Discover the classic Aquarium book; for novice aquarists and experts alike. This is the first Atlas Dr Baensch authored and stands as the classic work in defining the characteristics required to sucessfully keep and breed. A must for understanding what is in the beginning aquarium and for planning the future inhabitants at all levels. A good rounded book, informative in all areas of Aquatic endeavors.
I know there is such a huge amount of information on the Internet that it is easy to become confused.
When searching for information on a specific topic, it is so easy to get off the original topic when following a set of key words through various articles. One of the most confusing for me is to keep my focus when viewing the offerings of the various Video sites, such as YouTube.
In the case of a new aquarium, what is being described here is the phenomenon of “New Tank Syndrome”. It is quite common and not particularly dangerous, but it is certainly unsightly. Just like most other living organisms, the bacterial cloud consumes oxygen, so it is not a bad idea to elevate the oxygen content to ensure any fish are not oxygen deprived during this problem. If they seem to be gasping, add an airstone to agitate the surface.
New aquariums start with sterile water, the municipal water supply is often treated with antibiotic compounds to kill any pathogenic organisms that might affect a human drinking it. In effect they make the water “potable”. Potable water is deadly to bacteria, but it is also deadly to fish as well. In most cases the munipal water company uses compounds such as chlorine (in most cases) and chlorine when the water needs to be transported a great distance. Although the two compounds require different doses of the same compound, once they are removed, the water is left with no living organisms alive, but the ability to support them should they arrive. The first ones to arrive are bacteria that occupy the water column. These are very rapid replicating bacteria that split in two on a reguular basis. This progression is termed geometric replication, one becomes two, two become four, four double to eight and so on. Each generation roughly doubles in size. Since the water is sterile, there are few predators or other dangers to this uncontrolled explosion at the lowest living level.
The only limiting factor to this unchecked population growth is the amount of food available. In many cases the water from the tap has much more in it than just water and chlorine, it has plenty of dissolved organic material as well. This is the food that the bacteria require and assuming there is enough of it available the bacterial population rises higher and higher. In a new aquarium it takes about three days for the heterotrophic bacterial density to get so packed that the bacterial bloom can be seen by the naked eye. It appears, as mentioned, almost as if someone had poured a glass of milk into the aquarium. Depending on the amount of dissolved organics available for the bacteria to use, this can become quite dense and very cloudy. The unchecked growth of the bacteria in the water is termed a bacterial bloom.
As mentioned, this is a common problem for many new aquariiums where the water that has been added carried with it considerable amounts of dissolved nutrients for the bacteria to grow. It is also the limiting factor, when the food finally runs out under the weight of biomass of geometric replication, the bacteria will die of starvation. Depending on the situation in the aquarium, that might take quite a while if too much added food is available on an ongoing basis – the used foods can be replaced by the feeding regime of the aquarist and the the problem becomes perpetual.
The “New Tank Syndrome” will occur with or without fish. The bacterial cells are much too small to be captured by any ordinary filter, so this is not the fault of choosing a bad filter. If the tank clouds before you add fish, simply do nothing. The cloud will dissipate on its own as the fight for survival at the bacterial level, one of the most fiercely aggressive levels of living organisms, occurs with each individual requiring food to survive.
Cloudy water can occur much later in the aquarium’s life cycle. Here it is most like from overfeeding or excess organic materials accumulating in the aquarium. Once again this is a case where the dissolved organics in the water column rise to a level where they are no longer a limiting factor, and the bacteria bloom out of control. The most basic cure is to reduce the amount of organic material wastes in the aquarium. Since the aquarist is ultimately responsible for what is entering the aquarium, the cure is to reduce the input. Always examine the aquarium for dead fish or decaying material, perform a proper water change and use the exiting water to drive a gravel cleaner through the substrate to ensure the worst debris is being removed from the aquarium.
Once the aquarium is back into better hygienic shape, stop feedng the aquarium for at least three days. Chances are the original cause was overfeeding, and this forces the fish to go looking for a meal rather than being handed one at the surface. The fish will look harder if they are hungry and they will help clean the tank a bit. As the three days pass, the bacteria will begin to remove the organic overload as the population continues to expand and hopefully die back again to invisible.
This is not the filter’s fault, the bacteria are much too small to be trapped by the filter media in most cases. The only way to help the filter capture this small an organism is to make it clump together. There are clarifier products on the market that ionically force the bacteria to coagulate into large clumps that the fiter can trap. The problem here is that the result is a gooey mess that is quite difficult to clean away. Whenever you decide to use a floculant – a product that clumps all particles together, you should not use standard filter materials. The best to use if Poly Wool, Filter Floss or sometimes it is termed Angel Hair. This is a very fine threaded product that is quite cheap and is purchased to be disposed once it has been used. It will trap the clumps quite readily, and is easy to dispose. Don’t use expensive standard media or cartridges, you are only going to have to throw them away right after use.
