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Archive for the ‘Fishes’ Category

When you think to get a dog, you must be sure that the decision isn’t made lightly. Give thorough thought to the kind of dog you get to guarantee that it’s the right match for your home, family, and energy level. In addition, make sure that you’re able to adequately look after your pet. This includes not only correctly feeding it and exercising it, however buying all required dog supplies.

There are a big selection of these pet supplies for dogs available, but it’s vital to realize that you do not want all of them right away. However, there are many things you should make sure you have got on hand before you ever bring your dog home. The first is a collar. Pet collars come in all colours and designs, but they all serve the identical fundamental functions. They provide the owner a place to attach a leash, which is an essential part of walking and coaching any dog, and act as a means of recognition. It’s important that the pet collar contains recognition tags in case your pet ever gets lost. Along with these, you ought to make sure that a leash is included in your dog supplies. If you train your dog to walk on it as soon as possible, you will find that he is much easier to manage.

Second, make sure that your dog has the dog supplies it needs to receive food and water. This includes a water bowl, a food bowl, and dog food. be certain that the bowls are durable enough to withstand your dog’s strength and energy level. In addition, they should be properly sized to the type of dog that you have. Too small of a bowl can cause your dog to not get sufficient or to make a mess, and a bowl that is too large makes it tough for your dog to eat comfortably. You should also make sure that the food that you buy is the right type for your dog’s age and size. There are specifically formulated foods for puppies, adult dogs, and seniors, thus make sure you’re obtaining what your pet needs.

Finally, buy a place for your dog to get rest and/or shelter. For an outdoor pet, these dog supplies must include a quality dog house and some sort of bedding. Be certain that the bedding will be washed easily and is sturdy enough that your dog won’t chew it up. If you’re going to be keeping your pet indoors, it might need a dog bed and a blanket. A crate could be a sensible idea as well, especially for smaller dogs. Not only will it give the dog an area to rest, but it provides a way to carry the dog and will be an invaluable toilet training tool.

Once you get your dog home, there are more dog supplies that you must consider purchasing. These consist of toys, treats, grooming supplies, shampoo, nail clippers, and dental supplies.

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3 Reasons Why You Need A Goldfish Guide

Keeping goldfishes is a really nice hobby, I say it all the time because I can’t stop watching to them.
Now that you are reading this article, I suppose you like to have goldfishes as a pet as well, right?

You might already have a tank at home with goldfish in it, or you’re planning to get one. In both cases you did a good job on searching the web, and reading this article.

Keeping a goldfish is not an easy task, but if you keep maintaining the water in your tank, feeding your fish the right way, have the right equipment and more, it also shouldn’t be hard, though.

A goldfish guide could help you a lot with maintaining your tank and all the other things necessary for caring for goldfish.

But why should you follow a goldfish guide?

I’ll give you the best 3 reasons why you need a goldfish guide.

1.) Like many guides, a goldfish guide will save you money.

This is probably the most important reason for many people, for most people maybe even the single one reason to buy a goldfish guide.

If you lack in just one single thing in caring for goldfishes you will probably lose money, if not in the short term, than definitely in the long term.

Think about a couple things like buying the right equipment, buying the right aquarium, buying the proper lights for your fish and many more.

2.) Having healthy goldfish for many years to follow.

How would you feel like when your fish would die very fast after you bought them? I know how I felt back in de days.

Well, how would you feel after ten years from now and you still have the same fish, healthy and grown big and swimming in your tank like they are still young.

With a goldfish guide you will have healthy fish for many years in a nice looking tank, and your friends and family will be jealous about your tank.

3.) Prevent the most common diseases, and keeping your fish alive.

It’s so sad. Most goldfishes die necessary because most people don’t how to care for a goldfish. Keeping goldfish is not only feeding them and cleaning the tank now and then.

I don’t know why, but most people take a goldfish as a pet because they think it’s easy to care for. It definitely can be easy if you know what you’re doing. Unfortunately, most people don’t know.

