| Owning a tropical fish aquarium can be a very | | | | fish and coral. The coral also feeds off of the |
| rewarding and fulfilling hobby that can last a lifetime. | | | | bacteria and so on thus creating the kind of |
| There are many factors to consider when building | | | | environment that I wanted. The beauty of this is |
| and operating a saltwater aquarium. Questions to ask | | | | that you can modify this to fit your desires, just be |
| are; what type of fish do I want? Do I want to | | | | sure to consult with your local tropical fish store to |
| include coral? Do I have the funds to provide the | | | | ensure that your desire won't kill your fish or coral. |
| upkeep needed? With a little planning and hard work, | | | | Starting cost can run into the thousands of dollars, so |
| you can own and enjoy the fruits of your labor with | | | | be prepared to spend. Keep in mind, however, that |
| a few helpful tips. | | | | this will be a lifetime investment. Also keep in mind, |
| Your local pet store or aquarium store can usually | | | | the continuous cost to keep the tank healthy and |
| assist you with the details of the sizing and how to | | | | the fish living. This varies greatly between tanks |
| set-up the equipment that you need to get up and | | | | because of size and type of fish in the tank. Don't |
| going. You want to do your research (I can't stress | | | | attempt this unless you know that you can afford it. |
| that enough) about what fish you want. There are | | | | The last thing you want is to go in and buy the |
| some fish that do not co-exist well with others and | | | | equipment and find you can't commit to taking care |
| by making the mistake of inserting these two in your | | | | of the fish and then your investments have gone to |
| waters will make for a huge headache real soon. The | | | | waste. |
| internet has plenty of great sources to look and see | | | | The average time from setting up your tank and |
| which fish are able to live together. | | | | putting water in it, to putting the fish in, is about |
| Now that you have found what fish you want to | | | | three weeks. This is because you need to create |
| include and verified that these species get along | | | | that environment the fish need to survive. Your |
| together, you now want to look into creating the | | | | tropical fish store can provide in depth information |
| perfect environment for your fish. Keep in mind that | | | | regarding the pH levels, bacteria levels, movement of |
| a lot of that work is already done, as the pet store | | | | the water among other things. You can also read |
| should have advised you to purchase the tools that | | | | further about this online with e-books and tropical fish |
| simulate the movement of ocean water as well as | | | | websites. |
| correcting the salt and bacteria levels. In my personal | | | | I hope this article has provided a small glimpse into a |
| experience, I chose to go with Australian sand. I did | | | | very rewarding hobby and I hope that you and your |
| this because it provides the necessary bacteria | | | | family can enjoy the beauty of a tropical fish |
| needed to provide an "authentic" environment for the | | | | aquarium. |