How to set up a DIY Yeast CO2 System for your aquarium ?

Are you interested in making your own CO2 system for your aquarium? It may not be the best CO2 system around, but it is sufficient for most middle to small size tank. Before getting into the steps of making this CO2 system, let us first understand how this thing works.

Yeast are simple, unicellular fungi. They are like most fungi, respire oxygen (aerobic respiration), but in the absence of air they derive energy by fermenting sugars and carbohydrates to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide. Thus you will sense a strong smell of Alcohol when you pour away the old reactor and refilled it with new ones.

Item needed:
1) A big soft drinks bottle which a volume of minimum 2L.
2) 2 meters long of silicon tube. Can be bought from Local fish shop.
3) A packet of baking yeast from the super market.
4) A packet of sugar (get the cheapest one will do)
5) A silicone sealant
6) Water ( 70% of the bottle)
7) A diffuser

Now let get into the steps of making your reactor.

Step 1: Drill a hole into the cap. I do it by using a screw driver. Heat the screw driver up with fire, and screw a hole in the cap with the hot screw driver.

Step 2: Cut one end of the tube to a V shape. Attached this end into the hole.

Step 3: Seal both the sides of the attachment with silicone sealant. This will prevent the co2 from leaking out.

Up to this step, the reactor container is complete. Next is do to some mixing of elements

Step 4: If you are using a 2L bottle, pour around 300-400ml of sugar into it. I uses ml here because i am using a cup as a gauge.

Step 5: Put 2tea spoons of yeast into the bottle.

Step 6: Fill the bottle up till its 75% full.

Step 7: Shake the bottle. If you have another similar bottle cap, it can be used for covering before shaking as the original bottle cap is being attached to the tube.

Step 8: Cover the bottle with the cap that is attached to the silicon tube.

Step 9: Attached the other end of the tube to a diffuser. The diffuser can be a bell, a air stone or a commercial type i show in the picture.

Bingo! The cO2 system is complete. Give it some time to generate the cO2 and the system will generally last around 3weeks.


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My little planted aquarium

To the right is my tank i set up in 2007 July. Everything was still new and young. Look closely at the sword plan to the left, its still tiny and small.







6months have past and now is 2008 january. Take a look at how nicely my tank grow into. Ya its not perfect as i am lazy to do the trimming.



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Tips on Easy Fish Food - Dry foods

The other main type of fish food, and the most popular, is dry food in the form of flake, pellets, tablets, granules and food sticks. It is big business and, thanks to research into pet nutrition, aquarium fish can be fed exclusively on dry food for their whole lives and do very well indeed. Every nutrient that a fish requires can be added to dry foods to help keep them healthy.

Benefits of dry food
One of the main reasons for feeding dry foods is convenience. The foods come sealed in pots and sachets and can be used at will by the aquarist. Dry foods are also complete foods, and fish can do better on dry foods than some frozen foods, as dry foods can be nutritionally balanced, vitamin enriched and otherwise supplemented and enhanced in a controlled, precise way. Pots of dry food can also be purchased from supermarkets, making them highly accessible.

Flake
The most popular form of dry food by far is flake. It does not resemble any food that species encounter in the wild, but a huge number of fish will happily eat it in captivity. The composition of flake makes it available to fish of all swimming levels, because when it first hits the water it floats, then after a few seconds it softens, takes on water and begins to sink slowly to the bottom, satistfying mid-tank and bottom feeder as it does so.
Flake is available for coldwater, tropical and marine fish and comes as a mixture of several different colours of flake. The colours represent different nutritional supplements, such as red flakes for colour enhancing and green flake for vegetable matter. A mixed flake can be regarded as a staple food, containing a little of everything, and this should be fed on a daily basis. Specific flake types are also available to enhance colour or to encourage growth.

Sticks and pellets
These are aimed at larger fish that prefer to eat bigger mouthfuls of food. Sticks float on the surface for sometime and are easily removed with a net if not eaten within a short period of time. They do soften when they hit the water and will also be nibbled by some smaller fish. Pellets are heavier than sticks and will put bulk on a larger fish if they are offered regularly. As pellets contain a great amount of food, fewer should be fed and all uneaten food should be removed. Not all larger fish will take sticks and pellets at first, but they generally prefer them once they have got used to them.

Granules
These have been specially designed to fall slowly through the water, making them acceptable for midwater feeder, such as Discus. They are hard at first but soften when wet and can be fed exclusively to promote growth and colour. Again, they are often initially ignored if introduced to unfamiliar fish, but will eventually be readily accepted.

Tablets
Tablet foods are of great advantage to aquarists that like to keep bottom-dwelling fish such as catfish and loaches. These fish will often miss out on floating foods, which will be quickly taken by midwater and surface-dwelling fish. It is also a misconception that bottom dwellers can live exclusively on uneaten food and algae in the lower layers. They need food in their own right, and many tablet foods are designed especially for them. When dropped into the water, they quickly reach the bottom and can be added last thing at night for nocturnal species.

Algae wafers
These are sinking foods suitable for algae eating fish. They have a very high vegetable content. These are usually aimed at sucker-mouth catfish and other bottom-dwelling fish, but they are eaten with vigour by nearly all fish and even fish that usually feed from the surface ( example guppies). Make sure that the wafers go to the intended species by feeding them after lights out at night or by dropping the wafers down a tube right into the catfish's usual hiding place.

Tips: Some tablets can be stuck to the glass making them a treat for all tank mates.


Related articles

• Fish food - Live food
• Fish food - Frozen and Freeze dried
• Cultivating Mosquito larvae

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How to Breed Guppies?

If you ask most people of how to breed guppies, their reply will usually be adding some guppies into a tank and wait for them to reproduce. True enough, that was a summary of how you going to breed guppies. I am going to list down some step by step method, if you do not agree with what I said, feel free to email me. The steps is serve as a general guide of producing guppies, thus it might not work well if you are breeding show fish.

Step 1: Get a 10 gallons tank. (5gallons will be minimum size, anything bigger is better)

Step 2: Cycle the tank using fish less cycle to avoid any ammonia or nitrite spikes in future. This process will take sometimes. Around 6 weeks.

Step 3: Add one tablespoon of aquarium salt before cycling begin. And continue to add salt every time you do water changes or topping up water. (1 tea spoon per 10 gallons if you have a bigger tank)

Step 4: Add some floating plants to the tank this will serve as hiding place for the fry. Java moss can be added as well. It served as a good hiding place.

Step 5: Before adding your guppies into the tank, make sure that the water is at the right conditions. Water temperature should be between 19.0 - 29.0°C (69 - 86 °F) and the pH reading should be PH 7.0-8.5.

