When caring for a home aquarium, it’s very important to take into consideration the quality of the water in your tank. How clean your tank’s water is can be a direct reflection on how susceptible the fish in your tank are to disease, even if there are no visible impurities in the water. Being aware of how to properly care for the water in your fish tank is very important, since it can help prevent some potentially serious health problems in your fish. Here is some general information about how to properly care for the water in your aquarium.
TAP WATER
In general, using tap water for your aquarium is the best choice for the safety of your fish. However, simply adding water to your aquarium does not necessarily mean that it’s habitable for your fish. The most important factor that you have to consider when using tap water for your home aquarium is that it often contains levels of chlorine which are unsafe for your fish. To help remedy this, it’s important that you have a de-chlorinating agent that will allow your tank to be habitable for fish. Some of these de-chlorination agents require a set amount of time to fully treat your tank, so it’s very important that you take this into consideration when setting up your aquarium.
FILTRATION
To keep the water in your aquarium of high quality, you will want to make sure that it is adequately filtered. In general, it’s best to use a filter for your tank that is able to cycle the entire volume of the water in your tank at least four times per hour. This is the absolute best way to ensure that your fish are being subjected to proper fish care, and greatly reduces instances of health problems created by contaminated tank water. There are many types of filtration systems available, though most new tank owners opt to use one that utilizes activated charcoal as a filtration medium. Activated charcoal filter replacements are relatively easy to purchase, and are available in the fish care section of most pet care supply stores.
WATER TESTING
To ensure that the water in your aquarium remains habitable for your fish, it’s recommended that you test the water in your tank at least three times per week. This is especially true if you have opted to use distilled water in your tank, since distilled water is relatively unstable, and may change pH levels rapidly without any warning. Try to avoid using distilled water in your tank, and use de-chlorinated tap water instead. Test the hard/soft qualities of your tank’s water, the pH, nitrate levels and ammonia levels on a regular basis to avoid potential health problems in your fish. If you detect that any of these levels are above or below the recommended levels for your fish, you need to take action immediately. Though many hardy species of fish are able to survive variations in their environment, some fish are very sensitive to changes in their water’s quality.