Cultivating your own saltwater aquarium as a hobby can be extremely exciting and full of challenges as well. However, some of the challenges could get the better of you and the fish might go belly up due to your mistakes.
Keep reading to discover some of the top 5 mistakes you must avoid when setting up a saltwater aquarium.
1. Purchasing Aquatic Animal without Knowing Anything about Them
It often amazes us how beginners select additions for their saltwater aquariums without knowing which specific animals are suitable, how to feed them and how to care for them. Prior to making any purchases, it is important that you take your time to learn and find sufficient information about the animals that will be suitable for your saltwater aquarium.
Avoid the temptation of buying on impulse simply because you feel the pretty colors of fish appealing or stunning. Get the critical information that will ensure you have the right fish in your aquarium.
2. Overloading the Aquatic System
While moving too fast to complete the project, some beginners are likely to cram too much livestock and live rock at once into the aquarium. The specialists from https://aquariumgear.net say you only need approximately 1-1.5 pounds of live rock per gallon, but certain types like Fiji live rock require more. Even if you’ve put in the best measures to set up a well-established system, putting too many additions at once into the tank too quickly could potentially cause something known as ‘New tank syndrome’. Keeping a saltwater aquarium is no timed event; so take things easy and exercise some patience.
3. Overfeeding the Fish
Overfeeding saltwater fish is something you can easily do, especially if you’re just beginning your new hobby mainly because you wouldn’t know how to tell how much food is enough. To avoid overfeeding your fish, understand their nutritional requirements. Note that any uneaten fish food accumulates at the bottom of the tank and creates an excessive amount of nitrates, which potentially causes an overload of your aquarium. After determining how much fish is appropriate for the fish in your saltwater aquarium, you can set up a schedule for feeding the animals as well.
4. Livestock Incompatibility
Purchasing livestock for your aquarium without knowing if they’ll live and reside peacefully with other animals can often lead to injured or dead animals and stress-related diseases. It is important that you educate yourself on the compatibility of animals that you’re considering adding to your aquarium before you even think of putting them in the same tank.
5. Inadequate Lighting, Filtration, or Circulation
When it comes to lighting, filtration, and circulation, you must get the balance right. In the beginning, you might have to do a bit of research that will enable you to plan according to the tank inhabitants and the type of tank.
If you wish to set up a saltwater aquarium, you’ll quickly discover that it is completely different from the cultivation requirements of a freshwater tank. However, if you want to make sure you are off to a good start, then you must avoid the mistakes discussed above.