Maintaining Your Fish Tank Aquarium

All maintenance of your fish tank is done for two reasons:   to keep the tank clean and to provide a good environment for the health of your fish.   It's a good idea to have a schedule for cleaning and inspecting your squarium - and to stick to that schedule.  Disasters occur when you don't pay attention to the routine maintenance for your tank.

Your schedule might include daily, weekly, monthly and annual tasks.  None of the maintenance are especially difficult or time consuming and might consist of such things as proper feeding, checking water health, cleaning the filter and looking closeing for anything that seems out of the ordinary in terms of how your fish are behaving.   Maintaining a fish tank is 90% paying attention and 10% making corrections.

Fish Tank Cleaning

The best way to avoid frequent fish tank cleaning is to construct your tank in an optimal way.  Aquarian construction is almost an art form and widely discussed in the "aquarium community".  If your tank is already nasty, there are now commercial available fish tank cleaners that can be used in live tanks.  These contain special bacteria to break down organize material, eliminite odor and reduce sludge.  The main trick to keeping your fish healthy and happy in a clean environment is recreating an ecosystem that is self balancing.   Adding snails or suckerfish can reduce the sludge buildup and a carbon dioxide pump can help if you have lots of plants.

Fish Tank Filters

Filters remove poisonous chemical and biological waste from the aquarium, maintaining water quality and reducing odors.  Most filters have two moving parts:  the first is design to remove chemical agents such as nitrogenous gases or phosphoric compounds.

The second part of a fish tank filter removes biological agents and keeps the tank looking and smelling clean.  Filters remove sludge from dying blanks, shedding skin from fish and other pollutants.  Also helpful is a product called "Tidy Tank" which will help keep your miniature ecosystem functioning properly.  Whether you need an air pump or not is contingent on the fish tank filter you purchase.

Fish Tank Pump

A pump is critical to maintaining the health of the fish in your tank yet is often neglected by novices as "standard".  The pump circulates water and helps create a livable environment for fish.   Select a fish tank pump that is right for the type of fish you have and also suited for the type and size of your aquarium.

Two type of primary fish tank pumps are available:   internal pump and external tank pump.   The section is personal preferences as the primary job of both types is the same.   Internal pumps are easier to hood up and usually less expensive.  External pumps are much quieter when running and give off less heat.  Spending a bit of time researching and choosing your fish tank pump is well worth the effort.

Fish Tank Stand

Don't be too creative when choosing a fish tank stand.   Balance is everything and a flimsy stand can lead to catastrophe.   A falling aquarium is not only deadly for the fish and messy for your home - it can be very dangerous if children or other pets are in the way.

The weight of an aquarium filled with water is significant.  Choose an aquarium stand built for the purpose and sized appropriately for the fish tank you will be using.   Putting a valuable aquarium on top of a shaky stand is asking for trouble and is a problem you should never have to worry about.

Fish Tank Supplies

Indispensable fish tank supplies include various filters, air pumps, gravel, fresh water testing kit, heater, etc.   These supplies are necessities for establishing and maintaining a healthy ecosystem for your fish.   The main investments of money are in the basic filters and pumps needed.  Ongoing tank supplies are quite reasonable and you not only need to have the supplies on hand but must learn how to best use them in your tank.  

Trying to have an attractive aquarium with healthy fish without spending the funds required for good equipment and supplies is a waste of time.   Most fish tank stands have a storage compartment in them - make certain it's filled with the basic fish tank supplies you need.