Aquarium Tips #1-3
Aquarium Tip 1: A Beautiful Aquarium Welcome to Part 1 of your 10-part mini-course series, My Freshwater Aquarium Secrets. Today I introduce you to the two different materials from which tanks are made of - acrylic and glass - as well as explain the differences between them. Afterwards, you will be able to make an informed decision when purchasing a new aquarium. Let's start with acrylic! Acrylic is stronger, lighter, and safer than glass because it doesn't shatter like glass, so many parents are more comfortable with their children around acrylic. Here's a great example: children are throwing the baseball around indoors, like children sometimes do. One throw and a miss and the ball crashes against the aquarium! While the ball would most likely shatter glass, it will likely bounce off of acrylic. Another benefit of acrylic is that it insulates much better than glass tanks do, which will reduce the cost of electricity and heating and will keep your hard earned money in your pocket. The majority of 'custom' tanks made for private homes and businesses are crafted from acrylic because it's completely seamless and the clearest material available. The downside to acrylic is the price - it's often more expensive than glass is! Glass is your second option. It is the most common aquarium tank material, and it's also cheaper. While the glass that's used with aquariums is hard to scratch, once it's scratched it can never be 'buffed' out. It's also mostly available in a rectangular shape - it's hard to shape glass into much else. There's also another huge disadvantage to glass aquariums - drilling holes. Some times filters require a hole in the side of the aquarium and drilling into glass can be dangerous and you risk shattering the entire aquarium. Many professionals can drill the holes for you, and there are tools that can help you conserve your glass tank if you choose to drill the hole yourself, but there is always a risk. Choosing the right tank for you is actually easy, though it can often become a bit challenging if you're just not sure about your options. Check out the various tank sizes and shapes to be confident about your choice!
Aquarium Tip 2 - How Many Fish? Welcome to part 2 of your 10-part mini-course, My Freshwater Aquarium Secrets. Today I'm going to talk about how many fish you're able to keep in your aquarium. This is an issue for a lot of fish owners, because they just want to throw in as many fish as they can afford in a small to mid-sized tank. This is very cruel, and not the smartest option. The reason that you can't keep an unlimited number of fish in a small tank is because there's not enough oxygen in the water for all your fish and plants. By depriving them of sufficient amounts of oxygen, you can harm and possibly even kill your fish! Before you even purchase a tank, think about the number of fish that you want. There's an easy way to calculate how many fish can go into a tank, so get out your calculators! Multiply the length of your potential aquarium, times the width and divide it by twelve. The remaining number - in inches! - is the inches of fish that the aquarium can hold. If you are buying immature fish, remember they will grow thereby increasing the inches of fish; factor that into your choice of fish. Keep in mind that this calculation is for an 'average' aquarium - one that is shorter and wider, rather then tall and skinny. You really don't have to worry about this unless you're planning on reaching the maximum capacity. You should always consider this limit before purchasing a tank, and remember that more room is always better then less when it comes to a tank for your fish!
Aquarium tip 3 - Why Location is Crucial for a Healthy Freshwater Aquarium... Welcome to part 3 of your 10-part mini-course, My Freshwater Aquarium Secrets. In this part, I'm going to talk about the importance of selecting the right location for your aquarium. Choosing where your tank goes is a very important part of setting up an aquarium, because this is going to be where your fish will live for their entire lives. The best spots are away from direct sunlight and in a place where there are no drafts. Direct sunlight will quickly increase the temperature of an aquarium quickly, and it's hard to lower high temperatures quickly enough for the fish to survive. On the other hand, a draft will lower the temperature rather quickly. Fish need to have a constant environment. Contrary to common practice, the best place for your aquarium is away from main traffic areas (walkways, doorways, etc), but still in an area where you can really enjoy it properly. This means that there is a fine line between a poor and a perfect aquarium location. If possible, the tank should be placed against a weight-bearing wall. Why, you ask? Consider this: each gallon of water weighs roughly ten pounds in a tank. For a 75 gallon tank, you're talking about 750 pounds. Talk about weight issues! A weight-bearing wall was designed to care heavy loads and should be able to carry the extra weight. Remember that you need easy access to electricity and water - especially water. Regular water changes are a vital part of aquarium maintenance; draining and filling the tank is a huge task. Don't think that you're just going to be able to pick your tank up and turn it over to pour the water out! You're fish wouldn't like that either! It's also important to try and reduce the hassle of maintenance as much as possible. Experience has taught us all that the more troublesome a task is, the less likely we are to do it. This means that the water in your tank won't be changed very often if you have to lug it up several flights of stairs! There are a lot of factors to consider, so take your time choosing; there's no rush to find the perfect place. Don't be embarrassed if, when you finally put your tank in one place, you simply don't like it there. You can always move it. More Aquarium Tips to Come... Cheers, Bjorn ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ If you haven't had a chance to check out The Ultimate Freshwater Aquarium Guide, I urge you to do so now. It contains my step-by-step system to getting a healthy and thriving freshwater aquarium up and running. |