It’s so tempting when we see a fish that we like to simply purchase it and then worry about setting up a proper home for it. This temptation should be avoided as it will likely lead to disaster for your new fish.
It is important to take the time preparing to receive our new fish. Making sure you have a good experience with your new fish should start weeks or even months before the fish are purchased.
Determine the Needs of Your New Fish
Each type of tropical fish has it’s own special requirements. Sometimes they are not very demanding and are easy to care for and sometimes the fish have very specific needs that must be met in order for them to have good health.
It’s a good I idea to learn all you can about the fish you are interested in purchasing long before the purchase is made.
Here are a few of the things that you may wish to consider before making the decision as to which type of fish you would like to keep:
Fish Size
The size of fish will likely determine how big tank should be for your new fish. In general the larger the fish is when it is an adult the larger the tank should be.
Some fish also have special space requirements despite their size and this would also affect the size of tank you will want to have.
Number of Fish
The number of fish you wish to keep in your tank will have a direct affect on the size of tank that will be required.
Some fish do much better if they are kept with several fish of their own species. Some fish must be kept in groups but do better if there is an odd or even number of fish in the tank.
What Does the Fish Eat?
Some fish have very specific requirements when it comes to food. Does the fish require live food? Is it a bottom or top feeder? Does it have special dietary needs? How often does the fish need to be fed? What size food is needed for the fish?
These are all things to consider when considering the dietary needs of our fish.
What Other Types of Fish Can Be Kept With It?
If you wish to keep more than one species of fish in your tank you will need to determine which fish they will get along with and which fish would be a poor tank mate.
Another thing to consider is at what level do the fish eat. If your fish is a top feeder you may wish to consider a bottom feeder as a tank mate.
How aggressive is your fish? Will it pick on other fish? Is it shy? How big will it eventually grow to be?
Water Temperature
Water temperature should be another consideration. Many species of tropical fish will die when temperatures drop beyond their preferred conditions. Endlers for example prefer water temperatures that are warmer than many other tropical fish. If the temperature drops below 60° F. they are likely to die.
Some fish prefer colder water temperatures. The White Cloud Mountain Minnow will do quite well at cooler temperatures making them a good choice for smaller desktop tanks.
Water Conditions
Some fish have specific requirements for water conditions and water quality. Many fish require soft water while other fish do better in hard water. Some freshwater fish cannot tolerate having salt in their water while other prefer brackish water conditions.
Some fish are more sensitive to fluctuations in water quality or temperature. These sensitive fish may do better in larger aquariums where the affects of temperature and ammonia and nitrite level changes can be minimized.
Prepare the Aquarium Long Before Purchasing Your New Fish
Removing Chlorine or Chloramine
If the water for your aquarium comes from a municipal water supply it is likely to contain chlorine or chloramine.
Chlorine can be eliminated by the use of chemicals designed to neutralize the chlorine or you can simply let the water stand in an open container for a minimum of 24 hours to let the chlorine naturally escape from the water.
Chloramine is a little more difficult to remove. Chloramine is a combination of chlorine and ammonia which are both toxic to fish. Chloramine must be removed by the use of specialized chemicals or by using a filtration process such as reverse osmosis.
If you are not sure if your maniacal water supply contains chlorine or chloramine you should check with your water company.
Well water should be free of these treatments but may contain other contaminants that may be harmful to your fish.
The Nitrogen Cycle
For good health the tank in which your fish are placed should be properly cycled. It’s not enough to simply let the tank stand for 24 hours to minimize the amount of chlorine in the water. The tank should be cycled to make sure there are the proper numbers of beneficial bacteria in the tank to help control ammonia and nitrite levels.
It usually takes weeks or sometimes months to properly cycle a tank. This can be done with the use of additives containing bacteria, it can be done by using a small number of fish or a tank can be cycled using a very small amount of pure ammonia.
No mater which method you choose to use the one thing that is always required is time.
Plants and Decorations
Plants and decorations not only help make the aquarium look better they also help give many fish a sense of well being. Live plants can help control nitrates and other toxins.
