FAQ Overview

First you need to make sure anything alive on them is dead. This is accomplished by boiling the rock for awhile. This is similar to how you would sterilize a baby bottle. Once this is done drain and dry the water and then put the rock in vinegar or some type of acid. If the rock begins to bubble like crazy it will likely break down in your tank and/or affect the pH and hardness of your water too much.

Depending on the size of your tank there are different sized gravel vacs.  This usually gives you a nice ratio of speed that it sucks out to how much water you have.  If you buy a really big gravel vac but have a small tank it will not work very well.  To use a gravel vac you can lower the tube to just above the gravel to suck material off the top.  What you do next depends on the size of your gravel and the speed the vac sucks out.  When you press the tube down into the gravel it will begin to suck the debris that has collected in the gravel out up the tube.  It could be possible if the suction is too strong that it would suck the gravel up the tube with it.  In most cases it will flow about 1/3 to 1/2 of the way up the tube and churn around letting the gunk flow up the tube while the gravel starts to fall back into the tank.  You press it in and let it suck for a second or two while you start to lift it back up and move it over to a new spot.  Every couple plunges you need to let the gravel fall out of the tube or it will eventually stack the gravel up to the point that you end up suctioning it out.

With most diseases fish get they are always in the tank no matter what you do. As long as the fish are healthy then they will get better and either develop resistance to it or they will be strong enough to not get it. I had many obviously sick fish that I have ended up getting when I get fish from the store and tell them "give me 20 of those)and Ijust do not notice until Iget home. The fish in my tank do not get it unless they were sick to begin with. As a result Iwould suggest cleaning the tank like normal only draining normal amount of water out. Do not scrub the tank or use any chemicals or medications. Fungus only tends to grow when the fishes immune system cannot fight off the infecting organism. Angels tend to be rather sensitive to a lot of things though they are very good against others. Personally I have a 60 gallon hex with 5 angels and about 10 cardinal tetras and 4 or 5 of a larger tetra species as well as a couple tiny plecos. The tank is heavily planted. I'm personally of the opinion you have probably 5-6 too many angels in the tank assuming you were able to give them optimum conditions which has not actually happened due to the fungus. They are likely stressed. For your mixture of fish I would suggest about a 75 gallon tank and then you could probably add some smaller tetras if you wanted but keep your angel levels no higher then current.

This can be accomplished with a 2 liter soda bottle, some plumbing fittings, some tubing, a check valve, an air stone, and some aquarium grade silicone sealant.  Also you will need to mix around 7 cups of water, 2 cups of sugar, and about 1/4 tsp of Bread Machine or Fast Acting/Rapid Rise Yeast.  Obviously you mix the ingredients together and pour them into the 2 liter bottle.  Then you attach the plumbing fittings so that they have a good seal.  Another way is to drill a 2 liter bottle cap and insert tubing and seal it with the aquarium sealant.  Then run the tubing into a check valve (to stop back-siphon) and then more tubing into an airstone or bubble it directly into the filter intake to use it as a place to mix the co2 into the water better.

CO₂ bonds with water molecules temporarily and forms carbonic acid.  This is not a natural state for water and it will return to normal by itself as long as no CO₂ is added until then.  Carbonic acid is actually the same thing that is in your can of Coke or Pepsi (with a little caramel syrup and some other stuff of course)  However the stuff in the can (or Club Soda or Seltzer Water) is ALOT more potent and is not good to be used in a fish tank even a little.  If you use pressurized gas bottles it is best to have a pH monitor and controller to automatically turn on and off the CO₂ into your tank so the pH stays in a healthy range.  If this is too expensive you will need to use regulators or needle valves to slow the flow of CO₂ bubbling into the tank to a slower rate.

The technical definition is the formation of H₂CO₃.  This is a weak dibasic acid formed when carbon dioxide is dissolved into water.  The degrees KH impacts how much CO₂ your water can hold and how long it will hold it.

They sell test kits for this but they are very inaccurate.  The best way is to be sure that you are not using pH Up and pH Down or any other water additives that are phosphate based buffering agents.  If you are not using these then there is a simple chart that can be used comparing pH reading to degrees KH reading.  As long as you use carbonate as a buffer and are already adding CO2 to the water you will get a relatively accurate measurement of how much CO2 is held in your water.  Typically the suggested amount is somewhere in the 10-25 ppm (mg/l) range with 15-19 being optimal.

 For a estimation chart click here.