Luckily there are people who want to care the right way for their goldfish, and start with a goldfish guide.
I don’t know if it is you, I do know that you need a goldfish if you are reading this article, I also know now that you’ve read this far that you too understand you need a goldfish guide.

I have the most beautiful tank and the most healthy goldfishes, and now you can too when you stick to an experts goldfish guide.

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Goldfish illnesses are often caused because of poor caring for the goldfish. Fortunately, if properly cared for a goldfish can live for a very long time. Most aquarium goldfishes can live for more than a decade, and pond goldfishes even more then 2 decades with the proper care. There is a report of a goldfish that lived for 43 years.

Too bad most of the goldfishes don’t live that long. Sooner or later the fish will face one of the many goldfish illnesses and if the illness is not recognized at time the goldfish will most likely die.

It can even get worse, if you don’t find out what caused the illness, the other wish in the tank will have a chance to get the same illness too.

Here’s a list of 3 things you must know about goldfish illnesses.

1.) Goldfish illnesses are mainly caused by improper caring for a the fish. It’s always said that preventing is better than curing.

So my first advice is to prevent the diseases. This is the best done with good water maintaining, to have always good water quality. Most of the illnesses are caused by bad water quality.

You need to change until 25% of the water every week, and every 2 weeks you need to clean the whole tank. Make sure when you change the water that the new water has the same temperature as the normal tank water, otherwise you can stress your fish which can cause illnesses as well.

2.) Feeding your fish the right way.

Don’t overfeed your fish, if your fish doesn’t eat all the food you give them in 2 minutes than remove the rest of the food if it’s floating on the surface, if you don’t remove it you can overfeed them what can cause illnesses.

If they do eat all within 2 minutes, try to give them a little bit more the next time, after a couple of times you will know exactly how much food they need.

Also don’t give your fish only flaked goldfish food, try to give them also some vegetables and live foods like brine shrimp, Daphnia, wax worms. All these are most often available in every pet store.

3.) Recognizing goldfish illnesses.

With the two steps above you can prevent most of the goldfish illnesses. Unfortunately it’s still possible your goldfish will face an illness.

Therefore it’s necessary that you know how to recognize illnesses, and how to treat them.
If you see strange things on your fish what you haven’t seen before, or your fish rubs itself on objects or the fins look strange there’s a chance your fish is sick.

You now need to find out what the illnes is and what the cause of the illness is. Most of the time it has something to do with the water quality. But it can also be a new fish you put in the tank, the temperature of the water, the lights you’re using or something else.

Found out what the 3 most common goldfish illnesses are. Maybe your goldfish has one too.

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Do you know how to recognize goldfish diseases? If you have goldfishes as a pet, it’s really necessary to know how to recognize diseases. A lot of goldfishes die unnecessary because the owner doesn’t how to recognize diseases. If your goldfish is acting strange, or has some strange things on the body, is only swimming up or down or has some other symptoms of goldfish diseases than you definitely need to read this article.

These are the 4 most common goldfish diseases.

Swimming bladder disease:
If your goldfish is floating at the surface, or staying at the bottom it most likely have got a swimming bladder disease.
This disease, like almost all diseases, is mainly caused by bad water quality, to prevent this you must need to maintain good water quality.
When your fish has swimming bladder disease it’s a good idea to feed it with frozen peas.

Ick:
If you see small white spots that look like salt-grains on the body of your fish, the grills and fins, than your fish has probably Ick disease. This is the most common goldfish disease, many goldfish owners will see this one coming trough.
Your fish will also rub itself against objects in the tank, because of Ick.
Small white spots which look like grains of salt attached to the fish on the skin, gills and fins.
The fish will sometimes rub against hard objects to attempt to dislodge the parasites. In the later stages of Ick gill damage may cause the fish to gasp.
Ick is caused by a microscopic parasite, known as Ichthyophthirius multifiliis.
This parasite will attach itself on a fish, and while it is attached it will form those white spots on the fish.