Step 6: Add 1 male to 3 females of guppies into the tank. A 10 gallons tank can hold 2 males to 6 females.

Step 7: If you notice most of the females are pregnant, move the males back to their tank. There will be a dark mark near the anus area of the female if it’s pregnant.

Step 8: After 1week, move those that are certainly not pregnant back into their own tank.

Step 9: Wait for about 2-3 weeks more. So 1 week + 2-3weeks will be around 3-4weeks before the fry will be born.

Step 10: At this point of time, the female stomach will be very large and you will be able to see the eyes of the babies around the gravid spot.

Step 11: Check after few hours to see if the fry is born. Ensure enough hiding place was provided (Floating plants and java moss), else they will be eaten by the mother. Move those females that had already given birth back into their own tank. Some of the fry might be eaten as not all female guppies gave birth at the same times. But enough hiding place will lessen the lost.

Step 12: Feed the fry with powdered flakes. Use a sponge filter with low output rate. Else the fry might get sucked into the filter. Can even try to cover with tights as further precauison.

Step 13 : 30-40 percent of water changes is needed per week to keep the water clean. If its need, more water changes per week is encouraged.

Step 14: Once the fry reaches a reasonable size, around 1/3 of the adult, you have successfully reproduced guppies and can sell them away. Make sure plans of getting rid of your fry are laid before you even begin step 1.


Read more about Guppies.
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Tips on Healthy Fish food - Frozen and Freeze dried

Today we will talk about Frozen foods and Freeze dried food.

Frozen foods
These are dead foods that can be kept in the freezer indefinitely. You get more money than with live foods, and once thawed out, they will be consumed with just as much vigour by fish. They also have the advantage of being free of parasites and disease, which cannot be guaranteed with any live food.

Smaller foods come in blister packs averaging in foil on one side, so are simply popped out when it is time to feed. Larger foods, such as frozen fish and shellfish, come in one single large block.

Defrosting
When you are transporting frozen foods, try to keep them as you would for human consumption. Thawing and refreezing should be avoided wherever possible. To defrost for feeding, take a small amount of aquarium water and place the frozen cubes in the water. Placing the food under the aquarium lights can help to accelerate thawing. When the food is thawed, mix it into the water to form a soup and pour it into the tank. The fish will race after the food as it is pushed around the tank by the filter flow.
There is an alternative method of defrosting, which should always be used for preparing brine shrimp, as the salt is removed in the process; otherwise it would increase the salinity of the tank water over time. Place the cubes in an aquarium net and rinse them under tap. The food will be defrosted and rinsed within seconds, and therefore ready to feed.

Freeze-dried foods
Freeze-dried foods have existed for a long time but are slowly going out of fashion. Natural food, like bloodworms or Tubifex, are dried to a crisp and can then be packaged and placed on store shelves like flake or granules. Contact with the water then rehydrates them.

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Algone and Algaefix - easy way to get rid of algae

If you are suffering from terrible algae problem like the picture on the left, and do not wish to resort to methods such as black out or willow branches, let me introduce you to Algone. I personally tried it before and the result is amazing. The basic idea is that it get rid of nitrite and ammonia. I do not know exactly how they do it, but the result is really fanastic. My fishes and plants do not seems to suffer from any side effect after using it. Its only $15 bucks and came with 6packets. Check out www.algone.com/ if you want to read more about it.

Another great product is the Algaefix, it is also very efficient in greating rid of algae but usually in pond. AlgaeFix is very effective against Greenwater algae blooms. Sometimes the water may be so green that fish cannot be seen. AlgaeFix also controls filamentous algae commonly known as hair algae. Algae growth in ponds can appear as green water blooms, filamentous algae on plants, and floating algae mats. Algae may also grow on rocks, fountains, and waterfalls. The logic behind it is that it binds to protein in the cell membrane of the algae, disrupting the flow of nutrients and ions across the cell membrane. People might ask will they kill my plants too? I tried this before, used it on my uncle's pond before as well, all the plants and fishes are still healthy.

Read other Greenwater fighting method, Black out and willow branches.

For other Fishkeeping article, click here.

Tips on Fish Food - Live food

The feeding of whole, natural foods is of great benefit to fish and they are, after all, what fish thrive on in the wild. Given the chance, fish will not just consume but gorge on these foods until their bellies look as if they are going to burst. Fish fed on a variety of frozen, live and dry foods will undoubtedly grow at a better rate and show better coloration and condition. Today we will discuss about live food, we will leave the other kind of food to other articles in future.

Live foods
Live foods can be caught from natural bodies of water such as ponds but are more commonly purchased in small portions from aquatic retailers. The sealed bags in which they are contained will cause the foods to perish if they are not used up quickly, so find out when the delivery arrives at the shop each week and plan to buy it on that day.

There are three differents kinds of live food available for aquarium fish:

1) Bloodworm, or red mosquito larvae, found in cold freshwater - most suitable for freshwater fish.
2) Daphnia, found in cold freshwater - most suitable for freshwater fish.
3) Brine shimp, found in warm, salt water - most suitable for freshwater and marine fish.
4) Mosquito larvae, found almost anyway - suitable for freshwater fish.

Benefits of live food
Live food is of benefit to all types of fish as they are complete foods and are presented in bitesized potions for small to medium species. Some difficult species of fish will eat nothing else , making live food invaluable for those that are new to captivity. Live foods also make great conditioning foods, and an increase in feeding them may encourage spawning.

Fish as food
The practice of using live fish as food for other fish is unnecessary in captivity and should be avoided. Even the most difficult species can eventually be persuaded to take dead foods(frozen fish) with little perseverance on the part of the aquarist.


Related articles
Fish food - Frozen and Freeze dried
Cultivating Mosquito larvae
Fish food - Dry food


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Getting rid of Green water with Willow method.

Another method of getting rid of green water is the willow method. I personally think that this method should be used before the black out method and black out should be used in the last resort.

With this method, it takes 5-8 days to completely get rid of green water. It removes the cause of Green water and some other algae. You don't need to stop dosing your fertilizer and you don't need to switch your lights off. You don’t need to do extra water changes, just do your normal water changes. Remember I spoken in the black out method that green water is usually caused by a combination effect of Excess Nutrients and Excess Light. While the Black out method is to get rid of the light source, this willow method is to get rid of the excessive nutrients.

My methods are as follow,

Step 1: Pluck a few branches from the willow trees.
Step 2: Pluck out the leaves from the bottom of the branches. So the tip of the branch will have some leaves while the bottom (the part where will be soaked inside the water) will be leafless.
Step 3: Put the branches into the tank with the part without leaves soaking inside the water.
Step 4: Wait patiently for few days and you will see roots starting to appear from the branches.
Step 5: The Green water should be completely gotten rid off after a week and this effect usually come overnight!
Step 6: At this point of time remove all the willow branches else your plants will suffer from the lack of nutrients.


