Dustin's Blog — Fish

Read Time: 6 minutes How to Convert from Plastic Plants to Live Plants in an Aquarium Welcome to the second part of your guide to setting up an epic planted tank! Part 1 gave you the low down on starting a planted tank from scratch. This post will be for folks who realized how awesome aquariums were before they knew planted ones were a thing. We'll give you all the tips and tricks you need to convert an existing, non-planted setup to a tank with plants so nice you'll throw your plastic ones out.  It's easier than you think. Getting...

Read Time: 12 minutes How to set up a planted tank, tips and tricks for beginners, and freshwater aquarium plant recommendations  This is the start of a two-part series, so buckle up, fish tank people. In part one (this post), we'll help you start a planted tank from scratch. In part two, we'll tell you how to put live aquarium plants in an existing, non-planted tank and convert it to something amazing. Those of you who have an empty tank and want to get some plants going, this post is for you. Here's how to do it:    Step 1: Answer Some Questions, Decide What You Want,...

Read Time: 5 minutes Tips and Tricks for Tall and Vertical Aquariums: Pros/Cons, Aquascaping, Maintenance, and Stocking Tall tanks: you love 'em or hate 'em. There's no denying that seeing a bright column of water with fish swirling up and down and tall plants swaying makes you want one. But do they stand tall against criticism? Vertical tanks have unique challenges and advantages, and we'll give you the rundown.  Pros and Cons of Tall/Vertical Aquariums The most obvious pro? They look cool. Even if you know nothing about aquariums, if you see a big tank at eye level or higher, you're going to...

Read Time: 7 minutes How to Keep Your Aquarium Safe in Power Outages, Natural Disasters, etc: Your Of-fish-al Aquarium Disaster Plan  We like to keep the good vibes flowing at Dustin's Fishtanks, but in light of hurricanes, climate that needs to eat a Snickers, and everyone's favorite upcoming winter weather, there's a topic more folks need awareness on: what to do when times aren't so sunny. It's rare to find a detailed disaster plan in place for most families, much less for aquariums.  If the power went out for a week right now, would you know what to do to...

Read Time: 6 minutes What is a biotope tank? A biotope aquarium is basically an underwater snapshot. The goal is to replicate a specific environment via animals, plants, decor, etc. There are hundreds of ideas: Burmese rivers, Florida swamps, floodplains, African lakes…if there's an aquatic region you like, chances are you can replicate it in your tank (The cover photo is an Indian biotope).  An African Biotope Tank Pros and cons for biotope tanks? The most obvious pro is that natural tanks are gorgeous, but they also provide an environment in which your fish can express natural behaviors (a...