Dropsy:
Dropsy symptoms are a swollen belly, swollen eyes, the goldfish’s scales stick out like an open pine cone.
Dropsy is a very dangerous disease and in most cases fatal for your fish. This is a really hard to treat disease, so it’s really important to know how to prevent this disease. However if recognized early, there might be a chance for your goldfish to survive this disease.
But if it’s a chronic dropsy that’s caused by cancer there is nothing you can do about it.
Like many goldfish diseases, dropsy is also caused by bad water quality and poor water maintenance.

Anchor Worm:
Just like a fish that has Ick, a goldfish with anchor worm disease will rub itself against objects in your tank. You will also see things hanging out of your goldfish’s body.

Anchor worm by itself is not dangerous, but it will weaken your fish and your fish will be open for more diseases which can lead to death for your goldfish.

Anchor worm often comes with new bought fish, that’s why all goldfish experts always say to buy good and healthy fish at shops that are recognized as quality fish shops. It’s also important to follow the right procedures when releasing the new fish in your tank.

Most goldfish diseases can be easily prevented with good water maintenance, right feeding, and buying healthy fish.

Find out here if your goldfish has any goldfish diseases and follow the guide for healthy goldfish.

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Sooner or later your goldfish will have one of the many goldfish illnesses, even the best goldfish owners will have their goldfish become sick. But most of the goldfish illnesses are easy to prevent.

With the proper care, you can stop many goldfish illnesses and lower the risk of illnesses in your aquarium.

Here you will read in 5 easy steps to stop goldfish illnesses.

Step 1.) Feeding your goldfish.

A goldfish eats almost about everything you feed them. But remember to never overfeed your goldfish, that sounds easy but it happens all the time.

Also don’t underfeed them, if you see your goldfish eats the food very fast, it’s a good idea to give them the next time a little bit more food.

You should also feed your goldfish different kinds of food. But keep in mind, there are different kinds of goldfish, and not every goldfish has the same diet.

Feeding your goldfish with only goldfish flakes will do. But for a healthier goldfish you can also feed vegetables, live food is also good for your fish like Brine shrimp or mosquito larvae.

Step 2.) Cleaning the tank.

Make sure your tank is clean. Goldfish are huge waste producers, and waste leads to a high ammonia level in your tank. Ammonia is really bad for your goldfish and causes many goldfish illnesses.

To have a low ammonia level, it’s also a must to have a water filter.

You need to have a good pH level in your aquarium.

Step 3.) Aquarium accessories

You need to have some plants and gravel.

A plant can improve the atmosphere in the tank. But keep in mind that you don’t put just any sort of plant in the tank, there is a good chance the goldfish might eat it.

You also need to care of the plants, otherwise the plants can be a cause of different goldfish illnesses.

You need also some different accessories for the goldfish to amuse themselves, goldfish also like to hide.

Step 4.) Equipment

When we talk about equipment, we usually talk about things like, a filter, heater, light and a fishnet. The fishnet will be necessary when you need to transfer the fish, and also to remove the rest of the food that’s floating in the aquarium.

A heater isn’t always necessary, it mainly depends on the temperature in the room where your tank is placed. Since goldfish are coldwater fishes a good temperature is between 75 degrees F and 78 degrees F.

Step 5.) Before buying a goldfish and everything else.

Before you want to buy a goldfish and all the equipment, you need to know what kind of goldfish you want. Since not all goldfish can be together in one tank, it’s really necessary to do your research. You also need to know how many goldfish you want. For beginners it’s better to start with 3 to 5 goldfishes and a small 20 to 30 gallon tank.

Those are the 5 steps that work for me. If you just do that, you will have healthy and long living goldfish, and they will grow to big goldfishes.

Keeping a goldfish and preventing goldfish illnesses requires dedication, if you don’t want to educate yourself about your pet and give the time needed yo keep a goldfish I urge you don’t keep them.

