
Aquarium Issues: Setup and Maintenance
This is a guide for those new to fishkeeping, who would like to get
started. There is a host of information on the net for those who
are experienced; information on planted tanks, theme tanks, breeding
tanks etc, but most beginners will want a basic community tank
- something attractive and interesting, of small to medium size
and containing a mix of fish and plants. Here is what you need
to guide you through it!
When I decided to keep tropical fish, I knew very little about it
and had to do a lot of research. I have ended up with completely
different fish to those I wanted; I am still very happy with my tank.
I've also suffered some common problems with regard to illness and
water quality so here are my experiences and suggestions. In some cases
I was readily able to find advice via Google - at other times I really
needed personal advice, and sometimes I would get two conflicting
suggestions. This is the way I've done things; if in doubt get professional
advice from at least two different aquarists!
Setting up a New Aquarium
I was surprised several times along the way as I learnt about fishkeeping.
I had learnt that you need air pump, filter and heater, and expected
this to be expensive and fiddly, so I was delighted to find that you can
buy tanks with everything built into one core, and bought a Juwel Rekord 70
(70 litre basic tank, everything inbuilt). The water is aerated by surface
movement, so make sure that the pump outflow is near the surface and that
when you drop a small pinch of food in, you can see it moving around. If
you're in any doubt, you can buy a piece of thin plastic tube and push
it into the pump for it to suck in air - so ask your seller about tubing.
This will increase the level of agitation caused by the outflow as it
bubbles (the bubbles themselves don't aerate the tank per se!)
I was also not told about thermometers, but as the calibration on heating
elements will vary, you can get a cheap tank thermometer to stick to the
outside of the glass.
However I had thought it would be easy to get going once I had all the
equipment sorted out - I had not realised that you need to mature the tank
first (see below) before you can even think of putting fish in it - so you
will need to be patient!
Also, think about where the tank will go. Even small tanks are heavy.
If you do not wish to buy a recommended stand or cabinet, choose
a solid piece of furniture to support it (a good test is to sit on it!)
and ensure that the top is also strong enough. I bought an MDF board which was
cut to be slightly larger than the top of the furniture, and then painted
to be water resistant. In that way the furniture was protected from
water damage, and also from the fishtank going through the top.
Check the orientation of the floorboards, and make sure that your tank
will stand along the joists (at right angles to the boards),
so that you do not risk the tank going through the floor.
This is unusual, but it is worth being careful especially with older
floorboards or with tanks 3ft and over.
Maturing the Tank
Maturing the tank means establishing it so the water is not fresh out of
a tap, and so that there are natural biological cycles going on within the
filter. It's also called "cycling" the tank. It means establishing the
nitrogen cycle within the tank, so the fish's waste is converted from
toxic ammonia to nitrite and finally to nitrate, which is harmless.
To begin with, put your tank in place according to the instructions, installing
your pump, filter and heater, but don't turn them on. Add gravel, rocks and
so on. You can add plants now, or when you buy your first fish. Fill with
water, and treat the water with something like Tetra Aquasafe, to remove
chlorine and other harmful chemicals. If you can get the water to around
25°C, it will mean that the heater has less work to do.
Now, you can turn on your pump and heater. This will begin pulling water
through the filter, and bringing the water to temperature. Every day, add
a bacterial treatment to aid the establishment of bacteria in the filter
- I use JBL Denitrol. You cannot add any fish until the nitrogen cycle
has been established, and this will take a minimum of a week even with
this treatment.
After one week, get a test kit and test for nitrite. Once it is within
acceptable levels, you can add fish. However, don't just get any fish -
at this stage you still need to get hardy fish that can survive difficult
conditions, and then their presence (waste products breaking down, and
so on) will mature the tank before you can add other fish. Ask your
aquarist to recommend suitable fish - Barbs and Danios are good for this.
However, both are active and will attack slow moving fish or those with
long fins, so already you are limiting your future choice of fish.
I decided to start with half a dozen Black Ruby Barbs, and they have
survived a range of conditions in the tank.
A few weeks later, use a test kit and check water quality for pH,
nitrite and ammonia. If all is well, go ahead and add fish. But don't even
think of adding algae-eaters (like Plecos) until you have a good two
months' build up of algae all over the glass. My local pet shop said
"Ah, he will always find something to eat in there!" but they are called
algae-eaters for a reason. They will also attack plants if hungry!
When you are ready to learn more about cycling the tank, there is an
excellent guide at
TheKrib. I have also written a guide about beating the cycle for aquarists with access to an established tank.
