Tropical fish Tanks Guide to Lighting and Plants

Aquarium plants play multiple roles in the tank life: they decorate the aquarium and make it look beautiful, they are an attraction for the fish and some of them help regulate the oxygen level.

While completing the aquarium structure with plants, it is good to know a few facts.

One of them is to keep in mind that plants should decorate the aquarium but, at the same time, leave enough space for the fish to swim. For example, the feathery plants look much better when there are many of them in small clumps. This makes them seem like bushes. The tall, grassy type is better to be placed in rows.

Planting rooted plants into the tank sand can be done like this:
1. hold the tips of the bunch of roots between the thumb and second finger
2. put the rest into the sand
3. push the upper part of the roots with the first finger approximately 2cm into the sand
4. scrape some sand over the uncovered parts of the roots with the thumb and second finger

The same method is applied when planting rootless plants. The lower ends of the stems are squeezed together and treated like they were roots.

Another aspect is the water level in the tank. The water surface should be just up to the lower edge of the top angle iron of the tank. If the water level is bellow the top angle iron, the aquarium will look like a water container. Ideal is that when somebody looks at the aquarium from the front, that person should imagine that there is no water there and fish are swimming freely.

The lighting in the aquarium is also a vital element for the fish health and a key factor if you want to grow plants. The lack of light damages the plants and also causes the fish to lose their color: red can turn into pink and green to white.

You can choose natural light or artificial light or even a combination of both. If you want to expose the tank to just natural light, place it near the window that’s facing north. But if you want artificial light, you can choose between incandescent or fluorescent light. Whatever the type is, you must also be careful about the amount of light you have in your tank. Too much light can make the water green and too little will not help them grow. Most of the times, adjusting the light level is a mater of multiple trials and tests.

The lighting system should be made of wood and placed above the tank. Some of the most spectacular aquariums have the light placed behind.

Also, if there is no natural light during the day, leave the artificial light turned on. Fish breeders recommend that the aquarium is lightened for about eight hours a day. If after a few days you see that the water is turning green, reduce the amount of hours to 6 or 7.