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Match-Making
To make your aquarium a stunning swirl of activity and color, you will want to add a variety of tropical freshwater fish. All fish have different fin designs, patterns, colors, shapes, sizes, temperaments and ideal living conditions. For the welfare of fish and therefore the success of tank aquariums, it is vital that you research the fish you would like, to know which ones can live together in health and harmony. For example, you cannot match (i.e. without stressing or harming your fish) peaceful and aggressive fish, ones that like cooler water and ones that need higher temperatures etc. Common sense stuff!

Space Out Your Fish
A good idea is to select fish that occupy different levels in fish tank aquariums so they don’t need to compete for space. This adds a good amount of activity and variety, enhancing the attractiveness of your fish tank.

Top-Dwelling Fish
Top-dwelling fish generally have upturned mouths for feeding at the water’s surface. Danios are energetic and hardy with a long lifespan making them ideal especially for beginning aquarists. One of the most well-liked tropical freshwater fish is the Betta, an easy to look after, peaceful fish with striking fins and a remarkable variety of color. Hatchetfish are unusual but are moderately difficult to manage and are strong jumpers, so you need to replace the lid of your fish tank aquarium immediately after feeding and maintenance.

Middle-Dwelling Fish
Middle-dwelling fish could be most striking and be stocked with a mixture of schooling fish and larger colorful fish. Schooling fish are obviously happiest when they are with their mates and you need to have around six. Examples of schooling fish include Rainbow fish and Tetras. Rainbow fish are simple to take care of and their amazing iridescent colorations change when light reflects off these fish. Neon Tetras choose to swim or remain suspended in schools to create a breathtaking display of color. All types of Guppies and Platies are excellent for middle-dwelling fish. They are both easy care fish and come in many bright color variations which add excitement and brilliance to fish tank aquariums. For something slightly larger, Swordtails are easy to look after and have wonderfully diverse fin and color varieties. Mollies add drama and contrast to any fish tank aquarium but require a moderate level of care. The following small Gouramis are of a peaceful temperament and easy to look after: Neon Blue Dwarf, Sparkling Gourami and Dwarf Gouramis. Angels are a striking fish to include in your aquarium but bear in mind they are semi-aggressive and growing to 6 inches they also require at least a 30 gallon tank. For a larger tank (50 gallons), Cichlids are an option but many can show signs of aggression. Examples of peaceful ones are Acei Cichlid, Albino Kribensis Cichlid and Brichardi Cichlid. Of course, the Goldfish remains the most popular freshwater fish and comes in many varieties with amazing color patterns and features.

Bottom-Dwelling Fish
Bottom-dwelling fish have down-turned mouths, enabling them to feed on food that falls to the bottom of the tank, thereby keeping the substrate clean. Cory Cats are entertaining, energetic and peaceful scavengers. They remain relatively small and survive in a wide range of water conditions. For larger fish tank aquariums (30-50 gallons), Loaches will add color, interest and beauty to your fish tank aquarium. They are active bottom dwelling scavengers ideally suited for the community aquarium.

All Peaceful or All Aggressive
You will have noticed that I mainly refer to peaceful fish. These community fish can co-exist peacefully with members of their own species and other species of similar size. Being the kind of person who likes to ‘keep the peace’ I prefer easy-going fish for an easy life but if you like a bit more action, by all means pick aggressive fish. Just remember to keep all the fish species in your fish tank aggressive so no one gets bullied! Aggressive fish are aggressive toward their own species and/or other species, regardless of their size.

Fish Tank Sizes
Most of the fish mentioned are ideal for smaller fish tank aquariums. Bettas, Danios, Gouramis, Platies and Tetras measure around two inches and are good for the smaller 10 gallon tanks. Though small, Guppies thrive best in at least a 20 gallon tank along with Hatchetfish, while the larger Swordtails, Rainbow Fish, Goldfish, Mollies, Angels and Cory Cats will require a minimum of a 30 gallon tank. Loaches and Cichlids normally require a 50 gallon tank.

