How to Choose the Right Tank for You

How to Choose the Right Tank for You

Whether it’s a small betta tank on your desk at work, or a giant 10-foot aquarium in the middle of a waiting room, there’s a tank for everyone.

So what tank is right for you? There are 3 main things to consider:

  1. How much space you have for the aquarium.
  2. How much time you have for maintenance.
  3. How much you are willing to spend to keep your aquarium maintained.

SPACE

It’s all well and good to want the biggest aquarium available, but you still have to have a place to put it. A 500-gallon aquarium won’t fit well in an apartment or a small living room.

Likewise, you don’t want to order a custom tank and realize that you could have gone bigger when it’s finally installed.

You also need to consider who will be caring for the fish tank. Most hobbyists prefer to do it themselves, but a office or a larger home aquarium will require professional care.

When considering how large to build a custom tank or order a standard sized one, there should be room for the hobbyist or technician to access the lights and automatic feeders up above the tank as well as room for a step-stool near the stand to clean inside the tank. And remember that someone also needs to get inside the cabinetry to change the filters and monitor the ultraviolet sterilizer, chiller, and pumps.

There should also be room to move large buckets or rolling vats to do water changes, and access to a water source to refill the tank. Do you have a place to dump the dirty aquarium water? Smaller tanks are easy to empty and refill from a nearby sink, but larger tanks require a dedicated place to empty the dirty water and refill the aquarium.

Once you’ve identified the place you want your aquarium to go, measure it. Your custom aquarium designer will be able to guide you to the right size and style of aquarium if they have precise measurements and pictures of the room.

TIME

How much time are you willing to give to this aquarium? If you’re a hobbyist, then you will probably be working on your aquarium a couple of times a week (depending on the size of the tank).

However, if you don’t have much time and you still want to care for the tank yourself, you have a couple of options.

You can minimize the amount of time spent on the tank by using an automatic feeder, using fake decor instead of live plants and coral, and opting for a smaller tank.

For example, a 5-gallon betta aquarium with a filter, heater and fake plants is much easier to care for than a 125-gallon tropical aquarium with live plants. Water changes will be quicker, the fake plants can be easily cleaned, the smaller filter is quickly replaced, and the glass is easier to access and clean.

By contrast, while a larger tank can certainly hold a wider variety of fish and plant or reef life, it takes more time to do water changes, wipe down the inside of the tank, prune live plants, arrange coral, add fertilizer, target-feed your invertebrates, change filters, monitor the plumbing and electrical systems, and test the water parameters.

For a smaller space like a dresser, kitchen counter or desk you should consider a 5-gallon tank that has a built-in filter and room for a heater. This type of aquarium is ideal for freshwater fish like bettas, small amounts of fancy guppies, African dwarf frogs, snails, and shrimp.

Nano-cubes are also ideal for small spaces if you want a saltwater tank but don’t have a lot of space. They are small aquariums that are perfect for nano-reef setups, like a single anemone and a pair of clownfish, or some false coral and a handful of colorful damselfish.

If you want a larger aquarium but don’t have the time to care for it yourself, you can always hire a professional crew. Custom Marine Aquaria offers custom-built aquariums as well as professional services to clean and maintain all sizes of aquariums, so all you have to do is sit back and enjoy.

BUDGET

While caring for a betta fish might be cheaper than caring for a cat or a dog, there is still some upkeep required, more so for larger tanks and especially for saltwater aquariums.

If you’re looking to keep your budget small, freshwater fish are the way to go. Bettas are the perfect starter fish and don’t need a lot of work to keep healthy. Goldfish, while simple to care for, need larger tanks because they grow quickly and output more waste than most freshwater fish.

Smaller aquariums like 5-gallon betta tanks with built-in filters will start around $20-$30. Then you have to add an inch of substrate to the bottom of the tank, as well as plants and decor for hiding and a heater for the cooler months. Starting up a small tank can cost around $100 for all the initial supplies, not including the fish.

However, once you get started the monthly cost is much more manageable. Replacement filters, food, medication and the occasional new piece of decor will keep your costs low.