Side note: I find it effective to put willow branches into a fish bowl with a lone betta in it. It helps in reducing the ammonia level in it.

If you do not know how a willow tree look like, check out here.


Related article

• General Algae Guide
• Getting rid of Green water with Black out

For more about fish keeping, go back to table of content.

How to deal with green water?

Are you sicked of seeing the cloudy and greenish water that doesn’t seems to go away no matter how frequent or how much water change you do? If you do not want to waste money buying a UV sterilizer, or a diatomic filter, you might want to try out the Black out method.

The main cause for this algae bloom is a result excess nutrient and light. Tanks that were exposed to sunlight are more lightly to experience the terror of green water. Below are the steps for doing a black out to your aquarium.



Day 1 Morning
-Feed your fish generously (3 times a day) for 3 days as they will not have the chance to eat for 3 days when the black out start.

-Prepare some black cardboards or a large piece of black blanket (Something that are able to cover the aquarium entirely)

Day 4 Evening
-Do a 30% water change.
-Paste the cardboard or cover blanket all over the aquarium to block out all light.

From now on the black out started

Day 5
-Do not feed the fish, do not open and peek

Day 6
-Do not feed the fish, do not open and peek

Day 7
-Do not feed the fish, do not open and peek

Day 8 Morning
- Uncover the cardboard or blanket, the green water will be gone by now.
- Change 30% of the water and resume your 1 week per water changes routine.


To ensure that this green water will not come back again, try to shift your aquarium to somewhere that will not be exposed to excessive sunlight.


Hope this guide help.

Related articles

• General Algae Guide
• Getting rid of Green water with Willow method

For more about fish keeping, return to table of content.

Basic guide to Fresh Aquarium setup Part 3

Here come part 3 the last part of the aquarium basic setup guide. In this part, we will talk about thermometer, heater, decoration and stand.

Theromometers are an inexpensive necessity, it monitors the most important attribute of the fish tank. Something can always go wrong with your aquarium heater and you need to know it immediately. Read the thermometer at least once a day is important as if something goes wrong with your heater, it could be deadly. There are many type of aquarium thermometer out there in the market. Choose one that you like best.

Heater
The temperature of the world's ocean, lake and river differs considerably and the fish that inhabit each ecosystem have evolved to thrive in certain temperature range. Fish that we consider to be tropical live in a water temperature of 24-30°C (75 - 86 °F) all year round, with tropical marine fish living in a more stable environment of an almost constant temperature of 24°C (75°F). Heating the water in an aquarium to the temperature required for tropical species is both simple and inexpensive.

There are several types of heating element available, including special mats and cables, but the essential item you need to heat and regulate the temperature in your aquarium is a heater/thermostat. As a heating element at the bottom of the heater heats up, so the water in contact with the outside of the heater warms. A thermostat reads the temperature of the water and turns the heater on and off ot maintain the desired temperature. The heater and thermostat are housed in a glass tube with a sealed top. This piece of equipment is placed fully submerged in the tank, the temperature adjusted and then plugged in for 24 hours a day.

There are many different sizes of heater available. The wattage required depends on the volume of water to be warmed. A 25 Watt size heater is enough for a 30cm (12in) long aquarium while a 300 watt heater is enough for 120cm (48 inc) long tank. Any size later than this will required more than 2 heaters. Look at the table below to have a better view.

Tank Size Heater size
30cm (12in) 25 watts
60cm (24in) 50 watts
75cm (30in) 100 watts
90cm (36in) 150 watts
100cm (39in) 200 watts
120cm (48in) 300 watts

Decorations
There are many types of Aquarium Decoration available to choose from. They are namely substrate ( we mentioned before), rocks, wood,ornaments, artifical/natural plants and backgrounds.

The use of rock in the aquarium is as old as the hobby itself and there are now many types available. Rockwork can provide a backdrop, hiding places for fish and potential spawning sites. More articles about rocks will be posted in future.

Wood can be used very effectively as a design feature in aquariums and helps to provide a natural seting. Not all wood is safe to be used in aquariums, so only obtain wood from aquatic retailers. Fish use wood for camouflage and hiding places and it can also be used to highlight planting. Wood should be presoaked to remove unwanted chemical that it might have.

For a discerning fishkeeper ornaments may have no place in the aquarium, but some do not know what they are missing. Fish are not fussy about what their home looks like, and species that like to hide may just be happily reside under a bridge made from resin as one made from piled stones. For those of you that like a colourful underwater wonderland, they are a must to have.

Artificial plants have come a long way since they were first introduced and now look more realistic than ever. Their durability also makes them suitable to kept with fish that would destroy live plants and those that would eat the real things. They are useful for hiding equipment and making areas feel more secure for nervous fish, and, of course, they will tolerate any type of water.

Aquatic plants can look stunning when they are properly displayed, but they offer many additional benefits to the aquarium and its inhabitants. However, if they are to provide any of the benefits, you will have to meet their needs, which includes providing appropriate lighting, fertilization and substrates. See basic plant guide.

An appropriate background is important if you want to imitate an underwater scene in your aquarium. They can give the effect of increased depth and can also hide any trailing cables. Internal and external backgrounds can be purchased, or you can make one yourself.

Stands
A stand is a basic requirement for an aquarium, as without one it would be sitting on the floor. Stands must be specially made by professionals or purchased from an aquarium retailer because aquariums are heavy enough to buckle living room furniture, potentially causing disaster. A stand for the aquarium can be either a cabinets or a simple stands. Both are appropriate and depends solely on the preference of the hobbyist.

For more about fishkeeping, Click here.

Does gold fish has a 3 second memory?

Have you heard of the myth that fishes only have 3 seconds memory? A 15-year-old South Australian school student has busted the myth that goldfish have a three second memory.

The following news is from livenews.