Do Your Homework!
These tropical freshwater fish are only a guide to varieties of fish which would be suitable in freshwater aquariums. It is essential that you research the fish including size, temperament, the tending they require in order to grow and breed, the food they eat, and the water parameters in which each individual type of fish is the most comfortable with. This will be vital in determining the varieties of fish that can be suitably matched.

Copyright © 2009 Jill Kaestner @ Kaestner Marketing LLC

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Now that you have set up your tropical freshwater aquarium, I’m sure you can’t wait to see your tropical fish in action! Here are a few tips to make sure this exciting and important part of your aquarium setup is a great success.

The Fishless Cycle
It is vital that you regulate the water in the fish tank to get it under the right conditions for the tropical fish you plan to introduce (temperature, pH, ammonia and nitrate levels etc). All tropical freshwater fish tank aquariums need to be run for 2-8 weeks, depending on the size of your fish tank, to ensure the tank has ended its nitrogen cycle and the beneficial bacteria have been established. Your tank will have completed its cycle when ammonia and nitrite levels are undetected and nitrate reading levels are around 10.

Selecting Your Fish
You need to resist the urge of fully stocking tropical freshwater aquariums and start off small. Select two or three fish to begin with. I suggest starting with a hardy species such as Zebra Danios or White Clouds. Make sure you visit different pet shops to determine which ones have healthy, happy fish which will soon be content in your aquarium. It is important to observe the fish before buying to check for any signs of sickness or injury. There are a few indicators about their behaviour and appearance that will let you know their state of health. Eyes should be bright and active, rather than seeming small or filmed over. Make sure the fish can feed itself and there are no fungal or bacterial infections in the soft tissues around the mouth. Check to see if the abdomen is ‘fat’ which means the fish is feeding well; a fish with a sunken abdomen is not likely to live too long. Scales should be smooth and even while missing scales and discoloured patches are signs of infection. Also note that the fish’s gills are moving regularly and not spasmodically. There should not be any tears or raggedness on the fins, the existence of which would indicate fighting with other fish or improper aquarium filtration.

Acclimatizing Your Fish
Transporting your fish from the pet shop to its new home is just as stressful for fish as adults moving house! There are, however, ways to ease this stress and to slowly introduce the fish to its new environment. Wrap the plastic bag the pet shop places your fish in, in a paper bag, and hold as still as possible for the journey home. If the journey is long, open the bag every thirty minutes to let fresh air in. Upon arriving home, empty the contents of the plastic bag into a clean bucket. Ensure the environment in your freshwater aquarium is at its optimum for the benefit of your fish. Add a cup of water from your tank every 5 minutes. Repeat this until the water volume in the bucket has doubled. Empty half the volume and then repeat until the water volume is doubled again. This procedure should take around thirty minutes. Your tropical freshwater fish should now be suitably acclimatized to your tank water. This ensures that tropical fish are not shocked when introduced into new fish tank aquariums.

Adding Your Fish
Now it is time to add them to your aquarium. Switch off the aquarium lights and leave them off for 3-4 hours after the fish are added to reduce stress as the fish adjust to the new environment. Use a net that is much larger than the fish to catch it in the bucket. Carefully place the net in the tank water and let the fish swim out. Repeat for each of your fish. Do not put any water from the bucket into your fish tank as part of it has come from the fish store and may contain disease or other unhealthy chemical levels, which you do not want to introduce into other tank aquariums. Instead fill your aquarium up with new water. If there are already other fish in your freshwater aquarium place the new fish in a separate aquarium for several days and observe for disease. Don’t add more than four fish at a time as this can cause a chemical imbalance in your tank. This is a far more effective method than the old way of floating pet shop’s plastic bags in fish tank aquariums as this does nothing to acclimatize fish to the various water parameters of different freshwater aquariums.

