Freshwater aquarium equipment planner

Plan the tank around the space you have and the work you can keep up with. Carry your measurements through equipment choices, filled weight and costs.

Starting from an empty shopping list? The equipment checklist explains what needs a decision before buying.

See the water, weight and cost totals ↓

Your tank and working water

30¼ in long 12¾ in high 12½ in deep

Aqueon 20 gallon long: 30¼ × 12½ × 12¾ in outside. Empty tank: 25 lb. These dimensions are for the footprint, not the water.

Check this tank's lid and stand

Working water still needs a measurement.

For a curved tank or a measured fill, use the water-volume worksheet.

Room to fit and clean the equipment

This is your access preference, not a ranking of filter types. Compare the cleaning jobs before choosing.

Rim and wall measurements
Cabinet measurements

Closed-body dimensions leave hose routing and media-removal space to check.

Use the temperature your care plan calls for. This planner does not choose a temperature or infer heater performance.

Choose exact equipment to check

Models are alphabetical. The labels show which published limits your measurements meet and which questions remain open. A passed size check is only one part of choosing equipment.

Filled weight, including the stand

Add dry weights once. The tank field starts with the selected Aqueon format's empty weight. Blank means unknown; enter zero only for something absent or deliberately excluded.

This load estimate cannot approve a stand or floor. Use the support and fit checks before filling.

Purchases and running costs

Use your own amounts, including tax and delivery. Prices are not filled in for you. For a shopping list broken into groups, use the first-year cost worksheet.

Electricity for the equipment you will run

Selected models supply published watts when available. Your own wattage overrides that value. Enter zero watts for an item you will not run. Hours and heater on-time are your cost assumptions, not care advice.

Filter
Light
Air pump
Heater

Before you buy or fill the tank

Keep the missing jobs beside your equipment choices. The pre-purchase checklist separates needed-now decisions from conditional items and extras that can wait.

  • Have the water tests ready. Needed now.
  • Reach the water you need to change. Needed now.
  • Keep plugs dry and reachable. Needed now.
  • Finish an air-driven setup. Conditional on the plan.

When the parts fit and the supplies are ready, follow the equipment setup sequence. Running equipment does not establish that a tank is cycled or ready for fish.