For years I had admired beautiful aquascaped tanks: aquariums with live plants as well as fish and other aquatic life. I thought a tank like that would look beautiful in our home. But, the set-up seemed intimidating, so I pushed it off. When our little animal lover asked me to put one together, I finally decided to take the plunge. I am glad that I did, and I wanted to share my home aquascaping experience with you.
This article is not a step-by-step guide to aquascaping. There are many people better equipped to write and share those. For me, the problem was that many of those guides, while helpful, also made me feel like the process for setting up a tank was just not something I had the time or knowledge to do. I was intimidated! I am writing this article to tell you that it does not have to be that hard. You can aquascape.
Learn About Aquascaping
One of the tricky things about getting started in aquascaping is that there is just so much detailed information out there… and much of it seems to be contradictory. Aquascaping is a hobby that many people are incredibly passionate about. Because of this, they express very strong and definite opinions. When you are trying to collect information to start in the hobby yourself, it can be daunting to see so many strong opinions in direct opposition to one another. You might think: If these dedicated and experienced aquascapers cannot agree on the right thing to do, how can I even take the first steps?
Pick a Source
I encourage you to not let this be a barrier to getting started in aquascaping. Try this instead: read a post or two on several different blogs or grab a few books from the library. Select one of these sources that seems to fit with your personality and budget, and then move forward with that source. Once you are more experienced you will want to draw upon other sources, but in the beginning, find someone who can give you the basics and start there.
I started with a book an experienced friend trusted and shared with me. After getting set-up with that book and my friend’s advice, I expanded into reading a blog and watching a few videos on a supply store’s YouTube channel. You can find their basic beginner guide to home aquariums here. That was enough to give me what I needed. As I was beginning, all of the other chatter on the internet was too much. I needed to pick a source and stick with it (as long as it was working for me). For some helpful and specific advice, I also visited my local independent fish store.
Visit Your Local Fish Store
If you have a local fish store, I recommend paying them a visit and chatting with the folks there. After all the many strong (but faceless) opinions on the internet, it was so helpful to speak with someone in person. The employees at my local store were knowledgeable and reassuring. That is also where I purchased our fish, shrimp and snails. But, before I purchased any of that “livestock,” I simply went and had a conversation with the staff there about local water conditions, their stock and how long they thought I should wait before adding livestock to my tank.
Start Simple
Another side effect of looking for information from aquascaping’s passionate fan base is that many people spend a lot of money on this hobby. They have huge tanks, expensive filters and plants that require special lights and CO2 injection systems. Honestly, the start-up cost on all of that almost scared me off before I even got started.
When I paused and took a breath, I understood that many of those were things were upgrades I could make later if I wanted to do so. I just needed to start with simple supplies. I am providing links to the supplies I used. We receive a small commission from Amazon for referring you with these product links, but the price you pay does not change. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases which helps support this blog. When I finally took the plunge, this is what I got:
Aquascaping Equipment
- a simple ten gallon tank and an LED light
- a hang-on-the-back (HOB) filter
- a mechanical timer for the lights
- a submersible heater sized for my tank
- this water conditioner for removing chlorine and other chemicals
- aquarium test strips
- a small thermometer
- a simple gravel vacuum
- aquarium substrate soil
- aquarium sand
- driftwood and stone to create a hardscape
I am sharing my list of supplies not because I think you should get the same ones but just to give you an idea of how we got successfully started aquascaping at our house. There are many ways to get started, and this was ours.
We actually got the tank and light second-hand from a friend (and sanitized it thoroughly), but I provided links for the light we have. We considered switching out the light for one built for aquascaping, but we found this standard cover and light worked fine for our low light easy-growing plants. I currently use a coarse sponge in my filter to avoid buying expensive replacement cartridges.
Below is a photo of our beginning set-up before the plants grew-in and before we added fish, shrimp and snails. Keep reading for a peek at what it looks like today.
Aquascaping Plants
I selected hardy plants that required low light and no CO2 injection. I wanted plants of different heights with a variety of leaf shapes. Some do well attached to hardscape while others are best planted in the substrate. My choices were Bucephalandra kedagang, Hygrophila siamensis, Lagenandra meeboldii, Cryptocoryne parva and Cryptocoryne tropica. We were also gifted with some lovely java fern plants. We got our plants, rocks and driftwood here.
Take Your Time
I spent a lot of time placing and adjusting the elements of our tank. I tinkered with the height and slope of the substrate and moved the rocks and driftwood around until we were pleased. Finally, I filled the tank with plants and water, and then let the tank cycle and cycle and cycle. It was tempting to run out and get some fish, but we wanted to make a healthy home for them first. So, we let the filter run, we let the plants grow, and we tested the water repeatedly.
Select Fish, Shrimp or Snails For Your Tank
Eventually I went to our local fish store to find-out what aquatic creatures they had there and which ones would do well in our now cycled tank. I had the information I had learned about the water using our test strips, and that helped us select creatures well suited to our tank. Today, we have four White Cloud Mountain minnows, two nerite snails, and more Neocaridina shrimp than we can count (we started with a few and they multiplied).
Do Not Give Up!
We do not live underwater. It can be a little tricky understanding a whole new habitat, and establishing a tank does take time! I am so glad we dove into aquascaping. Our tank delights visitors, provides a focal point of calm for us and it is one of the most beautiful things in our home. We also love the opportunities for learning that the aquarium has provided for us. Give yourself some time and patience, and we hope you will love aquascaping too.
Thank you for reading about these easy beginner tips for aquascaping.
We hope you have felt encouraged by this post, and we invite you to check-out other material at MouseBrief.com. For a little aqua-inspiration, take a look at New Shedd Aquarium Exhibit Dazzles: Wonder of Water and How We Spent Our Time in Our Crystal Cove Cottage. And, for some underwater entertainment tonight, see Luca Movie Night: Discussion, Food and Activity Guide. Thanks again for reading!