Well without seeing the holes this is hard to figure out. It could be the "HLLE" or "HITH" problems. (Head and Lateral Line Errosion, or Hole in the Head) These are relatively common problems that typically occur with water quality problems or problems with the fishes diet lacking in certain vitamins or minerals. Easy solutions for those are to work extra water changes into your maintenance schedule. (I usually recommend every week doing 20-25% changes for most fish. If they eat mostly live food you may need to increase the amount of water to 40-50%. For a few small fish in a bigger tank then usually every other week of 25-35% is good) The diet problem is a more likely cause especially if you feed your fish one type of food predominantly. You may want to look for vitamin fortified foods as well as some different brands and types of food including frozen, live, and fortified foods and rotate them so you are not feeding one kind of food all the time. One other possible cause has gone around on the internet as a possible cause of this. Generally it is discounted as "voodoo medicine" but those who believe this say if you put a titanium grounding rod in your tank this eliminated "stray voltages" that cause irritation to the fish. Since these grounding rods are cheap I just throw one in anyway.

It depends on how badly the fins were damaged, the type of fish, age of fish (whether it is still getting significantly bigger or about adult sized already) as well as how long the fins were injured.  Additionally the quality of the water impacts things as well.  If a fish has had a fungus or bacterial probably that destroyed the fins or it was attacked by another fish that shredded them BUT it was very young it will likely grow back to some degree as long as you keep the water changes frequenty to keep the water clean. 

It the fish was adult sized when the injury occurs the healing can be very slow and will likely not be complete.  If the quality of the water is poor there will likely be little to no regrowth in many cases.

When goldfish flip over like that it could be as simple as "gas".  If your fish does this and then gets better quickly within a day or two and doesnt seem to be swollen looking or anything like that then it probably will be ok.  You SHOULD vary the diet regularly including from things like frozen blood worms, flake, etc in this case though.  Usually when they flip over totally it's more severe and could be related to infection or possibly genetic defects or improperly formed organs.

When they dont try to flip over by themselves it means the problem has been a long term issue and they are now exhausted from trying to turn back over.  In this case they are very stressed and will likely not survive unless intervention occurs.

Snails are a double edged thing in your tank.  One one side they eat algae, alot of the waste in the tank, and can be an interesting live food source for many fish.  On the other side they eat alot of delicate plants, depending on where they came from may carry disease, and depending on species and size may reproduce rapidly and cause an increase in waste in the tank due to excrement and may be hidden away when they die causing a large source of contaminant in the tank while they rot stressing your fish due to ammonia spikes.

So not all snails are bad though.  In many tanks specific species are desired for their cleanup ability and decorative patterns and shapes.  

Many have doubted this theory that I have come up with until someone else witnessed this besides me.  There was a tank I was testing DIY CO2 in and had not changed a single plant in that tank for over a year.  However one day I noticed a small snail in the tank.  I had been watching the tank very closely for at least 8 months from when the last plant was put in and never saw snails or eggs.  So I was puzzled where this came from.  I knew I had some snails in my tank upstairs but never in this basement tank.

Due to the size of the tank it's pretty tough to give you a natural way to get rid of them.  (Some fish eat snails)  I'm not sure if you mean the long pointy snails or more of the round "typical" snails most people find.  If they are the pointy cone shaped ones they are probably what is probably a live bearing snail instead of the egg laying ones.  The egg laying ones have a somewhat clear jelly like egg.  If you remove the eggs and as many of the snails as you can the population usually comes under control.  To fix the problem with the live bearing snails you usually have to remove them from the tank.

There are some chemicals (Had a Snail, Rid Snail, etc) but these generally are somewhat serious chemicals and I do not suggest using these.  If you pull out as many as you can this tends to be the best overall because the snails do eat some of the waste in the tank and keep it somewhat cleaner then normal.  Additionally it is somewhat interesting to see the gravel "ripple" with the snails digging through it.  This tends to keep the debris in the gravel cleared out and protects the tank from having toxic buildup in the gravel.

Really all types of cameras are fine for taking tank photos. The difference is it's easier to get the photo into the computer with a digital camera AND it gives you instant ability to look at the photo, decide if you wish to keep it, and the ability to take another one if the first one didnt turn out. Also with a digital camera you tend to have a slightly different response to light and dark areas then you would normally see on film. Generally a tank is rather dark and your digital camera tends to pickup the dark areas a little easier then with a film camera where you would need higher speed film or a flash. I tend to find though if you practice at your film photography you can get much more amazing, clear, and vibrant photos with film but it takes more effort.

Thanks for the interest in the photos here at LittleFishtank.com. There are photos here from many sources and some of them belong to me and others belong to the users of LittleFishTank. Users who submit photos to LittleFishTank give permission to LittleFishTank to use them for promotion of LittleFishTank.com but the user still retains ownership of the photo and would need to be contacted for permission. Additionally there are also photos that came from the NOAA a US Government Agency. These photos are usable here and can be identified with the Courtesy of NOAA credit. These we cannot give permission for commercial use.

Overall the main answer is you will need to tell us exactly which photo(s) you wish to use so I can reply photo by photo to either put you in contact with the owner, or quote you on what is needed for use. Depending on your project there may or may not be fees involved. Thanks!

