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I'm here to help you get your new aquarium set up correctly, and to make sure you have all the proper equipment you need for your aquarium to run efficiently so you have more time to enjoy yourself.

Aquariums shouldn't be complicated as most people think they are, they should run smoothly and be enjoyable and thats why i'm here to see that that's the way it work's.



                                                                          Common Facts


Focusing on the amount of food you feed your fish cna be very important not to mention costly  and

time consuming.  Consider these facts:  

1.  How much food to feed depend's on how many fish you have in your aquarium.

2.  Feed your fish once a day and at the same time every day to keep them on a schedule. 

3.  Only feed your fish as much  food as they can clean off the surface of the water without

      much falling to the bottom of the aquarium.  If too much falls to the bottom it doesen't 

      get eaten and rot's and the ammonia level's will rise and kill the fish.  

4.  Remember the more you feed your fish, the more waste you'll have.  Fish will continue

     to eat until all the food is gone and do tend to gorge themselve's quite often and have 

     been known to die from overeating so feed sparingly.

5.  Remember, it's better to leave your fish a little hungry than to over feed them.

6.  NEVER, EVER, put fresh coral in a freshwater tank if it's not been treated it will poison

      the water and kill the fish.

7.   Many people have either been taught or have just been told wrong that you need to

       change the water in your aquarium on a regular basis, this in fact couldn't be farther 

       from the truth.  The longer a tank run's, the more it cycle's, and the more it cycle's, 

       the more bacteria there is to aid in the prevention of diseases. Using an undergravel 

       filter is the only filter used in the development of this bacteria by pulling the waste 

       through the gravel and disposing of it under the plastic grates under the gravel.  In

       time this waste naturally breaks down and cycle's back into the tank through the 

       oxygen tube's, as good bacteria which promote's good health and fight's against such

       disease's as Ick, Fin Rot, and numerous Fungus's.  By completely draining the aquarium

        you eliminate all the exsisting bacteria and basically kill your tank and have to start the 

       process all over again and when this happen's it's best to run your aquarium empty for 2

       week's allowing a complete cycling of your aquarium , then when introducing new fish 

       only put 2 fish in the aquarium at a time at 2 week interval's.  One way to make sure your 

       aquarium is safe is to put a goldfish in your tank for a week, if it lives the tank's ok if it 

       doesn't you have a problem but losing a1 goldfish is better than losing a dozen tropical fish.

       So you see all you do by removing all your water is hurt the fish plus cause yourself alot of

       unnecessary  work, that's why the undergravel filter was installed from the begining so

       your job could be alot easier.

8.  Putting aquarium salt in your tank is very beneficial  in fighting diseases in tropical fish.

     The salt tend's to kill parasites and help's to cut down on fungus and ick.  Remember DO NOT

     put table salt in your aquarium there is iodine in it that will poison the water and kill the fish.

     Always use a special aquarium salt you may purchase at your local pet store.


                                               How much gravel do i use?


When setting up your new aquarium you need to filter in one very important question, "am i using an undergravel filter?" if yes use one pound of gravel per gallon of water if not use as much as you feel comfortable with.(I.E. If you have a 15 gallon tank then you need 15 pounds of gravel).

When using an undergravel filter, too much gravel and  you slow the flow of water through the grates

and slow down the growth of bacteria on the other hand if you have too little gravel you have too much suction and the flow is too fast and the bacteria cant grow at all.  



                                                    Undergravel filters vs. Power filter's


Pro:  Undergravel filter's trap waste under the grate's below the gravel allowing bacteria to collect

          in the gravel which help's fight disease's and promote's good health.  

Con:  Power filter's are only able to filter the waste that happen's to float by  close enough to be pulled

           into the filter.  nothing on the bottom of the tank get's filtered so siphoning the waste weekly

           will be required to keep the aquarium clean.  Also there is no opportunity for bacteria to form

           or grow with a power filter so theres nothing for the fish to benefit from.

Pro:  With an undergravel filter there are no filter's to buy monthly  plus maintainence  is less plus

          as i stated earlier there's no siphoning to be done.

Con:  Filter's for power filter's are not reuseable and must be replaced weekly.  A pack of filter 

           cartridge's (4) cost about $7-$8.  Why pay the extra money especially when it doesn't clean

           the whole tank.

Pro:  With an undergravel filter your air pump runs the filter so in all reality there's only 2 thing's to

          replace with a under gravel filter, air stone's and a diaphram fot the pump, either way your 

          talking about $8 dollar's for the year for the whole thing.The air stone's get changed 3 times

          during the year and a diaphram for the pump will last about 2 years with normal wear.

