Aquarium Care

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Posts Tagged ‘home aquariums’

Keeping Jellyfish In Home Aquariums

What is the first thought which comes up to your mind when you hear about jellyfish. Yes, it is certainly something quite mysterious since the jellyfish are announced to be one of the most enigmatic creatures in seas and oceans. Actually, the first information about the jellyfish’ existence is more than 4000 years old but just 50 years ago, we hardly knew anything about these creatures. Perhaps, if you are over the age of 30 you remember that it was only possible to see jellyfish in the big and public aquariums. They used to be one of the biggest attractions, actually! But nowadays, jellyfish could easily become your new pet! It is great, isn’t it?

But nowadays, it is very easy to purchase a jellyfish and look after it in your own aquarium. What a sudden change? How could things have altered for 50 years? Could the jellyfish have evolved? Hmm, it is definitely not a good guess since evolution is a process which takes millions of years, not a couple of years! The answer is somewhere else.

The truth is that we are already able to have “jellyfish pets” thanks to the great scientific progress. We already know what the jellyfish eat, what temperature of the water they like, even how they “give birth”. So, it is not surprising that looking after a jellyfish is already effortless and absolutely possible. You could even take care of several jellyfish pets depending on the size of your aquarium- it is your only limit!

Yes, you read it right: pets! It used to be the snakes some time ago and now it is the jellyfish. The surveys show that the number of people purchasing jellyfish as pets is increasing steadily! Perhaps, it is a fad…or not! Only the time will show us. But whatever it is, it seems like the jellyfish will soon become an obsession for many people.

The conclusion is that if you like to experiment, you should not think twice before going to the pet-shop and purchasing a couple of these wonderful maritime creatures. But if you like to think every next step through, you might need some more time to decide. However, I will try to help you by saying that looking after pets like jellyfishes is much cheaper than you probably need. All you need to do is give them food and keep the levels of oxygen favorable. And the best thing is that it is exactly as easy as it sounds! There is really nothing you have to worry about. Furthermore, you can always return the pets if you think that you cannot handle with such a “responsible task”. However, I am sure you won’t want to do it since looking after a jellyfish will not take more than 10 minutes of your day!

Jellyfish are easy to keep as pets today due to new technologies and information. It’s easier then you may think. Start yourself off with the Moon Jellyfish. Visit our website to learn more about setting up a Jellyfish Aquarium.

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How To Keep Your Aquarium Cool

People have owned home aquariums for centuries, and arguably, their fish and aquatic setups got along very well without aid from the modern contraptions you would find at any self-respecting aquarium supplies dealer today. These new devices available today, the aquariums chiller, the powerful lighting or the protein skimmer, were not just thought up by bright marketing departments to part you from that last dollar; these were made for the true aquarium enthusiast, one who tries to expand his aquarist’s horizons delving into areas of aquarium-building heretofore unexplored: raising saltwater coral reefs, or raising exotic fish from cooler climes.

Building a coral reef in your home is no easy matter; these reefs occur naturally close to the water surface out in the sea, and are accustomed to receiving the full benefit of a day’s sunshine. There is no way you could keep these at home illuminated with just a couple of florescent lighting fixtures. Successfully raising coral reefs and the life forms dependent on them requires that you invest in lighting technology that’s really out there- metal halides, Very High Output fluorescents and so on. These do solve your lighting issues raising corals and other tropical life, but not without raising a problem or two of their own. Intense light will always come with intense heat. In the ocean, the heat, as much of it as the sun is able to supply, is pretty much lost in the vast volumes of the ocean’s waters.

An aquarium tank has just so much water, and can be heated up a degree or three with just a few hours of intense artificial lighting. When you switch off the lights at night, the small body of water that the aquarium is, it can hold the heat for only a couple of hours before the temperature in the tank plunges. The temperature swings can be distressing to your aquarium’s inhabitants, for the discomfort they cause and also for the amount of oxygen that warm water will quickly lose. And here enters the aquarium chiller.

Aquarium chillers can be quite expensive, running into hundreds of dollars for a reliable unit. You might think that using a fan would cool your tank adequately: there is a little added wrinkle to the problem though. To have a fan constantly playing on the top of the water will certainly cool it a couple of degrees; the fan will also hasten evaporation. It won’t be easy to top up the water levels either. In some cases you will need to spring for a special reverse osmosis filterto easily do this all the time.

It’s not really difficult buying a chiller; you just measure your tank for volume, and you buy a unit in proportion to the size. If you don’t live in a particularly hot desert-like area, a midsize 30 gallon tank will require a 600 BTU aquarium chiller and a large tank will require as much as 4000 BTU. Think of an aquarium chiller as an air-conditioner for your aquatic friends. Aquarium chillers can often be quite noisy, and can turn out to be stress contributors themselves. Check out online forums for the best brands to buy, and the best feature-choices to make.

I enjoy writing about pets and christian books on my book reviews massachusetts website daily.

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Proper Fish Tank Water Treatment For Healthy Fish

If you want to have healthy fish, you need to have the right type of water in your fish tank. Many people who are just beginning to set up a fish tank don’t understand how important it is to test your water and treat it for any imbalances. You need to have the right water for your fish.

Different fish have different requirements when it comes to the condition of the water that they will do best in. It is always a good idea to test your water for the pH, gH, and kH levels and try to get fish that thrive in water similar to the water that you already have. This will mean less work for you when it comes to fish tank water treatment.

Tap water tends to be the best type of water for your freshwater fish tanks, but it does need some treatment before it can be used. Chlorine is not good for fish, so you need to remove the chlorine from the water before adding it to your tank. You can use a conditioner as a way to try to correct any imbalances in your water and add beneficial substances. This type of fish tank water treatment is common. It will get rid of the chlorine. You can also leave tap water sitting out for 24 hours to get rid of chlorine, though this will not correct any other imbalances.

If the pH of your water is not at the right level, or is not remaining stable, you might need to do a fish tank water treatment in order to correct this. Sometimes this can be as simple as mixing a small amount of spring water in with the tank water. Other times you will need to treat whatever is causing the pH fluctuation.

You also need to make sure that the kH, or concentration of carbonates and bicarbonates, in your water is at the proper level. These help to buffer the water so that the pH stays more constant, otherwise as time goes on it will get acidic. There are a number of different options you can use for fish tank water treatment if you have high or low kH levels, including various chemicals you can purchase at the store.

You gH is the general hardness of your water. Some fish prefer harder water and some prefer softer water. You can use peat moss to soften the water, or add rocks to help harden the water. The simplest thing to do is get fish that suit the water that you already have so you don’t need to do too much treatment of your water.

Dustin Williams is a writer and hobbyist who has kept aquarium fish for several years. He has learned much about owning a home aquarium from reading books and personal experience. To learn more about proper fish tank water treatment please visit HomeAquariumSupplies.com.

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