The decorations you should choose and whether you choose to have live or plastic plants depends on the types of fish you choose to have in your tank.
While live plants can be quite beneficial to the aquarium they may not be a good choice for some fish species as some fish will tear up plants making it virtually impossible to keep them alive.
The decorations chosen are also important to some types of fish. Many fish prefer decorations that have holes in them where they can hide or protect their territory.
If you choose to keep live fish you will also want to consider the type of lighting you will want to use as well as how many hours you would like to keep them on.
Preparing Your Fish To Be Put In The Aquarium
Once your fish are at home and are ready to be placed in the aquarium it is important not to simply dump them in the quarantine tank.
Fish need to have some time to acclimatize to their new environment or they can go into shock and die. There are two basic ways to acclimatize your fish:
Float Method (Old)
This method should be avoided if your fish are shipped in breather bags. Breather bags are often used when fish are shipped using a postal service.
The most common type of bag used to transport your fish from the pet shop to your home is a simple plastic bag with air in it. Fish can live in these bags for a limited time using the existing oxygen that is in the bag. These bags may also be used for fish that are shipped by mail however the air is usually replaced with pure oxygen to allow the fish to be in the bag for a longer period of time.
When transferring a fish from this type of bag you should allow the bag to sit for ten minutes, then open the bag and add a cup or so of your aquarium’s water to it. Reseal the bag and let it float for an additional ten minutes. This process should be continued until the bag is full. At this point you are ready to release your fish into the aquarium.
It’s not a good idea to transfer them directly by pouring the water in the tank. Fish should be transferred into an aquarium net to allow the water to be discarded and then you can use the net to place the fish into the aquarium.
Drip Method (Preferred)
Some suppliers that ship fish by mail use what is called a “breather bag”. These bags are designed to release Carbon Dioxide (CO2) directly through the bag and take in Oxygen (O2) through the bag and back into the water.
These bags don’t need any air in them because the air goes directly through the bag. Because there is no need to have air in the bag the fish don’t get sloshed around during transport.
Floating these bags in water makes it difficult for the air exchange to take place. Fish placed in these bags should be acclimatized using the drip method.
The drip method to can be used for fish transferred from any type of bag and is considered by many tropical fish hobbyists to be the preferred method of acclimatizing your fish to their new home.
The drip method can take over an hour and can require quite a bit of setup. Although it takes time and work to set up it is the preferred method.
If you have large fish you will want to have a five gallon bucket for the process. If you have small fish a pitcher will work just fine.
Start by pouring your fish from the bag into the bucket or pitcher. Make sure the fish are covered by water. If they are not tilt the bucket or pitcher to one side so they are covered in water.
Next take a long length of air line tubing and tie two or three loose knots in it. Place one end of the tubing in the tank your new fish will be going into and suck on the other end for a second or so to start the siphon. Be sure to not get any water in your mouth.
Once the siphon starts tighten the knots until only about 4-5 drops of water come out of the tube every second. Place the end of the tubing into the bucket or pitcher and patiently wait as the bucket or pitcher fills.
Once the volume of water has at least doubled in the bucket or pitcher pinch off the tubing to stop the flow of water and dump out approximately half of the water being careful not to loose any of the fish.
Start the process over and when the water doubles once again your fish should be acclimatized and ready to be placed in the aquarium.
Place your fish in the aquarium using a net to avoid getting any of the old water into the tank. The old water may contain parasites or diseases that you don’t want to introduce into your aquarium.
Alternate Drip Method
If you don’t have extra tubing or don’t want to take the time to set up for the drip method you can do the same thing by pouring small amounts of water from the aquarium into the bucket or pitcher. Do this slowly as the process should take the same amount of time as the drip method if done correctly.
Once again when the volume of water in pitcher or bucket is doubled dump out half the water and start the process again. Avoid the temptation of going too fast or using too much water at a time as your fish will not have time to acclimatize and will be at risk.
Allow Your Fish To Rest
No matter what method you use to acclimatize your fish to their new home it may be a good idea to turn the lights off and allow the fish to rest for a couple of hours after they have been placed in their new home.