If you’re looking to add a big new tank to your home or office, then the costs will be substantially more. Building a custom aquarium usually starts around $1500 for the aquarium itself, and that’s before the canopy, stand, cabinetry, lighting, plumbing, filtration and other maintenance factors are accounted for. Even a smaller custom aquarium, about 140-gallons, can cost $2200 for an older model.

Then you have to account for the kind of aquarium you want to maintain: Freshwater, Saltwater – Fish Only or Saltwater Reef. Saltwater fish are generally more expensive than freshwater fish, and invertebrates, specialty fish like eels, and corals will cost a pretty penny.

That’s not to say that saltwater aquariums are impossibly expensive. Once the aquarium has been set up, it’s very easy to have a colorful variety of fish with false coral for a very reasonable monthly expense.

All in all, each aquarium is as unique as its hobbyist. If you’re looking to design a custom aquarium to fit your space then Custom Marine Aquaria is the team you want. From start to finish, our designer will work to find the best fit for your vision, your space and your budget. We also offer professional cleaning services to keep your aquarium as vibrant as the day it was installed. Contact us for a free quote and get your dream started!

Aquarium Scratch Removal

Aquarium Scratch Removal

REMOVING SCRATCHES IN YOUR AQUARIUM: A HOW-TO GUIDE

In the course of owning an aquarium, most likely during a cleaning, a scratch might occur on the aquarium’s glass or acrylic surface.

Depending on how noticeable it is, it might be something you decide to ignore, or something you want to get fixed. Thankfully, most scratches in glass and acrylic are reasonably easy to repair.

Protective Measures
If the scratch is on the inside of the aquarium, you’ll have to take some extra precautions to make sure that you don’t contaminate the aquarium during the buffing process.

First, drain some of the water out of the aquarium, giving yourself several inches under the level of the scratch, so you have some room to work with.

Then, place a sheet of plastic foil on top of the water surface, and use some tape to secure the foil to the four sides of the aquarium. This gives you a surface that will catch all the buffing residue and prevent it from ending up inside the aquarium water.

HOW TO REMOVE AQUARIUM SCRATCHES

Glass Aquariums

To buff out a scratch from glass, first you’ll have to get your hands on a chemical called Cerium Oxide (often used by jewelers). Then, buy a hard rubber disk and a buffing pad extension for a power drill or an oscillation tool.

Mix the cerium oxide with water to create a paste, and put a little bit of the mixture on the buffing pad.

You can now begin to buff out the scratch, but be sure to keep the drill on its lowest setting. Buff until the scratch is removed to your satisfaction, checking the glass periodically to make sure it isn’t getting too hot.

When done with the steps above, carefully wipe down the glass to remove any remainder of cerium oxide and you should be good to go.

Acrylic Aquariums

Acrylic is increasing in popularity as a material for aquariums, because of the many options it provides, such as curved walls, spheres, etc. Acrylic surfaces are easier to scratch than glass, but also easier to repair.

To get scratches out of acrylic you’ll just need some wet/dry sandpaper and a solution called NOVUS (think of it as even finer grit sandpaper, in paste form).

For moderate scratches, it’s best to start with around 400 grit sandpaper (remember, always keep the sandpaper wet) and progress to 800, 1000, and 2000 grit.

After you’re done with the 2000 grit, the surface should feel smooth, but will exhibit some “haze” from the micro-scratches made by the sandpaper.

From there, use some Novus solution on a towel and buff until the acrylic is as transparent as it was originally.

As with glass, you have to keep the acrylic surface from getting too hot (acrylic will actually melt under high temperature). You can do this by keeping a small bowl of water and occasionally wiping down the acrylic surface during the sanding process.

There you have it. Whether your aquarium is made of glass or acrylic, the above steps will help you get rid of pesky scratches and restore your aquarium to its previous splendor!

Feeding Your Aquarium

Feeding Your Aquarium

There’s no reason not to feed your fish the best! From flake to frozen to specialty foods, there’s a quick fix for every aquarium setup to make your tank top notch.

