Part-IV: Setting Up Your Aquarium 9. Planning Your Aquarium Planning and maintaining an aquarium requires proper knowledge about fish keeping, fish tanks, and essential supplies for fish maintenance. An aquarium at home enhances the beauty of your room and house. Although there are many fish keeping theories, gaining knowledge through books and the Internet can […]
When you set up an aquarium, you need to get a stand for it as part of the purchase or separately. They range from cheap wooden stands to intricate metal ones, to fit your budget and taste. Your stand should be strong enough for the weight of a full tank with proper bolts in place. […]
This is necessary to maintain the temperature of the water. A glass immersion heater is the best as it gives a proper reading and remains on even if the water level drops. It is advisable to encase the heater in a mesh to avoid injuring the fish. Preferably, place the heater in the filter to […]
7. Aquarium Accessories You need to use proper lighting and heating equipment as well as filters to maintain the ambient environment of the aquarium. Here is a description of the essential accessories and equipment. Lights This is very important if the aquarium houses plants, in which case the aquarium should get just ten to twelve […]
Part-III: Equipment and Supplies 6. Aquarium Furnishings You need to add aquarium furnishings to beautify the underwater environment as well as to provide a breeding ground for some fish. Here are some materials that are suitable for use in an aquarium. Gravel When adding gravel, select a good quality like basalt or quartz gravel that […]
5. The Biological Cycle or Nitrogen Cycle Biological cycle is a natural process that starts functioning in your aquarium within four to six weeks. The biological cycle consists of beneficial bacteria breaking toxic organic compounds into lesser toxic compounds. Thereafter, it is possible to manipulate toxic levels in aquarium water through weekly water changes. Starting […]
Nitrogen Cycle Fish excretion causes rotting of food and deterioration of plants. Bacteria can break down nitrogen compounds present in fish waste into nitrate, which is easily absorbed by plants. You can otherwise remove this through gravel siphoning. This conversion process of changing fish waste into NO3 is nitrification. Nitrifying bacteria are not present when […]
Changing Water Hardness to Suit Fish You can change the water hardness in different ways to suit your fish. Ion exchange resins, filtering water through peat moss and reverse osmosis system, or boiling water for a long time can reduce water hardness substantially and make it soft. Filtering water through dolomite or crushed coral can […]