Are you in need of Decorations for the Aquarium?
– Brightening up your Marine Tank!
Sam Weston


Now for the fun part – saltwater aquarium decorations are one
aspect of marine fish keeping where you can really allow your
creativity to reign free. A variety of decorations are
available - from backgrounds, ceramic, resin or plastic
ornaments, real or false corals and shells and even plants the
sky is (well almost) the limit when it comes to creating a
marine world for your fish and other invertebrates.

Saltwater aquarium decorations are fun to buy because unlike
the other inhabitants of your tank they don’t require any
special care! You won’t need to feed them, provide special
habitats and they can’t get sick or die so they are relatively
hassle free! A tank without any decor is dull but that’s not
all.

A marine tank without any saltwater aquarium decorations is not
very exciting AND it can be unhealthy for your fish. Using tank
decor makes it possible to break up the physical environment of
the tank and is important both for the biological and
psycho-social well-being of the fish in your tank. This is
because using tank decorations provides hiding places, areas
for food to grow on and microbe activity that keeps your tank
healthy.

Add to this the fact that saltwater aquarium decorations are
nice to look at and fun to work with and you’ll begin to see
that decor is essential in any marine tank. The best way to
choose your marine tank decor is to visit a store that allows
you to see saltwater aquarium decorations in an actual tank,
not just on a rack or a table.


Some examples of saltwater aquarium decorations you might like
to try in your marine tank are:

Belching clams and treasure chests – These are bubbling and air
actuated action ornaments. Spacemen, submarines, clams, and
treasure chests are always firm favorites. Even a frog on a log
and airstones, are fun saltwater aquarium decorations. The
display should be well lit and there should be plenty of
bubbles for the best effect!

So what other options are there for saltwater aquarium
decorations? What about different and interesting backgrounds?
You can purchase a variety of backgrounds like marinescapes,
paint-on materials, foils, mirrors and cork stock. You can even
buy an in-tank diorama! Display the background effectively and
choose tank décor that suits its theme.

Rocks are another good choice for saltwater aquarium
decorations. You can choose from sandstones, volcanic and
metamorphic rock or even plastic. Some rocks don’t have any
impact on water quality while others improve the water quality.
If you aren’t sure of a certain rock, play it safe and leave it
out. Try pieces of tufa, igneous, silicious/petrified woods),
and brackish and African Great Lakes systems calcareous "base"
rock. You can usually but rocks by the pound or the ‘piece’.
Some rock types are natural while others are artificial.

Driftwood is a great idea for saltwater aquarium decorations.
It might be self-sinking or weighted and wither chemically or
physically inert or live. Don’t try to cure your own woods.
It’s just too time consuming and expensive.

Corals and shells can also be used as saltwater aquarium
decorations. Always try to use those from a natural marine
source.

Marbles are traditional saltwater aquarium decorations. They
can be used underwater – whole circular to flat, marbles and
crushed glass are popular in marine tanks. However marbles
don’t make for a good biological substrate. They do provide
fantastic color to any tank, though.

Faux natural saltwater aquarium decorations are another way of
pepping up your marine tank. You can choose from fake rocks,
logs, shells, coral, ships and more. Fake they might be but
some look quite attractive when arranged properly; so don’t
overlook these decorations.

Plastic plants are another option you might want to make use of
for your saltwater aquarium decorations. You can obtain some
good likenesses of marine plants like sagittaria-turtle grass
and vallisneria-zostera for example so don’t overlook them and
use them to supplement your real plants while they are growing.

Your choice of saltwater aquarium decorations is up to you but
there are some general guidelines to bear in mind when making a
choice.

Always make sure that your saltwater aquarium decorations don’t
have any sharp edges on which your fish might cut themselves.
Never use any substances (rocks, shells etc) that might give
off toxic chemicals into the water. Choose shapes and designs
that make suitable hiding places for shy animals and good
substrates for the growth of marine plants.

Also make sure that your saltwater aquarium decorations are
very clean when you put them into your tank. Never use
decorations from a tank where the fish or plants are ill or
unhealthy in any way. Make sure that there are no spaces within
the decorations where fish might get trapped and die.

The best saltwater aquarium decorations don’t have to be
particularly fancy. If you like spacemen and frogs go ahead and
decorate your tank with them – it’s your tank after all. If you
prefer a more elegant style choose natural, rather than faux
ornaments and study natural systems and try to duplicate some
of these environments in your tank.

You can easily glean this kind of information from books on
marine biology or by doing some research on the World Wide Web.
The more you learn the more accurate will be the marine world
you create and this will make your fish and other invertebrates
happy and healthy. The most important thing to remember is to
have fun with your saltwater aquarium decorations.

But don’t forget the health of your marine ecosystem. Try to
find the proper balance between the aesthetic value of your
tank and the well-being of your marine life. The only way to
make sure that your stock stay healthy is to study, study,
study the fish, invertebrates, plants and make sure you give
them what they need to survive. Good luck and enjoy your
saltwater aquarium decorations!

About The Author: Finally, All The Information You Will Ever
Need To Begin A Wonderful Love Affair With Fly Fishing! Visit
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