In my time talking to people about keeping fish, getting advice, offering advice, keeping fish myself, running a community about it and generally researching my ass off, there is one thing that I have noticed;
People who are completely
new to fish-keeping get some of the worst advice from magazines, the internet
and other fish-keepers.
Keeping fish can seem like a real headache for the
beginner.
Yet keeping fish is actually very easy; the headache is caused not by
the amount of information out there but mainly the fact that at least two
thirds of the people dispensing it haven’t got a clue what they’re talking
about.
So I thought I’d do my best to try and clear up a few misconceptions for any newbies
out there –
Small tanks are best to start off with if you’re new to
fish-keeping.
Nope. Smaller bodies of water are far less chemically stable
than larger bodies of water. I wouldn’t recommend much less than 50 liters for
newbs. You are also far less likely to seriously overstock larger tanks and if
you do it will be easier to control the water chemistry and manage any problems
that arise. Always get the biggest tank you can afford.
..but big tanks cost a lot to run.
Not really, no. Even a 300 liter tank will generally average
out at about £3-4 per week to run. If you add food and sundries to that you’re
still looking at less than £15-20 a month not including fish. The expense is in
the initial set-up, not so much in the running costs.
Goldfish are easy and don't get too big
That picture, yeah, that's a goldfish - that's not an uncommon size for Carassius auratus to reach by the way. Even fancy golfish can get huge. Goldfish are Carp, carp get really big. Remember that one your nan had in that little unfiltered bowl on the side? Chances are, that if it didn't die from being in that tiny bowl, it would have grown this big.
You should definitely start off with Neon Tetras and Guppies;
they are easy to keep...
Both Neons and Guppies are ridiculously line bred
for colours and patterning and as such have suffered genetically over the
years. Where once they were hardy fish they are now much weaker and more prone
to parasites and diseases and as such are much more awkward to keep for newbs.
Especially given that Neons are very susceptible to stress and Guppies breed
like rabbits. Steer clear.
Planted aquariums are easy.
Yes, if you know what you are doing; between managing CO2
and lighting and selecting the correct species of plants for your tank and
fish... if you are new just stick with fake ones until you get the fish-keeping
aspect down. Once you get that down plants are a great way to add that extra dimension to your tank and useful for keeping your water parameters stable.
Plecos will eat algae and clean your tank.
Yeah, if you don’t feed them anything else but this is bad
for them; they deserve a varied and full diet and if you give them this... they
won’t eat algae. There are far better algae eating fish out there plus Plecos
are poo machines so typically they will actually make your tank dirtier.
Fish will only grow as big as the tank, so don’t worry about
putting that Oscar in a small tank...
This has never been shown to be true in any real sense. Yes
fish may grow at a slower rate in tanks that are too small for them but they
will still achieve the same final size. Make sure you look up how big the fish
you want to buy will get and plan accordingly.
Yeah, don’t worry too much about cycling the tank; it’ll be
good for fish in about 3 days to a week.
Yes it will, if you want dead fish. Here’s a brief on the
Nitrogen cycle which, if you plan on keeping fish for any decent amount of time, you need to understand.
When
you first fill a tank up you have to cycle it to make it safe for fish.
Basically speaking the tank goes through 4 stages – Ammonia spike, Nitrite
spike and Nitrate spike, then stabilises. After this all you do is dilute
nitrates with regular water changes.
Ammonia (NH3), or more specifically Ammonium 4+
ion (NH4+), is a toxic chemical produced by fish or in the case of a
fishless cycle, decomposing organic matter or addition of ammonia to the tank
water. In the first stage ammonia will build up in the tank as bacterial
cultures that break down NH3 grow in the filter. In stage 2 there
will be a Nitrite (NO2) spike as the bacteria convert Ammonium into Nitrite.
Finally Nitrite ‘eating’ bacteria will convert NO2 into Nitrate (NO3).
Of all the three aquarium chemicals Nitrate is the least harmful to fish but is
still toxic in high enough amounts – that’s what you’re doing when you conduct
a water change – diluting the Nitrates.
How long does the nitrogen cycle take?
Not 3 days, put it that way. The process has a number of variables, not
limited to; amount of ammonia produced during the cycling period, efficiency of
biological filtration, whether live rocks or plants are used during the process2.
