realistic and obviously your fish won't eat them and are very easy to keep clean etc.
 
it's all personal preference 

 

[Tim_UK]

we've never had any success with plants either in the garden or in water but as others have said the plastic ones nowadays look really nice - stick to a trusty supplier though if you go the plastic route as have read soem stories about cheap plastic ones giving off smells etc which might be bad for the fishes.

 

[Chad]

Plants absorb nutrients which helps kep the water clean and they produce oxygen which helps the fish thrive. They also produce more natural hiding places and cover. While fake plants can do that some of them are hard and even a bit sharp so the fish don't always get into them the same way they would with natural plants. There are some decor companies that are producing more natural fake plants for aquaria and that's great but not all shops carry them.
 
With both fish and plants I have learned over the years that selection is the key to success. There are fish and plants that are very easy to keep. Research and pick them and you will have greater success. Once people really get into the hobby aspect and, pardon the pun, get their feet wet, they often get more difficult species to deal with.
 
A betta and some cory (you have sand) with anubias would be a good choice. It's a lower light plant that is tied to rocks and drift wood so the cory can't uproot it and it has broad leaves so the betta will sleep on it. It's also slow growing so you won't spend a ton of time trimming it.
 

 

[levahe]

Keeping plants is very easy as long as you follow some general guidelines such as

Research the type of plants you want, choose easy to care for plants initially

Dose fertilsers

Keep the tank clean

Do water changes

Make sure your lights aren't too bright

As for substrate gravel/sand is fine I have never come across a plant that won't grow in gravel/sand

 

[Jay0173]

When introducing anything plastic to an aquarium you have to be careful that the plastic you choose is not the extruded type. This type leaches harmful chemicals that were used during the manufacturing process into the aquarium. To be on the safe side I would only introduce plastic ornaments or plants that have been designed specifically for use within an aquarium.

 

[Chad]

As for substrate gravel/sand is fine I have never come across a plant that won't grow in gravel/sand

Except for those plants that won't grow in either, meaning their roots need to be exposed to avoid rot.

 

[levahe]

As for substrate gravel/sand is fine I have never come across a plant that won't grow in gravel/sand

Except for those plants that won't grow in either, meaning their roots need to be exposed to avoid rot.

I was referring to a post above that said

"Growing plants requires the right light and in many cases the right substrate. Gravel won't cut it for all plants."

 

[Megalodon]

i cant wait to get myself a little tardis ornament. maybe a dalek and a cyber man..the best part of doctor who ornaments is that they can go with almost anything.