FEEDING TIME

Did you know that fish have their own unique personalities? The best way to discover them is at feeding time. You’ll see that some fish are bold and have no trouble getting a full belly. Other fish will be shy and timid, possibly not getting enough in the recommended 2-3 minute feeding window.

If timidity is the case, spreading out the feeding area and targeting some of your shy fish will help keep everyone happy and healthy.

Monitoring your fish during feeding time is the ideal way to see that everyone is eating well, as well as observing any behavior that could signal something is wrong with your fish.

TYPES OF FOOD

Everyone is familiar with the classic flake fish food when it comes to feeding. However, flake food is not always the best choice for your entire aquarium.

There are lots of options to choose from, depending on your aquarium residents.

  • Flake food
  • Frozen food (carnivore and herbivore)
  • Freeze-dried krill
  • Dried Seaweed
  • Species-specific pellets
  • Liquid food

Some marine fish like wrasse, triggers, groupers and other carnivorous fish with larger mouths prefer frozen food, freeze-dried krill and other larger pieces of food.

Puffers are a special kind of fish, besides their ability to puff up, because they have a beak that never stops growing. A diet rich with clams, snails and other hard-shelled foods to keep their beaks ground down is highly recommended.

You may also see some larger puffers have irregular wear on one side of their beak. This is because some puffers will swim back and forth while rubbing their face against the acrylic or glass side of the tank. Unfortunately this behavior also scratches the inside of the tank.

Click here to see some scratch removal techniques.

Some marine fish with smaller mouths like butterflyfish, angels, tangs, foxface rabbitfish and other fish prefer a mixture of high-quality flake food and will graze on algae and seaweed. A suction-cup clip with seaweed or fresh greens is the recommended way to provide grazing in well-kept aquariums.

Don’t forget your reef!

Invertebrates like snails, hermit crabs and sand-sifting stars can be forgotten because they’re usually called in as the clean-up crew. While it’s true that they will pick up most leftover food that makes it to the bottom of the tank, many sea stars and snails also appreciate dried seaweed. So don’t be surprised when you see more than just fish grazing on the seaweed you provide.

Soft and hard corals as well as invertebrates like feather dusters will actively filter-feed from the current in the tank, so providing a diet of liquid food like Reef Roids is a great way to make sure that everyone is receiving proper nutrition.

VITAMINS

Occasionally you may see a marine fish that is missing color and possibly scales from their face that may extend down the side of the fish, parallel to the spine. This is a very common disease in aquarium-kept marine fish called Lateral Line Disease. This is caused by a lack of vitamins and minerals that they would otherwise consume naturally in the ocean.

It’s highly recommended to soak frozen or pellet food in liquid vitamin supplements before feeding to help combat Lateral Line Disease. Liquid vitamins can also be added to the aquarium on a regular basis to help with the natural intake of vitamins, especially for the grazing fish or fish that are regularly fed flake food.

TAKING IT EASY

While it can be time-consuming to keep up with the proper feeding techniques, there are some short-cuts that can make it easier.

INSTALL AN AUTOMATIC FEEDER

We regularly install and recommend automatic feeders that dispense a set amount of food and are easily programmable. These are ideal for tanks with smaller fish that are mainly herbivores and office tanks that won’t have anyone available on weekends to feed them.

Flake food, pellet food and small freeze-dried mysis shrimp are ideal for automatic feeders.

QUICK AND EASY FROZEN FOOD

There are lots of frozen food options to choose from. While you can get flat-packs of frozen krill, bloodworms, silversides, or herbivore/carnivore gel, they can be a real pain. We offer easy-to-use cubes of frozen food that are a mixture of herbivore and carnivore diets to meet the dietary needs of all tank residents.

Simply plop as many cubes as will be consumed in a 2-3 minute period into a small cup of water and let it sit for about 5 minutes. You can do the same with clams. After 5 minutes the food will be thawed and you can simply pour it into the tank. No need to get messy hands or have smelly food sitting around.

Feeding fish is just one of the many ways to interact with your aquarium, and these tips will keep you happy with your tank and your fish for years to come.