INTRODUCING THE FISH INTO THE AQUARIUM

INTRODUCING THE FISH

Before stocking the aquarium with fish it is advisable to allow a settling period. This permits the water to age a little, gives time for particles in suspension to settle, and allows new plants to anchor their roots. It is always advisable to allow four to seven days for the tank to stabilize before introducing the inhabitants.

The amateur aquarist will find it better to keep a few of the cheaper fishes until he has gained some experience. Since many enthusiasts through expensive initial looses, have become disheartened and given up. If only they had gained a little knowledge first, they could have realised that aquarium-keeping is the most exciting hobby.

The first thing to do once you have bought your fish is to introduce them carefully into the tank. Float their plastic bag in tank for at least an hour, to allow the temperature to equalize with that of the tank. It is most unlikely that the water chemistry of the dealer’s tank is the same as that in your newly set-up tank so it is necessary to change the water in the bag very slowly, adding small amounts of water from the tank, over a period of at least half-an-hour or preferably much longer.

In this way, the fishes will easily adjust to the differences in water quality due to dissolved solids without damaging the delicate gills and kidneys of the fish.

FILTERATION (Contd.)

AQUARIUM CARE

Filteration (II)

Filteration is, without doubt, fundamental to successful fish-keeping. Any consideration of the topic of filters is complicated by the fact that there are almost as many types as there are days in the year. In the case of the internal filters, the cheapest are more or less the best. Having discusses about the maintenance-free under-gravel filter last time, we shall focus on the commonest alternative internal filter which is called the BOX FILTER. 

All box filters operate on the same principle, that of passing the water through a disposable medium of one kind or another. Some of the common media used are filter-wool, carbon, gravel, etc.

In the case of the filter wool it must be appreciated that I am not referring to ordinary cotton wool, which would, if used, result in heavy organic pollution, but to a special non-organic material made from synthetic fibre. Of all the media, activated charcoal is the best type, this would produce crystal clear water, although it cannot neutralise the pH of hard water.

The different types of the media could be arranged in layers inside the box, leaving a space above for the solid wastes (drawn in by suction to settle).

The box could be detached and removed from the aquarium and the filter medium renewed every three months. This system undoubtedly relieves the aquarist of the need to change the water inside his aquarium.

FILTERATION

AQUARIUM CARE

Filteration (I)

Most aquarists are aware of the fact that their aquarium water gradually accumulates potentially harmful substances which eventually poison their fishes. In order to prevent this from happening there is the need for filtration therefore, for our purpose I would define filtration as the removal of unwanted substances from water.

 

Most aquarists use three types: Biological, Mechanical and Chemical amongst which the biological is the most important. Biological filtration is also referred to as under gravel filtration, because the major equipment used (a flat plate of perforated plastic) is placed under the gravel bed hence it is invisible. Unless you are properly equipped, you can’t see the process happening and cannot measure its effect. Yet, this process is the major difference between success and failure, and the aquarist who does not take the time to understand its workings is doomed to watch an endless procession of dying fishes passing through his tank.

Biological filtration is solely the work of bacteria attached to the surfaces of the gravel, the gravel and the under gravel filter together constitute the filter-bed. Bacteria normally reach the filter bed through: the food you give the fishes, the waste product of the fishes the air, and even through your hands as you work in the tank.

As the water ages, their numbers increase until the gravel is loaded with millions of them. It is only then that the aquarium can function very well, because the wastes of the fishes and unwanted substances mainly ammonia are immediately broken down by those bacteria into harmless substances while at the same time, the filtration action drags organic matter downwards into the spaces between the gravels where the roots of plants can then extract essential growth substances hence the under-gravel filter promotes healthy plant growth.