| Picture a bright, vibrant, colorful marine fish tank | | | | it is not cleaned up. This will screw up your water |
| that's teeming with life. It's the image most hobbyists | | | | chemistry, producing nitrates (which you and your |
| have in the minds when they set out to establish salt | | | | fish don't want) and overloading the tank's biological |
| water fish tanks. Unfortunately many will not end up | | | | filtration. Second, just like with people, if fish eat too |
| with a tank that resembles the picture they started | | | | much they can experience health problems. |
| with in their heads. Instead, they'll end up with a dark, | | | | Both those issues can cause illness and/or death. And |
| algae-riddled wasteland where only the hardiest of | | | | that's not going to help you achieve that vision of a |
| creatures can survive. | | | | vibrant marine fish tank you had in mind when you |
| Setting up a marine fish tank is hard work - much | | | | set up your aquarium. Different species of fish have |
| more than is required for its freshwater counterpart. | | | | varying nutritional requirements. Before adding new |
| Here are 3 of the most common mistakes people | | | | fish to your tank, make sure you know how much |
| make when setting up salt water fish tank aquariums | | | | food they require and what type of food they |
| and how to avoid them. | | | | require so you keep your fish well fed, but not |
| 1. Starting too Small | | | | overly fed. |
| When it comes to setting up a marine fish tank, size | | | | 3. Letting Maintenance Slide |
| matters. A common mistake people make is starting | | | | It's possible to hire someone to come into your |
| too small (under 30 gallons). A small salt water fish | | | | house once a week or month to take care of all the |
| aquarium is harder to maintain because the relatively | | | | maintenance requirements your tank and its |
| small volume of water in the tank is much more | | | | inhabitants have. But that can get kind of expensive |
| susceptible to rapid changes in water chemistry and | | | | and, for something that's supposed to be a hobby, |
| temperature. And you don't want that because | | | | it's kind of cheating. |
| marine fish are particularly sensitive to changing water | | | | A marine fish tank requires a lot of work to keep it |
| conditions which can be very stressful to them. And | | | | operating properly and its inhabitants happy. Among |
| while you can relieve your stress through massage or | | | | the things you'll have to do on a regular basis are |
| an alcoholic beverage or two, that won't help your | | | | water changes, removing excess waste, cleaning the |
| fish. Too much stress can sicken and even kill fish. | | | | glass, cleaning the filter, testing the water, and |
| The bigger the tank, the lower the likelihood of big | | | | feeding the fish (not too much!). If you slack on |
| swings in water conditions. And that's good for all of | | | | these tasks for even a month or so, you can cause |
| your tank's inhabitants. So go as big as you can | | | | the water quality in the tank to suffer and that can |
| afford when it comes to setting up your salt water | | | | affect the health of your tank and its residents. |
| fish aquarium with 30 gallons being the smallest tank | | | | So while it's more fun to just sit back and watch |
| size I'd recommend, especially for beginners. | | | | your tank, it's critical to keep up with maintenance. |
| 2. Overfeeding Your Fish | | | | Make a checklist of what you have to do. Break |
| Overfeeding is the most common mistake made by | | | | things down into smaller chunks that you can do daily |
| owners of fish tank aquariums, whether marine or | | | | or weekly so you don't have to do it all at once. Tie |
| freshwater. Feeding your fish is fun. Since it's kind of | | | | strings around your fingers to remind you to keep up |
| hard to cuddle with your fish, feeding is one of the | | | | with your tank maintenance. Do whatever it takes |
| few ways you can interact with them. Plus, salt | | | | because staying on top of regular maintenance is the |
| water aquarium fish get very excited when food is in | | | | most important thing you can do to keep your fish |
| the water and they swim faster and dart all over the | | | | and fish tank healthy. |
| place, making feeding time one of the most | | | | Those are my big three when it comes to common |
| enjoyable times to watch your tank's inhabitants. | | | | mistakes that are made when it comes to setting up |
| All of these factors make it easy for enthusiastic | | | | and maintaining a marine fish tank. While there are |
| owners to give their fish too much, too often when | | | | other mistakes that can sabotage your efforts, |
| it comes to food. Overfeeding, however, leads to | | | | avoiding this three will go a long way toward helping |
| two big problems in your tank. First, it pollutes the | | | | you achieve that vision of owning a healthy, vibrant |
| aquarium. Uneaten food falls to the bottom of the | | | | and thriving salt water fish tank. |
| tank or on tank decorations, live rock, etc. and rots if | | | | |