The best way to check how your cycle is going is to get yourself a test kit
that measures ammonia as well as NO2 and 3 and test every
other day until the tank stabilises and the only measurement is Nitrates. Only
then should you introduce fish. There is no way to time a cycle, or even estimate a time scale - Be patient.
Now some snippets of good advice to get you started;
Don’t shy
away from big water changes.
Many people
will advise 10-20% changes but realistically this isn’t enough. Many tanks will
survive on this water change volume but fish love new water; it also works to
increase their tolerance for your tap water over time. Once a filter is
established you can change out at least 50-60% happily, if not more. I’ve met
people who do 70-80% every week. Arguably one of the best ways for newbies to get
the hang of good tank husbandry is to keep to a 7 day schedule – 50% every
Friday (or whenever us convenient for you) and do regular tank maintenance like
siphoning waste and cleaning glass every few days in-between the main WC. Some
change water every 2 weeks but do higher volumes, I’ve even met some who do it
once a month but change the best part of 90%. For the beginner however, a
weekly schedule is far easier to get the hang of and it far less likely to
cause issues.
Avoid Overstocking.
Keeping fish
is about balance – you are creating a mini ecosystem that your
fishes will live in. One problem is over-stocking; Stocking levels used to be calculated by surface area but this was largely
replaced by water volume with the advent of filters. Before
filters were in wide use the exchange of gases (carbon dioxide and oxygen) in
the aquarium was limited by the water’s surface area1, but this is
not the case now thanks to modern filtration. The effects of overstocking are
multiple but the main problem is waste – more fish = more waste products than
your filtration can handle. Next to this fish can become stressed in cramped
conditions and many species can become aggressive or reclusive. Stressed fish
in poor quality water is a perfect recipe for disease and illness. Here is a very comprehensive stocking calculator courtesy of AqAdvisor (http://aqadvisor.com/)
Make sure shoaling fish have shoals.
Making sure you have the right
amount of a given species of fish is important. Many smaller species and indeed some big
ones too are shoaling fish. They like to be together in groups. Commonly bought
shoaling fish for beginners are things like the fated Guppies and Neons and
other small Characins and Cyprinids like Harlequin Rasboras, Tetras and Danios and the
smallest catfish – the Corydoras. All these fish like to be in groups of at
least 6 individuals; generally the more the better. If they do not have groups to be a part of many can become reclusive, even aggressive and more prone to stress and in turn, diseases. Treating disease and illness
It happens to the best of fish-keepers and it will happen to you. Probably the leading cause of disease is addition of new fish/plants or other aquatic animals. There are far too many diseases to list here but it's not all doom and gloom don't worry. Thanks to modern science there are a host of very effective treatments on the market that will take care of your fish when they get ill. There is one disease that is so common that scientists conclude that a great deal of fish carry it and such is worth mentioning. The disease is Ich (White Spot). There are a host of "theories" around treating this common disease but addition of salt and increase of heat in your aquarium is NOT advised, no matter what people tell you. Get some dedicated medicines for your fish, they have long shelf lives so get them before you need them.
Heat,
light and filtration
All
tropical fish need heat and filtration at least, the lights are more for your
viewing pleasure and for any live plants you might keep. Tropical water
temperatures are between 23-27 degrees Celsius. If the
fish are tropical they will need water temperatures within this range. Though
all fish vary slightly in their specific temperature requirements a good
average temperature for most common tropical fish is 24-25.Filtration should be as strong as you can get, you want a filter that will do 4 x the tank volume every hour ideally. So a 60 liter tank you'll need a 240 L/ph filter. Don't skimp on your filtration, it is the most important thing in your tank.
Research
the fish you plan to keep
You would
have thought this would go without saying but it doesn’t, sadly. You need to
know exactly what’s going into your tank, what they need to eat, what other
fish they will mix with, if they like lots of cover and subdued lighting or
plenty of room to swim around and what water parameters they require. Though most
farmed hobby fish are usually quite tolerant of various tank conditions you
should always try to emulate their natural environments as best you can if you
want to see the best your fishes have to offer.
Here are a few of links that contain good information:
Fishbase
Seriously Fish
Practical Fishkeeping
Think Fish
Someone once told me when I was starting out that you don't keep fish, you keep water. The fish will look after themselves if you give them the right environment.
Thankfully, giving them the right environment has never been easier.
1
http://www.thinkfish.co.uk/article/stocking-levels-for-tropical-aquarium-fish
2
http://www.liveaquaria.com/PIC/article.cfm?aid=74
