Basics Of Saltwater Fish Maintenance
If you are looking for a good low-maintenance pet, look no further than local saltwater fish for sale. It seems like some people shy away from freshwater fish since they are not quite sure how to take care of saltwater fish; however, you will likely be surprised with how easy it is. Once you have all of your equipment (you can find a checklist for what you need here), the only thing left to do is maintenance. There are a few things that need to be done daily, weekly, and every few weeks.
Daily Needs
Check the Temp
Tropical fish (which are the most common saltwater fish chosen as pets) prefer a water temperature of 76° to 80° Fahrenheit. If your tank gets much hotter or cooler than this, your fish could get sick. Make sure that you check the temperature daily in order to make sure there are no fluctuations that could be dangerous for your fish.
Feeding Time
Your fish need to eat daily. There are different types of saltwater fish food available including flakes or pellets. The type of food you choose may be dependent on what type of fish you have. Your fish should be able to eat all of the food within three minutes. If there is excess food after three minutes, you should gather it in a net and remove it from the tank. The exception to this rule is if you have bottom feeders such as hermit crabs or snails.
Weekly Needs
Proper PH
Testing the PH of your aquarium is crucial to the health and survival of your fish. Test weekly with store-bought strips to make sure that it is within the proper range of 7.6-8.4.
Refill the tank
Each week, a bit of the water in your tank will likely evaporate, leaving the salt concentration of the remaining water high. This can be dangerous for the fish, so the tank should be refilled weekly with conditioned and cleaned tap water.
Every Few Weeks
Routine Water Replacement
Every few weeks, you are going to want to clean the sides of the tank with a sponge to remove algae and then replace about 25% of the water. For a routine water replacement, you will need to either mix your own saltwater or buy premixed saltwater from the store. You should never use table salt in your aquarium. Synthetic marine salt should be mixed with conditioned tap water and then tested to ensure that it has the proper salinity.