10 Best Filtration System For Aquarium

Best Filtration System For Aquarium in 2023

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

Turn Your Freshwater Aquarium into Saltwater Easily

How-to starting a saltwater fish aquarium

However, as you can imagine, as I have many hobbies other than aquariums, all this became really expensive and enough never really seemed like it was ever enough. So, I began to think about the kind of aquarium that I really wanted to have and the most relaxing, yet intriguing "dreamspace" that I could coincide with in my home with limited amount of space and wealth.

This is where many people decide that maybe just one simple freshwater tank is enough. And, unfortunately their love of the hobby dissipates and the inhabitants become neglected or ignored which is what happens with many pets other than fish and I personally think it's a real shame since these creatures depend on us for food, shelter and care without any preference as to how they get it. So before you decide to take any pet, please ask yourself how interested you are, and dedicated will you be to having this pet. Also, as I have learned, it is best to research, talk with people at pet stores, and other pet owners, before adopting any pet to save yourself and your pet a lot of heartache later on as well as costly mistakes and unnecessary visits to the veterinarian.

Saltwater aquariums had always caught my eye at pet stores and visits to the local aquarium. Many of the species not only have spectacular color varieties, but also behavior that keeps me captivated for hours. But affording, constructing, and caring for a saltwater aquarium seemed really complicated and thus impossible to me. Until one day at a local pet store I noticed a saltwater section of the store. I had always talked with the store owner about the fish I was keeping, and asked really how difficult can it be to keep a saltwater aquarium. She first asked me would I like to only have the fish in my aquarium and nothing else, since I had been so impressed with the fish in the store. I said yes and she instructed me in the things I needed to do to create a saltwater aquarium.

First, pick an aquarium that is large enough to have its own space on one side of the room, since you don't want anything resting against, striking, or obstructing your view of your aquarium. You don't need a mini-seaworld, but you will need a large enough aquarium ( at least 30 gallons) so that water conditions, over-stocking of livestock, over-feeding, and pure aesthetics don't become a major problem and get out of hand quickly on you.

Then, decide if you want a fish only tank (FO) or a coral tank, the difference will be that in a fish only tank your filtration will not be required to be as elaborate as in a reef tank. With a fish only tank a simple canister filter will do the trick and it doesn't hurt to have a protein skimmer, since this will remove a lot of even more harmful waste products from your water in a mechanical fashion instead of by chemical means as with many carbon filtration methods used with canister filters, which will become less effective over time. There is no such thing as having too much filtration, its just having the space around your aquarium to place the filtration without crowding your fish and disrupting the look of your tank.

More complex filtration and lighting is needed with corals and invertebrates and I will discuss more about them later but for now I'm talking with the real fish enthusiasts here, which is what I started out being. But for now, since all I wanted was a fish only tank , the lighting I already had, just your basic florescent lighting with a closed canopy, is sufficient for fish.
And of course you need a water heater of some sort, preferably one that is resistant to saltwater. Try to put this heater somewhere in the middle of the tank if not place two heaters in your tank to even out the temperature which should be somewhere around 76-78 degrees, water colder or warmer than this will cause many problems with quality that can develop quickly.

Saltwater, by no means is for those that just want a goldfish bowl. Add water to your tank and let it sit a few days. You can buy salt at pet stores and the directions say to mix one cup per gallon of water, they don't mention it's best to mix one cup per hour, make sure your water is at the right temperature and that you have some way of measuring the salt or specific-gravity of your water. These measuring devices aren't costly and very necessary to be monitored all throughout the life of your tank. Most hydrometers come with a thermometer as well. Allow it to float freely somewhere in your tank and keep it somewhere that is always visible to you. You can also purchase different methods of measuring specific-gravity or salinity to compare and reassure that you have an accurate reading. I always like to keep more than one type of testing method because the failure of my measuring method could be the death of my inhabitants.

Let this water sit for a few weeks after you get the specific-gravity of 1.021-1.025 this will be the normal range on your hydrometer usually highlighted as does the normal temperature range. Remember, the more patience you have and research you do the less costly mistakes you will make. My tank needed to "cycle" which has everything to do with the nitrogen cycle which occurs in established tanks, even in freshwater, the amount of chemicals produced by waste, food and respiration of the inhabitants will change all according to how you filter your water and how often you change it. My tank was barren of inhabitants as I would recommend anyone setting up a new saltwater aquarium, and I wanted to speed up this cycle, so the lady at the pet store was nice enough to give me some of the substrate (crushed coral or sand) from an already established tank, which was rich with beneficial bacteria that would spread and grow thus, cycling my tank faster than it would have otherwise. In a matter of three weeks I had been testing my water with a saltwater testing kit, and it had cycled. The ph had changed, the amount of nitrogen, nitrate, and ammonia had also changed these will increase as the bacteria grows and feeds on the bad things that are destructive to fish and then be released back into the water or cycled, and the readings will drop again. It is normal for levels to rise and fall throughout the life of the tank just keep in mind there are limits to how much they should rise and fall and this should tell you the condition of your filtration or any modifications or additions that need to be made. I kept a journal of my weekly readings to help me keep track of this cycle; I also listed in this journal when I added any new filtration methods, changed my water, added fish, or even when I changed the carbon in my filters. Does this sound like a lot to keep up with? Well yes, for someone that isn't a truly aquarium enthusiast all this can be quite a chore. I know even for me at first it became confusing as to what kind of filtration I should be using, and if even the tap water I filled my tank with should have been used. Algae became a problem as nitrate levels increased which prompted me to investigate this increase and just as I thought it was the tap water, since the town I lived in was largely an agricultural community getting most of its water from runoff which was full of nitrates in fertilizers. So I invested 120 bucks in a reverse osmosis unit and began partial water changes every week when I made my water tests. The nitrates dropped and I bought a digital timer for my lighting which would only leave the lights on during the evening hours 4-5 hours a day thus saving electricity and reducing the amount of light the algae needed to thrive. Remember this is a fish only tank. Yes it can be complicated but after a few months I got accustomed to monitoring my water quality and checking my filters for proper operation. And I added a few new inhabitants to my tank which was always an exciting part and rewarding knowing that my hard work and care had paid off. The hardest part became keeping the salt from caking onto my light and hood. The pet store owner suggested using mineral oil on the parts which would not only keep the surface from being tact and allowing the salt to cake on, but also would give a new shine to all my parts.

I've really enjoyed saltwater fish, all the colors and characteristics are really fascinating. However, there are many more fascinating creatures that make up the world under the sea. This is why most people like myself have more than just one aquarium. This is also a great idea if at all possible because when fish become ill they will need to be treated with medications that can be harmful to invertebrates or anything you would keep in a reef aquarium. It is also better for your fish because some species of fish become really territorial, which after time fish become somewhat territorial of an aquarium and as new fish are added they may get agitated and harass the new fish, so you don't want to add too many new fish at one time. Not only can the fish become agitated, but also water quality can suffer from such a large volume of livestock added in a short time. With saltwater its best to take small steps and see what happens. This takes a lot of patience and commitment by you if you want to successfully keep saltwater fish. But, learning to accept that having a really lively tank that can be really intriguing and enjoyed even by those that have no idea how much hard work you have put into keeping, takes all this patience and commitment, the rewards are great and worth your money and time.