Choosing the right equipment for your freshwater aquarium To
know exactly what types of equipment you will need before you begin to
set up your aquarium, saving you time, frustration and money. The aquarium market is huge and it is easy for someone to get lost in it all. Hopefully after reading this page you have a better understanding of the types of equipment that you need and do not need.
Choose your aquarium can be very exciting. I love my local fish shop to check their selection and imagine what would be that the tank in the corner of my living room look like. Shape and size are two things you may want o consider. Maybe you want your tank sit in the corner of the room. Well, they make tanks that are 3-sided and fit perfectly into a corner. You should purchase the largest aquarium you can afford or are willing to spend. The reason for this is that the total holding more water volume and Aquarium, the easier it is to maintain a stable system. I often hear about the community that "the solution to pollution dilution". Basically, the larger our tanks are, the more tolerant they are, our errors and fluctuations in temperature and changes in water quality.
The shape of your aquarium also plays a role. An aquarium with a larger surface area allows for better gas exchange surface and allow oxygen to penetrate your water better. Other reasons why you may consider the shape and size of your aquarium, is a simple and aquascaping tank maintenance. You have to remember that you will be able to reach the bottom of your aquarium fish tank to a higher (or a short person) may require to be a step in the position of having to reach over the edge of the aquarium. Large tanks over a few 100 gallons, a mask and snorkel some trunks to reach the ground! Aquascaping with it depends on your personal preference. With planted tanks, a higher Aquarium allows you to keep larger plants, but a wider aquarium will give you a larger contact area to plant many different foreground, middle ground and background plants. A greater presence is to place you more space to decor and other hiding places for the fish. Some fish are bottom dwellers and require a larger footprint, to float more easily. And most fish float horizontally, not vertically float. That is, they swim back and forth, not up and down. You must also decide if you want to drill an overflow in the tank. An overflow is a device from the display to the water in a collecting tank under the tank. You can still drilled a swamp without built-in overflow into the tank, you have to use only a less reliable overflow box, the water from the tank leads to the sump via a siphon over the back glass. (For more information, see sumps filtration). All these are just a few things that you should consider if your tank. Aquarium backgrounds
With a background to your aquarium, your fish can stand out and unsightly cables at the same time. The simplest type of background is a vinyl background that you glue or tape on the back glass. These can be found at your local fish store and can be found in various colors and patterns. If you want a permanent background with a smoother look, should the painting of the rear window. If you're like me lacking artistic skills, a simple blue or black painted background will do just fine.
The stator I personally would like to build my own stand, so I stand to but I like to make. If you decide to build your own stand, please be sure that you build them strong enough and level. Remember that water 8 Pounds per gallon, plus the weight of your equipment, substrate and equipment weighs. It is safe to say that an aquarium weighs 10 pounds per gallon at all. So a 50 gallon aquarium weighs about 500 pounds. Larger aquariums over 100 gallons a few may require you to reinforce your floor. Please consult a contractor prior to the installation of large tanks, your floor to keep the weight to make sure. If you do not want to build your own stand, ask your local fish store to recommend a level that is right for your aquarium.
Where to keep your aquarium You want your aquarium in a place where the whole family can enjoy it, but there are a few areas that you want to avoid. Places such as corridors with too much traffic can upset your fish. You should keep your aquarium out of the kitchen due to the fluctuations in the ambient temperature, humidity, chemical cleaning and transport. You should also avoid having your tank in direct sunlight, as this can increase the water temperature of the tank and undesirable algae growth. Living room, bedroom and caves make great places for you and your aquarium to be happy.
Quarantine tanks (Q-tank or hospital tank) The last thing you want is for a sick fish, but you still have to be made when the are done. With a quarantine tank is crucial for larger systems and recommended for all systems. A quarantine tank allows you to quarantine new fish, so you do not introduce a sick fish into the aquarium and risking the health of all other fish. It also allows you to separate and treat any fish that may be sick. Some serious aquarists have constructed a Q-tank and running all the time, while others are simply the necessary equipment, a set on the spot if necessary to have. You do not need all the bells and whistles for your hospital tank, all you need is a small aquarium, and typically a 10-20 gallon works fine, heating and an adequate filter for the Q-tank.
Choose your substrate The substrate can help you add the entire biological filtration and take some of the load off your filter. When choosing your substrate, it is really up to you what you want. You can choose sand, stones, gravel, river stones or no substrate at all. The only time it is really important if you live down fish that require a certain type of substrate. For example, if you want catfish, you need a smooth surface like tiny round pebbles, so it does not irritate the skin while they rub on him. If you grow high maintenance plants you may want to consider an aquatic soil or clay. This can cloud the water for a few weeks, but eventually go away and your plants will love it. Regardless of the type of substrate, it is recommended that you to cover 1-2 pounds, or about 2 inches of the bottom of the aquarium substrate.
