Setting up a new aquarium is an exciting time, but we at The Fish Room also know if can be a bit daunting at the start. Because of this we have made up this check list to help you out on your new aquarium keeping journey.

Aquarium and cabinetry        

When selecting the place to put your new aquarium we must consider some things.

1)Power supply- find a spot with one close by.

2)Direct light- A place with as little direct sunlight will help you in the long run

3)Make sure the place you decide to place your aquarium has a nice flush floor.  Unbalanced aquariums can cause stress on aquarium joins and cause topples.

4) If you are using a plan glass aquarium, we strongly recommend adding a sheet of polystyrene or rubber mat to underneath the aquarium to help in any possible blemishes the stand has. With store bought furniture aquariums, this is not required, or it will come with the aquarium you buy.

Tropical or Coldwater?

Once you have decided where your new aquarium is going to sit, you need to decide if you are going to go with tropical fish or cold water. As a general rule, tropical is easier to look after than cold water and gives far greater options for wet pet selection. If you decide to go with tropical fish, you will need a heater. When selecting an aquarium heater, the general rule of thumb is 1 watt per liter of aquarium water. I.e. 150L aquarium will require a 150W heater.

Filter

Now you have worked out what type of fish you are going to keep we need to sort out a filter. Filters are essential to any aquarium fish, these are the life force that keeps your wet pet happy and healthy, without them, they are swimming around in their own filth all day long. 

There are many types of aquarium filter available in the market, internal filters, foam filters, hang on back filters, sump filters and trickle filters. Most store-bought aquariums will come with either a trickle filter or an internal filter. As a general rule, filter systems that come with store bought aquariums are adequate, but they can be limiting to what you can keep.  We recommend trying to get a filter that has 8x per hour turnover of your aquarium where possible. This is because as your filter becomes seasoned and your filter media get clogged your filter will slow down, so starting with a high turnover will keep your aquarium clean and healthy as this process happens.

No matter what type of filtration you decide to go with, they all contain 3 main components to filter, mechanical, biological and chemical. Mechanical takes the fish waste and debris out of your water column. Biological turns the nasty ammonia into a cleaner safer substance (we will go into this later in the article). Chemical is using things like carbon and Seachem Purigen to polish the water and to remove medications.

To be continued.....