The Ultimate Way To Move Your Prized Fish Tank Safely

Tanks typically are very heavy and fragile which means tremendous care and attention will have to be used when trying to move around them. Though it is true far more care is called for whenever you are relocating a tank from a single house hold to another almost the same amount is without question appropriate as you are simply just transporting an aquarium from one room in your home to another.

Step one with transporting a fish tank is to gently move your fish straight into a different holder so that they don't get harmed. Take some of the water from the tank and pour it into a plastic container into which you may add the animals. Keep your fish at a reasonable ambient temperature and quite dimly lit in order that they do not get anxious.

If your animals are safe it is time to undertake the next step which involves removing the same amount water as feasible. Surprisingly on a brief drive water might lead to problems as it is heavy and can make the home or automobile wet. You'll want to preserve the existing water so it may be put spine into any aquarium when you are set-up once more.

Electronic apparatus needs to be turned off and stripped away from the aquarium tank. Fish tank heating elements should be able to cool-down well before they are taken off or you may take a chance on inducing problems for yourself. Internal filters should be removed and put into some existing water from the tank to keep them in good shape while outside filter systems can merely have their tubes removed.

In advance of when you relocate the actual tank itself you'll want to delicately evaluate the direction you will likely be going with. If you are moving it within any household then ensure ones walkway is clear of what you may could trip over. In case you are moving around it to a fresh household then give consideration to covering ones tank for your fish with some thick items in order to prevent damage.

Unless you personally own a small tank it is prudent to have support with regard to carrying the tank. Several individuals can take more care over the action and be certain that no wear and tear is done to you or the fish tank. Make sure to always maintain a vertical back and carry it as near to your own body as you can.

You should have a place equipped to put ones tank down when you get to ones destination and then you certainly can begin putting it back together. Refill the tank with the treated water you collected and attach all the electrically powered tank supplies you employ. This will begin to clean the treated water and heat it up ready for any fish. As soon as the water is ready be certain to be safe to change the aquarium inhabitants having efficiently transferred any fish tank.

The Best Tank Setup For Your Betta

When it comes to betta tank setup, size does matter. While most bettas can survive in very small containers, they will live long, quality lives only when placed in tanks no smaller than a gallon or two. Bettas have an organ called the "labyrinth", which allows them to breathe oxygen as humans do, and also allows them to survive outside water for longer periods of time. However, this does not give you the excuse to house your betta in a small jar. Actually, I find no problem with bettas being kept in small jars since most betta breeders in Thailand and other parts of Asia practice this with much success. The problem is if you cannot find the time to change the water of your betta's jar on a regular basis. Unlike with other aquarium fish, betta fish's water should be replaced at a more frequent basis if their long and flowy fins are to remain beautiful and vibrant. Therefore, if you want to choose the best tank setup for your betta, you should consider these essential things:

1.) Tank Size - Again, tank size matters. However, if you can't provide a tank larger than 5 gallons for your betta, you should be prepared to perform water changes every 3-5 days.

2.) Filtration - Bettas that are kept in tanks below 2.5 gallons can live without filtration. However, full water changes every 2-3 days are a requirement. If you house your bettas on tanks 5 gallons and up, you should get a filtration system since it is more difficult to perform full water changes on larger tanks.

3.) Heater - If you live in Asia like me, heaters are not necessary. However, if you live in countries that experience cold seasons, you definitely need a heater for your betta. Ideal temperature for a betta's water is between 75-82 degrees Fahrenheit. If you keep your fish in tanks smaller than 5 gallons, it would be ideal to get a small heater as regular sized heaters can heat up smaller tanks fast. Or, keep your tank in a warm room.

4.) Massive Water Changes - To give you an idea on how frequent you should change your betta's water, refer below:

Tank Size and Frequency of Water Change

Below 2.5 gallons--------------------------------------Every 2-3 days (100% water change)
2.5 to 5 gallons (Filtered/Unfiltered)-----------------Every 3-5 days (100% water change)
5 gallons and up (Filtered)-----------------------------Twice a month with 25% water changes once a week

5.) Accessories - I personally do not recommend adding accessories to tanks if you are keeping bettas with long and flowy fins such as halfmoons and crowntails. However, if you wish add accessories such as live or plastic plants, make sure they do not have very sharp or pointed edges that might tear your betta's fins. Like most breeders, I keep my 2.5 gallon betta tanks bare, with no pebbles (substrate), no plants, and no accessories whatsoever. The reason is that these accessories make tank cleaning very difficult. By leaving my tank bare, all I need to do when it's time to clean my betta's tank is siphon all the poop and dirt out and replace the water.

Discus Fish - Disease and Their Risks

Native from the Amazon and effectively bred across the world in aquariums, discus aren't as fragile or delicate as you might think. Nevertheless, all breeders need to be conscious of all the dangers of discus fish disease, as they're frequently subject to numerous health issues due to improper care and environment. Breeders the are most cause of discus fish illnesses, this does not imply we're pointing the finger, this is just a reality. Improper treatment, bad or inadequate tank conditions, co-inhabitant's with inappropriate breeds are generally the factor for a discus fish disease.