Filtration There are many different types of filtration in this hobby, some better than others, but the three main components of the filtration are mechanical, chemical and biological. Mechanical filtration is the removal of large particles in the water column by a foam filter or filter floss. Chemical filtration is the use of activated carbon to remove harmful chemicals from the water. Biological filtration using porous media to attract beneficial aerobic bacteria to colonize and thus held for the nitrogen cycle. When choosing a filter, you should have a strong enough water to filter 5-10 times per hour. So for a 50 gallon aquarium, you want a filter pump 250-500 gallons per hour.
Under gravel filters Under gravel filters are placed under the gravel and use pumps or air stones to force water through the gravel, so that beneficial bacteria to thrive. In my opinion these filters are obsolete and should not be used. They are ineffective, and clog causing more problems down the road.
Sponge Filters (or internal filters) Use an internal filter to vent the air through a small sponge filter or move. These filters are only recommended for the pico aquariums due to their lack of ability to filter (less than 5 gallons).
Hang on Reset (aka HOB filter or network) These are found on small to medium sized aquariums probably the most common filter. This process is due in part to its ease of use and ability to clean your tank and water well. As their name suggests, these filters hanging on the back edge of your aquarium glass, and use a pump to draw water into the filter chamber, forcing the water through mechanical, chemical and biological filter media. Some HOB filters use easy to change cartridges. Although this maintenance a bit faster, I would suggest using a filter that allows you to., The type of media that you can customize What I use and recommend is the Hagen Aqua Clear filter, because you are using bags of any kind of media that you can place in the media cart, and you can get much more media than you having a flimsy cartridge. If you prefer to use replacement cartridges I would recommend the Marineland Bio-wheel filter. The biological media made from this filter in a wheel, which flows around the water. The wheel is turning and in both water and air to thrive a great environment for positive aerobic bacteria.
Canister Filters Canister filters are very popular with medium to large aquariums. These are external filters pump water from the tank through a hose and the filter canister where it is pressed by means of mechanical, chemical and biological filtration, and then back into the container through another hose. Canister filters are so popular because of their ability to process large amounts of water through a lot of media. This is for tanks with a lot of fish, a lot of waste produce important. Help with a canister filter you polish your water until it is clear. A disadvantage canister filter is that it slightly more difficult to clean and begin to flow lose because they clogged until they are cleaned again. For this reason, if you are lazy to keep up with regular maintenance of the filter, including rubble and debris can lead to an increase in nitrate. For this reason, the canister filter the nickname "nitrate factory" among fellow aquarists received.
Wet / dry trickle filter (or shafts) Sumps are by far the best type of filter in the hobby today. Although more popular with salt water pool, these filters work even in fresh water as well as large. A swamp is usually placed under the tank and concealed within the stand. Not only your filtration system is hidden in the stand, it also allows you other unsightly equipment such as heaters in the sump, thermometer and place powerheads. To use a swamp, you must either drilled a built-in overflow into the tank, or an overflow box to carry water from the display tank to the sump. Water is then pressed into the lower part and through the filter material, and then pumped back into the tank. Sumps add a few extra gallons of water to the entire system volume, and remember the quote "the solution to pollution is dilution"? This type of filtration is also highly customizable in the type of filter media you use. I have sumps with filter socks seen loading of large particles, a system of shelves, supports multiple layers of media. It is easy to see why this is. Become the first choice in filtration for serious aquarists
Lighting You want to be able to see your fish right? Just about every aquarium light for fish in order, although some fish prefer subdued lighting. You only need about the nature and intensity of the light to worry if you are growing plants. I would recommend putting your aquarium light on a timer for 10-12 hours a day, so the fish have a steady day / night cycle. For a planted tank anywhere 2-5 watts per gallon is recommended depending on the types of plants you want to grow. With 5 watts of lighting on the tank, you have some problems with unwanted algae growth if you are an experienced aquarist and you are serious about fertilizer and CO2 injection.
For growing plants, I would recommend high performance T5 fluorescent lamps or metal halide pendant, with 6,000-6,500 k bulbs. (Kelvin is the color temperature of the light produced by the lamp used in the photosynthesis of plants). If you need to keep little light demanding plants want without high maintenance costs of trimming, fertilizer and CO2 injection, I would recommend about 2 watts of light per gallon. Apart from metal halides and T5, LED lighting is becoming increasingly popular in the aquarium industry today. Although more expensive, LED lighting seems to be the direction aquarium's lighting. Unlike T5 and metal halide lamps to replace every 6-12 months need to be replaced, should LED bulbs over the life of your aquarium. This is something to consider when comparing price differences between lights.
