Fishkeeping: Setting Up an Aquarium: Introduction

Aquaculture is popular the world over. For centuries people have lovingly kept various fish and plants species for hobby and livelihood. Aquarium fish and plants are big business throughout various countries.

A handful of minnows in a person’s aquarium were either directly or indirectly wild caught by a poor farmer, young child or some other person in their native land. Those few shining scales could mean the difference between a family having supper or getting the medication they need to survive.

With the advent of the Internet and several wonderful books on aquariums, keeping wild caught fish is not usually needed, as people can breed their own stock in captivity.

All captive bred fish are descendants from that original wild stock. Special thanks should go out to the pioneers of the fish-keeping world. Those brave (some habitats contain crocodiles and poisonous snakes) souls have created the opportunity for the less adventurous to lay claim to exotic and amazing species.

The least a hobbyist can do to repay their hard work is to create the best habitat possible for said fish and plants. With just the right planning, keeping fish as pets is not a difficult prospect. Green water (algae infestation) can normally be avoided--as can unexplained fish and plant deaths. Ammonia spikes do not have to occur nor do fish usually require heavy medications.

Stay tuned for several upcoming Hubs on how to create natural and beautiful aquariums.

These are personal Hubs with the recipes and techniques successfully used during the years of my aquaculture addiction; yes, I am addicted to fish keeping!

© Copyright Notice ©

My photographs are mine, taken by me, with my camera. You may use them for personal reasons (desktop backgrounds, personal websites or you can print them for personal use.)

If you choose to use them on websites I require a link back to my HubPages. You may link to my profile or to one of my Hubs.

You may not use them without my permission or for profit.

I sell my art and if you are interested in purchasing it send me a message.

ALL of my articles are MINE and you may NOT use them for anything but reading on my page.

· Microscope

· Plastic containers

· Blender

· Coffee grinder

· Mortar & pestle

· Kitchen timer

· Dehydrator

· Syringes

· Chopsticks

· Long-handled spoons/forks

· Large Rubbermaid container

Microscopes are inexpensive and helpful in identifying the various invertebrates that inhabit the home aquarium. They are also useful in checking for harmful creatures that may lurk in cultures.

You can never have too many plastic containers for the various aquarium jobs to be done. Containers should be simple to disinfect. It is a good idea to buy stackable containers so they take up less space when not in use.

A blender is good for making large portions of fish food as well as your own soil mixes. It is best to purchase one solely for the purpose of aquarium things.

Coffee grinders make a finer mix of food than a blender. This is a good thing to have on hand for preparing fry, clam and other filter feeder foods.

A mortar and pestle takes more work than electric appliances but can create a very find powder. This is an important thing to have for making the finest foods/fertilizers.

Kitchen timers are used during water tests, experiments, dip baths and various other timed jobs.

Dehydrators are essential in creating dried foodstuffs for grinding into powdered food. They also save on the pocket book; when good deals are found on fish and other food ingredients the excess can be dehydrated and then stored for later use.

Syringes are used to measure feed, medication as well as fertilizers. They are also used to target feed certain animals.

Chopsticks, spoons, forks and other items like these are good to have around for digging into the soil to plant and stirring the substrate for clams to filter feed. Keep such utensils away from those used with human foods.

Large Rubbermaid containers are a good idea because they can hold most of your fish keeping supplies safely. For apartment and small house dwellers, the big long ones can double as a coffee table if a flat board is set across the top. Covered with a tablecloth no one would know it was fish keeping supplies.

These containers are also good breeding and quarantine stations for sick animals and plants. For lightweight stored items, they can be stacked to save on space.

Purchase aquarium keeping supplies from Internet shops, local pet stores or buy them second hand through places like LocalSalesNetwork.com or FreeCycle.com

Introduction to Pet Freshwater Clams

Pet Freshwater Clam Food Recipe