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.

Using an Aquarium Siphon

A siphon is a tube, made of rubber or plastic, by means of which water can be drawn out of the aquarium into a container which is at a lower level. A convenient size t use is a 5-foot length of 1-inch inside diameter heavy rubber tubing. Heavy-wall tubing is advisable to prevent kinking and collapsing. There are three methods for starting a siphon:

1. Holding the tube to form a U, put one end under the faucet. When water runs out of the other end, indicating that the tube is full of water, cover both openings with your thumbs. Hold one end underwater in the aquarium and the other end in a bucket lower than the aquarium. Release both ends. Once the flow has started, it will continue automatically.

2. Immerse the entire tube in a container of water, keeping the open ends higher than the center so that all the air runs out of it. Place a thumb over each opening, and then release both ends.

3. The method most frequently used by experts, because it is fastest, should first be practiced with a container of clear water. It involves placing one end of the siphon tube in the water to be siphoned out. The balance of the tube is allowed to hang down. Suck on the lower end until the flow starts, and then quickly drop it into the bucket. A little practice will enable you to tell by the sudden easing in the resistance of the suction pull that the water has come over the top of the loop and is starting down. It will, however, take a little practice so you won’t get a mouthful of water.

An 8- to 10-inch piece of rigid plastic tubing in the end of the siphon hose makes it easier to control and move. The short end in the aquarium is held in the right hand, which guides it over the bottom. The left hand directs the flow into the basin or bucket and regulates the flow, either by pinching the hose or by moving the thumb over the outlet opening.

Stop the flow, hold the suction end about 1 inch over some debris at the bottom of the aquarium, and release the flow momentarily. The debris will be sucked up like magic. By controlling the flow, a maximum of dirt and a minimum of water can be removed. A siphon can be used as a cleansing tool, as a means of emptying the aquarium of water, and as a way of removing gravel - providing the tube is wide enough. In any of these jobs, practice develops control. By putting a funnel at the siphon intake, the siphon will not pick up gravel - only the lighter material.

Surprisingly enough, fishes are seldom sucked up in a siphon. Ordinarily, they avoid it when they feel the suction, although when an aquarium is being emptied, fishes that remain as the water is lowered become panicky and will rush up the siphon tube. The rapid trip rarely injures them so long as they land in a container of water and not on a hard surface like the floor.

Lifting the siphon out of the water without closing the ends will empty the tube and break the suction. Should the siphon tube become clogged and resist efforts to blow it out, place it on the floor and walk along it to crush the clogging material.