A Little at a Time
You will then need to resist from adding more fish for another month. The basis for this is that it takes the fish a while to get used to their new environment and the more fish there are, the higher their stress levels. Plus there is an incubation time with diseases and you need to ensure the fish are healthy before infecting others. Another reason is that the fish tank aquarium’s ecosystem also needs to adjust to its new inhabitants and the increased waste they produce. Continue to keep an eye on the temperature, pH, ammonia and nitrate levels throughout this period.

Moving Tank is Stressful!
For the success of your fish tank aquariums please ensure you follow this extremely important process of acclimatization. Without it, fish that you introduce will become severely stressed, thereby weakening their immune system and making them susceptible to illness and even death. It is largely fish that make freshwater aquariums beautiful and exciting so they deserve to be taken care of. This ensures your lasting enjoyment!

Copyright © 2009 Jill Kaestner @ Kaestner Marketing LLC

Importance of a proper diet for different species
Feeding tropical fish a sensible diet that is suited to their species is absolutely crucial. Proper feeding supports a healthy immune system, stimulates growth and breeding, improves the appearance of fish and encourages activity. Different species of fish require different diets so it is essential that you research the eating habits of the fish you intend to put in your tank aquariums.

Discovering the right type and consistency of food
The type of diet and food consistency can be determined by considering three divisions of two groups.
The first section is the type of food. Herbivores eat plant-based food only, carnivores are meat-eating fish and omnivores eat both plant and animal matter. Most fish fall into this third group.
There are also different depths at which fish feed in tank aquariums so it is important to display food in a texture suitable for fish which collect food from the top, fish that feed on food which has fallen into the water, and fish that gather food from the bottom of fish tanks.

What’s on the menu?
All fish require a balanced diet consisting of fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals. Here are a variety of foods you may consider, depending on the nutritional requirements of the fish in your freshwater fish tanks.

Herbivore fish need food with high fibre content, for instance algae and vegetables. These fish will enjoy lettuce, zucchini, spinach, nettles, maize, carrots and peas. You need to ensure that these vegetables are boiled so they are soft, and broken down into suitably sized morsels. These foods provide various vitamins, minerals and trace elements. I also recommend using Spirulina for herbivores as it provides them with easily edible vegetable protein.

For carnivores and omnivores, a diet rich in protein will be vital. This can be supplied through live food (making sure it is nourishing), home-produced or commercial foods. Thin slices of raw red meat or cooked white meat can be used, live small fish (e.g. feeder goldfish), live or freeze-dried worms, daphnia, brine shrimp, Tubifex, and krill. Meat, brine shrimp and worms are best fed as a delicacy rather than as an everyday food. Tubifex encourages growth and may be used as a conditioning food to get your fish healthy before breeding. For myself, I suggest krill as a dietary basis for carnivorous and omnivorous fish. They are rich in protein and contain amino acids and Omega 3 fatty acids for overall health, carotenoids to bring out bright colors in fish, vitamins and minerals which improve the immune system, dietary roughage to improve digestion, and vitalizing carbohydrates. Krill also contain little fat and salt. They are ideal for helping a sick fish recuperate or to bring a healthy fish up to maximum condition for breeding or showing. For predatory carnivores who like to catch moving things, you can dangle non-live food from a fork and let it down into the aquarium in front of the fish, wiggling it around so that it seems it is alive!

Dry foods
There are several types of dry foods for instance granules, grains, flakes, pills, pellets and wafers. These can all be bought in a range of compositions considering the type of fish you wish to feed and the different parts of the water column they occupy. Most of these prepared foods are of a high-quality, calculated to give a balanced diet and are full of extra vitamins and minerals, so it is vital to include them in the diet. Different formulas can also be used from time to time such as preparation for breeding or for developing color. It is also very practical as it is easy to store and doesn’t require any preparation. The risk of disease or parasites being brought into aquariums with food is likewise completely eliminated.

