My Kick-Ass Aquarium

I've been keeping aquariums and tropical fish for over fifteen years.

I understand what it's like to be a beginner. When I first started with tropical fish, I didn't really know what I was doing. Like most novices, I made a lot of common mistakes. Indeed, it was a bumpy ride for the first two or three years, but my perseverance ultimately did pay off. Currently, I have three thriving aquariums that I love.

Still, I could have avoided making many mistakes had there been information (that was simple to understand) readily available.

And, that's why I'm writing these articles. I want to share both my knowledge of aquariums and my experience with handling tropical fish.

My 55 Gallon Discus Fish Tank is my favorite of the three aquariums I have.

I set this aquarium up with a low maintenance routine in mind. Indeed, it has turned out to be an extremely low maintenance tank! It actually surpassed my expectations! I'm still amazed at how little work I have to do to keep it looking in tip top shape! This thing basically takes care of itself!

I hardly get any algae growth! I do partial water changes on a regular basis, but these go by smoothly and quickly. Since I don't overfeed my fish, there's very little waste material (detritus) that accumulates in the sand bed.

Also, when I travel, the aquarium goes for one or two months without a single water change! And, all remains well! Since the aquarium lights are turned on and off by an automatic timer (you can find one of these inexpensive timers at any hardware store), I just have a friend feed my beauties while I'm away! That's all there is to it!

I was able to create this low maintenance masterpiece simply by changing the way I did a few things. I learned that a simple setup, and one that relies primarily on biological filtration, provides the most stable and healthy environment for my fish.

I set my 55 gallon aquarium up in September 2003. Although, by this time, I had a lot of fish keeping experience, I still made one misguided choice which I later corrected: I initially used gravel for the bottom material (the substrate).

I really like natural looking aquariums, and adding live plants to a freshwater aquarium is an excellent way to create such a look. Indeed, a lush aquatic-garden brings the natural world right to your home.

Gravel substrates aren't bad, but they're not the best option for people who want to grow live plants.

That's partially because, unlike sand, gravel is prone to move around and damage delicate plant roots. The gravel tends to shift when you do maintenance, such as gravel "vacuuming", inside your fish tank. Even if you keep the gravel-vac away from the plants, the gravel around them will unavoidably move and disturb the roots.

Indeed, with a gravel substrate, I had success only with the hardier plant varieties. Much to my chagrin, I couldn't keep the majestic Tiger Lotus plant alive! Furthermore, the plants that I was able to keep in my aquarium grew very slowly.

So, I had to do something to remedy my plant problem.

In July 2004, I decided to switch to a sand bottom. Magically, the plants exploded into a lush bouquet of vibrant green foliage almost overnight. Well, it actually took about a week, but you get the idea.

Keep in mind, also, that I did not switch lighting or filtration type, and that I did not attach a CO2 reactor to the aquarium either. The only thing I changed was the substrate material!

Now that I armed my fish tank with a sand bottom, I decided to give the Tiger Lotus another shot.

This time, the beautiful plant not only survived, but grew wonderfully! For the first two months, it doubled in size on a weekly basis! Currently its roots occupy almost a third of the tank bottom, and yes, I do have to prune my Tiger Lotus often.

As an added bonus to providing live plants with an excellent substrate, the sand bottom has also optimized my fish tank's biological filter! That's because a grain of sand has a much higher surface to volume ratio than a grain of gravel. In effect, by switching to a sand bottom, I increased the total amount of surface area available for beneficial bacteria to grow on!

I'm very happy for having switched from gravel to sand.