Starting your own aquarium
Starting an aquarium can be a cool and relaxing hobby. You can be your own little God! However, some basics need to be taken into account to ensure the success of the undertaking for fish, plant, and ape! Below are mentioned the abc's to maintain a nice aquarium with simple means and limited maintenance. For more information check out the various links at the end of the article.
|
|
Freshwater versus saltwaterIn general, people think about amazing coral reefs when the term aquarium is mentioned. And they can be spectacular displays. However, salt water tanks require typically a lot more technology and care. For example, you will need to get the right water salinity. For this you will need salt and de-ionized water. For the latter you will need a reverse osmosis kit. In addition, other hardware such as a sump, a protein remover, etc. may be required. Finally, plants, corals, and fish are about 5-10 times more expensive compared to those on fresh water... Assuming you are a busy academic scholar, I would recommend to go (or at least start) with fresh water!
|
|
Keeping it fresh: planted versus fishSo we are keeping fresh: cool! you have chosen the size you like: excellent! The final important choice will be to choose between keeping fish only, plants only, or plants with fish. In general, under the right conditions (water quality, temperature, and feeding) fish area easier to keep. Plants are harder as to keep them successfully you will need to pay extra attention to the fertilization of the water and balance the amount of light. However, nothing beats a thriving planted thank. And the fish will also appreciate the diversion and extra water treatment the plants offer!
|
Check your local water first: hardnessWhen keeping fresh water aquaria it is easiest to use tapwater. However the hardness of tapwater varies quite a bit. Depending on your geographical location and the local water supply company, it ranges from very soft (few ions) to very hard (plenty of ions). Get to know this, and keep this in mind when stocking your aquarium. In general, fish (and shrimps!) have their preferred conditions. Even though you may have prepared perfectly, choosing the wrong fish for your type of water can result into casualties... A rather depressing result :(
|
Planted tank: the holy trinityWhen keeping plants, it should be noted that this is quite different compared to normal atmospheric plants. Of course there is not really the issue of watering them, however 3 key pillars should be balanced in order to make the plants thrive. These are light, macro nutrients, and micro nutrients.
|
LightThe amount of light in the aquarium determines the growth rate of your plants. A bright aquarium full of fast growing plants sounds like a win win situation. however, to fuel these plants large amounts of nutrients are needed and the plants will produce substantial waste products. Accordingly, frequent (at least weekly) water changes are required. So yes, the amount of light strongly dictates the required maintenance.
|
LocationThe location of the aquarium in your house is of high relevance. First of all, the light coming in from outside should be limited to better control plant growth. In addition, the average room temperature is important. In a cold place: make sure to have a heater. More troublesome are hot environments: Cooling is technically more difficult (and less efficient) compared to heating. Hence in hot countries it may be wise to locate the coolest location and/or specialize in fish and plants that thrive under hot conditions....
|
Balance the macronutrientsOf the macronutrients, it is most important that the CO2 supply is relatively high, as the CO2 provides the carbon needed for growth. Since dosing large amounts of CO2 is technically most challenging, it is recommended to adjust the lights and other nutrients to the amount of CO2 you are willing to feed.
|
Carbon dioxide: CO2 To sustain a high illumination (high tech) aquarium, loads of CO2 is needed. This is commonly achieved by contacting pressurized gaseous CO2 to the water. This can be done using several technique approaches, such as with a bubbler, a CO2 reactor, and an atomizer. These technicalities are better explained on the pages cited below. In addition, liquid CO2 can be used complementary to the gaseous CO2. For a low illumination aquarium (low tech), liquid CO2 is sufficient.
|
Liquid nutrientsThe macro and micro nutrients are widely available from various renowned companies such as Easy-life. I would personally recommend to use the macro and micro nutrients provided by www.aquariumplantfood.co.uk. I complement these with the Easy life products: EasyCarbo (liquid carbon), Profito (extra plantvoeding), and Filter Medium (conditioning of tap water), and EasyStart (to condition the water upon start up of the aquarium).
