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How to set up a Mickey Mouse themed fish tank

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Setting up a Mickey Mouse themed fish tank should not be too hard as you have plenty of materials to work with.

This guide at Aquarium Blueprints will help you find several decorations and ornaments that will make your aquarium look incredible.

About Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse officially debuted in the Steamboat Willie animated short in 1928. He eventually became the icon for Disney and is one of the most recognizable fictional characters of all time from around the world. His appearances include television shows (The Mickey Mouse Club), movies (Fantasia) and videogames (Kingdom Hearts).

Fish Tank Size

Although we recommend getting as big of a fish tank as possible, you should get the size that best fit your situation. You can take a look at our following guides for more details: tank size, tank locations and tank stands.

Mickey Mouse Ornaments

Penn Plax has a set of officially licensed Mickey Mouse ornaments that will look great in your tank. These decorations are made of polyresin, which won’t harm your fish. You can check out the measurements for each below:

  • Mickey Mouse with Treasure: 3¼ inches x 1½ inch x 2¾ inches
  • Mickey Mouse and the Shipwreck: 3 inches x 1½ inch x 3 inches
  • Diving Minnie Mouse: 2¼ inches x 2 inches x 3 inches
  • Mermaid Minnie Mouse: 2 inches x 2 inches x 3 inches
  • Goofy and his Dolphin Friend: 2 inches x 1½ inch x 3¼ inches

You can purchase all five as a set with the following link on Amazon:

Other Disney Ornaments

If you want more Disney Ornaments, then you can also check out Penn Plax’s other officially licensed ornaments:

Disney Castle

Although there isn’t any officially licensed Disney Castle decor made specifically for a fish tank, there are a few good looking alternatives. The best we found is the Penn-Plax Wizard’s Castle Aquarium Decoration set. By adding all three designs to your aquarium, you will get a nice centerpiece decoration to your tank. Not to mention that the ornaments are also made of resin, making them fish-safe. You can find the measurements for all three pieces below:

  • Wizard’s Castle Design 1: 3¼ inches x 2½ inches x 5½ inches
  • Wizard’s Castle Design 2: 6¾ inches x 4 inches x 5½ inches
  • Wizard’s Castle Design 3: 8 inches x 6¼ inches x 10¼ inches

You can purchase all three with the following Amazon links:

Air Stone

If you are getting the Mickey Mouse and the Shipwreck decor, then you might want to take a look at the Penn-Plax Shipwreck Aquarium Decoration Ornament. The two-piece sunken ship can also be used as a bubbler.

There are also air stones worth checking out that will fit well with the Mickey Mouse themed fish tank. One is the Groot Air Bubbler, which is based on the character from the Guardians of the Galaxy. The other is the Unicorn Air Bubbler. You can find all three with the following links:

All of these require an air pump and some airline tubing If you don’t have either equipment, we recommend getting the following:

Substrate

The substrate can be anything you like. In general, we are big fans of having a sand substrate as it provides a lot of surface area for beneficial bacteria to grow. Not to mention that you also don’t have to worry about sharp edges potentially harming your fish.

If you are interested, we recommend getting the Caribsea Super Naturals Aquarium Sand. (#CommissionsEarned).

Background

If you want to create the iconic Disney Castle look at nighttime, then we recommend getting a starry night background. We suggest getting the Fantasy Star Aquarium Background, which you can find on Amazon. (#CommissionsEarned)

Filter

A simple sponge filter, such as the Aquaneat Aquarium Bio Sponge Filter, should be good enough in most case to keep your tank water clean and healthy for your fish. The sponge will capture debris from the tank water while also providing plenty of surface area for nitrifying bacteria, which will get rid of the toxic ammonia and nitrite compounds that build up from fish wastes.

The Aquaneat Aquarium Bio Sponge Filter can handle aquariums of up to 60 gallons. If you have an even bigger tank, then you can simply get another of the same type since it is affordable. You can purchase with the following link:

To power this filter, you need an air pump and airline tubing such as the aforementioned Tetra Whisper and Penn Plax Airline Tubing.

If you value the space in your Mickey Mouse themed aquarium, then you might want to get a canister filter instead. In this case, we recommend taking a look at either Fluval’s 06/07 Series or FX Series.

Lighting

When it comes to lighting, we recommend getting the NICREW ClassicLED Plus Planted Aquarium Light as it provides daytime and nighttime modes. It should also be good enough to grow low light live plants. The lighting fixture is available in the following lengths:

  • 12 inches to 18 inches
  • 18 inches to 24 inches
  • 30 inches to 36 inches
  • 36 inches to 48 inches
  • 48 inches to 54 inches

You can purchase the NICREW ClassicLED Plus Planted Aquarium Light on Amazon. (#CommissionsEarned).

Heater

Depending on the fish you are planning to keep, you may also need a heater for your Mickey Mouse tank. We suggest getting the Orlushy Submersible Aquarium Heater (#CommissionsEarned), which also comes with a digital thermometer. You can find which version fits your tank size below:

  • 100W version: up to 30 gallons
  • 150W version: up to 50 gallons
  • 200W version: up to 60 gallons
  • 300W version: up to 80 gallons

Live Plants

We also recommend getting live plants as they will help keep your water clean and healthy for your pet fish. Anubias and Java Fern are two great looking plants that only require low lights. Not to mention that you don’t have to plant the roots as they need to be exposed to the water column to absorb the nutrients.

We recommend getting these plants from GreenPro as they come already attached to driftwood or lava rock. Thus, you don’t have to worry about planting them. You can purchase the live plants with the following links:

Mickey Mouse aquarium set up and care

Before you add fish to your Mickey Mouse aquarium, you should make sure that you make the water safe enough for them. To do so, you have to make sure your tank is properly cycled. You should also keep up with maintenance in order to keep the water clean. You can check out our beginner guides for more information to setting up and taking care of your fish tank.

What fish should you keep in your Mickey Mouse tank?

The most obvious fish you should add to your Mickey Mouse tank is the Mickey Mouse Platy. This fish features a silhouette that looks like Mickey’s head on the base of the body. Other good colorful options include Glofish Danios and Guppies.

All three species are peaceful and have the same temperature range. So you will be able to put them in the same tank. With that said, you should get at least 6 Glofish Danios or they could bother your Guppies and/or Platies.

You should also make sure that you get 2 females for every male for your Guppies/Platies. Otherwise, the males could end up harassing the females to death.

Related posts:

  1. How to set up a Frozen themed fish tank
  2. How to build a SpongeBob SquarePants themed fish tank
  3. Is the Teemo Unicorn Bubbler worth buying?