Bon Appetit!
Diversity is the real key to high-quality fish nutrition. Therefore, it is vital to provide your fish with a choice of different suitable foods to make certain they receive a balanced diet for their best possible health and their interest in and enjoyment of food.

Copyright © 2009 Jill Kaestner @ Kaestner Marketing LLC

Aquarium gear
To set up fish tanks you will need these items of equipment: filter, lighting, heater, gravel, plants and décor. You will also need replacement filter media and aquarium test kits to check water parameters and check the nitrogen cycle. I enthusiastically advise buying complete system aquariums which come with all the required aquarium equipment. This means you are not bewildered as to what exactly you need for setting up your aquarium or bewildered by the array of various types of equipment for sale. Buying fish tank aquariums with all you require gives you peace of mind and relieves a lot of anxiety!

Setting up your aquarium
Before buying an aquarium you must decide on the space you have on hand and research the adult size of the fish you would like to keep, both of which will suggest the size and shape of aquarium that would be appropriate. Considering all this has been carefully designed and your model aquarium is there with all the necessary equipment ready to be set up, you can follow these steps to hassle-free successful aquarium setup.

1. Position aquarium (on a stand, if needed) in an area away from direct sunlight, heat and draughts, as these alter the light and temperature of the tank. Also ensure that the floor is able to carry the overall weight of the aquarium when filled with water (approximately 10 pounds per gallon of water).

2. Wash out the tank with water as hot as you can bear. Do not use detergents or soaps as residue will be harmful for tropical freshwater fish.

3. Place the under-gravel filter in the bottom of the tank (if your aquarium comes with one), following the instructions supplied.

4. Rinse the gravel thoroughly in hot water using a sieve to get rid of any dust or debris. Add the gravel to the tank, covering the under-gravel filter. Create a gentle slope of gravel, deepest at the back.

5. Clean all artificial plants and decorations in hot water and organize in the fish tank.

6. Fasten the aquarium heater to the inside of the tank with its suction cups but do not plug it in for at least 30 minutes until the thermostat has adjusted to the water temperature, otherwise the heater may break. Needless to say, you need to have researched the species you anticipate to keep to learn about specific temperature needs.

7. Set up the aquarium filter following the instructions given, placing the filter media inside.

8. Position a dish on the bottom of the aquarium to break the power of the water and fill the aquarium with water that is at room temperature. Add de-chlorinator to the water if you are using unfiltered tap water. Check for any rare leaks as you fill the tank. (They are easily fixed with aquarium silicone).

9. Unless the aquarium lighting is previously fitted underwater, put the light on top.

10. Plug in all the equipment and check that everything is working perfectly. Make sure there is a dip in the cord before it reaches the electrical outlet, known as a ‘drip loop’. This ensures the water drips off onto the floor and does not pass directly into the electrical socket.

Your aquarium is now functional in its self but is still not ready for sustaining tropical freshwater fish. Beneficial bacteria needs to be established first, and the aquarium atmosphere then needs to alter as new fish are gradually added.

How to proceed after initial aquarium setup
Let the tank settle and the water stabilize for some days. During this time you must keep monitoring the water parameters using aquarium test kits to make certain they are suitable for the fish you plan to have (temperature, pH, hardness, ammonia).

Nitrogen cycle
You will then need to begin the nitrogen cycle so your aquarium will be ready to sustain healthy freshwater fish (see related article ‘Setting-Up Tropical Freshwater Fish Tank Aquariums: The Nitrogen Cycle’ at ezinearticles.com).

Aquarium maintenance
When the nitrogen cycle is concluded and you start adding fish to your aquarium, you need to initiate a maintenance program. On a daily basis ensure that fish are healthy, particularly during feeding times, and make certain that the filters and heaters are operating correctly. Clean your tank every one to two weeks and perform 25% water changes once a month.

Copyright © 2009 Jill Kaestner @ Kaestner Marketing LLC