One final word of warning, if you do decide to use a floculant, be very careful in your doses. This is one product where more is definitely not better. An overdose reverses the ionic effect and the water gets even more cloudy and difficult to clear. It is a one time thing, not something you can depend on often. Reducing the amount of food going into the aquarium and ensuring anything that dies is removed as fast as possible will help keep the tank clear and cloudless better than any medication or chemical treatment.
Hey this is my turtle tank. Its 10 gallons. i got the works filter, lights, basking area, and a cool beach area that actually has i biological filtration system. My turtle sasha is 1yr old and has two goldfish with her at all times..lol. im upgrading to a new tank later this week.
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Green water is most often the result of an algae bloom. It often has turned an aquarium into what appears a thick pea soup. It is extremely unsightly in the novice’s aquarium, and is extremely difficult to eradicate, even for the advanced fish keeper.
Green Algae is a single celled plant that uses light to photosynthesize. The plant itself is extremely small, only a single cell, and when conditions are right, will multiply quite rapidly. Green algae reproduces either asexually by buds, or in a second step, it sexually combines with other cells to product new plants with full chromosome content. These in turn grow buds and the process starts all over again. When this replication spirals out of control and overtakes an area, this is called a bloom. The major problem is that the algae plants are so small they are rarely removed by any standard filter, and even those that are trapped tend to clog the materials, slowing the flow and allowing more algae to remain in the actual aquarium water since the intake suction is reduced to continue the bloom.
The right conditions for a bloom include adequate fertilizer and light. In most cases in the home aquarium, even a new tank, the fertilizer needs are easily met. The only limiting factor for plants is phosphate, and most aquariums have more than enough to support a massive bloom if the lighting is adequate.
The most important factor when green water occurs is light. In my experience, in the great majority of the cases where a bloom occurs, natural light is allowed to strike the aquarium. The actual time when sunlight enters the aquarium can be quite brief, ten to twenty minutes a day seems to be enough. A very brightly sunlit room can also have the same effect.
Because of the size of the plant, and the very fast replication, eradicating an algal bloom is extremely difficult.
I do not advocate adding algicides, in many cases they may cause harm to the fish, I prefer a natural solution rather than employing strong toxic compounds.
A number of small water changes, about 10% per time spaced a day apart will dilute the cloud, but still leave it tinted green in most cases. This can be combined with more homeopathic actions. The most effective way is to remove the light source. If the sun is striking the tank from the rear or side, use a background to cover and block the entry of light. If the room is very bright, draw the shades during a greater part of the day to reduce the amount of light the algae can use. As a last resort, disassemble the aquarium and move it to a place that is much darker and use artificial lighting for the aquarium. Unless the tank is heavily planted with aquarium plants, the amount of artificial light the fish receive is not particularly important.
The above is the best way to control the problem for the long term. Sunlight is extremely powerful, and is no friend to an aquarium. The other area that can be manipulated and controlled by the aquarist is the amount of available phosphate in the aquarium. This chemical compound is considered to be a limiting factor, if there is not enough of it, the plants are not able to grow. Just like reducing the sunlight limits the algae from photosynthesizing so that they starve and die back, limiting the phosphate will also inhibit the growth of algae from a metabolic constraint. At extremely low levels of phosphate, aquarium plants as well may suffer. Generally a balance exists between algae and live aquarium plants. When standard plants are thriving, they are much better at competing for available phosphate and get what they need first, so algae often is overwhelmed. A rooted aquarium plant is able to extract nutrients from the soil as well, so reduction of dissolved phosphates in the water column is normally not a handicap for standard aquarium plants, rather they are much better able to compete and win against free floating algae.
Introduction of phosphate comes every time the fish are fed, as it is a component of the food. Fish require some phosphate for their metabolic processes, but rarely as much as is provided in the food. Some manufacturers have recognized this and consciously reduced the amount of phosphate in the foods they offer. Careful feeding with low phosphate foods will reduce the amount available for algae to use for themselves.
If there is still too much, the use of a phosphate remover resin will help keep the concentration low and prevent sudden blooms of algae. There are a variety of these products available on the market. Most require that they be added to the higher flows of the filter and will remove a set amount of phosphate when they have been exhausted.
From a purely homeopathic viewpoint, I also use a biological sludge eliminator that helps break down the waste materials, from all sources, food, fecal mater and other decaying organic material. These bacteria teams incorporate phosphate into their biomass, thus preventing it from being available for free floating algae to exploit.