"A 15-year-old South Australian school student has busted the myth that goldfish have a three second memory. Rory Stokes, from the Australian Science and Mathematics School in Adelaide, conducted an experiment to test the commonly held theory that goldfish have short memory spans.Rory's experiment involved teaching a small group of fish to swim to a beacon by establishing a memory connection between the beacon and food.He was also keen to open people's minds to the cruelty of keeping fish in small tanks.Rory's experiment involved teaching a small group of fish to swim to a beacon by establishing a memory connection between the beacon and food.Over a period of three weeks, he placed a beacon in the water at feeding time each day, waited 30 seconds and then sprinkled fish food around the beacon.The time taken for the fish to swim to the beacon reduced dramatically, from more than one minute for the first few feeds to less than five seconds by the end of the three weeks.Following the initial three-week period, Rory removed the beacon from the feeding process.Six days later, he once again placed the beacon in the water and despite not seeing it for almost a week, the fish swam to the beacon in 4.4 seconds, showing they had remembered the association between food and the beacon for at least six days."My results strongly showed that goldfish can retain knowledge for at least six days," Rory said."They can retain that knowledge indefinitely if they use it regularly."Rory also conducted a number of sub-experiments which showed that goldfish were capable of negotiating a simple maze, having them move onto a second beacon if they found no food at the previous one."My experiments showed that goldfish have the mental capabilities to learn and remember fairly complex concepts and they can retain that knowledge for at least a number of days," he said.Australian Science and Mathematics School principal Jim Davies said the series of experiments were an excellent example of science investigation made fun. "

Cycling the aquarium Tips

There are basically 2 ways of cycling aquarium, either with fish or without fish. In my opinion, it is easier to do without fish, but it will be dull running an empty tank for weeks.

Both way are essentially the same, the only differences is that the first way is feeding the fish with food so and they will produce ammonia for cycling. The fishless way is to add food to the aquarium and let the food rot and thus produce ammonia.

Step 1: Do the necessary steps required to set up your tank (add water conditional, lay the gravel, lay down the decorations etc)

Step 2: Set the filter, thermometer running and leave the tank there untouched for 3-4 days. The water should be at the ideal temperature for your cycling fish (74° to 80° F(26° - 28° C)).

Step 3: Add in your cycling fish. Hardly livebearer is recommended. Wait for 24hrs allowing the fish to get used to the new environment.

Step 4: Start feeding your fish. Feed only once a day and the food must be consumed within 5mins. Be sure not to overfeed them or you'll prolong the cycling process since fish make waste.

Step 5: Use your test kit to check for ammonia level in the tank after 3-4days. The ammonia level will increase over the days. If the ammonia level is high when you take it, leave it be and do the test again every other day.

Step 6: When the ammonia level is low enough, start doing nitrite test. At this point of time, nitrite level should be higher than ammonia. Keep test for both ammonia and nitrite. Once both toxic reaches 0ppm, the cycle is complete.

Final: The whole cycling process will take around 6weeks to complete. Slowly introduce new fish into your aquarium and feed sparely allowing the bacteria to adjust to the new fish load.


For a fishless cycle that uses fish food, skip step 3. Do step 4 by “feeding your water” with food everyday. The amount of food you feed to the water should be slightly lesser than the amount of food if used for feeding the fish. The major draw back of using the fishless cycle this way is that other than adding ammonia and nitrite into the aquarium, it introduces other by product like phosphates as well.

Fishless cycle can also be done using ammonia. This way is done by skipping step 3. And do step 4 by feed the water with ammonia. The feed should be 3-5 drop per 10 gallons per day. This amount is roughly the same amount of ammonia produced by your cycling fish per day. Keep adding ammonia to the water until the cycle is complete and when new fish are introduce to produce ammonia on behalf of the ammonia solution.

In my opinion, the best way to cycle your fish that is by using the cycling the fishless method. Alot of trouble will be saved by that.


Related article

• How Nitrogen cycle works
• What make fish healthy
• Aquarium water changing tips and guide
• How to deal with new tank syndrome?
• Tips on the daily, weekly and monthly task needed for fish keeping

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History of fish keeping as a hobby

The following article is written by The-Wolf, who is an aquarium Hobbyist from England. I asked his permission for posting this interesting article here and he agreed. This article is about the history of fish keeping as a hobby.....


In the beginning

The first known freshwater fish keepers were the ancient Sumerians, who kept fish in artificial ponds at least 4,500 years ago (2500 BC); accounts of fish keeping also come from the Babylonians (500 BC) & ancient Egypt. In fact the Egyptians considered fish holy, worshipping the Nile Perch Lates niloticus amongst others.

The Chinese, who raised carp Carassius auratus Gibel around 3,500 years ago (1000 BC), were possibly the first to breed fish for food with any degree of success. The Chinese kept carp and started breeding them selectively during the Tang Dynasty, (618 – 907 AD). Records show these fish were kept for purely decorative purposes; people were forbidden to eat them!

The ancient Romans (who kept fish for food and entertainment) were the first known marine fish keepers. Keeping lampreys and other marine fish. In fact Cicero (a Roman statesman and orator) reports that the advocate Quintus Hortensius wept when a favoured specimen died, while Tertullian (an early Roman Christian) reports that Asinius Celer paid 8000 sesterces for “a particularly fine mullet”.
The Romans kept their fish in artificial ponds that were supplied with fresh seawater from the ocean.

In the middle
In Medieval Europe (from 300AD), carp pools were a standard feature of estates and monasteries, providing an alternative on feast days when meat could not be eaten for religious reasons. Goldfish made their way into Europe by 1691.2 According to Tullock, (a 17th century diarist), Samuel Pepys, referred to seeing fish (believed to be a paradise fish Macropodus opercularis) being kept in a bowl and referred to the set up as "exceedingly fine."

While excited about the prospects of keeping fish indoors, fish enthusiasts did not understand how the water needed to be "cycled" in order for fish to stay alive for long indoors. In 1805, Robert Warrington is credited with studying the tank's requirement to be cycled to keep fish alive for longer. The hobby required specialized equipment and attention at this point, reserving it for the wealthy. Fish tanks for tropical fish required heating via flames underneath (gas burning lamps underneath slate bottoms). When electricity was introduced into the home, fish enthusiasts began experimenting with electrical immersion heaters in glass tubes.

By 1850 the keeping of fish, amphibians, and reptiles had become useful in the study of nature. It was in the works of Philip H Gosse (an English naturalist) that the term aquarium first appeared. His work aroused increased public interest in aquatic life. The first display aquarium was opened to the public in 1853 at Regent's Park in London. It was followed by aquariums in Berlin, Naples, and Paris. P.T. Barnum, the circus entrepreneur, was the first to recognise the commercial possibilities of living aquatic animals (possibly as a result of, Emil Robmabers’ essay, “Sea in a Glass," introducing fish keeping as a hobby to the public which was published that year) and, in 1856, opened the first display aquarium at the American Museum in New York City as a private enterprise.

In 1876 William C. Coup openned the New York Public Aquarium on the corner of East 35th and Broadway. This aquarium held not only display tanks but a library and reading room as well as a fully stocked lab of sorts with microscopes, experimental tanks and dissecting tables. It also had a room of hatcheries an unheard of concept at that time.

