Deciding how you wish to acclimate your new fish should take place long before a fish purchase is ever made. Making informed decisions before a fish is purchased can save a lot of headaches, heartaches, and money in the long run.
Water Parameters
Water is different all over the world. Where you get your water can determine what your water is like and what fish will do best in your water.
While it is possible to make water match what is thought to be the best for a particular type of fish, we find it much easier and less costly to match your fish to the water you have access to.
Most of the fish we keep are fairly adaptable to different water conditions, this is especially true for our guppies and Endlers. While these fish are highly adaptable they still have water conditions that are not ideal for them.
Fish Selection
When selecting your fish you should consider what water parameters the fish will do best in. If the water in your area is much different than the water preferred by the fish you may wish to consider keeping a different type of fish that is more suited for the water in your area.
While it is possible for an experienced fish keeper to keep fish that prefer different water conditions than are available it usually requires some skill as well as added expenses and monitoring in order to keep the fish healthy for a long period of time.
Another thing to consider is what tankmates if any will be accompanying your fish in their aquarium. The fish should have similar water parameter requirements as well has temperature requirements. The fish should also not compete for food one with another as a shy or slow fish may not get the food it needs.
Many times fish can adapt to water conditions that are somewhat different than the water that is found in their native habitat.
If the fish you desire has water parameter requirements that are significantly different than the ones in your area you may be able to find a local breeder that has already been breeding fish using your local water making the task of adapting them to a new aquarium much easier.
Our Municipal Water Parameters
Because we live in an area where water is sometimes scarce our water conditions can change as the treatment methods change.
During the seasons where our community water levels get extremely low, it is sometimes necessary to treat our water differently than it normally would be done in order to keep our municipal water supply safe to drink.
The following information is typically what our water parameters are directly out of our municipal water supply:
Ammonia: Undetectable
Nitrite: Undetectable
Nitrate: Undetectable
pH: 8.2
GH: 6 dGH (107ppm)
KH: 4 dKH (71.5 ppm)
Water parameters may change over time depending on how you keep your aquarium. For example, a condition is known as “Old Tank Syndrome” may occur if an aquarium is kept for a very long time without getting partial water changes. This condition will cause the water in the aquarium to become more acidic (low pH) over time.
Most livebearers won’t tolerate low pH. While this condition is usually seen as a bad condition, some hobbyists take advantage of this to keep fish that prefer more acidic water conditions. Fish like plecostomus, discus and angelfish thrive in lower pH.
What Do All These Water Tests Mean?
Ammonia
Ammonia is highly toxic to fish and is one of the biggest killers of fish in an aquarium. Ammonia stress in tropical fish is easy to detect if you pay close attention to your fish.
Some signs of ammonia stress are:
- Loss of appetite
- Inflamed red, purple or bleeding gills
- Inflamed or red streaks on the fins or body
- clamped fins
- Lethargy
- Gasping at the surface
- Loss of appetite
If you see signs of ammonia stress in your fish the ammonia has likely caused some damage to your fish already so it’s important to take measures to correct the problem.
Nitrite
Nitrites occur naturally in an aquarium and is another common killer of aquarium fish. Nitrites are created when Nitrosomonas bacteria break down ammonia into nitrites.
The symptoms of Nitrite poisoning are very similar to those of ammonia poisoning as it can affect the fish’s ability to breathe. It also results in methemoglobin which results in the blood of the fish to lose the ability to carry oxygen causing the fish to suffocate even in the presence of high levels of oxygen in the water.
Nitrate
Any negative impact of nitrate on freshwater aquarium fish cannot be seen until the levels get extremely high. High levels of nitrate can impact the immune system of the fish and affect their ability to reproduce.
Live plants and/or partial water changes are the most common ways that freshwater fish hobbyists control nitrate levels.
Here’s an example of how the nitrogen cycle works in an aquarium as presented by Cory at Aquarium Co-Op:
pH
pH or Potential Hydrogen is a scale used to measure how acidic or basic of aquarium water or other solution. A pH of 7 is neutral. If the water has a pH of above 7 it is said to be basic. If the water has a pH of below 7 then it is said to be acidic.
GH
GH or General Hardness is a measure of calcium ions as well as other ions such as magnesium. Water with a low GH is said to be soft and water with a high GH is referred to as hard.
0 - 4 dH, 0 - 70 ppm : very soft
4 - 8 dH, 70 - 140 ppm : soft
8 - 12 dH, 140 - 210 ppm : medium hard
12 - 18 dH, 210 - 320 ppm : fairly hard
18 - 30 dH, 320 - 530 ppm : hard
GH affects how water, salts, and minerals transfer from the fish to the aquarium and from the aquarium to the fish.