Sometimes the only thing that will do is a rapid fix, there are some floculants on the market that will help. A floculant will attract the algae as well as any other suspended particles into larger diameters clumps to allow the filter to remove them thorugh its screens. Use a polywool or filter floss in the filter rather than the regular filter materials. It is cheaper and, believe me, you will need to discard the material immediately after use. Poly Wool is the best trap for this treatment. Do not overdose. The downside to these products is that the clumping action will reverse and it will be even harder to clear the tank if you do!
Algae is rarely ever totally removed from an operating aquarium, most of the time some variety is anchored to hard surfaces, but the types that produce green water are suspended in the water column. They will gradually reduce to invisible populations when denied natural sunlight or enough phosphate to grow. Live rooted plants under artificial light have a better competitive advantage to grow and prevent algae explosions of any type. It seems the two are antagonistic, and there is very rarely a problem with algae in a strongly growing live planted aquarium.
AQUARIUM:
Start with as large an aquarium as you can afford. There is a very BASIC priciple (this only applies to beginners), that is to have 1-2 inches of NARROW bodied fish per FILTERED aquarium gallon. Goldfish are dirty and fatter, so I would triple this with them (3″). This also only applies to a standard rectangular aquarium.
Obviously longer fish need more tank width and length. I would decrease the amount of fish proportional to the gallons in a tall aquarium or hexagon aquarium.
Remember, many fish purchased can grow much larger than your original purchase size (ex: goldfish), so keep this in mind too.
FILTERS:
I always recommend two filters minimum per aquarium for redundancy and for improved biological (denitrifying) filtration. For a small aquarium, a combination of a hang on the back and a sponge filter. Or a sponge filter and an internal power filter. You want to make sure and rinse your sponge or cartridge out in used aquarium water to maintain your beneficial bacteria for bio filtration.
Other filters of note include canister, wet/dry, under gravel, and fluidized bed.
There are four types of filtration:
Biological; the removal of nitrogenous waste (ammonia, ECT), which is the most important type.
Mechanical; the removal of larger debris (organic and inorganic) before it can go through the nitrogen cycle (organic)
Chemical; The removal of chemical contamination via carbon, zeolite or many other products. This becomes less important in a healthy, established aquarium.
Germacidal; The use of UVC or ozone to kill disease pathogens and control the Redox potential.
HEATER:
Most tropical fish do well at a temperature between 76 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. (Discus prefer warmer).
Goldfish do not need a heater.
I recommend 25 watts for every 10 degrees of ambient temperature you need to raise your aquarium temperature. EX: If your home is 68 degrees and you have a 40 gallon aquarium, to reach a temperature of 78 degrees you would need a 100 watt heater.
BIO-CYCLING:
Your aquarium will not be at peak biological filtration for 6 weeks (or more). To start your biological filtration, there are many cycling products available, such “Cycle” by Hagen. My success with these products is mixed at best, it is very difficult for the aerobic bacteria that are needed for cycling your aquarium to live in a sealed container kept at room temperature, as they die very quickly without oxygen.
I prefer to add gravel and/or used filter sponge or cartridge from another aquarium.
This method of adding media is much faster (you still have to take it slow), and provides all the necessary bacteria, the only negative is adding disease pathogens to your aquarium, but I have rarely encountered this problem.
We used this method for our Aquarium Maintenance route for years and never lost a fish to Ammonia or nitrite poisoning.
Another method is fishless cycling where un-scented ammonia is poured into the aquarium (3-5 drops per gallon pure ammonia) so as to bring your ammonia level to 4-5 ppm. Then it takes about 3-8 weeks for the aquarium to cycle. Although this method is growing in popularity, I do not recommend it, not because it does not work (it does), but because human nature is to want to add fish sooner than the 3-8 weeks it takes for this method.
The method of adding media is much faster (you still have to take it slow), and provides all the necessary bacteria, the only negative is adding disease pathogens to your aquarium, but I have rarely encountered this problem.
Cycling is what is referred to as the Nitrogen cycle. Waste (nitrogenous) from the fish is broken down first from ammonia (NH3, the most toxic) to nitrites (NO2, less toxic) to nitrates (NO3, least toxic- but high amounts can stunt fish growth and lower disease resistance).
At a pH of 6.5, NH3 (ammonia) converts to NH4 (ammonia) which is basically non-toxic to most fish (many ammonia removing chemicals to a similar ion change, as they do NOT actually remove ammonia). If you have plants in your aquarium they will directly consume the ammonia (especially hornwort), thus rendering the NO2 (nitrite) part of the nitrogen cycle null. The danger here is if your pH climbs above 6.5 the ammonia can change to much more toxic NH3 and the aerobic bacteria needed for nitrite consumption will be sparse.
For more about th nitrogen cycling, see this article: AQUARIUM NITROGEN CYCLE
LIVE PLANTS:
Live plants are desirable in my opinion, but many artificial plants can look quite realistic when properly arranged or used in conjunction with live plants. For a beginner live plants are more difficult, but not a lot.