Probably the most typical discus disease would be the ones that most freshwater fish are prone to having. For example the ammonia poisoning is a discus fish illness that is due to an improper nitrogen cycle inside your aquarium. Do not add tropical fish till the ammonia is removed from the water, perhaps filters do not perform correctly?. To be able to avoid this particular disease, replace the water frequently and steer clear of over-crowding the tank. The signs and symptoms of this disease consist of red and swollen gills and also the fish remaining in the water are at the surface gasping for air.

An additional discus disease that comes from bad water quality will be the Itch or better known as white spot characterised through the little white spots around the physique and fins of the fish. The very best method to battle this is by increasing the temperature in the tank and administrating medicine. Prior to adding the medicine for this kind of discus disease, remove the carbon filter as this might soak up all of the helpful medication. If you want other species of fish in the tank, make certain you set up a quarantine aquarium enabling you to stop any disease entering the tank.

In the event the water temperature isn't suitable you will expose your fish to an additional disease like oxygen starvation. A greater water temperature also demands an elevated degree of oxygen within the water. Consequently, you are able to effortlessly fix this by simple aeration of the water, speeding up the flow through the filters. You might wish to turn off the tank light from time to time, as this also leads to temperature to rising and thus exposes the fish to less oxygen. All in all, maintain the correct temperature for your discus fish, which is 31 degrees Celsius at the absolute maximum.

Cycling a New Cichlid Fish Aquarium

With a new aquarium, cycling your tank is the first and most important thing you need to do. This is the process in which your aquarium needs to establish good bacteria. When you first setup your aquarium it will be contaminated with bad bacteria. Before putting cichlid fish into the tank it is important that this bad (harmful) bacteria converts into good bacteria. The first stage of bacteria will break down ammonia into nitrites, and the second stage of bacteria will break down the nitrites into nitrates. Both ammonia and nitrites are harmful to your fish, but nitrates are not, as long as they are at a safe level (below 20ppm).

There are two ways to cycle your tank: with or without fish. Both methods have their advantages and disadvantages, but most fish enthusiasts prefer to do a fishless cycle. Doing a fishless cycle (which I recommend) has many more advantages: it's faster, easier, and avoids permanently harming fish. Plus, the water will be completely ready for fish once the cycle is finished.

Fishless Cycle

One effective way of doing a fishless cycle is to use media, gravel, sand, or decor from another (disease free) aquarium that already has good bacteria established. If you can't find any of these materials, you can purchase bacteria in a bottle from your local fish store. Also, during this process I suggest raising the temperature in the aquarium to around 85 degrees, this allows for a faster chemical reaction.

Cycling with fish

If you decide to go the other route, then you will need hardy fish that can withstand these harmful water conditions; I suggest using either tetras or guppies. Cycling your tank with fish can take anywhere between 4-6 weeks for the nitrates to become established. You will need to do frequent water changes (20%) 3-4 times a week until the cycle is complete. Of course if you are doing a cichlid fish aquarium you will need to remove the starter fish before adding any cichlids to the tank.

Conclusion

Whichever method you chose, it is important to realize that this can be time-consuming(3-6 weeks), therefore patience is a virtue. It is also important to constantly test your water during this process to ensure that your tank is cycling properly. I recommend using a liquid test kit rather than the basic test strips. Make sure before you add sensitive fish, your nitrates are at, or below 20ppm.

Breeding Discus Fish: An Explanation

Breeding discus fish could be really a difficult procedure and really shouldn't be tried by newbies! Regarded as to the number one most stunning tropical fish, they need lots of prerequisites for their environment and special care so be ready to become an active role for your King of the Aquarium!

Discus fish breeding can start in two methods, one is much more costly compared to other. The costly but faster and much more dependable technique entails purchasing a current Discus pair which are already compatible with each other, if you are able to purchase a group of Discus - a minimum of 6 is suggested - and hope a pair will happen naturally as they mature. In addition, it's suggested to purchase various types of Discus fish as this may assist in broadening the genetic gene pool.

As soon as a pair is formed, they basically turn out to be the dominant pair and they'll declare territory. At this stage, eliminate other fish from the aquarium or move the pair to a unique breeding tank - about twenty to thirty gallons ought to be ideal. Make sure that this tank has hiding spots as Discus pairs will battle sometimes (as any pair does!).

So you've the pair. Now arrives the care. Discus breeding demands rigid regulation of numerous elements - chief amongst that are water high and diet plan.

Replace a minimum of 25% of the water in tank twice a week. Make sure that ammonia and nitrite ranges are virtually nonexistent - retaining nitrogenous waste as near to zero as feasible is very essential. Discus are acidic water fish so retaining the pH ranges at 5 to 5.8 is important. Particularly when replacing the water - Discus can go into shock in the event the ranges alter rapidly. In addition, regulating the temperature of the water goes hand in hand with this particular task.

For breeding discus fish, the suggested water temperature is about 82 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit.

breeding discus will even entail lots of worms. Discus fish adore white and black worms and feeding these foods to them assists in the breeding procedure. In addition, adult brine shrimp, mosquito larvae and daphnia could also be useful.

