Aquarium Decors: Think Twice!

Setting up an aquarium could sometimes be very tiring but enjoyable as well. If you want to have a beautiful aquarium for your fish to live in, you can put decors in it. Finding the right decors for your fish tank is both hard and easy. Hard because you need to check the decors if they contain harmful chemicals that are toxic for your fish, on the other it can be easy because you can just ask around the right decors for your fish tank.

You can find a lot of fish tank decors and colorful unique materials that are great for beautifying your fish tank, they can brighten up your dull aquarium and the list of these ornaments will go on and on, but the important part here is to choose the ornaments that best fit your fish tank and fish as well.  Plastic materials and rocks like limestone are not recommended for use because they will soon degrade and will eventually alter the water chemistry consequently causing hazards to fish.

Some materials used in manufacturing aquarium ornaments contain limestone which are easily dissolved in water and that will increase the hardness of the water and raises the pH level too, thus making the water more dangerous. Almost all aquarium fish won’t be able to withstand this kind of water leading them to die fast. Cockshells and corals are also avoided for the same reason, since both materials will increase the degradation of water. Forget about how they look, surely they’re lovely but think over the damage they will cause if you put them on tank.

There are many ways how to know if a material contains limestone. Here’s how to do it, take a small piece of that ornament on a flat non-absorbing area and put some diluted acid or vinegar on the surface of the material. If you see small bubbles surfacing in that piece of material then it’s clear it contains a limestone, therefore it needs to be avoided.

There are a lot of great options of aquarium ornaments available in many pet stores. For instance Granite, it’s a great substrate, natural rocks on the other hand can also be taken into account. One of the most common aquarium ornament is an aquarium plant but you need to be ready for the maintenance since it requires additional time and cost.

Lastly, if you would like to add any decors in your fish tank it’s vital to wash them properly with lukewarm water. It is recommended to soak them at least 2 to 3 days to get rid of those harmful materials like any metal chips.

Eani Mini Aquariums for Kids

The age-old goldfish bowl is getting competition from tiny aquariums in a variety of interesting shapes and sizes. Even the smallest apartment or college dorm room can now be graced with live fish. But are they a healthy habitat for the fish? If properly set up and well cared for, yes they can be. If haphazardly put together and marginally cared for, the fish will be doomed to a very short and unpleasant life.

The Good Side
The good side of mini aquariums is that anyone can have one. The monetary investment is small, and the space requirements so minimal that virtually everyone can find a place for one. College students in dorms, nursing home patients, apartment dwellers, even the most crowded of school classrooms all have space for a mini aquarium. Often apartment building ‘no pet’ rules don’t apply to fish. Fish are very relaxing to watch, and can provide an opportunity for children to care for a pet in situations where larger pets are not allowed.

The Bad Side
Mini aquariums do require maintenance, and should not be purchased with the notion they can be ignored for long periods of time. However, the biggest down side of small aquariums is that problems can occur swiftly, and are often fatal before they can be rectified. This is due to the small volume of water in which the fish live. Changes in water chemistry and temperature can happen in a matter of a few hours – or even minutes. Therefore it is critical to monitor the water conditions closely, and perform water changes faithfully.

First time fish owners should be particularly careful during the initial break-in stage of the mini fish tank. Toxins in the water will rise sharply as the biological system is first being established. If water changes are not performed, the levels will become lethal very quickly. Testing is a must, so have water-testing kits on hand or make arrangements with a local pet shop to do the tests for you.

Precious the Cat Takes a Dive

by:  Bill Winterholer

I became interested in raising fish not long after I moved into the home we’re in now and began a garden pond. In my pond I had goldfish, and became interested in the many species of goldfish. During the winter I began to keep Orandas in a 29 gallon tank in my basement. There were two redcaps in the tank.

I had a Whisper filter attached to the end of the tank and covered it with a piece of plexiglass. This glass was 1/4 inch thick and covered the whole tank, except for about two inches at one end where the filter was hung. Unfortunately, my cat Precious liked to perch upon the plexiglass and stab her paws at the fish as they passed by. I was constantly chasing her off of the tank, as I was fearful she would kill the fish.

One evening, perplexed after having chased her off for the third time, I finally removed the plexiglass and in its place stretched out a sheet of Saran wrap. My wife knowingly grabbed a bunch of towels from the hamper in the bathroom and we sat down – my wife to watch a TV show, and I to do my usual computer chores.

Not more than twenty minutes later I was distracted by the sound of a SPLASH, then the howl of a very, VERY angry cat hauling her soaked self out of a fish tank. Water was EVERYWHERE, and when we tried to approach her, towels in hand to dry her off, she bared fangs and unsheathed claws. She knew what we had done to her and wasn’t liking it, but Precious never dared perch herself on the tank again!

