What type of gravel should I get? Should I get live plants or fake? How many decorations should I add? These are all good questions.

Again, like with most things the answers depend on the number and types of fish you wish to keep. Goldfish grow large and can often swallow gravel which will later kill them. Fancy varieties will also damage their fins on ornaments in the aquarium, plus they will eat any live plants you add.

Other fish like a white cloud minnow are small and will not be able to eat any gravel or sand you add. Plus because of their size any damage they do to live plants will be healed quickly. They will enjoy small areas to swim around in and won't have the problem of damaging their fins or getting stuck.

In general you want your aquarium to look nice, both for the fish and for yourself. If you know what fish you wish to keep you may wish to choose ornament which will look good with their colour. If your fish will be red then you probably don't want red plants since you will have a hard time seeing your fish.

What you add to the aquarium is completely a matter of choice. Most fish will like places to hide and play in so a fake plant or two is a good addition. Also some gravel on the bottom will hold down any plants and add some colour.