Why fish make great pets & how to set up a fish tank for your home

We have always been fish lovers in this house, and whilst the world seems to have gone mad for pet dogs during Covid, let me tell you that fish also make really great pets too! As someone who has been there and done that in terms of setting up a fish tank for your home, trust me when I say from experience that the way you set up your fish tank has a direct correlation with the likely survival rate of your fish!

Before I get into the nuts and bolts of how to set up a fish tank for your home, I wanted to talk a bit more about why fish make great pets.

Why fish make great pets

Here are the main reasons we think fish make great pets:

• They bring a lovely calming energy to the house – just watching them creates a sense of tranquility
• They are less expensive to care for than other pets
• They are pretty low maintenance compared to other pets – they don’t need to be walked, trained, have their teeth brushed or be groomed, be taken to the vets, never poo on the carpet and don’t have emotional issues.
• They are super clean to keep!
• Fish come in all different shapes, colours and sizes so there is something to suit everyone. Here are more facts about fish and the ocean they live in.
• They are a great way of teaching responsibility to kids at a level they can handle
• Keeping fish has proven to aid children grow in academics like science and mathematics!

So now that we know why fish make great pets, let’s talk about….

How to set up your fish tank for your home

I recently had the privilege of attending a Webinar held by API Fishcare – a pioneer in the aquatics industry for close to 60 years. They manufacture and distribute top of the line water conditioners, testing kits, medications, and food for ornamental aquarium and really know everything there is to know about setting up and properly tending to and nurturing your very own freshwater tropical community tank. Here, I share what I learnt:

The three things you need to set up a fish tank for your home are…

1. The aquarium itself including some gravel, some live or plastic plants and decorations for fish to hide and swim around. An ideal size to get started with is15 – 20 gallons or 45 – 65 litres. Top tip: It’s actually easier to take care of a larger aquarium because there is more room for the fish and the higher volume of water means the water chemistry and temperature will stay more stable.
2. A light – to enable your fish to have a day and night cycle, see your fish and enjoy them better!
3. A filter – to collect waste from fish and aquarium and keep it clean.

The importance of water quality

Did you know that when you add water from your tap – it’s not fit for fish to live in? It contains all sorts of things like chlorine and possible heavy metals not appropriate for fish. The good news is that it’s super easy to make it safe for them. Here’s what you need to add the first time you fill up or add water to an aquarium:

API® AQUARIUM SALT

By adding 1 tbsp for every approximately 2 litres, this evaporated sea salt will provide the electrolytes the fish need to help them breathe and function better. Top tip: Once you add it you don’t add it again until you do partial water change.

API® STRESS COAT

This essential water conditioner makes tap water safe for fish by removing chlorine, chloramines and heavy metals from tap water, and contains the healing power of Aloe Vera to reduce fish stress by up to 40% and to heal damaged tissue and wounds which may occur during transfer.

API® QUICK START

This will help kick start the beneficial bacteria in your tank and help to help convert toxic waste to non-toxic making the tank safe for the fish.

Once you’ve checked all of the above off your tank and made sure the conditions are in line with your API® 5-IN-1 TEST STRIPS which are the quick and easy way to test the 5 most important aquarium water parameters – pH, KH, GH, nitrate, and nitrite – in one easy step – you will be ready to go.

If you are worried that you will have no idea what you are doing, fret not because each kit includes detailed information on how to interpret the test results and correct unsafe water conditions. Once you’ve achieved this you will be ready to go and have some fish added to it!

Adding fish to your fish tank

This is very important – make sure your tank is the correct temperature before you add fish. A good range is 25° to 27°C. A few species need to be kept several degrees warmer, and some species require temperatures a few degrees cooler. A thermometer is vital.  The selection of fish is endless, so be sure go to your local fish store and get advice about what goes well together and will get along.

Try adding something like six to eight fish to begin with. To give you an idea, in a 40 litre tank you can have up to 10 – 20 small fish. Once the natural biological cycle aided by API Quickstart (mentioned above) is kickstarted and you are through that initial cycle (you will know this because nitrates will show as 0 on the test strip), then you can start to add more fish.

Feeding fish

API® TROPICAL FLAKES provides all the nutrients the fish need as well all the micronutrients. It’s completely balanced satisfying small and big fish meeting all their nutritional needs. Feed twice a day in small amounts – the amount they would consume in three to four minutes because you don’t want extra food lying on the bottom.

Maintaining your fish tank

Once your fish tank is set up and thriving, then it’s all about maintenance. Here’s a little secret I want to let you into…. API® STRESS ZYME – which is a bacterial cleaner contains over 300 million live bacteria per teaspoonful to consume sludge and reduce aquarium maintenance – is your best friend when it comes to doing less maintenance.

Additionally, using API® ACCU-CLEAR is another great cheat. This trusty water clarifier quickly clarifies cloudy water in your aquarium, eliminating haze to make your water crystal clear.

And of course, you will need your API® 5-IN-1 TEST STRIPS to help you make sure the PH, nitrate etc levels continue to be in line with recommendations and that the water quality is correct for the fish you have and that the tank is balanced overall.

Partial water changes

The good news is that you only need to do a regular tank water exchange once every two weeks at about 25% of the water.

Resist the urge to completely clean the tank but be sure to siphon clean the gravel and check the filter according to the manufacturer’s recommendations.  You should leave the fish in the tank during partial water changes – it’s a lot less stressful for them!

And lastly, don’t forget to add API® STRESS COAT and API® AQUARIUM SALT during partial water exchange to ensure that your fish tank continues to be a safe place for your fish.

Summing up & more information

I have to say that even though we have been keeping fish for the last few years there is so much I learnt from the experts at API Fishcare. With our next water change due this weekend, I can’t wait to now incorporate some of these tips into our routine change and see the results.

If you’re looking for more information on setting up a fish tank you can visit Api Fishcare and Aquarian.co.uk.  

Are you thinking about setting up a fish tank for your home? Or perhaps you have a community aquarium set up already? Why not let us know in a comment below?

If you enjoyed this post, please consider supporting this site by buying us a virtual coffee.

Related