Hope this brings a smile to your face.

 

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A Small Fish Story

An Irish Folk Tale

Retold by Louise Carus from The Real St. Nicholas: Tales of Generosity and Hope from Around the World

We’ve hunted high and low and haunted libraries—including the greatest folklore library in North America at Indiana University in Bloomington—to find more stories about St. Nicholas from the British Isles. This is the only story we’ve been able to locate. —LC
While St. Nicholas was generous to others, he did not lead a grand life himself. He was even once a beggar who traveled all over the country with only the clothes on his back, his staff, and an old wooden pail. One day, he came to a little town by the sea where almost no one was willing to help him. All day he stood on the street, asking for alms. But by the time evening fell, only three people had taken pity on him: a fisherman, a woman, and a priest. Strangely enough, each of them had given him the same thing—not a coin, but a small fish.

He put all three fish in his pail filled with water and walked on until he came to a house where a very poor widow lived with her children.

“Begging your pardon, madam, but might a person stay here overnight?”

“To be sure,” the widow answered wearily, “but we only have water soup and a crust of bread for supper.”

“Supper won’t be a problem! Look here: I have three fish. You can fry them and we and the children will all eat them together.”

The widow looked doubtfully into the beggar’s pail. She had no way of knowing the three little fish had been growing in there. By the time she saw them, they had become quite large.

“What a joy,” the woman cried. I haven’t seen such big fish for a long time, not even at the market!”

One fish, two fish, three fish do I see,
Plenty for my children and enough for me!

She happily lit a fire and began to cook the fish over the glowing coals.

While she was about her work, the Saint asked, “Do you have a pail?”

“Yes, indeed I do.”

“I’ll thank you to fill it with water and bring it to me.” The woman did as he asked. Soon the fish were ready to eat. And how delicious they were! The widow and her children were so hungry they left nothing but the bones, Nicholas said, “Don’t throw those bones away. Give them to me.”

The children and their mother looked at one another in surprise. “What is he up to?” they whispered. But they were so grateful for a good meal at last that they didn’t question Nicholas.

After they had eaten, the family lay the bones of all three fish on a plate. Nicholas picked up the bones by the tail and threw them into the widow’s pail.

Again everyone was surprised. “Why is he doing that?” they wondered.

Then as the widow was about to carry the pail outside to empty it, she noticed three live fish swimming in the water! “What?” she gasped. “How could that be?”

One fish, two fish, three fish do I see,
Plenty for my children and enough for me!

Who knew where the fish came from but Nicholas, and by that time he was sound asleep.

The next morning, the good Saint said, “Please fix these fish for breakfast.”

The woman gladly did so, and once again everyone had enough to eat.

When they were finished, again Nicholas said, “Bring me the pail and give me the bones.” Then he threw them into the water and continued, “You must always do this. That way, you will always have fish and you and your children won’t be hungry any more.”

Then the Saint swung his wooden pail over the end of his staff, said goodbye, and walked off down the road.

The widow and her children never saw St. Nicholas again, but they lived well for a long time. At last, one day the mother left a single child alone at home while she and the others went to visit relatives. The child at home got hungry, so he tiptoed over to the widow’s pail and looked in:

One fish, two fish, three fish do I see,
Enough for the others and plenty for me!

With that, he scooped out one of the fish and fried it for himself. Afraid that his mother would find out and scold him, he threw the bones away.

When the widow returned, the first thing she did was go to the pail to prepare dinner.

One fish, two fish, thr——

But now there were not three fish swimming in the water—there were only two. And from then on, that had to be plenty enough for all of them!

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Cleaning an Aquarium: Making it a habit

Keeping your fish tank tidy is one of the most significant aspects of owning an aquarium. In the event that the water is grubby, not simply your fish tank look awful, but your fish are more likely to be unhealthy.

Every day Clean-up Habit

To keep you fish tank tidy, there can be a number of activities you need to do every day. To begin with, look into the temperature of your tank every single day. When you’re keeping tropical freshwater fish the temperature should be around 77 degrees. If the temperature is way too high, your aquarium will flourish plankton. You also have to examine the fish tank on a daily basis for unwell or dead fish. When they are not taken away from the tank they will affect the other mates. Lastly, make certain the tank’s air pump is functioning correctly.

Each week Clean-up Habit

Every week you have to get rid of waste from the top of gravel employing a siphon tube, which works just like a vacuum cleaner. Change the water that you just remove within this course of action. Make sure you condition the water to remove any chlorine. In addition, look into the ammonia and nitrate rates, as well as the pH to your tank’s water. If you’re nurturing live plants, tend to them each week. Slash them back if they’re becoming too large, and take away virtually any dead or ill leaves. Re-anchor new seedlings into your gravel. In addition, look at your tank for snails. You could get rid of snails by floating a chunk of lettuce leaf inside the tank. The snails will likely be attracted to the lettuce, and you can take them off with a net.

