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The Reason You Got a Fish Tank, Right?

(The First Tank Guide)

Fish: They're the whole reason you bought a fish tank, right? Well, maybe not the whole reason. Some people are interested in the calming effects of a home aquarium, or have purchased a fish tank to give their home or office the proper Feng Shui. Other people want a pet, but are only allowed fish due to their rental agreements, or are looking for a pet that they don't have to walk three times a day. Or maybe you just got a fish tank because you suddenly found yourself the owner of a goldfish won at a fair which is now your child's most prized possession.

So, lets face it, there are a number of reasons to get an aquarium for your home or office. If you're lucky, you get to think about why you want a fish tank, what fish you want to get, how to get started, what aquarium equipment you need to get, and how to take care of your fish before you get the tank. In other cases, you may get the fish as a gift or suddenly find yourself in possession of a used fish tank, with or without fish.

Choosing aquarium fish can be a daunting task, due to the number of fish that are available - and the scant information available on many of them in the pet trade. Unfortunately, though there are many people who can help you determine the compatibility of the fish you are interested in, nobody can really tell you what fish to get, just because of the sheer numbers available. Of course, hopefully you started by determining which fish you want to keep, so you could be getting the correct equipment to begin with.

When you bring your fish home to your fish tank, you need to introduce them to their new home appropriately. Proper acclimation of your fish to their new home will significantly increase your chances of success with those particular fish.

Different fish are good for different tanks. There is a large variety of fresh water fish available for the beginner. These fish come in a variety of colors, shapes, and behavior patterns. Choosing the right fish for you and your aquarium can be quite an intimidating task. However, you will find that picking fish for your aquarium will quickly become fun and engaging, and something the whole family can get involved in.

You should first decide what type of community you want in your tank. Fish in the aquarium need to be grouped by temperament, size, water conditions, temperature requirements, and sometimes diet. The first thing you can do is check with your local fish stores to see what type of water you have, and what kind of fish are easiest to keep in that water. Second, you will need to decide if you want aggressive or passive fish. The Oscar or Velvet Cichlid is an easy to care for fish without strict water requirements, but keeping one in your home means a big tank. Tiger Barbs are also easy to take care of, but they stay smaller and can be kept happy and healthy in a smaller tank with other fish, but Tiger Barbs cannot be kept with calm, peaceful fish because they are nasty fin nippers.




"Thank you for taking the time to write me. That was great advise. I went out and bought a 46 gallon bowed tank. We love it and the fish seem to really enjoy it. I am going to bookmark your web page not only because of the great information but you seem to want to help us new fish keepers and our new fish!"
June 30, 2002
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"Hey Keith my name is Jeremy I managed a pet store for 4 years and ran over 40 tanks, including Marine tanks. I also run a Forum on A major chat area called Sympatico giving advise on Fish and Fish tanks. I recently stumbled across your site and read it very closely, I have to say that this is by far the best info page I have ever seen and I find all the Information on here to be 100% accurate in every way, Awesome job. "
August 12, 1998
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