There are way too many plants that fit into this category to even try listing them. Normally it's best to try sticking only with plants that you know will grow. Sometimes only part of the plant is toxic such as the leaves or the flowers or even just the roots. Some release the toxin into the water and others just hold it till eaten. Other times seeds are released and they may be the only part that's toxic. Due to the possibility of losing all your fish due to poison I do not suggest experimenting unless you know someone who is heavily involved in the plant industry and it's biology or the fish community who can tell you more about the plants and what happens to them if submerged in water. You should check out "What types of plants can I grow in my freshwater fishtank?" for the FAQ covering where to find info of plants that are best in the fish tank.

The worm may be something like a leech.  There is a particular type of leech that actually feeds on roots of plants.  In general its best to remove them when you see them if you're not sure what they are.  There are some types of worms that can be eaten by your fish as food that it could be too.  If you can remove it and take it to a local college's biology department (call first) they may be willing to help you identify it.

I have seen some vine type houseplants growing in various fish tanks but most are not below the water surface except for roots. The spider plant I have not seen and am not sure if it simply cannot grow at all associated with an aquarium or not. I would assume that it does not do well and definately not submerged. Typically plants come in land only, bog, and aquatic. Only Aquatic does well underwater. Another plant I have seen that appears to have done relatively well is Pothos and Philadendron. Normally these only have roots in the water (which help with algae by removing extra fertilizer) but the leaves do not survive long underwater. Normally these grow in a pot with a vine with roots dangling into the water. In this case it was with a Eclipse 1, Eclipse 2, and Eclipse 3 type hood. In the Eclipse hoods the plants were growing outside the tank and then gradually grew into the tank and attached to the plastic in the hood due to the high amount of splashed water due to the biowheel and occasionally dipped into the tank a little prefering to stay near the tank lights at the surface. You do need to be very careful with some houseplants in a fish tank due to them rotting easily and sometimes giving off toxins into the water or being poisonous if eaten.

Plants in your fish tank are an interesting thing. Plants come in several groups. There are those that Like being fully submerged. There are some that need to have part of it outside the water. You also have plants that need to be in very wet soil but keeping the leaves mostly dry. Then there are those who like to be planted in regular soil and not get very wet at all to those that barely want any water at all near them most of the time. In your tank this narrows down to those that like being submerged and those that have part hanging out of the water. This can be floating plants or those that have mostly roots below the water surface and leaves above.

You need to be careful though because some plants ARE poisonous to fish even if they dont eat them sometimes. Other plants just do not like being exposed to water all the time and will then start to rot and pollute the water. You will find most house plants are not compatible with aquariums.

For a good source of information on aquatic plants you should probably start with Tropica which operates out of Denmark. They supply a major part of the world with about 150 different species of plants. Also The Krib's Plant Section is an excellent resource as well.

As big as you can afford. Just like your own home the bigger the better. But just like your home you need to maintain it. Only commit to what you can afford time to maintain.

Typically it is easier for the beginner to start with a Freshwater tank. Fish are usually less expensive than saltwater and are more forgiving to fluctuations in water properties. Additionally Freshwater fish owners are easier to find for assistance (even though all advice is not always correct) Regardless of what you choose read as much as you can about them before you buy. Always be prepared to ask for help because it is not just your pride but your new aquatic friend's life.

Keep in mind that the retail store is not there just to give you information. There is always the bottom line involved. Everything is not free and so too with the rent. Keep this in mind and always research before you go in. If you have an idea of what you are looking for the store can be a much better resource. Afterall you do not go in and buy a new car without doing a little research first... Once you have some research on what you are looking for go in and discuss it with a store employee. You will be able to quickly tell if they are trying to just sell you as big of a tank as they carry and the most expensive fish they have or if they are trying to guide you on the road to happy fish ownership. If you feel confident in the knowledge of the employee then trust their guidance. If not listen but do not monopolize their time. Stop back another time to ask other employees for information. Visit other stores if possible. Always buy from the dealer who gives you the best service.

Go over your ideas of what you want with a knowledgeable employee. Seek opinion about what you want. Even armed with lots of information you may pick products that are overpowered or overpriced or just unnecessary. For freshwater the basics are a tank, a lid, a light, a filter, a heater, possible an air pump and stone, gravel/sand, water conditioners or prefilters, and fish. Saltwater involves a tank, lid, lighting, many water conditioners and additives, a protein skimmer, sand/gravel, salt mix, and many other items.

Choice of fish is a personal decision as well as a habitat and compatibility decision. Remember "Agressive" is a relative term with fish. Some fish hate only the same kind. Others hate different fish. Some hate everybody. Knowledge of the species is crucial in selection. Fish referred to as non-agressive can still be agressive toward some fish, other males, other females, or even only in mating season or while hungry. Consult a knowledgeable store owner for more information.

