Making Sure Your Aquarium Decorations Are Safe

Website design By BotEap.comThere are a lot of creative things people do with materials around the house to create their own version of an awesome fish tank theme. Over the last decade, I have seen so many different things being placed in an aquarium, creating designs that have inspired my own concepts. And if what you want is a theme that stands out, that nobody on the face of the planet has, you can also do it. You’re not limited to buying store-bought accessories and decorations. Things you have around the house, trinkets and mantle decoration you no longer want can be transformed in many cases into super cool aquarium decoration.

Website design By BotEap.comBut not all items can be dropped into a water tank with fish. Remember, fish are living creatures. The water they swim in is their environment and the aquarium is a mini ecosystem that you will need to keep as close to their natural environment as possible. The things you put with them shouldn’t upset the delicate balance of the tank. You must not harm them in any way by injuring them or affecting their health.

Website design By BotEap.comThings that should never go in an aquarium

Website design By BotEap.comHere is a simple list of items that should not be placed inside the aquarium with the fish. While the actual list may be longer, here are the most common things you can accidentally put in there.

Website design By BotEap.comFirst on the list are metal objects. While you won’t knowingly put anything metal in the tank, you should also make sure that the item you’ve chosen doesn’t have any metal parts. This means not even a small screw. Metal rusts with water. Iron rusts, and rusty iron poisons the water for fish. Inspect the item carefully and remove every piece of metal on it. If a screw is holding a part together, remove it and glue the part together.

Website design By BotEap.comThe second item is the chemical product containers. This includes detergent bottles, shampoo and soap bottles, perfume bottles, etc. Any container that has ever held any type of chemical should be avoided. I have seen many of these containers, especially perfume bottles that would make great fish tank decorations. The problem is that even though they no longer contain chemicals and even though you have rinsed the bottle, chances are there will still be chemical residue left behind. You may think the residue is too small to affect your fish, but it will. The water that fish swim in is also the water they drink and breathe. Even the slightest trace of chemicals will affect your health. If you insist on using a chemical container, you will need to soak it in running water for at least a week and shake it around the water to dislodge the chemicals every day.

Website design By BotEap.comThe last element is painted trim. This is where the trim is hand painted or has the colors sprayed on. If they are, check that they have an outer layer of protective film that prevents the paint from fading. You can do this by taking a sharp blade and running it across the surface of the object. If the pain comes out as a fine powder, it does not have its protective layer. Putting this in the water tank will cause the paint to seep into the water and poison it. If the paint comes off as a chip or chip, then you should be fine. But just to be safe, you may want to cover the ornament with a layer of clear aquarium silicone.

Website design By BotEap.comWhile it may seem like too much fuss or being a little paranoid, these three common items that people use as aquarium decorations negatively affect the health of their fish. If you want to have vibrant and healthy fish in your aquarium, you would do well to follow the suggestions above.