You may also want to check the moonlight. Moonlights are small blue LED lights, which you can view their day / night cycle, the nocturnal habits of the fish without interruption.
Powerheads Powerheads are positioned on the side of your aquarium glass and contain a propeller to "blow" water in your tank increase water circulation and flow within an aquarium. This can help eliminate areas of low flow in the aquarium collecting the debris. Some plants grow better, even in high flow areas, as well as some fish from rivers can come and enjoy high flow. You should see the research on the individual needs of your plants and fish, what their current needs are before deciding on adding a powerhead.
Heaters Unless you are keeping a cold water fish such as goldfish or some native North American species, every aquarium should have sufficient heating. For large aquariums, it is better to have two smaller heaters rather than one large one. In this way, if one heater fails, the other will kick in and your fish will never know the difference. It is recommended that a heating system that produced 5 watts per gallon of water. There are really only two types of heaters you need to make yourself familiar with.
Inline heaters These are external from your tank and plumbed inline with your canister filter hose. The reason someone would use a water heater is to keep the inside of their aquarium "free equipment". With a water heater also ensures an even distribution of heat throughout the aquarium.
Under water heaters This is the most popular type of heating because of their ease of use. Simply heating the suction cup against the glass of the aquarium or sump (below the water level of course), set the knob to the desired temperature, and plug it in. There are a few things I look for in a submersible heater though. One, I want it to be titanium. I have far too many accidents in which fry glass heaters seen and crack or break under water, even to the point of shattering the glass and poured gallons of water and your beloved fish directly on your floor. With a titanium heater, you do not have to have to worry. Another feature I look for in a good heater is an external thermostat. This means that the dial of a control box that is wired to the water lever, rather than being built connected to the top of the heater. With an external thermostat you can easily adjust the temperature without getting your hands wet.
Chillers Can often all these pumps and lights generate a little more heat than our small tanks process. If excess heat from our devices and ambient room temperatures force them to reach temperatures outside our fish "comfort zone our tanks, an aquarium chiller is needed to keep it cool. A chiller is basically an external radiator, cooling water when it is pumped . Though this can be quite expensive, sometimes it is necessary to protect the things we love.
CO2 Carbon dioxide is used when you want to grow water demanding plants. If you are 3-5 or more watts of lighting to use plants grow you will probably need to inject CO2 in your aquarium to feed your plants so that they can outcompete undesirable algae. All that extra light tells the plant photosynthesis faster, but without CO2 they can not, however, undesirable algae. A pressurized CO2 cylinder forces a controlled amount of CO2 through an airline either a CO2 reactor, an external inline filter is explored through a ceramic CO2 diffuser or the suction cups on the side glass of your aquarium.
Reverse osmosis filter A reverse osmosis filter is a unit that can be easily attached to a house tap, the total amount of dissolved solids from your tap water by forcing it through a RO membrane. There is also an optional additional stage, almost all total dissolved solids from your tap water called de-ionization to remove. An RO / DI filter will provide you with the purest water free of all harmful contaminants. If you want to use RO / DI water for your aquarium, make sure to add minerals back into the water, which were removed during filtration. Some minerals are required in order to increase the GH / KH and pH at a stable level. A product that I use is called the balance of the aquarium business Seachem Laboratories. This product is specially designed for recovery RO water with essential minerals.
FI and grounding probes A GFCI or RCD or the use of a grounding probe could save your life. You know the funny looking circuit in your bathroom or kitchen that has the red and black keys, the "test" and "reset" to say to them? Well, that is a GFCI outlet. They work by measuring the current of the disabled in and out of the circuit and "travel" or the output when power off the line, ie, by yourself there! It is a good idea to use a GFCI outlet whenever you use electricity around water. Here you will find portable RCD outlets, so you have not in over the top of your wall outlet to replace your outlet with built-FI. These can be found at almost any hardware store. A grounding probe still protect you but is not automated as a residual. A grounding probe works by a path of least resistance to the ground on a socket if there are any stray current in the water. By conducting stray currents through this path of least resistance, they do not flow through you! Stray current may have if you have a faulty device, such as a water pump, filter, heater, or powerhead.
UV clarifier (or UV sterilizers) A UV Sterilizer is a chamber comprising a UV lamp and would be sealed with a canister filter or a separate pump in-line. Water flows through the chamber and exposed to the UV light are free floating bacteria, algae, pathogens and parasites killed in the water. This can be useful when dealing with free-floating algae such as "green water" or disease-causing microorganisms....
