Are Fish Tank Decorations Really That Necessary
The article concerns the question – Are Fish Tank Decorations Really That Necessary. Fish tank decorations seem to serve only one purpose, to make the aquarium look beautiful. The little castle or shipwreck turns the plain square container of water into something pleasing to the eye. But is it really that important? If there doesn’t seem to be a benefit to the fish, why bother spending the time and money planning an aquarium design and putting together a theme?
It is because the fish tank decor does in fact benefit the fish as well. The fish may be able to live without any type of aquarium decor in their living space but adding aquarium accessories to the tank will create a better environment for them to live in.
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Importance Of Fish Tank Decorations
The major importance that fish tank decorations play is to provide the fish with a hiding place. Throughout this website, I call these hiding places caves but they can come in a variety of shapes and sizes so I hope you don’t confuse the term cave with an actual cave. It just makes it more convenient to explain. Caves come in a variety of forms. You could simply stack up several larger rocks to form a natural one if you want to. On the other hand, there are literally hundreds of fish tank decor that provide ideal caves in the form of shipwrecks or miniature buildings.
What makes these caves important is the fact that when stressed, fish have a need to hide away to cool off. The stress can come from a variety of factors such as being observed too much, getting agitated from the tank glass being knocked on, other fishes in its space or simply from being a territorial variety. Then there is also the need to find a hidden spot to lay its eggs. Not providing a cave or hiding place can impact the health of your fish.
Choosing The Right Fish Tank Decorations
Since the aquarium decorations do play a part in the lives of your fish, it is therefore important to select the right ones so that it is beneficial. What you first want to look into providing, since it is that important, is your cave. In most cases, only one of the fish will claim the cave as its own, so you do not have to worry about how big it is. As long as it fits the fish, that is fine. But if you have a number of fish in your tank, you may want to look into providing more than one cave. The crucial thing that you have to look into about the cave is the size of the entrance.
It has to be big enough to fit any of the fish your have in your aquarium. If the hole is too small, the fish may try to get it but may get stuck inside and die. Also, don’t do the mistake a lot of people make by placing the aeration tube inside the cave. It may look cool watching the bubble rise out of the cave but it actually reduces the space inside for your fish and makes it too crammed for them.
Other Fish Tank Decorations
The cave is the most crucial piece of fish tank decorations. But is it necessary to place other ornaments as well. Well, that’s when it becomes more decorative then necessary. Small figurines, bridges and other decorative aquarium accessories are just that, decorative.
They serve no other purpose to the fish. Therefore, if all you have is just enough space for the cave, you don’t have to put anything else. If you have a small aquarium, look for fish tank decorations that look great on its own. Some samples of these are the Shipwreck Theme which I have mentioned a couple of times, or Castle Theme or even something unique like aquarium decor depicting broken antique vases like the one you see above. These are types of decorations that do not require any additional ornaments to look great. If you do want to place extra fish tank decorations, find ones that serve another purpose, such as aeration.
There are many fish tank decor that allow you to fit the aeration tube in them and that move as the bubbles brush past them. These moving tank decor makes the tank look more lively and interesting. The one you see below is an example that you could look at. But keep in mind the most important rule in fish tank decorating, do not reduce the swim space too much.
Do not put so much of fish tank decoration that it limits the amount of space the fish has to swim in. Between having no fish tank accessories and having lots that prevents the fish from swimming comfortably, go for having none. Remember, fish tank decorations are cool, they make the aquarium look interesting and do serve some purpose for the fish, but ultimately the most important factor in any fish tank is swim space.
