How to Set Up an 18-gallon Eclipse Freshwater Aquarium

In order to set up an 18-gallon eclipse freshwater aquarium you need a tank, a light, a heater, a filter, gravel and decorations. You can buy these separately or as a kit. After you complete the set up, you need fish. Read on to learn how to set up an 18-gallon eclipse freshwater aquarium.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Look at the different 18-gallon eclipse aquarium tanks in the store. Decide between just buying a tank and then adding what you want to it, or buying the aquarium with everything included.

2. Price the different parts you need versus buying an aquarium with everything included. Just to get started you have to have the following: the eclipse aquarium, a cover with a light, a heater, a filter and gravel.

3. Start to set up your aquarium by opening all the things you have brought. Make sure you have a place for your aquarium--you can buy a stand or you can use a space you already have.

4. Put the light bulb into the cover, hang the heater on the aquarium, rinse the gravel and add it to your aquarium. Then put the filter together, add some water to prime it and hang it on the aquarium. Air stones are not a requirement for an aquarium but they do aid in keeping your fish healthy. You must have an air pump to run the air stones.

5. Add water to your freshwater aquarium and plug in the filter and heater. Set the heater to 75 degrees--the recommended temperature for freshwater fish.

6. Decide on the decorations you want to add to your tank. Some people prefer to add the decorations before they put in the water since this makes it easier for them to arrange. You can find numerous decorations for your aquarium--treasure chests, waterfalls and no fishing signs are a few.

7. Buy plants for your aquariums. These come in a variety of sizes and can be real or fake. Real plants require more care--you have to feed them and maintain them just as you do your fish. Real plants not only give your fish extra care by providing oxygen, but they also make good hiding places.

8. Put the cover on the aquarium, plug it in and your fish tank is ready for fish when the temperature reaches the desired range.

Tips & Warnings

• Read about the various fish that you want to buy, so you know you have the right temperature and food for them.
• Hiding places are necessary when you have small and large fish--the little ones need to be able to hide from the larger ones--and when you have fish that have live babies.
• Try to find a permanent place for your aquarium from the start, moving it can be a challenge.
• Most tanks come with a thermometer built into it, but if yours doesn't you have to purchase one.