Water Changes
Once the tank is established, you should undergo a 25% water change
every week, or a 33% water change every fortnight - whatever works for
you. Always treat the water with something like Aquasafe. However, I have
discovered Tetra Easybalance, which claims that you can add it to
the tank in place of water changes. This sounded too good to be true, so
I tried it and found that it does appear to revitalise the fish, and
certainly the water tests were all fine. However, you should still make
regular top-ups of treated water, to allow for evaporation. Also, although
Easybalance claims that you only need to change water every six months,
I find that a water change does perk the fish up more; I have cut back
on the water changes and use Easybalance when it is inconvenient to get
the buckets out, but don't abandon water changes altogether - once
every six weeks works well for me.
Choosing Plants
I have had a variety of plants, as you can tell from early pictures of
the tank. Only one kind has worked for me, and so I have had to go with
that choice.
When choosing plants, make sure you get real, aquatic, plants - and not
houseplants which are being kept under water. For example, there are
not many aquatic plants that are naturally variegated! Houseplants will
eventually rot and die, diminishing water quality.
I have ended up with a plant which sprouts single green leaves from the
centre. In fact it has done so well that I have split it into two halves.
It's called an Amazon Sword and is ideal for any tank. Simply remove
the dead leaves from the bottom as it grows.
However, the feathery kinds of plant disintegrated, or rose to the surface
before they had chance to root. The grass style of plant fast became
battered by fish and even moving water.
If you aren't sure which plants to get, buy a cheap collection of
them and see what works. You can buy plants online at
Java Plants (see their
economy collection) and also at
Aquatic Plants.
When you buy plants, remove them from any pot they are in. If they have
a clip with fibreglass matting around the bottom of the stems, remove
the fibreglass. It's no good for the fish. (Watch your fingers too!).
If the plant is already rooted, bury the roots in gravel, but don't
bury any of the stem. If the plant isn't rooted, trim the ends off and
put the fresh end in gravel - hopefully it will root. If you need to
weigh it down, you can buy lead weight which you then cut into strips and
fold around the plant, but this can damage the roots. I only use lead
weight for holding down cucumber so my fish can eat it! |
Planted Bogwood![]() |
Plants are great for the tank's appearance, remove nitrates from the water, and fish appreciate having somewhere to hide. Some fish even need to eat plants. Use plenty!
Choosing Fish
When you start looking at types of fish you will read about types
based on where in the world they come from (Cyprinid, Cichlid etc)
and what species they are - barb, krib, killi, cory, guppy, mollie,
platy, tetra, shark, loach, pleco... there is a huge list and at
first it is fairly daunting and/or meaningless.
As you have read, my initial choice of fish was a handful of
Black Ruby Barbs at the point where I needed to mature the tank.
This was due to them being hardy, and the most pretty of the vendor's
recommendations.
This restricted me to other fish which would a) like the same conditions
b) not be so tiny they are eaten by the Barbs c) be active, so the Barbs
didn't attack them!
When choosing total numbers of fish, there are two rules in common use.
For a conservative estimate, use the rule "an inch of fish for a
gallon of water". For the very maximum you can use the rule "an inch of fish
for an inch of tank". That means that, if your tank is 30 inches long, you can have
a maximum of 30 inches of fish, if they were lined up nose to tail (and
excluding tail fin length). Obviously this is the most that you could
hold in your tank, and you need to allow for growth - very fast growth
in some cases. I'd suggest you get a few fish, and see how it goes.
Read up on the potential size, and also whether they need extra space
to swim (some species do) and note whether they prefer to swim in
the top, middle or bottom of the tank.
However, many fish prefer several of their own type. For example my
Green Tiger Barbs are aggressive to each other in groups of fewer
than about six. Work within the size of your tank, but remember that it
may be stressful to the fish if there are not several of the same type
- check before you buy!
Also, check which fish are compatible. Ask your fish shop about this
or have a look at
Aquazoo which groups fish according to friendliness!
Many fish shops will tell you whatever you want to hear, just to sell
you their fish. If you want decent advice, try a newsgroup such as
Uk.rec.aquaria.misc or Rec.aquaria.misc.
The readers can offer personal experience and are fairly welcoming to
newcomers.
Choosing Food
This is usually pretty simple - most tropical fish will happily
eat a flake food. You can also buy flake foods to boost their colour,
if you prefer. Don't try goldfish or pond fish pellets - they don't
get eaten!
You can offer live food, but beware of spreading infection or
causing a worm colony to grow - try freezedried instead for a
treat.
Catfish and bottom dwelling fish will prefer algae wafers, and (in
particular Plecos) need bogwood to chomp on. You can also buy pellets called
Plecochips which include algae and wood. In fact all my fish enjoy
wafers and pellets, so I need to distract them with flake while I drop
the pellets in for the catfish. My Pleco also enjoys cucumber and celery,
but although you can get special clips to hold the vegetables, I find
that they decompose quickly and clog the filter. If you feed it, remove
it as soon as the middle has been eaten, before it is just skin left!
