Owning tropical fish is both relaxing and fun. You can throw your stress and worries to the wind when you sit in amazement, watching your fish swim and frolic. If you have never owned tropical fish before, here’s a tropical fish guide to help you get started. Do some research on the kinds of fish you might like to buy so that once you’re ready to buy, it’s not a drawn out event. The first thing you need to do is purchase a tank.

It is recommended that you purchase the tank and accessories prior to buying the fish. Your tropical fish will not be happy or healthy for long in a plastic bag. You need to establish a clean and safe environment for them ahead of time. Give them something magnificent to come home to. When buying your first tank, don’t think that bigger is better. Since you’re a newcomer to the world of tropical fish ownership, start small. Once you see that you are good at taking care of them, you can increase the tank size. Just don’t bite off more than you can chew out of the gate.

You can buy the parts for your tank one by one or all together in a complete set. If you’re opting for the set, go with the best they have, not the cheapest. If you don’t have much money to put into this, you may want to wait and save up or reconsider tropical fish ownership, all together. Tropical fish are more expensive than your run of the mill fish, but they are very much worth the investment!

You of course need a strong and well built tank. Make sure the tank has no cracks or obvious defects. You will also need a hang on the back filter and a 5 watt light to keep your new pets happy and healthy. Wash your tank out well when you get it home and make sure that the water is pure before you begin introducing fish into it.

Make sure that your tank is completely clean and then add about an inch of rocks to the bottom of the tank. There is a variety of colored and ornate gravel that you can purchase for your tank. Get creative and give your new pets a beautiful home to enjoy.

Heat your new tank to about eighty degrees Fahrenheit. This is the prime temperature for your tropical fish. Make sure to check the temperature frequently once the fish are living in the tank. You don’t want to accidentally kill them by having them be too hot or too cold.

Set up your light in the tank before adding your fish. Fish like light but having your tank directly in front of the window will cause algae to grow out of control and you’ll have a difficult time with regulating temperature. Once you’ve got the water added, gradually warm it and then get to the pet store! There are a lot of places you can buy tropical fish from. There are specialty shops that can order any kind of tropical fish for you if they don’t have them in stock. You can also buy tropical fish in most local pet shops.

Select breeds that are known to get along well together. Certain breeds are predatory and will eat each other. This is not what you want the children to witness. If the pet shop owner doesn’t know what kinds of fish get along the best, go do your own research before making your purchase or only buy one breed to start.

Take care when you go to feed your new pets. Tropical fish require a very specific diet and should be eating at the same time of day, every day. Never feed them too much and if you’re going away, have someone feed your fish. Take care of your tank and your fish should prosper. If you ever have problems, you can find the answers to your questions online. Good luck and enjoy your new tropical fish!

If you want to read a more extensive tropical fish guide, then please click on any of the given links: tropical fish guide tropical fish guide for neophytes

For many people, Betta fish will be their first step to possessing a tropical fish because they are gorgeous and above all, incredibly simple to look after. The Siamese Fighting Fish, as that’s what Betta Splendens are also called, are perfect for beginners because they are simple to take care of and most especially, they don’t need a lot of space. This means that you can buy a small bowl for them in the beginning and perhaps later head out into something larger.

To ensure the well being of your betta the water’s temperature should be kept at the level of about eighty degrees Fahrenheit. Specific betta fish food will also have to be provided. The food usually comes as pellets or flakes, and may also contain special additives meant to improve the color of the fish.

You will probably have to change the water in the tank approximately once a week, though with a filter installed that period may be a bit longer. As betta fish do not require large tanks, the process of replacing water does not take too long most of the time.

A great many people believe that betta fish cannot be retained with other fish or marine life, but this is not the case, even though you do have to be mindful what type you decide to join your betta in its tank. Naturally, setting a female betta in the aquarium with the male is not likely to produce a problem and other good fish include tiny fish that don’t have large or flashy tails. You can even add a snail, for instance, the large apple snail.

Keep in mind that putting a female together with a male betta fish in the tank might not be a good choice, unless you want to have a colony of additional bettas. Also, be careful about placing two males together, as this almost always results in hostile behaviour of the two competitors.