The benefits of live plants are they are great at nitrate removal and keep a natural balance to the aquarium, removing CO2 and adding oxygen (only during daylight). Hornwort is an excellent plant for nitrate removal (even ammonia removal), and is relatively easy to grow. Banana plants (when available) are also a very easy plant.
Here is a list of “easy” beginner plants:
Compacta swords, hornwort, Red wendtii, spiral valis, dwarf subulata, Hygro, Java fern regular or lace.
Be careful with many fish that will “mow down” your plants such as: Silver Dollars, most African cichlids, and even goldfish.
For healthy plants I suggest a substrate of #00 sand mixed with laterite about 3-5 cm deep with a layer of #3 gravel on top about 2 cm deep. This combination works well for plant roots, ease of vacuuming the top layer ONLY (where plant roots are), and for better bio filtration. You can substitute laterite with a sandy top soil (although usually not as good a source of iron), by preparing the soil thus; Gather sandy top soil, add water with a 10/1 bleach solution, mix for a couple of minutes, then rinse (with a de-chlorinator for first rinse) until the water runs relatively clear. The sand that is left is what you mix with your plant roots.
FEEDING:
I recommend feeding high quality fish and plant based foods. Quality ingredients include: spirulina, fish meal, FD Brine Shrimp, shrimp meal, Vitamin C & E, lobster shell.
Fish cannot digest proteins from beef well, and fish get most their energy requirements from fats. Some quality foods include: Omega, Spirulina 20, Ocean Nutrition, Hikari, Sanyu.
Feed you fish two to three times per day what they will consume in three minutes.
Feeding foods high in poor quality proteins can increase your nitrate levels, as an essential ingredient in protein is nitrogen, and if unusable by the fish, it is excreted, entering into the nitrogen cycle.
CLEANING:
You should try and have a schedule of changing 20% (or more) of your water every week. I recommend using a gravel vacuum, you need not remove the fish while using a gravel vacuum. Make sure the water you add back in is the same temperature and ph, and has no chlorine or chloramines.
CHEMISTRY:
Keep your ammonia level at 0, your nitrite at 0, your nitrates below 20-30, and your KH above 80 ppm. Ph depends very much on the fish you are keeping. Discus prefer under a ph below 7.0, while Mbuna African cichlids prefer above 8.0
A very general ph of 7.2 -7.5 works for many community fish. Crushed Coral and/or Wonder Shells can help maintain a high pH when you desire an aquarium with a higher pH, KH, & GH, especially where tap or well water is very acidic (Wonder Shells are much faster at dissolving to the desired KH and add electrolytes crushed coral does not!).
For a lower pH in aquariums where the tap water used is very high (usually 7.8 or above), I have used blends of RO (Reverse Osmosis) water and tap water. The ratio varies with the tap water pH, KH, & GH and the water conditions I want to achieve. With Discus it can be as high as 75% RO. Then to maintain these conditions I use peat in my filters. Note that GH does not affect pH, and magnesium (a major ingredient of GH) is important to fish metabolism. Also note that calcium which is the main factor in KH (which does affect pH!) is also important for fish metabolism and fish health and healing. With the above method of using RO (or DI) water in a blend with tap water and peat, I have still been able to maintain a KH above 80 ppm (for proper calcium absorption), sometimes with additives such Wonder Shells or Calcium Polygluconate.
CONCLUSION:
This is only very general information, there is much more in depth articles about each of these subjects and more available. But these are sound principles to follow, based on 27+ years of aquarium maintenance experience. As new and better methods become available, I regularly update my information to reflect this.
For my more in depth full article:
Learn the right way to filter your aquarium through biological filtration with tips from a goldfish expert in this free pet care video.
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My koi pond mechanical/biological filter just before washing. Check my channel http://www.youtube.com/user/hooinc for more koi videos.
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LumenAqua is the 21st centry optimal aquarium lighting system. Royal Aquarium proudly bring you the most cost effective lighting system that suitable for all different kind of aquarium you preferred. Stay tuned.
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Here is my 56-gallon column aquarium. My tank houses three Columbian Sharks, two Banded Leporinus catfish, one Iridescent Shark, one False Tigrinus (rare) catfish, one beautiful Jack Dempsey cichlid, one Hypostomus Plecostomus, one Freshwater Flounder and a shy Freshwater Marble Mooray Eel. This tank is actually brackish and these fish are ultimately going into a 220 gallon aquarium.
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I have tons of goldfish but I thought I’d try my hand at tropicals too. This is my 30gal tropical tank. I figured I’d start with some easy keepers since I don’t know as much about trops as I do goldfish. Drop a comment I don’t mind.
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