By 1928 there were 45 public or commercial aquariums throughout the world, but growth then slowed and few new large aquariums appeared until after World War II. Now many of the world's principal cities now have public aquariums as well as commercial ones and a hobby was born...!

The first tanks
The first containers specifically designed for aquatic specimens were the strictly functional open-air tanks used by the ancient Romans to preserve and fatten fish for market. It was not until the 18th century that the importation of goldfish into France from the Orient for aesthetic enjoyment created the demand for small aquariums; ceramic bowls, occasionally fitted with transparent sections, were produced. In the large public aquariums built in many European cities between 1850 and 1880, efforts were made to create the fantasy that the spectator was entering into the underwater world. More recently, the trend has been to emphasise the natural beauty of the specimens and to make a sharp distinction between the water and the viewing space.

In the future?
With so many diverse species and even further breeding within the species and the technological advancements with keeping fish in aquariums, it is not unforeseen how popular fish keeping as a hobby has become. Who knows what the future will bring but the goal will doubtless be to reduce fish disease in tanks, improve the global environment that fish live in and work on making the tank even more self sustaining. (Minimal effort, maximum enjoyment)

References

1 http://en.wikipedia.org/

2 http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/tropical_fish/101988

4 http://aquatic.yupapa.com/articles/history.html

5 http://www.ecosystemaquarium.com/html/history.html


For more about fish keeping, click here.

General Algae Guide

This guide is meant to be general and will briefly cover the various types of algae commonly found in aquariums. More detailed guide on specifics algae issue will be posted later on.

First of all, let us understand what are algae. Algae are plant like, usually microscopic organisms that conduct photosynthesis like larger plants, but they lack stems, roots and leaves. Not only do they assist in breaking down organic matter, but they also provide organic matter to the soil. One common example of algae is the Seaweeds.

There are some common type of aquarium algae namely Green water, Green algae, Brown algae, Blue green algae and Red algae.

Green water is the most common algae and the term "Algae Bloom" is usually used to describe a major outbreak of it. They are caused by the growth of microscopic algae that are suspended in the water. The appearance of green water indicates that the water contains too much dissolve fish water. It is more frustrating then any other type of algae as it cannot be removed by wiping or scraping. Water change does little help too as they will come back within 24hrs after the water change. There are 3 major ways to deal with a Green Water algae bloom. One is use a diatomic filter ( Diatomagic Filter is a good one worth a try). Another is to use the black out method, which is use something like a blanket or black paper to cover the tank to block out all light excess into the aquarium. Lastly is to buy a UV Sterilizer that kills the green water algae.

Brown algae are another common algae found in New tanks. Usually appear around 2-10weeks after the tank was setted up and will naturally go away once the tank mature. The main cause of this type of algae is overfeeding. Most algae eating sucker mouth fish will nibble on it.

Green Algae are common on any tanks new or mature. They are able to grow in any tank with sufficient lighting and are usually eaten by algae eating fish or shrimps. The green hair algae and thread algae can be easily removed from the glass by wiping with a cloth or toothbrush.

Blue Green Algae, another common name is Slimes algae. They are caused by a combine effect of high nutrient levels ( particularly phosphorous and nitrogen) and a still or low turbulence water movement. It is very slimy which gives it the name. Grows quickly and covers all surfaces in the aquarium, often giving off an unpleasant swampy or fishy odor. No algae eaters will eat it. The cure for it is usually by Physical removal, doing partial water changes or by adding erythromycin ( around 20mg per gallons). Adding erythromycin is usually not recommended as it will harm other beneficial bacteria as well. Thus try to leave it till the last resort.

Red Algae seem to appear in tanks with high pH level and high carbonate hardness concentration. It is very difficult to remove manually and the only algae eater that eat it is the Siamese algae eater. Other type of cure is to up your CO2 to acceptable levels, soften the water, get your PH down to 7.0 or lower and methods of getting nutrient levels down.


Related Articles

• Getting rid of Green water with Black out
• Getting rid of Green water with Willow method

Read more other article from the Table of Content.

Do fish drink water?

"The answer to your question depends, of course, a bit on what you mean by "drink." Freshwater fish don't actively drink water, but they do of course absorb water through their skin and gills. Saltwater fish actually take in water through their mouths - which is something closer to what you'd think of as drinking - and get rid of salt with the help of their gills."


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Plant Basics

All plants need a combination of light, carbon dioxide (co2) nutrients and trace elements in order to ensure healthy growth. This is a common knowledge for everyone, but more people do not know that plants need those things in fixed proportions. For instance, if a plant had unlimited amount of light, co2, nutrients and most trace elements but lack of a specific trace element, the plant would not have a healthy growth. The excess nutrient will be wasted and might contribute to algae growth. In general plants need a balance of all its need in order to stay healthy.

Lighting
Light is required by plant for photosynthesis. It gives the plant energy for the chemical reaction involved. Without light, plant will die after all its carbohydrate storage has been fully utilized. Correct spectrum of light is also needed to ensure healthy growth. Plants use light primary in the blue and red spectrum but an aquarium will look better to people if full spectrum lighting is use.

Sunlight contains the full spectrum of colour and would first see as the best choice. But a more experienced aquarium hobbyist (myself) would say that this method has several notable disadvantages. The indirect source is often either too weak or short for plant functioning. Sunlight may also cause significant temperature fluctuations which is bad for both fishes and plants. Another side effect of sunlight is that they usually encourage algae growth.

Artificial light is therefore a more advisable alternative for plants in aquarium. Full spectrum or broad spectrum fluorescent light is the best recommendation from me.

For a sparely planted aquarium, I recommend 1.5w of light per gallon (1gal ~ 3.8L). If you have a densely planted aquarium, you will need somewhere between 3w to 5w per gallon for optimum performance. 10 – 12hrs of light supply per day is necessary for plant growth.

Carbon Dioxide (Co2)
Co2 is another essential component for photosynthesis, without sufficient quantities, photosynthesis cannot take place. During photosynthesis, dissolved Co2 is transformed into carbohydrate which is the energy needed for plant growth. Most tanks will have some Co2 due to fish respiration but it is definitely not enough to get a lush plant growth.

A non Co2 supplemented aquarium usually have between 1-3 ppm of Co2 and most plants will only flourish with an amount between 10-20ppm. Thus, Co2 supplementation is essential if you are serious about having a planted aquarium.

There are generally 2 type of Co2 which are
Co2 tank which purchase from local fish shop. It is easy to use and need for bigger aquarium. Down side of it is will be expensive in the long run.
DIY Co2 reactor is made by combining Yeast, Sugar and Water. The by product of this mixture is Co2. This Co2 setup is suitable only for smaller aquarium (under 50g) as it is not enough for bigger ones. DIY set up is cheap, easy and most importantly fun to do. A guide of how to set up a Yeast co2 reactor will be posted next week.