More or less any ornament can be included in the fish tank but bear in mind that you might have to supply small stones to keep things like plants in position on the floor of your fish tank. The goal is to provide the fish with an environment to play, swim through and hide in if necessary.

As you can clearly see, betta fish are great for a beginning tropical fish enthusiast, as they do not need constant care or large expensive tanks. If you take just a little time to create a cozy environment for them, you will soon be able to admire you new tropical friends in all of their glory.

Tank maintenance is one of the most important parts of having an aquarium. The tank must be vacuumed at least once every two weeks. You need to do a 10-20% water change every week. Once a year you should completely start over. Drain all water, clean the tank, and rinse the gravel.

Aeration in your tank is crucial for having healthy fish. The filter will not provide enough oxygen. You should have at least one device for a 10-20 gallon tank and two for a tank that is larger than 30 gallons.

Fish need to rest too! Turn the lights out at night so they can get some sleep. They need about 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness.

When feeding fish you don’t have to feed the same old food everyday. Fish crave different types of food. First you need to find out if your fish are insectivores, carnivores, herbivores, omnivores. Then you can feed them different things according to their preference.

There is four groups of fish food. The most common flake food and frozen food, live food, and household food. Be careful with the live food because they can carry diseases that can infect your fish.

What do I do when algae takes over? Some things to try to decrease your algae growth are algae eaters, buy some aquarium plants, decrease the light in your aquarium, scrap the glass of your aquarium, and do water changes more regularly.

When buying fish for your tank for the first time be sure to buy hardy fish. Sometimes is takes awhile for your tank to adjust and to get your water tested the way it needs to be.

There is three different types of filters for aquariums. They are a box filter, an under gravel filter, and an external power filter. The under gravel filter is a good option. It requires less maintenance and has more aeration for your fish.

It is very hard and sometimes frustrating to choose our first tropical fish/marine fish So how can I choose my first marine fish or should I need to change my aquarium population? There are lots of marine fish families, Blenniidae, Gobiidae, labroids, Chaetodontidae, Pomacanthidae, Acanthuridae and much more. Make sure that your desired fish suit to your tank size and just pick one.

Yellow tang from the Acanthuridae family is a hardy fish that can suffer some newly fishkeepers mistakes. The yellow tang known also as Zebrasoma flavescens. It is one of the most common and popular fish all over the planet. The Yellow Tang is a low demanding species and very hardy fish that is not territorial except with any other flavescens tangs especially from the genus Zebrasoma. The yellow tang have very sharp white colored hooks around the tail area these barbs or hooks can inject poison to the enemy body. It’s beautiful yellow color along with its character and the fact that it is the less prone to disease than the other Tangs makes the yellow tang very popular and sought after marine fish in reefs and marine tanks.

the yellow tang is a herbivores just like is all genus. In the wild the Zebrasoma Flavescens eat micro and macro algae. In home tank they should get “green” food, lettuce and nori algae with flakes and pellet food can complete their nutrition. It requires 60 gallon tank and up with a lots of hiding places and plenty room to swim. Strong water movement and well filtered water are more then recommended.

Another common marine fish is the tomato clown fish. The Tomato Clownfish is one of 27 known Clownfish species in the wild. Tomato clownfish are known to inhabit lagoon reefs, the Tomato Clownfish female is larger and rounded then the male, once in an established pair, the female is darker then the male which keep its beautiful red orange color. The tomato clown fish prefer the Entacmaea quadricolor, Carpet Anemone or Heteractis crispa as a host Anemone but also does fine without a host anemone. As with all clownfish, most are born as males, and the dominant male will change to a female. The tomato clown fish is an omnivore.

In nature the tomato clownfish based on various planktonic items, algae’s and small crustaceans. In aquariums, a varied diet is recommended. Will accept commercial food (flakes and pellets). Frozen or live food such as brine shrimps, krill and artemia is essential for this species. It requires minimum tank size Suggested is about 20 gallon; you must provide it lots of hiding places. Avoid keeping them in an aquarium with predatory fish large enough to eat them.

