To have a successful aquarium, you should start with a tank whose capacity is no less than 40 gallons.
Bacteria are necessary because they purify the water.
It's important that an aquarium have several filtration systems so that if one should break down, the others will be able to keep filtering the water. Nosratpour recommends using crushed coral. Since this luxury is unavailable to the home aquarist, you will need to prep the water with synthetic salt and dechlorinated tapwater. To fill the tank for the first time, place a bucket in the bottom of the tank and add water to the bucket, letting it overflow until the tank is full. This keeps the water from disturbing the gravel.