Nutrients (Macro Nutrients)

The first three elements necessary is Nitrogen, Potassium and Phosphorus. The plant requires these in large quantities. If you introduce a lot of macronutrients to your aquarium, it can lead to an undesirable 'algae bloom'.

Nitrogen is usually available in sufficient quantities from fish waste in the form of ammonium (NH4+). Most plants will prefer ammonium but some will use the end product of the nitrification cycle, nitrate (NO3-). Ammonium is the preferred source since it takes less energy to use that form of nitrogen. A good test for ammonium levels is to monitor nitrates. If the nitrates are 0 ppm, you know that all the nitrogen is being used. This may indicate that some plants are starving for nitrogen. It also might indicate that a perfect balance has been achieved, but that is unlikely.

Potassium (K+) is also usually available from fish food. Unfortunately, potassium is difficult to measure in the water. If there are enough nitrates, there is usually enough potassium. Some fertilizers contain additional potassium and can be used to be on the safe side.

Phosphorus (PO4) is another Macro nutrient that is sufficient for plant from fish food. It is usually not a problem in getting enough Phosphorus, excess of it can encourage algae growth.

Trace elements (Micro Nutrients)
Nutrients like iron, copper, zinc, sulphur calcium and magnesium are some of these. Excessive amounts of these can prove harmful for the plants.

Iron may be present in tap water in the correct ionic state (Fe++) but will quickly oxidize to a form unusable by plants. To prevent this, chelated iron mixtures can be used. The chelator prevents the iron from oxidizing and makes it easy for the plants to assimilate. The iron concentration should be less than 0.2 ppm.

Sulphur, calcium and magnesium are usually found in tap water. If the water has too little hardness (less than 3 degrees dGH), calcium and/or magnesium may be in short supply. This can be remedied by adding calcium and magnesium sulphate in small quantities.

Other trace elements are needed in extremely small quantities and can usually be provided in fish food or specialized trace element formulations. Note that some of these elements are toxic in anything but trace amounts so the addition of trace elements should be done very carefully.

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How the Nitrogen cycle works?

General idea of a Nitrogen cycle
Fish produce ammonia through their respiration and bodily function as a byproduct of transforming food intake into energy. Ammonia, however is highly poisonous to fish, and if it is not dealth with can cause
them to die prematurely. Luckily, mother nature lend us a helping hand by giving the existence of a strain of bacteria called Nitrosomonas which could breaks down ammonia and converts it to nitrate.

However, nitrite is also very toxic to fish, but thanks again, there is another type of bacteria called nitrobacter which will converts nitrite into less harmful nitrate.

This cyclical conversion of waste products by bacteria is a continuing and necessary process in any mature aquarium, and the fish would not be able to survive in such a confined artifical space without it. What links nitrate back to the fish is the fact that live aquatic plants consume nitrate as part of their own food cycle. Some fish in turn consume tese plants and so the whole cycle begins again.


Related articles

• Cycling aquarium
• What make fish healthy
• Aquarium water changing tips and guide
• How to deal with new tank syndrome?
• Tips on the daily, weekly and monthly task needed for fish keeping

For more related post click here

Canister Filter Rena filstar xP series

Rena xp filters are the best bargain in the Canister filter market. Other brands like Ehiems and magnums maybe more welknown, but Rena Xp's will occupy the best bang for your buck slot. The filters need not to be clean as often as most other brand, and the water changes will not be as frequent as the standard once per week. These filters are Perfects for fish that the required good water quality like Discus. The filters are easy to setup and extremely quiet. You don't even know that its on until you take a closer look at it. The filters are so powerful that if you stirred up all ickiness in the tank and it only take 5mins to clear them all up.

Best of all, its a combination of 3 forms of filtration method namely mechanical, biological and chemical. Read Best filtration method.

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Females attracted to healthy eaters

Recently I came across an article called “Females attracted to healthy eaters” from the Magazine PlanetEarth Summer 2007. If you are interested to know more about other stuff on PlanetEarth, visit http://www.nerc.ac.uk.

Below is a summary of what it was about.

“Female fish are attracted to males who have eaten antioxidants. Male sticklebacks eat brightly coloured carotenoids which contain a pigment that gives fish an attractive red throat during the breeding season. Carotenoids are also natural antioxidants which slow down the rate of aging and support a healthy immune system.”

Interesting article. So meaning if we were to feed our males with food that contain antioxidants, it might helps with the process of breeding them :D


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Basic guide to Fresh Aquarium setup Part 2

During part 1 we discussed on about the basic concept of a aquarium tank, a hood and the type of filters. Today, in the part 2 discussion we will talk about the basic introduction to the various type of substrate, the concept of water conditioners and the purpose of a test kit. We will leave the discussion about thermometer, heater, decoration and stand to part 3. Sorry for unable to post all three parts at the same times. The reason being i usually only have around 1-2hrs per day for doing the blog and that include researching. Thus, in order not to give any false information to the people reading this, i have to make sure everything i said is true.

Ok, now get into the discussion for today. The substrate of any aquarium is the material that is placed on the bottom of the tank for decoration. Traditional substrates includes sands and gravels, which can be found naturally in the any body of water. In most freshwater aquariums the substrate should be inert, which means that it will not dissolve or leach elements into the water, particularly any that may affect the pH of the tank water.

Different type of substrate

Pea gravel
This material is an excellent choice for coldwater and tropical aquariums and is safe to use with all types of fish. It is available in sizes from 4mm (1/8 in) up to 2cm (3/4 in), and its round particles make it good for fish that like to dig. It will not readily compact and it can also be easily cleaned. Pea gravel should be used in a layer about 5cm (2 in) deep. It offers good anchoring for plants, the smaller particle sizes being best for prolonged plant growth.

Silica sand
Silica is available as a sand and a grit and can be used in all freshwater aquariums. It is very dirty when first purchased and will take a lot of rinsing before the water runs clear. Its color is similar to that of soil and it can be used to good effect for creating natural-style aquariums. Its small particle size is useful for plant growth and it should be used at a depth between 2.5cm (1 in), where there are no natural plants, and 10cm (4 in) for heavily planted aquariums.

Silver sand
This is the original universal aquarium substrate, given that it is found naturally all over the world in streams, rivers, lakes and oceans. Its name is a little inaccurate, since its overall color is golden and is essentially the same material as that found on most beaches. It needs to be washed thoroughly when first purchased, and it can be messy to work with because its tiny particles get everywhere. Plants can be grown in it, but some species are better suited to it than others. For a heavily planted tank, mix silver sand with substrate fertilizer and use a heating cable to prevent stagnation.