Picasso Triggerfish has astonishing colors and patterns on its body the Picasso triggerfish is one of the most beautiful marine fish hobbys like to have in their marine fish tank. In Hawaii the Picasso Triggerfish is the state fish and known as “Humuhumunukunuku apua’a”, Picasso Triggerfish, has a wacky, painted appearance. It has a tan body with gradient dark bands, and vibrant blue and black bands on the top of the head, with a shiny yellow stripe from cheek to cheek and deeply set-back eyes.

The Picasso triggerfish feeds on all kinds of live, frozen, and flake foods, be sure to feed him 3 times, they also will like squid, shrimp (the same kind people eat), mussels, and all kinds of chopped up fish- if you feed him with this food you will enjoy a healthy fish and the fish will thank you by showing his beautiful colors of his. The Picasso triggerfish should at least be in 75 gallon tank, do not put more than one Picasso triggerfish in the same tank .Before you go and buy Picasso triggerfish you must know that he should be kept in temperatures between 72 and 78 degrees Fahrenheit. A pH value of 8.1 or 8.4, and a specific gravity of 1.020 to 1.025 should be maintained. If you keep these water conditions you can enjoy of a beautiful Picasso triggerfish.

Many tropical fish tank owners will grow to love their hobby so much that it is only a matter of time before they get an itch to make babies! Breeding tropical fish can be very rewarding, but firstly there is a big decision to be made. Will you breed egg bearers or live bearers. There is a significant difference between the two, and the effort needed to be successful.

Egg bearing mothers will lay their eggs amongst the foliage and rocks in the aquarium. If the eggs manage to last to maturity they will then hatch. Live bearing mothers are fish that give birth to their young once they have already reached maturity. The babies will instantly be swimming around when born, tiny versions of their parents.

Most tropical fish experts would recommend that you start with breeding live bearers, especially for beginners with little knowledge or experience in breading tropical fish. New breeders can develop their skills with three easy to breed species; mollies, guppies or platys.

It is very important to organise a way to keep the baby fish safe from the adult fish. They will become dinner if left in the community aquarium after they are born. Baby fish have been known to be eaten by their own parents while they are being born.

It can be very disheartening and upsetting if your baby fry become fish food. If you have a good supply of thick foliage and plants in the tank it is possible that some fry will make it to maturity. But it won’t be very many. It is a much safer option to put the pregnant mother in a nursing tank when you think she is ready to give birth.

It can be tricky to start with to tell when the mother fish is ready to give birth. You will learn the signs in time. The main things to look out for is a very black and swollen abdomen. If you are unsure, it is better to move the mother earlier. After the babies emerge, transfer the mother back to the community tank, but leave the fry to mature in safety.

Live bearing fish are normally very easy to breed, they do not require too much attention and do most of the work themselves. Interestingly guppies will be pregnant several times from each insemination.

We have barely scratched the surface of knowledge needed to successfully breed tropical fish. There is a wealth of information available on the topic and it should be a very rewarding learning curve for the beginner tropical breeder.

If you have ever heard of a Nano Reef Tank, you may have been slightly confused; many people fail to completely understand what a reef tank is, none the less a Nano Tank. A nano reef tank is a particular size of a coral reef tank. This type of tank is gaining popularity in many homes and places that would love to have a live coral tank, but need to save space, or money, by going with a smaller type.

Reef tanks in general look to the Great Barrier Reef for the inspiration for their design, attempting to have a showcase of sea life right there in the tank. While normal fish tanks look to focus on the fish, reef tanks focus on the live coral, with other sea life and plants that can accent the live rock itself.

The exact size of the Nano Reef Tank is often disputed, as you will hear different sized numbers depending on who you talk to. Some people feel that any tank smaller than 40 gallons in size is a Nano Tank. Other people feel that only tanks 20 gallons or smaller can be classified as Nano. Either way, the Nano Reef Tank is doing one thing; bringing a snapshot of the sea into a small tank. These tanks are beneficial to those who want a smaller or less costly tank. The Nano tank, however, does require more work; less water means more frequent water changes, leading to more work to keep the live coral alive and thriving.