|
HardwareIn decorating your aquarium, many options are available: sand, gravel, earth, rocks, wood, and various others. Mind in your selection that the nature of the material may influence your water. In addition, some may be better for distinct fish compared to others. Finally, take your time in finding the perfect arrangement. Also, make sure to not put heavy rocks directly on the glass bottom!
|
Stocking: (abundant) plants firstWhen you aim at keeping a planted tank with some fish, it is recommended to start with the plants before putting in an fish. This as the water quality of aquarium is in the beginning not yet very stable. Moreover, to minimize algae growth, stock the aquarium with a dense population of plants. Mind that some plants (usually because of too much or too little light) may not grow optimally. Accordingly, save yourself frustration and buy loads of plants of diverse nature.
|
The filterIn order to distribute all the nutrients through the aquarium a filter is needed. Many types of internal and external filters are available. Ensure to pump about 10 times the volume of the aquarium per hour. In addition, the filter should have enough volume (capacity) of media: about half a liter per 20 liters of aquarium. The latter enables to keep the pump capacity as the filter fills with waste products. When first connected, the filter needs to operate ('cycle') for several weeks to build up the beneficial bacteria culture in the media. Finally, keep in mind that the filters in starter sets are often on the small side in terms of flow and media capacity...
|
Stocking fish: smallAfter cycling your filter for several weeks and testing your water quality (many shops will do this for you), you are ready to start introducing fish. It is important to do this in stages, as the presence of fish will induce a change in the bacteria culture, as they get use to process some of the waste formed by the fish. In terms of types of fish: to maximize the relative size of your aquarium choose fish that are and stay small. Mind that many small fish grow out to monstrous sizes in no time: so called 'tank busters' .
|
Stocking fish: cheapWhen stocking fish, it is always good to buy cheap fish. Besides the economic advantage, it is important to realize why they are cheap: because they are likely very easily bred in captivity. The latter implies that the fish are not wild caught preventing a possible negative influence of a natural biotope somewhere else. Moreover, captivity-bred fish are often remarkably hardy and will be more likely to keep going longer. This will make you in turn a happier fish keeper!
|
Maintainace: captains logA very useful exercise is to log all changes you make to the aquarium. As your biotope will often change very slowly to the changes this may help you to explain things. In the above example, 'Mi' is for micronutrients, 'Ma' is for macronutrients. And yes, I am working on improving my handwriting!
|
Low techIn a low tech aquarium, the cycle of the plants is reduced. The prime ingredient to achieve this is to reduce the light intensity. This lowers the need for nutrients and the need to change the water, and will save you loads of maintenance. In this case, dosing only liquid CO2 will be fine. As modern day light sources (LEDs, T5, T8) often deliver truckloads of light, it may be good to reduce the light intensity. Some people recommend to use floating plants for this (see left), however, these will also deplete the nutrients in the water. Alternatively, you could reduce the light intensity by covering part of your light sources with shades (I use simple cardboard). Of course, make sure that this is done safely!
|
Open topA particular nice type of aquarium is the one with the open top. It adds an extra viewing plane and makes the aquarium nicely merge with its surroundings. Point of attention: fish may jump out! In addition, water evaporation is strongly enhanced. This is ideally countered by topping up with demi (distilled) water to prevent the hardening of the water (the minerals in the water will not evaporate).
|
Recommendation for busy people My personal recommendation for those that like a nice aquarium but do not want to do a lot of maintenace: low tech and closed top. Make sure the light is not too bright (or switched on too long) and dose 1/4 of the nutrients compared to the recommended estimative index (using the EI starter kit). In addition, dose liquid carbon and Profito plant fertilizer following their recommended doses. This is combined with a 25% water change every 2 weeks, and a monthly cleaning of the filter and the glassware. That's all there is to it!
|
Recommended fishSeveral fish enable an easy and affordable way to make a stunning aquarium. The ones mentioned here are all captivity bread, widely available, affordable, and hardy: Cardinal tetras, amber tetras, endlers, corydoras, japonica schrimps (see image), kuhli loaches, dwarf gourami, otocinclus. Make sure to read up on their needs, and go for it!