Don't forget that many fish are omnivorous; if they can get it in their
mouth, they will eat it! Small fish are at risk from bigger ones; baby
fish are almost certain to be eaten, if you manage to breed any; dead
fish will be cannibalised. This is quite natural, so don't let it repulse
you - just choose your fish carefully!
Moving House
This took a lot of organisation! I needed to move to a house around 10
minutes' drive away, so only a short journey, but the whole activity
took several hours.
First, I syphoned half of the water into a large, clean, crate, with lid.
Although it would lose temperature as soon as I did this, it was the
best way to remove clean water (remember to syphon from the top and not
the bottom as is more usual!) - before everything got stirred up.
I kept this water for reinstating the tank at the other end.
Next, I removed the plants and rocks, as carefully as possible. This
made it easier to catch the fish. Plants will be fine for hours, as long
as their roots are kept damp. However, when you move them beware of
stirring up dirt from the gravel and making the water cloudy.
Now came the most difficult part - catching the fish. I had already
obtained several bags and rubber bands from a pet shop. I put a small
amount of water into each bag - enough to just cover the fish, the
most important thing is to give them plenty of oxygen - and caught
three small fish for each bag, trapping plenty of air as I sealed each
one. Catching fish isn't easy, especially once they have realised
something is up! My favourite tactic was to trap the fish in the
net against the side of the glass, and slide him up to the top with
my hand over the net. It isn't easy though, so do whatever comes most
easily! I had to take frequent breaks to allow the fish to settle
down again, although I was aware that captive ones would be cooling
down.
At this point, I had to turn off the pump and heater, as the lack
of water would have caused them to burn out. They should only be
used when completely immersed in water.
Finally, I syphoned the rest of the water out
as fast as possible, throwing it away, and put the gravel into a
bucket. The gravel was rinsed thoroughly and the tank wiped clean.
I was aware of how long this was taking and how cold the fish must
be, so I was very quick with this part. However, NEVER try to lift
the tank with water in it. Even a small tank is awkward with water
sloshing about. The pet shop told me a horror story about a man who
dropped a tank, which broke and sliced the end off his nose. I
didn't try it!
Finally we could load everything into the car, and drive carefully
to the new house. I had already prepared a stand for the tank so it
could be put in situ right away. I added the cleaned gravel, put the
saved water into the tank, and topped it up with warm water treated
with AquaSafe, until it was full to the line, and about 25°C.
I turned on the pump and heater, and started adding plants and rocks,
being as quick as possible - you can reorganise the tank later.
When the pump came back on it threw out murky water - it took a
few minutes to settle.
I put the bags of fish on top of the water, as if I had just bought
new fish, so they could acclimatise for 15 minutes. They had cooled
down somewhat, so it was essential to prepare them. A final check
that the rocks and plants were stable, and I could release the fish.
They were very anxious to hide, and I left the light off for the
rest of the day. However, they perked up within a few hours, and
there were no casualties at all!
It is also a good idea to add a bacteria treatment such as Denitrol
when so much water has been changed, and a skin treatment like
Melafix where the fish have been netted and may have small abrasions.
Hot Weather (above 30°C)
Since setting up the tank, there have been one or two weeks each summer
where the temperature has risen to over 30°C. At this temperature
the fish will be struggling. There are several things you can do to
allieviate this: turn the light off; place a damp towel over the tank;
open the windows and point a fan at the tank; increase aeration levels;
be stringent about water quality and treatment; change water and filter
layers more often than usual.
I tried all of these, and the tank temperature was still consistently
over 30°C, so I did something that fishkeepers are told is terribly
wrong... I added ice to the tank. However, I did this extremely carefully.
I put two or three lumps of ice at a time into a freezer bag, and floated
that in the filter section of the tank, so that the colder water would be
mixed into the tank and not in direct contact with the fish. I stirred
the water gently with a net every few minutes after adding fresh ice.
It only took a few minutes for each small bag of ice to melt, and I
changed it every half hour or so. It worked, but I would still suggest
that you only use this method as a last resort. It is labour intensive
for you, and probably a shock to the fish. I used it only when my fish
were resting and gasping all the time, and I felt I had to act. It
takes the tank through the few really hot days of the year.
Water Chemistry
If you have any unexplained fish deaths
or listlessness, always check the water.
Alkalinity and hard water is the only water quality issue that I face;
following the
rules for maturing the tank has meant that the nitrogen cycle easily
established itself, and so the tank water is fine in terms of
nitrites and ammonia.
I live in London. We have very hard water here.
Initially the tank pH was around 8, the same as my local tap water,
but after a year it has crept
to 8.6 which is unacceptable. A pH of around 7.5 will be better for my
community tank, although most of the fish in it can cope up to 8.2.