Some like goldfish but some do not. Some people love guppies some hate them. There really is no better fish to get. No matter which fish you get you need to have good information on what that fish needs. If you wish to mix fish then you need to be sure they are compatible with each other for environment and for compatibility with each other. A fish that lives well in 6.8 to 7.2 pH water would survive if compatible with another fish that needs 7.0 to 7.6 pH water. However you need to understand as well that this limits your water quality to only being capable of fluctuating between 7.0 and 7.2 pH. If you have the ability and patience (and finances if you wish to automate this) to keep the quality proper then you would be ok getting these fish.

There is no one perfect fish. For beginners goldfish are viewed as easy and normally this is true but this is not necessarily always true. Some types of goldfish for example are not as robust as others and as a result do not survive large fluctuations in water properties. Typically the more ornamental the goldfish is the more prone it is to diseases. Sometimes they will survive the fluctuations but will be weakened making them more prone to disease. However, with proper care and monitoring of water quality your fish should live a long happy lifetime.

"Agressive" is a relative term with fish. Some fish hate only the same kind. Others hate different fish. Some hate everybody. Knowledge of the species is crucial in selection. You must keep in mind that not all fish like each other even in the same species. Just because you put them in a tank together does not remove the natural instinct to hate one another. This must always be considered when placing fish together. Consult a knowledgeable store owner for more information before ruling out a fish or combination of fish.

Normally the only way to repair broken glass on a tank is to use a knife and cut the silicone seal between the pieces being left and the piece being removed. Once you remove this all of the old silicone now exposed needs to be removed from the other remaining pieces. Once you have done this you need to clean the pieces to remove any finger oils and then you need to use fresh aquarium safe silicone to seal in a new piece. Typically you will have issues sealing the new silicone where it meets the old silicone. Many people concerned with leaks will "simply" remove all of the old silicone from the entire tank and essentially rebuild the tank with the new piece of glass.

Every tank is unique according to model, year, manufacturer to some degree or another.  A tank rim made by one company for a 200 gallon may not fit that of another tank manufacturer of the same gallon size.  Your best bet is to have something custom made for the tank by a glass and/or metal company who can glue in a new piece for you and brace it properly.

The silicone is what holds the glass together. If the bubbles are very small and not covering a majority of the space it likely will not be a problem.

It is normally best not to repair cracks in fish tanks unless you are highly skilled and using techniques similar to that of windshield repair technicians using similar quality equipment.  The strength of a repair will never be that of the original glass/plastic and it is normally best to remove the entire side of the tank that was damaged and replace it with a new sheet of glass or acrylic. 

What you are looking for is an acrylic tank. There are many manufacturers of these type of tanks either glued together with silicone or solid molded. Typically the best resource for info on this is searching with google or other search engines for do it yourself aquarium instructions. This will explain the thickness needed of arylic sheets and the process of gluing it if you wish to make your own. If you dont want to make your own also search for manufacturers and acrylic aquariums and you should start finding a list of companies who make arylic tanks. Most of these are marketed toward saltwater reefs since it is less expensive (and lighter) to make really large tanks in arylic. If you find a few brands check your local fish store to see if they carry any of those brands and can get you more info and possibly order it for you.

Chances are this is related to something in the tank that is rotting or leaking something that colors the water.  Using a tool such as a python gravel vac be sure to clean the gravel.  If you have live plants ensure they are will trimmed... no rotting leaves etc. 

Assuming your cloud is white you are probably having a bacteria bloom in the tank. This happens for several reasons including but not limited to old food in the water that you didnt get cleaned out, excessive feeding, new fish, fish in a growth spurt, dead fish or plants, etc.

Normally if you see this it normally clears by itself in a few days. You should check Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate in the tank to make sure they are in normal ranges. If they are not doing some water changes till they are in the right areas is suggested. Also check the tank well to be sure there is no rotting material in the tank. Totally cleaning the tank should be avoided if possible due to this removing alot of the beneficial bacteria and will probably continue the problem.

Generally what you need to be concerned with using rocks you obtain from "natural" sources is that all biological material and dirt is removed and that they have had any algae, bacteria, fungus, etc destroyed prior to be adding to your tank. Boiling for a long period of time will certainly destroy many of these items. In terms of types of rock you do not wish to use... things like limestone will disolve in water. You should test most rock by splashing a little vinegar on the rock to test if it fizzes. If it fizzes then it will eventually disolve in the water leaving you with pH between 7 and 14 and eventually non-existant or tremendously changed rock.

pH being raised (larger number) is more basic. A simple way of doing this is by using something like baking soda in small amounts. However you also have to be aware that this will break down somewhat easily with time so you will need to make regular water changes. As a result of the break down the pH will drop (more acidic) eventually and the water become slightly more salty.