Although most aquarium fish can tolerate a wide range of GH there are fish that have specific GH requirements such as Discus (low) or Malawi Cichlids (high).
KH
KH refers to Carbonate Hardness and is used to measure carbonate and bicarbonate ions.
KH is important as it measures your waters’ buffering capacity. Buffering capacity is the ability of the buffers in the water have to consume or absorb the acids in aquarium water.
The nitrogen cycle creates acids and these buffers help to control the acids that affect the aquarium pH.
Over time the buffering capacity can be used up in an aquarium but can be refreshed by doing partial water changes.
Water Parameters In Our Aquariums
The following information is typically what our water parameters are in our aquariums after they have been established for a long period of time and just prior to a partial water change. Because these aquariums are constantly changing these parameters may change at any given time:
Ammonia: Undetectable
Nitrite: Undetectable
Nitrate: Undetectable
pH: 6.8
GH: 6 dGH (107ppm)
KH: 3 dKH (53.5ppm)
If you compare the original water parameters from the tap water to a tank that is just about ready for a partial water change you can see the effects of the nitrogen cycle in aquarium water. As the nitrogen cycle produces more acids decreasing the pH level the buffering capacity or KH is being reduced over time as well. In this example, the water has gone from basic to acidic.
Over time more frequent water changes would cause the ph & KH to go up and less frequent would cause the pH & KH to go down.
Using A Quarantine Tank
No matter where you get your fish or how healthy they may appear it’s a good idea to quarantine them before adding them to existing stock.
A quarantine tank may not be necessary if you plan to keep only your new fish in a new aquarium however if the new aquarium is very large or has plants in it a quarantine tank may still be a good idea.
Why Use A Quarantine Tank?
Fish come from all different regions of the world and may have been exposed to several different types of parasites, fungal infections, water mold, bacteria or viruses.
Even if a fish has been isolated and doesn’t carry any parasites or diseases the fish can still become ill when exposed to fish in an existing aquarium. This is because the new fish may never have developed any type of immunity to diseases they have never been exposed to.
A quarantine tank provides a location where the fish can be observed for a period of time to determine if it is carrying any diseases or parasites. The quarantine period depends on your specific needs and the risks you are willing to take.
Hobbyists with very large fish rooms may even quarantine fish for a year or longer in order to protect their sizable investment.
How Long Should Fish Be Kept In Quarantine?
Depending on the amount of risk you are willing to take, the type of fish, where your fish came from and where the fish are going affects how long you will want to keep your fish in quarantine.
At a minimum, most hobbyists agree that they should be in the quarantine tank for at least 3 weeks however some parasites may not show up until a longer period of time.
Risk Level
What level of risk are you willing to take? Do you have a large fish room with thousands of fish that could be affected or do you just have a couple of fish?
If you were to have an illness break out, how knowledgeable are you concerning fish illness? Do you have the knowledge and the skills to effectively treat the illness? Would you want to be in that position in the first place?
Type Of Fish
Some types of fish are more likely to become sick from specific illnesses. You may wish to study the type of fish you are going to purchase and see if there are any specific types of illnesses that it may be more susceptible to than other types of fish.
Where The Fish Came From
Risk levels vary depending on where your fish came from. If your fish has come from outside the country and has traveled through many different locations as it is distributed to different locations the potential exposure greatly increases.
Those locations that purchase and sell large numbers of fish often fall into this category.
Buying your fish from hobbyist usually has less risk because in most cases they have been keeping their fish for a long period of time and any issues they have had has been treated long ago.
This doesn’t mean that there is no risk. Hobbyists often make additions to their fish rooms and each time there is a new fish added to their fish room there is some potential for a new illness or parasite to be introduced into their fish population.
What Tank Will They Are Going In
Another consideration is what tank your new fish will be going into. Does the tank have lots of existing, expensive or rare fish in it?
How difficult will it be to treat the tank if it is exposed to an illness? The type of fish that are kept in the tank can limit what types of medications or treatments can be done in that tank. Live plants can also limit what can be done to treat sick fish.
Medications
Some hobbyists believe that all quarantined fish should be medicated as a precaution. Cory at Aquarium Co-Op believes that new fish should be medicated and he uses a trio of medications that he says works for all of the fish he gets in.
Some hobbyists believe that fish should not be medicated unless they show signs of illness as they don’t want to have adverse health effects from the medications or have issues with pathogens developing immunity to medications.
What Should Be In A Quarantine Tank?