|
TemperatureAh yeah: an important parameter in the aquarium is the temperature. Often, aquaria are kept too hot (>27C). Although they are called 'tropical', the preferred water temperature for many fish is around 23-25C. As these values are near room temperature, and the lights produce heat, this means that the heater is often not even required! It is also good to keep in mind that the amount of gases dissolved in the water (O2 and CO2) strongly reduces at higher temperatures. Meaning: lower temperatures give you better plant development and more oxygen for the fish.
|
Notorious fish: tankbustersTank busters are fish that are are sold small but grow in no time into huge sizes, hereby making their housing very inappropriate. The most famous tank buster must be the gold fish. Gold fish are actually pond fish and are not at home in an aquarium. Others are: most catfish, most algae eaters (any other than the otocinclus), angel fish, and sharks. Do you research before buying!
|
Recommended plantsA wide array of plants are available. In general, those that thrive under the widest range of conditions (for example brightness) are favoured. For the low tech aquarium, plants are preferred that do well under a reduced light intensity. Some recommended classics are: Anubias, Java fern, most mosses, cryptocoryne, and the amazon sword.
|
FeedingFeeding most common fish (such as mentioned above) is fairly easy and a wide variety of foods is available. However, first and foremost, do not over feed your fish! They are very small and have very small stomach. Second, try to vary the types of food if possible. Finally, if you have herbivores (such as otocinclus) complement the diet once a week with a slice of cucumber or courgette to prevent them from starving. The latter is particularly relevant in a low tech tank.
|
Saggy gravel troublesHave you ever noticed how eventually the gravel in the aquarium always ends up horizontal spread in your aquarium? Even if you make the nicest hilly landscapes, within several months (or even weeks) it will be all horizontal again. This is usually accompanied by an unsightly thick gravel layer at the front and sides of your aquarium. The bad news is that this is very hard to avoid, as in a sense, you are fighting against thermodynamics...The good news is that kinetics can be exploited to keep a nice hilly aquarium.
|
Gravel tip: howTo create a less flat gravel spread, you could periodically (once every 2/3 months or so) remove gravel from the front and sides of the aquarium (indicated in blue). This gravel you then wash thoroughly, and the put back at a spot in the back of the aquarium (indicated in green). You will see that the gravel will slowly start to elegantly move back in place (orange arrows). This methods works best with a fair amount of plants (green stars) and rocks (grey) to reduce the migration speed of the gravel.
|
Gravel tip: advantagesSelectively removing/washing/replacing the gravel brings various advantages. First, you generate an attractive hilly aquarium. Next, directly after removing the gravel at the front, you have the option to clean the lower front part of the glass with a reduced risk of scratching. Third, you will systematically clean your gravel without too much uprooting of plants. Last, the migration of gravel may prevent locking in of waste and helps to keep the aquarium clean.
|
Local fish shopYour local fish shop (lfs) will be likely the source of the fish you will get. Sadly, nowadays the expertise of the average lfs employee is limited. Well, what can you expect of a 16 year old kid, right? Therefore, do not rely on their advice and prepare before going there! Also, check out the quality of their demo tanks. If these look a mess, they may not be very expertised on the topic... Anyways, most hardware can be bought very economically on line. Also top-notch quality plants can be purchased online.
|
MovingMoving an aquarium is an invasive operation which usually strongly influences the stability of the biotope, resulting in algae, death of plants, and (in the worst case) even the death of fish. Causes can be the different light coming from outside the aquarium, different water, uprooting of plants, and several others. The negative effects of moving can be reduced by reducing the water temperature (as far as the fish allow), reducing the light intensity and duration, and by increasing the amount of water changes for a few weeks.
|
Further reading...Interested in more? great! Here are a few good websites to help you:
Background on the estimative index: http://www.barrreport.com/ Getting your starter kit of nutrients: http://www.aquariumplantfood.co.uk/fertilisers/dry-chemicals/starter-kits/ei-starter-kit.html General good informative website (in Dutch): http://www.aquascaping-blog.com/ Buying top quality plants in central europe: http://www.aquarium-planten.com/ A very education and rich website on the use of plants: http://tropica.com/en/plants/ |