Picking the right fish tank aquarium will make the care of your aquarium easier and much more fun for you and the fish. You will want to choose an aquarium that not only is functional and looks good, but is the right one for your needs. I have listed below a few ideas that should help with you choice.

Shape

Hexagon and rectangular fish tanks are the most prevalent shapes, but you will also find thin tanks that fit in your wall, coffee table tanks and rounded bubble tanks. You need to carefully consider the location where you will put your tank to make sure it will fit and not be in the way of traffic.

Rectangular fish tanks have a bigger surface area (the area that meets the air) than tanks of other sizes and shapes and therefore are best for water quality and fish health. Hexagon shaped and other shapes can still be healthy,but will require more time in maintaining the water.

Location

When picking a location for your fish tank aquariums be sure you take the weight of the tank into consideration. Remember that water weighs almost 8.5 pounds per gallon plus the aquarium, stand and other things included in the tank. So a 20 gallon tank can approach 200 pounds or more in weight.

Size

If you are just a beginner you should consider a 20 to 30 gallon aquarium setup. Small 5 gallon fish tank aquariums are fine if you do not have a lot of space but you will have to be sure you don’t overload the aquarium with fish or the quality of your water will suffer which can make your fish unhealthy. Don’t be tempted by those little fish tanks or bowls that have 1 or 2 fish with no filtration, the fish will not live for a long time in that tank and you will spend a lot of time monitoring the water quality and performing water changes. The rule of thumb for size when buying an aquarium is that the bigger the aquarium tank, the less maintenance you’ll need to carry out and the more fish you can house.

Typically you can house 1 inch of fish for every gallon of water in the tank - along with adequate aeration and filtration, that is. If you buy a 20 gallon aquarium setup, you can have 20 inches of tropical fish, or about 15 fish with the tinier 5 gallon aquariums you will only be able to keep 2 or 3 fish.

Picking the right fish tank aquariums is a question of personal preference, you need to weigh the options and pick what fits your needs. Make sure to do your homework before going to the store. This  will help to save you both time and money in the long run.