Con:  With a power filter you spend about $8 dollar's a month on cartridge's, that's $96 a year.  If

           the impeller breaks that's another $12 dollar's and if the impeller jam's the moter then you

           end up buying a whole new power filter.  Sound's like a money pit to me.  


                                                What size air pump do i need for mu under gravel filter?


First of all let me start by saying whisper has a very fine lineof air pumps that i like very much.  and

they are very quiet.  (You can purchase them at fosterandsmith.com. Now i would use a whisper 200 for a 10 gal tank, a 300 for a 15-20 gal 400 for a 29-30 gal 500 for a 55 gal or if you prefer to put decorations in your tank you might want to go one step up than normal.  Feel free to contact me or ask the clerk at your local pet store any questions you may have either of us will be glad to help.  If you have a petsmart store in or near your town i recommended you go there they have everything you'll need and they are very knowledgeable.  


                                                    What size heater should i use for my aquarium?


Here's a simple rule to go by:


It take's 1.7 watt's of heat per liter of water to heat a tank and a gallon of water is approximately 3.75 liter's.

So just multiply 1.7 by the number of gallon's your tank is then multiply that by 1.7 and you'll get the number of watts of heat you'll need to heat your tank efficiently, it's quite simple. here's an example;

A 10 gallon tank has 37.5 liter's of water now take 37.5 time's 1.7 watt's which equal's 63.75 watt's. so you would round it up so you would get a 75 watt heater.  Again remember only use a heater in a tropical fish tank.  Tropical fish require a temperature of 78-81 degree's constantly.  If the temp drop's below 65 degree's consistently your fish will get lethargic and possibly die There are 2 different kinds of heater's, a submersible and one that connect's to the back of the tank.  the submersible one in my opinoin is the better one and keeps the tank at a more consistent temp.  Also dont set an aquarium by a window in the winter the cold will cause the heater to over work and possibly burn out prematurely.


                                                           What's the best kind of light to use?


Well i guess thats a personal preference.  If you can afford a $100 aquarium light and like the job it does i say kudos to you but most folk's i know cant so  a typical florescent light work's great now some folk's like a incondesent light  the only thing i find with those light's is they dont bring out the natural color's of the fish like a florescent light does. Also with a florescent light you can leave the light on 24/7 and your less likely to get algea growth  with a regular light you will and if you set your tank in front of a window the sunlight will cause algea growth too.. 



                                                              Which type of stand is better?


When deciding which type of stand to use always remember that whatever you set your aquarium on make sure it will support the weight of the tank.  A wooden tank stand i feel is more for look's where a metal stand is sturdier and less likely to break.  When setting your aquarium on a surface make sure none of the tank is hanging over the edge's as this will cause undue stress on the seam's and cause the tank to crack.  In the 46 years i've been doing this i've only had 1 tank crack on me and i had it for 8 year's .  



                                         Picking out healthy fish and introducing them to their new home


Here are some thing's to look for when purchasing new fish:

1.  Are the fish swimming in one place with their fin's pulled back?

2.  Are there any white dot's on their body's?

3.  Do you see anything that resemble's a cottony substance on the fin's or tail or does the tail look like it has piece's out of it?  These are sign's of swim bladder disease, Ick, Fungus, and fin rot.

If you detect any of these thing's refrain from purchasing those fish or any in the tank or you will end up infecting your whole tank.  Alway's make sure the fish you want to purchase are compatable with the fish you already have at home.  I recommended making a list of the fish you have and take it with you and if your not sure, ask, i'm sure the sale's clerk will be happy to help you or write to me and i'll tell you if the fish you want are compatible with the fish you have. When bringing new fish home always float the bag in your aquarium for 20 minute's before you put the fish in your tank, BUT, do not put the water from the bag into your tank!  If the water in the bag was infected and you didn't catch it you'll make your fish sick.  Alway's pour your fish into a net over the sink (put the drain plug in before you start in case you miss).  When you float the bags for 20 minutes you get the water temp in the bag adjusted to the temp in the tank so your fish dont get shocked by just putting them directly into the tank.  


                                                                       Recap


Let's recap, Goldfish prefer water temp's of 45-60 degree's and tropical fish like 78-81 degree's.  Use the same rule for feeding tropical fish as gold fish, just feed as much as they will eat from the surface of the water with very little going to the bottom ok, great. 

                            I'm here for you if you have any question's or concern's, feel free to write me at my email,  at the top of my page  at joesaquariumservice@yahoo.com and i'll get back with you and answer your question's 

                                   thank's for stopping by