Purchasing a new 20 gallon fish tank ideas is like starting with a blank canvas, providing endless opportunities for choosing decorations, plants and fish. To help you get started, fishtankenthusiast.com presents five great 20 gallon fish tank setup ideas that are sure to give you helpful hints and inspiration for creating the perfect aquarium.
Why Fish Tank Ideas Are Important
Choosing and implementing an aquarium setup idea is more than just arranging the elements in the tank, it also profoundly affects many aspects of the aquarium experience. Here are the reasons why fish tank ideas are important:
Fish Health and Growth: Good fish tank ideas help create an ideal living environment for fish and other creatures in the tank. A harmonious combination of aquatic plants, rocks, and other decorative elements can provide suitable hiding places, feeding areas, and swimming spaces, helping fish grow healthily.
Aesthetics and Relaxation: A beautifully designed fish tank is not only a decorative highlight in the home or office but also brings a feeling of relaxation and comfort. Watching fish swimming in a beautiful environment can reduce stress and bring joy to the owner.
Easy Management and Maintenance: A well-planned fish tank idea will make tank management and maintenance easier. Choosing the right aquarium plants, filtration system, and tank layout can minimize problems such as algae growth, waste buildup, and maintain good water quality.
Express Personal Style: Aquariums are not only a place to nurture creatures but also a way to express the owner’s style and personality. Each fish tank idea can reflect the preferences, aesthetics, and creativity of the designer.
20 gallon fish tank ideas: It’s interesting
Idea 1: Fish Tank Without Heating System
If you are looking for a fish that can live in a 20 gallon tank without a heater, then a danio fish tank is the perfect choice. Danios are very active and come in many different types and colors such as zebrafish, leopard fish, longfin fish, and Glofish. Keep 12 to 15 fish to create a kaleidoscope of colors in your aquarium.
Danios swim on every level of the aquarium, but you can add salt and pepper ratfish to pick up fallen food. Some invertebrates that prefer cool water such as amano shrimp, Malaysian trumpet snails, and nerite snails are also great choices. If you want an action-packed, beginner-friendly aquarium, the danios aquarium is a must-have.
Idea 2: “I Just Want It to Look Pretty” Fish Tank
If you are not an aquarium expert or a creative artist, creating a beautiful and sophisticated aquarium can be a challenge. Don’t worry – this first setup will help you create a simple yet stunning space. Fill the back half of the aquarium with plants of varied textures and colors such as Java ferns, woody plants, vallisneria, or dwarf calla lilies. Then add a school of 12 to 20 neon tetra fish for maximum effect. Seeing a school of large fish swimming in the aquatic forest is truly a mesmerizing sight.
Neon tetras usually swim in the middle of the aquarium, so you can add some bottom-dwelling species like red cherry shrimp, kuhli loaches, or nerite snails to control algae. For easy maintenance, choose plants and animals that grow slowly. This setup is not only beautiful but also easy to maintain, making everyone admire it.
Idea 3: Rainbow Fish Aquarium
Most rainbows are too large to keep in a 20-gallon tank, but small rainbows like Pseudomugil and other dwarf rainbows are perfect choices. Some popular species include red neon fish, forked-tailed blue-eye fish, Celebes, and thread-finished rainbow fish. Males are more colorful and will “dance” in the presence of females, so keep both sexes to see this unique behavior.
Rainbow fish live in the upper part of the aquarium, so make sure there is a tight lid to prevent them from jumping out. Add more floating plants and moss for them to lay eggs. Feed them small foods like brine shrimp, crustaceans, and crushed scales. Dwarf rainbowfish may be a little more expensive, but are worth the hunt for their beautiful colors and lively behavior.
Idea 4: Aquarium “Raising Fish”
Setting up an aquarium to raise fish is a fun activity for the whole family. You can teach children about nature, inspire your partner, and even sell baby fish to earn extra income. Many people start with spawning fish like guppies or platies, but you can try keeping hardnose plecos. Hardnose plecos are easy to keep and there are many different varieties such as brown plecos, albino plecos, and long-finned hardnose plecos.
Provide a pleco burrow for the male to claim as his territory and feed him nutritious foods such as frozen bloodworms and Repashy gel food. When the fry are free swimming, provide gel food, flakes, and algae. To reduce waste accumulation and make the aquarium more beautiful, add live plants such as Java ferns and anubias. Once the fry reach about 2 inches, you can transfer them to other aquariums or sell them to a local fish store.
Idea 5: Oddball Aquarium
Most people think of exotic fish as rare or interesting fish, but you can keep an exotic invertebrate like a filter-feeding shrimp. Bamboo shrimp or vampire shrimp have large, feathery gloves on their hands to catch small particles floating in the water. Use a gentle sponge filter and feed them powdered food like Hikari First Bites and Repashy gel food.
For a 20-gallon fish tank, you can keep one to two bamboo shrimp and one vampire shrimp, along with nanofish species like paradise pearl zebrafish, Norman lampeye killifish, and chili rasboras. Add snails and amano shrimp to clean up food particles that fall onto the substrate. This setup is not only unique but also attracts everyone’s attention.
Conclusion
Whether you are a beginner or experienced in fish care, the 20-gallon fish tank always provides a fun and creative experience. With the above five setup ideas, you can easily turn your aquarium into a lively and harmonious space, from simple, sophisticated designs to strange and unique aquariums. Start your journey with these ideas and create a beautiful aquarium that reflects your own style and personality.
