Many folks have or want a pet fish, but unfortunately, not all fish are as resilient as the common beta and necessitate more dedicated care. Case in point, you cannot toss a freshwater fish into a bowl with unfiltered water from your sink and do nothing but feed it once a day. Here, you may find out how to sustain a freshwater tank so you can keep happy, healthy fish that will live longer than a week.
1. First, figure out what material you want your tank to be made of. The most well-liked options are glass and acrylic (plastic), and each one has their individual pros and cons…examples being that glass breaks easier, but is more economical than acrylic, or that glass cannot be shipped via mail, yet acrylic is a better insulator than glass. It comes down to taste in the end, so we can’t advocate one tank over another.
2. You also must take into account the size of the tank that you’ll require depending upon how many fish you aim to keep. You probably will not need a tank the size of a small car for one fish, but you also can’t cram two dozen fish into a miniature tank and expect them to live. Like us, fish need oxygen; the smaller the tank, the less oxygen will be available to them. Our recommendation? Buy the biggest tank you can afford – even for a couple fish, a large tank is quintessential for space and breathing. Fish tanks come in quite a variety of sizes, from a tiny 2-gallon tank to a massive 180-gallon one. You shouldn’t require anything larger than a mid-sized tank, though, and these range from 20 to 40 gallons.
3. A freshwater tank will necessitate a filter system of some kind. There are loads of filters and filtration methods available for the freshwater tank which include canisters, standard power, sponge, mechanical, chemical, skimmers, ultraviolet, ozone (almost always for large, commercial tanks) and under gravel (most common and most favored) filters. Like the tank itself, the type of filter you purchase is up to partiality and possibly budget. In addition, you’ll need to get some kits to test the water for ammonia and nitrate, both of which are byproducts of breathing fish and both of which are toxic to fish (kind of like how humans exhale carbon dioxide, which is toxic to us). And be sure to clean out the filter from time to time; if it gets congested with fish waste or gravel, it won’t work like it should and your fish could get sick.
4. Don’t overlook a heating system – water in which fish are present is not always the same temperature as your tap. A good temperature to keep your tank at for tropical fish is around the mid to upper 70s…any hotter or colder and they may not live too long. Also, you’ll have to invest in an air p ump to keep the water circulating in the tank since no fish lives in a natural environment with completely stationary water.
5. Before you place your fish in their new home, be sure you’ve let the tank “run” for a few hours (as in at least 12 hours) so the water becomes thoroughly oxygenated and heated. Would you want to go into a new house with no heat or running water, or one where everything’s ready to go for your arrival?
6. How many fish do you want in your tank? A good rule of thumb (or fin) is that for each inch of fish, you should have a gallon of water, and this will depend on the size of the fish. For example, a dozen little fish will not need as much oxygen as one great big one. If you put a plethora of fish into the same tank, there will not be sufficient oxygen for each of them and they’ll start dying. As an example, four four-inch fish would do just fine in a properly-filtered and heated 20-gallon tank.
The above-listed steps give an overall explanation of the process of setting up the tank and getting it running. Please continue reading Maintaining a Freshwater Aquarium – 100% Foolproof Method Part II to learn about the fish themselves, how to feed them, how to keep their water clean, and keeping an eye on your critters to ensure good health.