The quarantine tank should be a small dedicated tank that is only used for that purpose. it should be a basic aquarium with no live plants and no substrate.
The reason for such a bare setup is to make it easy to do water changes and cleaning. There are some types of parasites or worms that live part of their life in the substrate. Having a bare bottom tank makes it easy to spot anything that may be crawling around in the tank.
Sponge Filter
An air-powered sponge filter is ideal for a quarantine tank as it does not cause any strong currents that might be tiresome for weakfish and it helps provide a location for beneficial bacteria to grow.
A sponge filter does not require activated carbon or other chemicals that would have to be removed when medications are administered.
The air that is used to power a sponge filter helps to increase the oxygen levels in the quarantine tank.
Plastic Plants & Other Decorations
Plastic plants and other items placed in the tank help to provide hiding places for fish to help them feel more secure.
Good decorations that provide hiding places such as earthenware flower pots or white PVC pipes are excellent choices for use in a quarantine tank.
Heater
A good aquarium heater is essential for a quarantine tank. Higher temperatures are extremely useful in helping to treat Ich.
Thermometer
A good aquarium thermometer that goes inside the tank is helpful to make sure your quarantine tank is set at the proper temperature for the most effective treatment of illness.
Aquarium Lid
Aquarium lids are especially helpful to help keep water temperatures stable and control evaporation.
Aquarium Test Kit
High ammonia levels or nitrite levels are common reasons that aquarium fish get stressed or sick in the first place. An aquarium test kit is essential to make sure the water parameters are ideal for healthy aquarium fish.
Placing New Fish In An Aquarium
The best method used to use for placing your fish from the bag to the aquarium varies depending on the type of fish, how long they’ve been in the bag and the type of bag used.
Plop & Drop Method
This is the most common method used at a pet store. It can be the best method if the fish have been exposed to high ammonia levels and need to be removed from the bag quickly.
This method works well for hardy fish that are not too sensitive.
- Unless the fish are very stressed and there is a need to get them in the tank immediately you may wish to let the water temperature in the bag get close to the water temperature in the tank.
- If the fish room is the same temperature as the tanks then the box of fish simply needs to sit in the room for a while until the temperatures are close.
- If the tanks and the room are different temperatures then you may wish to float the bag in the tank until the temperatures are close to equalized.
- The water in the bag containing the fish is poured out into a bucket through a fishnet to capture the fish. The fish are then placed in the aquarium.
The reason this method is most often used by pet shops is that their fish have usually been in the bags for a long time and when the bags are opened and exposed to the air it raises the pH and makes the ammonia toxic. As long as the bag is closed the pH is low and the ammonia is not as toxic to the fish.
Floating The Bag Method
Note: Do not use this method if your fish come in a breather bag!
This is a common way to acclimate a fish that has come from somewhere local and has been in the bag for a few hours or less.
- Float the bag in the tank for 10-15 minutes to help equalize the temperatures.
- Remove some of the water by removing the rubber band.
- Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup water from the tank to the bag and reseal the bag.
- Place the bag back in the aquarium for 4-5 minutes.
- Continue the process several times until the majority of the water in the bag is from the tank.
- Pour the water from the bag into a bucket using a net to capture the fish as the water is poured.
This is my least favorite method of acclimating fish to a new tank do to the risk of getting contaminated water from the bag into the tank.
Bucket or Bowl Acclimation Method
This is currently the method we like to use when we get fish that have been shipped in a breather bag. Because we use breather bags at this time, the floating bag method is not recommended as it stops the oxygen exchange in the bag.
Because the bag allows oxygen exchange there is no need for the plop and drop method however it would be our next preferred method of acclimation.
Never float fish that are in breather bags in an aquarium.
The process is very similar to the bag floating method except it is done in a large bowl or bucket.
- Open the bag and pour the fish and water into a clean bucket (be sure the bucket has never had any cleaners or chemicals in it). A large bowl can also be used however there is a greater risk of the fish jumping out of the bowl especially large active fish.
- Pure 1/4 to 1/2 cup of tank water into the bucket or bowl.
- Wait 4-5 minutes
- Pure an additional 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water into the bucket or bowl.
- Continue the process until the majority of the water in the bucket or bowl is from the tank.
- Net the fish and place them in the tank.
Drip Method Acclimation
This method is similar to the bowl acclimation method except it takes a much longer time. It is rarely needed but may be beneficial to very sensitive fish.
The drip acclimation process is very similar to the bucket or bowl process however a piece of aquarium tubing and a clamp is used to drip tank water into the bucket or bowl very slowly.