Tropical Fish Keeping

Finding the Parts

First and foremost, you need a fish tank.  To begin you must consider where you are going to place the tank.  One gallon of water weighs about 8-1/2 pounds, so a relatively small ten gallon tank will weigh at least 90 pounds, and 

Second, consider where you will place this tank relative to the amount and the type of light source that it is exposed to.  Too much sunlight will cause an excess of algae growth and too little light is harmful to the overall health of the fish.  Considering that a artificial light source can serve as well as sunlight, a location outside of direct sunlight is preferable.

Third, the tank must be positioned near an electrical outlet.  If you need to place the tank further away than a few feet, then I would suggest that a heavy-duty fuse resettable power strip be used to protect against electrical shocks.

Once you have resolved these issues, it is time to buy the equipment.  It is best to start with at least a ten gallon tank, because anything smaller would not be of adequate volume to allow for any mistakes in a monthly maintenance schedule (more on this will be covered in Maintenance).  If you have the facilities and the money, it is better in the long run to buy a larger tank initially, partially because the economy of scale and also because once you see a larger successful tank setup, you're just wonder if you made a mistake going for the smaller tank.

Going to your locally runned pet store might seem like the best way to proceed, however, I have found that generally they give you a low price on the tank, and then raise the prices on the rest of the equipment that you are going to need.  Unless you find a special or coupon that will save you on the purchase of a tank, without buying further equipment, I would suggest that you visit one of the state- or nationwide pet supply chains (such as Petsmart or  Pet Supermarket  ), or one of your local K-Mart or Wal-Mart stores.  Or consult, one of these web sites (they can usually supply all the parts needed, except for the fish tanks themselves) at substantial savings:
http://www.petwhse.com/
http://www.thatpetplace.com/
http://www.petsmart.com/
 

• Gravel at the rate of one to two pounds per gallon of water (whatever color you prefer).
• An appropriate sized undergravel plate that will cover the bottom of the tank completely.
• A outside power filter with a flow of 8 gallons per hour per gallon of water (a 10 gallon tank needs at least a 80 gallons per hour rated flow).  This will also involve the additional costs of filter pads and materials.  

• An aquarium top with a built-in florescent bulb (hoods with incandescent bulbs are cheaper, but are less reliable, need frequent bulb replacements, cost more to operate, and generate very high heat output). 

• Chemicals to treat the water before the fish are added and during routine Maintenance (commonly known as water conditioners).

• An aquarium heater with built-in thermometer and a power rating of at least 50 watts per 10 gallons.

• A stick-on-the-glass, thru-the-glass magnetic or suction-cup thermometer (your choice).

• Any decorations that you like (but make sure that the fish have open swimming areas available).

• A multi-plug surge suppressor.