As soon as the spawning begins, you are able to anticipate as much as 15 eggs each and every week! These will generally start hatching inside 48 hrs. Do not be concerned about planning food for them, because they feed off the adult Discus for the very first couple of days.

Hope this gives you a good overview of Discus fish breeding! Great luck and appreciate your new Discus!

Aquarium Filtration System - Should You Consider Undergravel

There is no doubt that keeping your aquarium clean is crucial to the well-being of your fish and plant. The quality of the water is critical and whether your fish and plant thrives or not depends a lot on the condition of the water. Aquarium filter is essential to keep your tank clean and free from harmful toxin and wastes that accumulates over time.

One popular and widely used aquarium filtration system is the under gravel filter. As the name suggest, the filtration component is located beneath the gravel that is normally used as a form of substrate inside the fish tank. One drawback to this system is that you need to vacuum the gravel in the tank frequently. You need to do this to prevent waste particles and debris trap in the gravel from affecting the performance of the under gravel filter.

Some people perceive it as a hassle to replace this system as it involves major overhaul of the aquarium. You need to remove the gravel and almost everything along with it. The main advantage with under gravel filtration system is that it is quite efficient as well as easy to install and operate. You don't need to deal with stuff hanging on the back of your aquarium like some other filtration systems.

All the major components for this type of filtration system are concealed under the gravel with basically columns that run up the corners, which have one-way valves within them. You can increase the performance and efficiency of most under gravel system by adding a power-head filter.

A 'power-head' is basically the part of the filter that ejects water into the aquarium. Complimenting your under gravel filtration system with a power head is important because it facilitate the pushing of fresh, filtered water from the under gravel system back to your aquarium. Doing so will also produce oxygen bubbles into your fish tank and provide adequate oxygen to your fish.

It is important for you to keep your fish tank in clean condition. Your fish could easily contract disease, become ill and even perish as a result of a dirty and poorly maintain tank. Assembling together a good filtration system won't require much time and effort at all. It is quite easy to set up an under gravel filter. The best part of this filtration system is that it is located right down where the waste is, rendering it remarkably simpler to remove it from your aquarium thus keeping your tank clean all the time.

Need Help to Select Live Plant Species for My First Freshwater Aquarium

My first step to a planted aquarium

Who wouldn't like an organic freshwater planted aquarium compared to chemically boosted nest for their lovely pets. It is therefore essential to simulate growth of bacteria in your first planted aquarium built from scratch to help develop nutritious substrates and fertilizing agents. Under these circumstances, we go with no lights, zero fish or plants after addition of substrate. The core purpose being to allow the water to circulate and "offgas" for up to 2 or 3 days maximum before we start planting.

What kind of plants should I grow?

Ozelot Sword, one of the South American decorative plants is considered an excellent beginner's plant with an elliptical black spots on elongated reddish-brown or bright green leaves. The spots are darker on younger leaves, but remain even on mature leaves and even under low light conditions. It has a fast growth rate and can rise up to 40 cm. It is an undemanding, tolerant plant and grows happily in a wide array of conditions, including unheated tanks and those with very hard water. This plant may send up flower stalks to the surface, producing small white flowers with around 12 hours of sunlight. Place a ball of substrate gold in gravel to fertilize and feed the plant.

Narrow Leaf Java Fern is a lush, mid-ground plant often used to decorate rocks and driftwood. Java Fern is hardy plant that does not require much care. It's roots attach to the surface it is planted on. It should therefore be planted on a rock or driftwood. Java Fern can be kept in brackish tanks. It requires low lighting otherwise could melt and develop tansparent patches. It could be poisonous and so is ignored by herbivorous fish.

Cryptocoryne Wendtii comes in green, red and bronze colored variable leaves. It grows submersed in south Asian waters in bogs. Cryptocorynes are sensitive to change and therefore should only be moved when neccesary. They feed from roots and so the substrate should be rich in fertilizers and does best in warm weather.

Anubias Nana also known as "dwarf anubias" bears tough, waxy, dark green leaves sprouting from thick rhizome. It grows parallel to the ground and adheres to rocks or woods. Advantages are less need for lighting and nutrients for growth. Rooting it's rhizome under gravel could lead to it's death and need to be taken care of.

While there could be many aquarium plants like Amazon sword plant, Vallisneria, Aponogeton, etc depending upon the climatic conditions and ecological balance of your planted aquarium the above are most suitable to meet major changes and make the aquarium environment look pleasant and colorful for the health benefits of both fishes and human beings

Advantages and dis-advantages of a planted aquarium:

• It absorbs carbon-di-oxide - CO2 in daylight
• Releases oxygne - O2 during daytime
• Absorbs toxins
• Harbors beneficial bacteria
• Serves as a great food source to herbivirous fishes
• Inhibits algae growth

Main disadvantages of having a planted aquarium could be development of parasites and generation of debris from dead leaves and plants that could block the filter. Regular maintenance can help in prevention of these.

Kalpen Shah