I tried using Proper pH 7.0 which is a sachet of powder, and will
buffer the pH to 7.0, that is it will push it to 7.0 from whichever
direction is required, acid or alkali, and hold it at that value.
Proper pH has two problems - firstly, it will reduce trace elements
in the water, so that eventually plants will yellow and die. I am
now adding a few drops of an aquatic plant food which I
am told can be added to the tank with no side-effects, and which will
help the plants.
Secondly, in hard water, the pH treatment will cause
a white precipitate, or cloudiness, in the tank. This is harmless,
but any cloudiness in the tank will make it harder for the fish to
breathe. I have worked around this by adding sachets in tiny amounts
rather than tipping in at once, and by adding it to the area of water
near the filter so that the precipitate is sucked in right away.
This kept it to an acceptable level as the sachet was added, although
a white haze formed after a few hours. |
Haze forming in water![]() |
However, even though I only added a small amount of Proper pH, in order to try to make the change gradually, the pH snapped from 8.6 to 7.0 in a few hours!
Luckily the fish seemed lively and quite well, but it is more important to maintain a stable pH than to bounce about. I am now using pH down which reduces pH in gentle stages, so that you can control the change. It should be no more than 0.2 of a pH per day, so as not to shock the fish. If your tank is too acidic, you can also buy pH up.
Remember that bogwood may make your water acidic, and limestone rocks may make it more alkaline. Check your pH regularly, and aim to keep it stable and within a suitable range for all your fish. 7-7.5 is ideal on a community tank.
Aggressive or Unhappy Fish
I have had problems with some fish pecking at others, and with other
fish hiding all day. Here is how I have combatted that:
More plants, more rocks, more wood - give them more places to lurk, and fish will feel more secure. In fact, fish that used to stay hidden now swim more actively around the tank, so it is true that if you provide more places to hide you will actually see more of the fish!
Dark background - use a plain dark backdrop to the tank. I prefer to use purple, but deep blues, greens and black work well too. This makes fish feel more secure, and is also more natural for those fish that usually live deep in lakes. I have also heard that a green background reduces aggressiveness, but I have no idea if it is true. Certainly, as soon as there is a solid backdrop, I find fish more likely to swim higher in the tank.
Check the water quality, and examine fish for signs of illness. Sometimes general listlessness can be a sign of disease.
Keep them in the right numbers - many fish prefer groups of their own type, and you should not consider keeping fewer than six of those types. For example, my Green Tiger Barbs would often fight, so I was loathe to add more, but as soon as another three joined the tank, the existing ringleader calmed right down. Also ensure that solitary fish, e.g. Plecos, are the only one of their type in your tank.
Temporary segregation - a lot of infighting is due to fish establishing their pecking order within the tank, but if the fighting is prolonged try putting the aggressor into a breeding net for an hour or two, until he has calmed down. When released into the tank again, he is a lot calmer, at least for a while!
Sick Fish
Something I learned only recently is that you can buy boxes covered
in net, which are used for breeding fish, and they clip onto the side
of the tank. They cost only a few pounds, and mean that you can keep
the fish segregated, while still in the same tank - so if you can't
afford a quarantine tank, this is a good option for sick or injured
fish.
Breeding net for quarantined fish![]() |
Of course, not all sick fish will need segregation, for example White
Spot does not require affected fish to be separated and in any case,
the whole tank should be treated if one fish is ill. |
White Spot (Ich)
White Spot is common in new tanks, traumatised fish, or where new
fish have recently been added to the tank. It shows as white spots,
initially on the tail and a little on the fins. Treat it straight
away with a specific White Spot treatment, and as with many treatments,
remove the carbon filter layer before treatment, and make a 25% water
change after treatment is complete. Be really careful not to overdose.
Although that treated my fish quickly and easily, you should also
address the underlying cause. Traumatised or weak fish are more likely
to suffer White Spot.
Fin and Skin Injuries
My fish quite often peck each other. Slow moving fish with big fins are
at risk of this, and I was shocked to find one fish with a fin which
was barely sticks, and patches of bald skin.
A great treatment is Melafix. You should also keep the fish separate in
a breeding net (see above) until it has healed. |
An injured fish: pectoral fin worn away, skin red and sore.![]() |
Fish Symptom Diagnosis
I have transcribed a fish symptom diagnosis chart,
click here to read it. The following illnesses
are covered:
White spot, Velvet, Slime disease, Higher form parasite, Finrot, Mouth rot,
Internal bacterial infection, Bacterial gill infection, Fungus, Swim
bladder problem and Poisoning and water quality issues.
Once you have a diagnosis, you can treat the fish accordingly.
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This page last updated: 01 September 2022


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