Betta Fish Care

With all things fish, it is always useful to remember that slow and steady wins the day. If you rush in and try to do too much too quickly, that is when it can all go incorrect and this applies from day 1.

Newly set-up tank
The best thing to do with a new aquarium is to set it up and leave it running. At first the sides will cover with air bubbles and the bacteria levels will be too low. Add several plants once you know you are clear of leaks and test the water quality every day, watching for the nitrite to spike. By adding plants you are carrying in some bacteria from the shop and they are starting their own water clearing. Once the nitrite has spike and then settled, you can slowly add in one or two small fish each, keeping a close eye on those levels.

Cleaning a filter on a aquarium that is running
Once you start adding plants and fish, probably even several apple snails or shrimps, your filters will start to be doing their job. So at least once per week (you will quickly get the feel of whether this is too much or too small for your tank) remove the filter and clean it out.

First, remove the filter media and place it somewhere clean and dry, then strip down the filter body and head and clean off any build up of residue. The impeller will gather dirt so that will need removing and the insides of the filter should have the dirt rubbed off.

Then, back to the filter media. Ideally your filter will have two equally sized filter pads. Take the dirtiest of these and clean it well or replace it with a new one. With the second, remove several water directly from the aquarium and clean the filter by washing merely in this aquarium water. During the clean you do not want to wash this filter media with tap water – you will ruin its colony of bacteria! Then reassemble the filter and return to the water. Switch it on and check it is working.

Changing water
Again, perhaps a weekly task at first, but a heavily stocked tank may need more work and an established aquarium loads less. Prepare a quantity of water in advance by filling a clean bucket of water with water from the cold water tap. Never use water from the hot water tap! It’s a long tale, but it can contain copper from the inside of the pipes that builds up in your aquarium. Ideally run it off a day or two in advance and add dechlorinator to the water. When the time comes to change the water, use a gravel cleaner to syphon out the water, cleaning the gravel at the same time. Never remove more than 20% of the water in your aquarium even though! It is useful to calculate what 20% is when you first set up your aquarium and make a small mark on your tank so you know where to empty it to.

Other upkeep
You will need to trim and replace live plants every so often and remove any build ups of algae off the side of the aquarium, though a excellent selection of occupants will do this for you. Your splash cover will need occasional cleaning and you should replace your bulbs every 6 to 12 months, depending on their types.

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Tags: aquarium maintenance