You Cannot Ignore the Size

A normal reef tank features smaller fish, as the focus of the actual reef tank itself is the live coral. A Nano Reef Tank takes that idea even further; because the tank is so small, size really does matter. Everything in a live reef tank, besides the live coral, is likely going to be smaller in size. This size allows for the tank to seem realistic, as it tries to recreate the actual reef in a small setting; fine particulate foods and small particulate organic matter are blueprints of the nano reef tank, as the tank is all about going small.

Life Matters

Yes, the live coral is the important living creature in a Nano Reef Tank, as it is the star and main focus of the tank itself. The other life that is living in the tank is important as well, however; this is partially for the look of the tank, and partially for the important ecosystem of the tank. Things like mushroom polyps, phytoplankton, and potent nematocysts, are all important to the ecosystem of the tank.

Other sessile animals and things such as clownfish anemones and cleaner shrimp are important for the look and feel of the Nano Reef tank. One thing to make sure you look out for, however, is the possibility of aggressive fish in the tank; putting the fish in the tank can cause issues for the live coral and the other live creatures in the tank.

Be Sure to Place Importance on the Tank

Making sure that the tank of the Nano Reef Tank is spot on is just as important as picking out the right type of live coral. For the coral to live and thrive, a good coral keeper needs to make sure the reef temperature and colony orientation is spot on.

To be a good coral keeper, you should make sure to check the reef temperature constantly, and watch colony orientation. Using a protein skimmer is key to take care of the food from corals and other organic material that can dirty a tank.

Everyone knows what a fish tank is, and most people have had a fish tank of their own at some point in time. While some people have the large fish tanks that can hold larger fish, and larger amounts of fish, others simply have small tanks with only a few fish and accessories. Just like regular fish tanks, Reef Aquariums come in different sizes and types.

Many people, however, do not even know what a Reef Aquarium is. A Reef Aquarium is different than a normal fish tank in the sense that it puts the focus of the tank on the live coral reef living in the tank, as well as the small fish that live in and around that coral.

What Is A Reef Aquarium

The major difference between the marine aquarium and the Reef Aquarium is the fact that the focus is completely different. While the Reef Aquarium and coral aquarium do have fish, it really focuses on the live coral itself. Fish tanks seem to work opposite, revolving around the fish instead of the surroundings. The aquariums are saltwater, which limits some of the fish that you can have in the tank itself. This is the type of water found where the coral reef lives and thrives.

The Reef Aquariums come in different sizes. While there are regular sizes, those that are less than 40 gallons are often referred to as Nano Reef tanks. Those under 20 may have another name, such as “pico reefs”. Pico reefs are the smallest reef available. It is important to note that the smaller the tank, the more work that is needed in the upkeep of the tank as far as water and cleaning is concerned.

Things that are Found in a Reef Aquarium

While a Reef Aquarium does focus on the live reef itself, the coral is not the only interesting and living thing in the tank itself. While there are more than one type of coral to add to the tank (such as adding in leather coral to your tank), adding fish and other types of sea life can be beneficial to the overall look of the tank. Marine fish, maxima clams, and arrow crabs are great additions to any tank. Instead of having a seahorse aquarium, some opt to have a Reef Aquarium with the seahorses.

Taking Care of a Reef Aquarium

A Reef Aquarium is known for being more intense to take care of than any normal type of fish tank or aquarium. A protein skimmer is something that many people do not know about, but is important when trying to have a functioning aquarium ecosystem. This protein skimmer is needed because the organic material and such in the tank can only be taken care of in certain ways at times.

The water in the tank is incredibly important; the coral can be sensitive to a lot of things that can change, including ph and temperature. Making sure that you correctly care for your tank means that your coral will live and thrive.

Other Aspects of a Reef Aquarium

Sand is something that many people do not think about when putting together any type of aquarium, nonetheless a Reef Aquarium. Sand is important for more than just looks, however. The sand allows any bottom dwelling creatures to have a normal surface to be on and around. Also, aragonite sand is the kind of sand to be used; it is actually live, with culture, and this is the best type of sand for coral reef.

Another thing to look out for is aggressive fish. These fish will tear up other living things and the live reef, causing issues and problems with your entire tank.