Colored gravels
There is a huge market for colored gravels and every imaginable color is available, from black to shocking pink. It is mainly used in ornamental aquariums and can liven up tanks that are not brightly lit. Light colors will attract algae growth and should be regularly cleaned to prevent it. Black gravel look attractive in natural-style aquariums and highlights fish and plant coloration. Wash all colored gravels because a lot of plant covering will have ground off the gravel particles in the bag.

Grit
Grit is a term used for substrates with a particle size between fine sand and fine gravel - that is, 2-3 mm (1/16 - 1/8in) and is fine enough to encourage plant root growth within it.

Pro and Cons summary of various substrate,

Pea gravel
Pros
- Easy to clean; inert; safe for all fish
Cons
- Too coarse for some plants to grow in

Silica sand
Pros
-Cheap; Natural looking; good for plant growth
Cons
-Needs thorough washing when purchased to remove dust

Silver sand
Pros
-Natural looking; suitable for all aquariums
Cons
-Prone to clogging; particles can end up in filter chambers and powerheads

Colored gravel
Pros
-Brighten up aquariums; popular with children
Cons
-Colors fade over time bright colors attract algae growth

Grit
Pros
-Small enough to anchor plants
Cons
-Can be dirty when first purchased

Water conditioners
There are many different type of Water conditioners out there for aquarium. But the most important we are talking about here is Chlorine Neutralizer. The water coming out from our type have abundances of chlorine contain in it and we want to remove it. Its optional to have a water conditioners as by leaving water in a buckets or tanks for over 24hrs will have most of its chlorine content removed naturally.

Test kits
The importance of water testing for modern aquarist cannot be underestimated. Water testing can tell us so much more about how the tank is running than is possible with




the naked eye. Water can be crystal clear and yet still contain extremely high levels of toxic ammonia and nitrite, as well as nitrate and phosphate. The pH and hardness of aquarium water are also impossible to tell just by looking, so a test kit can be used to determine whether particular pollutants are present and whether subsequent action should be taken.

Test kits work by using reagents that change color, which can then be cross-referenced against color charts. Usually each reagent will test for only one parameter, such as pH, and so a kit will include several different tests. A recommended test kit is the Freshwater Master Test Kit( Picture above). The kit is complete for testing tap water and aquarium water. It includes pH (6.0 to 7.6), high range pH (7.4 to 8.8), Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate. A cheap and reliable test kit to buy.

I will try to set up a more thorough explanation of test kits sometimes in future.



Go to part 3.

Best Filtration method

"Which is the BEST filtration method? "

This is a common question everyone will ask after looking through various comment or remark from the internet source. Its take a look at what various filtration are there and decide which is the best.

A combination of all three forms of filtration is the recommended to ensure that all aspects of water purification will be effectively carried out, leaving fresh, clear water for the fish to inhabit. Be aware, though, that as good as any filtration system is, it is not a substitute for regular water changes and will also need maintaining in its own right. Mechanical media will need to be rinsed or replaced about every month to prevent blockages, and biological media should be rinsed about every two months in tank water ( not tap water ) to remove any detritus. Chemical media are rarely used on their own, except for purifying water at the source ( such as filtering tapwater or rainwater ). Zeolite is sometimes usd in bags when water is transported over long distances, but neither carbon nor Zeolite would make effective long term media for keeping fish if they used exclusively.

While you cannot over-filter aquarium water, you can under-filter it without necessarily noticing immediately. Water tests that indicated that ammonia or nitrite were present in the water for more than a few weeks would suggest inadequate biological media compared to the number of fish. The solution to this would be to opt for a larger filter or to double up and add another identical filter to the tank, perhaps the opposite end.

A good filter is one that both clears and breaks down water, but before you buy also consider factors such as ease of maintenance and service. The advantage of mass-produced, brand-leading filters is that lots of stores will stock spare filter media and all the other various parts, such as impellers, that are also needed for the aquarium.

When deciding which type of media is the best all round, prize must go to the humble sponge. Although is the cheapest option, its mechanical and biological filtering properties make it the only medium that can be used as effective method of filtration in the aquarium. When maintained properly, it can be very effective, even when used on very sensitive fish like Discus. So if budget has to come into the equation, an air-powered sponge filter or internal power filter will always be the BEST option.

Note: As good as any biological filter medium may be, when you purchase it, it will need several weeks before becoming fully colonized with bacteria and therefore effective.


Read the Product review sections for more about filters.Click here.

Basic guide to Fresh Aquarium setup Part 1

We are discussing about the general setup for the Tropical and Coldwater aquarium. The differences between Tropical and Coldwater aquarium are assumed to be understood by everyone and hence will not be discussed in great details. Below is a break down of the comparison of the 2 type of aquarium.

Cold Water -Low Variety of Species, High Availability, Low Fish-stocking density, Low cost of set-up

Tropical - High Variety of species, High Availability, High Fish-stocking density, Low cost of set-up


Start-up equipment needed for both type of aquariums:
- Aquarium Tank
- Hood
- Filter
- Substrate
- Water conditioners
- Test kit
- Thermometer
- Heater ( Tropical)
- Decoration
- Stand


Aquarium Tank
When you are choosing your first tank, take time before purchasing to make sure that you are buying the right tank for you and for you fish. Thereis a wide range of tank designs available but the one preferred generally is the standard rectangular shaped tank. This is because retangular tanks, being 2 or 3 times as long as they are wide, have a large surface area for the exchange of gases and the uptake of oxygen by the water. Also, better for them in terms of the swimming space it provides. Bigger is better for any aquarium, as even a large aquarium is very small compared to the natural range that any fish has been used to in the wild. The larger the tank, the most water it will hold and the more fish it will be able to sustain and support. It will also provide more stable water conditions than a small tank.

Below is a guide to stocking level:
ColdWater -- 2.5cm (1 in) of fish per 60 sq cm (9.3 sq in) of tank water surface area
Tropical -- 2.5cm (1 in) of fish per 30 sq cm (4.65 sq in) of tank water surface area


Note: Surface area of the aquarium if calculated by multiplying the length by the width.

Hood
Serve as a place for your lightings .Unless you are having a open concept set-up, it is generally an important part of the tank. Lower evaportation rate of the water, preventing dust from getting into the tank and avoid fish from jumping out of the aquarium are some important aspect of having a hood.

Filter
Filtration is the life-support system for any aquarium and is vitally important for the well-bring of the fish that live within it. Without exception, all aquarium fish need filtered water that is free from pollutants, which is left to build up can be hazardous to their health. Unfiltered aquariums are not safe for living fish since, unless the water is changed several times a day, fish become poisoned by their own waste products and may die as a result.

