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by Sherron Ostrander

How to Keep Tropical Fishes in Fish Tanks – Patience is Key.

April 13, 2012 in Aquarium Care, Aquarium Plants, Aquariums, Fish Keeping Mistakes, Fish Tanks, Freshwater Aquariums

The best advice for setting up and maintaining a good-looking, healthy, low-maintenance aquarium is “Don’t Rush!” Plan on the set up of your aquarium taking weeks. The more weeks the better. And that’s before you even look at the first fish!

Pick the perfect spot in your home, well lit but out of direct sun. It’s better to pick a dark spot and add extra lighting than have to fight the natural sunshine, which will promote too much algae growth and even cause overheating.

Partially fill the tank and then plant your plants. Use lots of plants, they are your healthy-fish secret. Then fill the tank the rest of the way, turn on the filtration system, and wait. The longer you can stand to wait, the better experience you will have. Waiting gives your tank and its natural ecosystem time to stabilize. It gives the plants a chance to put down some roots before the fish start knocking against them. It also allows you time to decide if you tank design is pleasing, and to change it if necessary. Fish don’t like change, so giving yourself time to get their home perfectly arranged before you bring them home is key.

Good tank preparation is more important than what type of fish or plants or filtration you choose, or any other single factor.

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by Cory Lover Shara

Aquarium Care : Cleaning & Maintaining your Fish Tank

April 5, 2012 in Aquarium Care, Aquariums, Fish Tanks

Clean your substrate with an aquarium vacuum to remove debris.

Clean your substrate with an aquarium vacuum to remove debris.Photo courtesy of Victor Martinez
flickr.com/photos/osseous/5891344636...

A clean, well-maintained aquarium keeps fish healthy and allows you to enjoy them more. Dirty aquariums are hazardous to the fish’s health, shorten their lifespan and look cloudy and grimy. Set up a schedule for maintaining your aquarium and stick to it. You’ll do less cleaning if you do it regularly than a big cleaning less frequently. Unplug all the equipment to the aquarium before you begin maintenance inside.

Daily Maintenance: 

Aquariums don’t need a lot of work on the daily basis. Feed your fish according to the needs of the species. Check your aquarium each day to make sure the equipment is operating properly and that the fish are in good health.

Weekly Maintenance: 

Clean the inside walls of the aquarium with an aquarium brush once a week.

Vacuum the aquarium’s substrate to remove any dead plant debris and leftover food.

Remove one-third to two-thirds of the water and replace with clean, dechlorinated water.

Wipe the outside of the aquarium with a soft, damp cloth to remove water spots.

Monthly Maintenance:

Once a month, test your water for nitrates, nitrites, ammonia and pH. Test the water weekly, if your aquarium is new.

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by AquaAdmin

Build Aquarium At Home

March 19, 2012 in Aquariums, Fish Tanks

Build Aquarium At Home

Aquarium building at Home

What you need to build your own aquarium:
1. Glass sheets
2. Wax pencil/glass marking pencil
3. Straight glass cutting hand tool
4. Utility gloves
5. Fish tank sealant

Measure the glass sheets to desired size.
You will need 5 sheets plus one lid.
Its up to you whether you want to have a glass lid or an alternate one.
Make marking lines on the glass sheets with a grease/wax pencil/glass marker.
Use a straight ruler to make the straight lines exactly perpendicular [Straight & Perpendicular is important while building an aquarium] to each other.
Use a glass cutter hand tool to make several deep scores along each of the straight lines you marked on the glass sheets.
Using gloves, snap off the glass excess of the score marks.
Select one of the glass sheets to act as base of the aquarium.
Apply a line of fish tank sealant to the top edge of the piece selected as base of the aquarium.

Assemble the rest of the glass sheets on top and press it to create an even seal.
Place something heavy next to the tank assembly to support the glass sheets in place as the tank sealant cures.
Secure all the corners of the fish tank with a tape to securely attach the corners.
Check with a right-angle tool if the corners are aligned perfectly.
Apply the fish tank sealant to the rest of the tank walls.
Place the glass carefully on the sealant and support all the sides until the sealant is dry.
Place something heavy both outside and inside the fish tank to support the assembly.
Remove excess sealant that is not smooth from the inside and outside of the fish tank with a sharp edge.
Seal any remaining bubbles or gaps with a final layer of sealant.
Don’t forget to post your DIY Fish Tank you make here.

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