How to start your first aquarium

Where to put the aquarium?

Think about where in your home is the ideal place to set up an aquarium.

The structure should be installed on a wide smooth surface. A small aquadome can fit on a table or chest of drawers. Larger aquariums with a volume of hundreds of liters must first be placed on a special cabinet. In order for the aquarium to be stable, you will need to put a rubber mat of a suitable size under it. There must be an electrical outlet nearby to connect the equipment. But there should not be a heater or air conditioner nearby, otherwise the water temperature in the aquarium will constantly fluctuate. Make sure that the sun will not shine on the aquarium. Direct sunlight greatly increases the risk of algae growth. Often, aquarists place an aquadome near the side wall, where the structure will be securely covered with furniture from the sun’s rays.

Population density in an aquarium

How to correctly calculate the volume of the aquarium? It depends on how many and what kind of fish and other inhabitants of the underwater world you plan to settle in it. And from the dimensions of the place allotted for the aquarium.

On specialized resources there is a lot of background information about how much aquarium is suitable for a particular fish or school of fish. If in the house there was only a place for a ten-liter aquarium, you can get one cockerel fish. But if you’ve always dreamed of having two goldfish and watching them gracefully dance, then you’ll need a 20 liter container. It is possible to find an interesting solution for an aquarium of any size. In 30-XNUMX liters, cherry shrimp or pygmy guppies will feel great. You can start a species aquarium or run different types of fish in one aquarium. But in this case, it is extremely important to consider the compatibility of aquarium fish.

For beginners in aquarism, it is advisable to stop at an aquarium with a volume of no more than 60-100 liters. You will always have time to equip a larger aquarium if you want. Let’s say you’re addicted to territorial fish like African cichlids. They need space, an aquarium with a volume of less than 300 liters will not suit them.

What is the best way to decorate?

There are fish that will eat all living plants in an aquarium in a couple of days. Some are constantly burrowing into the sand. These features of your future wards must certainly be taken into account when choosing a design for an aquarium.

Living plants in the aquarium look great, they heal the aquarium ecosystem, but they require care. They will need to be cut, sometimes replanted, some plants feel good only in a special nutrient soil. These problems will not be if you opt for artificial plants for the aquarium.

With the help of colored soil, for example, small pebbles in a light or dark shade, you can create an original aquarium design. Decorations in the form of sunken ships and underwater caves will add picturesqueness to the aquadome. All decorations for the aquarium must be purchased at a pet store, this guarantees you the quality and safety of products.

aquarium shopping

A trip to the pet store should be made when you have already decided on the installation site and the volume of the aquarium, imagine how you will decorate it and who will settle it. In addition to the actual aquarium, you need to pick up equipment – a heater, a filter, a compressor and a thermometer. You will also need Tetra AquaSafe Water Conditioner, Tetra Bactozym Capsule Bacteria Culture or Tetra Safe Start Vial Liquid to start your aquarium. The siphon and scraper will be needed in the future for cleaning the aquarium. It will not be superfluous to immediately choose food for the fish.

It is highly desirable to purchase the fish themselves when the crucial moment of launching the aquarium is already behind. But if it turns out that you bought both the aquarium and the fish at once, make sure that the fish spend the next few hours comfortably enough. Untie the bag of fish, carefully place in a dark plastic container. Add 1 ml of water conditioner to a small amount of fresh water at room temperature. Add prepared water to the bag and turn on the compressor at low power. But these are only temporary measures, after a few hours the fish need to be launched into a spacious aquarium.

Nevertheless, we strongly recommend that you first start the aquarium, and then buy fish. Even with the use of air conditioning and a bacterial culture, it is desirable for a new aquarium to stand empty for at least a week, without fish. So it will develop the necessary ecosystem with beneficial bacteria.

Running an aquarium

Install the aquarium in a suitable place, wipe with a damp clean cloth. Equipment should be rinsed with water. Do not use soap or detergents. Install aquarium equipment.

Pour soil, plant plants, arrange all the decor. Prepare your aquarium water with the Tetra AquaSafe Water Conditioner. It neutralizes impurities in tap water that can harm aquarium inhabitants. Now you can gradually pour water into the aquadome. Turn on the heater. Bring the water to the right temperature for your fish.

Modern technologies allow you to quickly create an environment of beneficial bacteria in the aquarium that will neutralize organic waste. Pour the Tetra Safe Start bacteria culture into the aquarium. If you purchased bacteria to start your aquarium in a capsule (Tetra Bactozym), place it in the ground.

Soon you will be able to release the fish into the aquarium. But not right out of the box, try to make the relocation process less stressful for your new charges. Top up the bag with aquarium water. After a quarter of an hour, add more aquarium water to the bag. Then carefully pour the entire contents of the bag into the net. Lower the net with the fish into the aquarium, they themselves will flutter out of it into the expanse of their new home.

On the first day, it is better not to feed the fish, they already had enough adventures. Ready-made food must certainly fit the type of fish you have chosen. For example, catfish often live in the lower layers of the aquarium, they are more suitable for special food for catfish in the form of tablets that sink to the bottom.

Feed the aquarium inhabitants enough once a day, the food should be eaten enthusiastically within five minutes. Do not forget about weekly preventive cleaning and partial water changes in the aquarium. We wish that the launch of your first aquarium goes well, and your new hobby gives you a lot of positive emotions!