Every month Clean-up Habit

Lastly, there are certainly monthly things you can do to make sure you’ve got a clean aquarium. Each month carry out a partial water replacement. Take out about a quarter of your water by making use of your siphon hose. The following eliminates waste and water simultaneously. Make sure you condition the water before filling new water towards the aquarium, as chlorine and also other water chemical can kill your pet.

Every month it is advisable to clean your filter. In case your filter contains a filter cartridge, change this every month. You do not want to clean the filter too vigorously, since the filter collects helpful bacteria that help with biological filtration. You do not want to wash it so much and take away these bacteria. Lastly, each month you really need to clean the algae out of the top of the tank employing an especially made algae scraper. You may observe a serious accumulation of algae each month; consider purchasing algae eater, and look at your heater. If none of these options help, consider on always keeping the light off inside your tank till the situation solves. If proven not successful, replace your thermometer. Most likely the temperature is not appropriate.

Maintaining your tank clean on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis will ensure your fish to be contented and in good shape. You can guarantee that you develop an aquarium that you will be proud of showing and bragging it to your close friends and associates. Ignoring on clean out your tank will result on fish getting sick and die hopelessly.

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This is a story of a Fish!

PERHAPS you think that fishes were always fishes, and never lived anywhere except in the water, but if you went to Australia and talked to the black people in the sandy desert in the centre of the country, you would learn something quite different. They would tell you that long, long ago you would have met fishes on the land, wandering from place to place, and hunting all sorts of animals, and if you consider how fishes are made, you will understand how difficult this must have been and how clever they were to do it. Indeed, so clever were they that they might have been hunting still if a terrible thing had not happened.

One day the whole fish tribe came back very tired from a hunting expedition, and looked about for a nice cool spot in which to pitch their camp. It was very hot, and they thought that they could not find a more comfortable place than under the branches of a large tree which grew by the bank of a river. So they made their fire to cook some food, right on the edge of a steep bank, which had a deep pool of water lying beneath it at the bottom. While the food was cooking they all stretched themselves lazily out under the tree, and were just dropping off to sleep when a big black cloud which they had never noticed spread over the sun, and heavy drops of rain began to fall, so that the fire was almost put out, and that, you know, is a very serious thing in savage countries where they have no matches, for it is very hard to light it again. To make matters worse, an icy wind began to blow, and the poor fishes were chilled right through their bodies.

“This will never do,” said Thuggai, the oldest of all the fish tribe. “We shall die of cold unless we can light the fire again,” and he bade his sons rub two sticks together in the hope of kindling a flame, but though they rubbed till they were tired, not a spark could they produce.

“Let me try,” cried Biernuga, the bony fish, but he had no better luck, and no more had Kumbal, the bream, nor any of the rest.

“It is no use,” exclaimed Thuggai, at last. “The wood is too wet. We must just sit and wait till the sun ,comes out again and dries it.’ Then a very little fish indeed, not more than four inches long and the youngest of the tribe, bowed himself before Thuggai, saying,

“Ask my father, Guddhu the cod, to light the fire. He is skilled in magic more than most fishes.’ So Thuggai asked him, and Guddhu stripped some pieces of bark off a tree, and placed them on top of the smouldering ashes. Then he knelt by the side of the fire and blew at it for a long while, till slowly the feeble red glow became a little stronger and the edges of the bark showed signs of curling up. When the rest of the tribe saw this they pressed close, keeping their backs towards the piercing wind, but Guddhu told them they must go to the other side, as he wanted the wind to fan his fire. By and by the spark grew into a flame, and a merry crackling was heard.

“More wood,” cried Guddhu, and they all ran and gathered wood and heaped it on the flames, which leaped and roared and sputtered.

“We shall soon be warm now,” said the people one to another. “Truly Guddhu is great’; and they crowded round again, closer and closer. Suddenly, with a shriek, a blast of wind ,wept down from the hills and blew the fire out towards them. They sprang back hurriedly, quite forgetting where they stood, and all fell down the bank, each tumbling over the other, till they rolled into the pool that lay below. Oh, how cold it was in that dark water on which the sun never shone.

Then in an instant they felt warm again, for the fire, driven by the strong wind, had followed them right down to the bottom of the pool, where it burned as brightly as ever. And the fishes gathered round it as they had done on the top of the cliff, and found the flames as hot as before, and that fire never went out, like those upon land, but kept burning for ever. So now you know why, if you dive deep down below the cold surface of the water on a frosty day, you will find it comfortable and pleasant underneath, and be quite sorry that you cannot stay there.

Australian Folk Tale

(from The Lilac Fairy Book , by Andrew Lang)

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