After you have purchased your aquarium, filters, heaters, gravel, floss, buffers, food, fish, and so on, you will need to learn how to clean and care for the fish. In fact, you should have researched the market before purchasing fish or aquariums to have an overall view of how to care for fish and maintain fish tanks. To help you learn more about fish care and aquariums however, we can consider a few helpful tips.
Heaters
Heaters are necessary to maintain tropical fish. Before your purchase your heater however, you should make sure that the filters and heater would fit into your aquarium without taking up unnecessary space. If you purchased a small tank, you will need to purchase filters and a heater than will accommodate the tank; otherwise, you may need to purchase a larger tank.
What to buy
When you purchase your tank, you will also want to buy a gravel, plants, ornaments, food, test kits, water treatment, etc. Gravel helps to maintain natural resources, while ornaments provide a lively d'cor to your fish tank. Plants make the fish feel at home, while food is necessary to prolong life. You will need a test kit to keep an eye on the water's health. Water treatment is ideal, since tap water is not pure in most areas.
Gravel Care:
The first thing you should do is grab a bucket and rinse your gravel to remove grime, dirt, and germs. After you purify the gravel, you will need to add water to the tank. At this time only, add half the water needed to deliver a full supply. Now, you can add your ornaments and plants to the aquarium. Once you have all your additives to the tank, you are ready to finish filling the tank with water. You should have received a manual with your tank. Follow the outlines to fill the tank properly. Once the tank is filled, you can add your heater and filtration systems. You will receive instructions with the purchase of your heater and filters, which you should follow accordingly. The last thing you will add to the tank is the water treatment. Water treatment will remove copper, metal, and related harmful chemicals. You can use products that will enable you to add your fish to the tank; otherwise, it is recommended that you wait at least a couple of weeks before adding fish.
Water filled tanks have natural bacterial productions, which must filter to settle to a secure level for fish to swim safely. After the water has set, you can use your test kit to decide if the water temperature and chemicals are balanced. After the water is verified, i.e. pure you can start adding fish to the tank in small amounts. The recommended fish is the damsel; however, this is a saltwater fish. The aggressive fish will devour passive fish. Therefore, if you start with damsels, only add two of the same fish and gradually start adding other fish. If you choose, freshwater fish try to keep passive fish in the tank, rather than aggressive fish.
If you want a selection of saltwater fish and freshwater fish perhaps, you should purchase two aquariums. White Cloud Mountain Minnows, Danios, goldfish, etc are nice starter fish. Additional types of fish include the bristle nose, which is a passive fish that grows around 5.5 inches. The Otocinclus is also a passive fish that grows 2 inches and prefers to live in rocks and plant areas, just as the bristle nose. Plecostomas is a passive fish, which grows 24 inches, and lives around plants and rocks as well. Marble and Veitail are passive fish, which both grow around 6 inches and prefer to live around rocks and plants.
Aquarium stores will stock a wide variety of fish tank fishes. The most popular choice tends to be the tropical fishes. They are quite hardy and also breed easily. They will also find it easy to get acclimatized to the artificial aquatic environments. All that they need is the water heated to the necessary temperature.
The maintenance of fish tank fishes is not that difficult to get used to. Feeding time will consist of small black worms, dried fish flakes, small snails, frozen flakes, shrimps and clams. The feeding material is easy to location from your local pet or aquarium store. It can also be easy purchase online.
Some of the more common tropical fish tank fishes include, Arowana, Bala Sharks, Barbs, Barracuda, Betta (males and females), Catfish, Cichlids, Clown Loaches, Guppies, Mollies, Platies, Rainbow Fish, Tiger Fish (Black and White), White Clouds, and White Tip Shark Catfish.
Arowana can grow to a length of approximately 36 inches, so these fish are for very large aquariums. They are also know as the Dragon Fish, and can easily inhabit with Tinfoil Barbs and Catfish.
Bala Sharks can reach a length of 18 inches, and as it is a school fish, they should be kept in a group of at least five.
Barbs are small in size, ranging in length between 2 and 6 inches depending on species. They are colourful and active fish that are more suited for the community aquarium. This makes them one of the most popular types of tropical fish.
Barracuda can grow to a maximum size of 9 inches. However these fish are predatory by nature and tend to feed on smaller fish, and therefore should be kept with fishes that are bigger than them.
Cichlids can grow up to 12 inches, and otherwise know as Angel Fish. This fish can equally grow in both freshwater and saltwater fish tanks, and come in very attractive colours.
Guppies can grow up to approximately 1.5 inches and again this type of fish is one of the most popular fish species in the world.
Rainbows are another variety of fish tank fishes. They are another attractively coloured fish, and make ideal companions for Mollies, Platies, Swordtails and Catfish.
Scavengers and Catfish are important fish tank fishes incorporate in your aquarium as they help in cleaning the tank by feeding on algae.
No fish tank is ever complete without Gold Fish and Koi. The Gold fish which includes Orandas, Fantails, Telescopes and Black Moors can make excellent fish. They will grow well in fish tanks and are also mild tempered, and can have a life span of around 20 years.
The Koi are beautiful fish that are only really suited for the larger aquariums. This is due to the fact that most of them will grow to 15 inches or more and have an average life span of some 15 to 20 years.
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