Choosing and Maintaining An Aquarium For Your Child
Fish are perfect for first pets. They are silent, contained, and not messy. They also allow children to learn responsibility over pets (in terms of aquarium maintenance) and can let them build up their skills toward tending to a more complex pet. You may have to start by cleaning the tank yourself and having your child help with small tasks before they can eventually fully take over.
Bigger aquariums tend to be much better than smaller. Though it is tempting to save money by buying the traditional bowl, the water will almost always be more easily contaminated. Bigger tanks can firstly support different filtration systems. Secondly, bigger tanks have more water, which means that if there is a slight impurity in the water, it will be less problem to the fish than being in a smaller bowl. More water means more dilution for imperfections.
You can also get more fish if you have a bigger tank. It is tempting to start out with one fish to see how your child fares, but the death of a single fish may be very upsetting to a child, while it may not be noticeable if there are many fish in the tank. It is also a better return for your money. Why buy all of the equipment for just a single fish?
Your goal is to keep the ecology in the tank as normal as possible. The fewer the fish, the less genetic diversity, and the more chance of an ecological disturbance if a fish is sick or dies. Think of how life really is in an live body or water.
The maintenance of a tank depends on what type of fish you have. If you have fresh water fish, you do not have to worry quite as much. If you have salt water fish, you need to measure the salt content of the water you put in. Salt may require specialized systems for briny species. It can be difficult to measure the levels.
The specific components of the system should be discussed with a professional at the pet store. They can help you fit the tank to your budget and your fish. There are a few things to do regardless of what type of system you have. Clean up any large messes, but most importantly you need to change out a third of the water and put in new about every two weeks. If you use EcoBio-Block products, you can reduce this part of your maintenance to once a month or less. EcoBio-Block contains beneficial bacteria that create a healthy environment for your fish. These bacteria which are found in nature, break down toxic organic waste into safer by-products, clarify your water and eliminate odors. All you have to do is put the block in the water and wait for the bacteria to build up in the tank. Just be sure to monitor your ammonia and nitrite levels on a regular basis.
The gravel at the bottom of the tank can be a pit for fish excrement and unnoticed food. It needs to be vacuumed occasionally. Check the filters every couple of weeks or so. You can also check the pH occasionally, but most fish can tolerate pretty wide extremes of pH levels as long as they are not suddenly changed.
Filter inserts should be automatically changed every month, even if you think they look fine. On a daily basis you should just watch life in the tank. Fish can bully or abuse others, or eat more than their share of food. You should count the fish to make sure one has not died and you may need to separate fish if there is an unhappy relationship.
Find the proper aquarium maintenance for your home setup. Look into EcoBio-Block to help with the job. Head online and learn more now.
Tags: aquarium, Aquarium Care, aquarium fish, aquarium maintenance, Fish, fish tank, pets