Type of Filtration( Specific info about filtration coming soon ):

Mechanical Filtration - This is carried out by passing water through media that are designed to trap particles and remove them from the water column. Mechanical filter media can be in the form of a sponge or fine wool, and are cheap and readily available. Most filters work mechanically, and the effectiveness of the process is indicated by the way the tank water clears.

Biological Filtration - This method harnesses the power of nature by providing areas within the filter where microscopic bacteria can live and multiply. The media should have a high surface area in relation to their volume, so that more bacteria can live within the space. All tanks will have some sort of natural biological filter either from the bacteria that live on the surface of the substrate or the surface of the plants.

Chemical Filtration - This process is where chemical pollutants and metals are removed from the water by special absorbant resins and granules. Once saturated, the media are normally spent so are then discarded and replaced. The most common form of chemical medium available is aquarium-grade carbon, which can remove dyes, odours and medications from tank water, as well as chlorine from tapwater.


Related articles

• Freshwater Basic setup Part 2
• Freshwater Basic setup Part 3

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How to cultivate mosquito larvae?

If you stay in a place that is warm and humid, its the perfect place for you to have your own cultivation of mosquito larvae. Mosquito egg rafts are free to harvest, requiring very little equipment and only a few minutes each day. The larvae act as a good supplement of food for your fish. Its fun to see your fish swimming around hunting the larvae. So what are you waiting for? Follow the guide below and soon you will be an experienced larvae farmer.

Things you need:

-some 2L - 4L water containers
-a place that is fairly protected from the wind
-water
-potato peels, vegetable scraps, bread scraps

What to do?

- Fill each container with water till 3/4 full. Old tank water is preferred as it already contains a variety of microbes to help things get started.
- Put some potato peels or vegetable scraps or bread scraps in the water as this will serve as food for the larva
- within couples of weeks, the whole system should be fairly putrid ( with some unpleasant smell), and hopefully it will attracts some female mosquitos.
- Female mosquitos will lay their eggs one at a time together in rafts of a hundred or more eggs on the surface of water

egg rafts

- Soon you will find rafts appear on the surface of water
- if you find wriggles growing in your containers, try to harvest them, or discard the water to avoid the growing population of mosquitos in your neighborhood.
- The raft are light yellow/cream color when freshly laid and darken to grey after some time.
- Put the raft in a jar together with some foul water from the container.
- Wait few days...
- Bingo!!!!! Feed the larvae to your fish :D
The larvae


Related articles

• Fish food - Live food
• Fish food - Frozen and Freeze dried

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Siamese Fighting Fish ( Betta)

These are another popular species of freshwater aquarium fish. They are native to mekong river basin in Thailand. Males preferred to stay away from other males as they will fight each other to death if they see one. Betta have a labyrinth organ in their heads that allows them to take oxygen directly from the atmosphere in addition to the oxygen taken from water via their grills. After saying about that, a betta that can't get to the surface will drown.

Size: abt 6cm (2.3in)
Life Span: 2-5years

Food:
They are carnivorous top feeder meaning they prefer to take meat food from the surface of the water. Bettas that feed on wide range of foods tend to live longer and




have richer color. Betta pellets is a good source of food as they provide a combination of various food and vitamin and usually betta will display nicer color after eating these pellets for sometimes. They love to eat live or frozen bloodworm, brine shrimp or daphnia as well.

Reproduction:
Female lay egg clutches and the male tends to the eggs and newborns. Male betta will build bubble nests of various sizes and thickness near the surface of the water. But both parents do not usually pay attention to the young and might occasionally eat young betta. (More information regarding how to reproduce bettas will be posted for the weeks to come.)

Environment:
Temperature : 24-30°C (75 - 86 °F)
Water parameters ph : 6-7

Tank mates

• Male and female don't mixed unless during breeding. Bettas are not schooling fish, but with a large enough tank, the females can cohabit. When 2 females share a tank, one will usually bullies the other. However 4 or more females will establish a hierachy allowing peaceful co existence
• Many other species tank mate are compatible. Good choices are : Platies, corydoras catfish, loaches and shrimps.
• Bad choices are:
  -Very small fish that seen as food to betta.
  -Fish with long flowing fins that may trigger aggression. i.e Angel fish.
  -Slow swimming fish like guppies will be bullied.
  -Mollies tend to bite the fins of betta and killed them
  -Fish belonging to the same biological family with betta do not co exist together i.e Paradise fish and Gouramis
  -Aggressive fish like piranhas or oscar will take the betta as food.

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Freshwater fish - Guppies

Guppies is the most popular aquarium species kept in the world. They are small, beautiful, peaceful , lively, curious and hardly. The Guppy is one of the best choice for beginners. They do not require large tanks or very specific water quality. They do best in community aquarium where the water movement is slow and enough plants around.

Feeding:
All aquarium food are accepted by guppies. I even seen them nibbling on green hair algae that were attached to the tank wall or the plants. Their favorite would be mosquito larva. Cultivating larva is a good and cheap way to making your own food for your fish. More discussion regarding how to cultivate a mosquito larvae.

Sexing:
Male are nicely colored and with a large tail fin. The females are generally around 20-30% larger than the males and are rounder. There are 2 pictures below with the female on top and the male at the bottom. Look closely rounded fin near the belly compared to the sharp and narrow fin of the male.










Breeding:
Guppies are livebearers meaning that they GAVE BIRTH. There are many ways you can do
it. The easiest way is to get a bunch of
guppies. Lets say 3males to 9 females ( Remember 1male to 3female is the key) and dump them into a 2 feet tank with lots of floating plants to let the babies have some hiding place. Wait for a couple of weeks and you will start to realise that the number of fishes inside the tank actually increases. Another way ( a more professional way) is to put only a pair of guppies into a 2 feet tank and of course with lots of floating plant. The main advantage of this method is that you are able to control the color of guppies you wanted to produce.


Life Span:
Usually 2 years. Even under extreme condition , they will still survive but with shorten life span.

Environment:
Guppy require fairly warm temperature 19.0 - 29.0°C (69 - 86 °F). They need to have some plants inside the tank to make them feel safe. They are community fish meaning that they are able to live peacefully with other species of fish provided they wont be eaten. But its preferred to keep a pure guppies fish tank as many other community fish might nipple on their fancy tail. Preferred water PH 7.0-8.5. Preferred water dGH 12.0 - 18.0 °N



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Fishing keeping start up

Been fish keeping for a couple of years and designed to create a blog to discuss the fun of fish keeping.