Aquarium Tips

Tip 1 – Buying Fish

It seems obvious to us as aquarium enthusiasts, but so often we have new aquarium owners come to buy their first fish and say they want some small fish and one or two big fish.

BIG FISH EAT LITTLE FISH.

This should be remembered when purchasing fish and once again is a reminder that a good book is a must.

A good book will teach a lot more than anything else and is much more likely to make you a successful hobbyist. A lot of books will make you even better.

The internet is also very useful for particular information on a specific fish etc but remember that anyone can set up a web-site so it might pay to double check the information. Book publishers are a little bit more selective about what they will publish and a person has to have some credence to get a book into print.

Tip 2 – Cichlid Owners (pronounced siclid)

It is a good idea to learn the latin species name for the cichlid fish you have. The genera is not that important in most cases as it is continually under review by the so-called experts but since the internet came into being people are always coming in asking about, for example “Do you have any Lemon cichlids?” Or maybe it is a Midas cichlid.

Or a Dolphin cichlid? The Dolphin cichlid is different to the Blue Dolphin which is the only one I see around these days.

Tip 3 – For the young amongst us a simple table to remember:-

12 inches = 1 foot = 30.5cm

24 inches = 2 foot = 61cm

36 inches = 3 foot = 91.5cm

48 inches = 4 foot = 122cm

Very few people ask for the price of a 122cm tank when they ring up and we trade people still talk in feet and inches and a lot of books published in America still do.

And as well remember a gallon(u.s) is about 4 litres of water and remember 1 litre weighs about 1 kilogram. This knowledge is important when deciding to put that 4 foot tank on that old chest of drawers. NOT A GOOD IDEA!!!

Always remember that large aquariums are definitely best put on stands that are made to hold the weight. The stand has to be able to hold the weight 24/7 365 days of the year every year.