Aquarium Maintenance Service Company

Ten Common Aquarium Maintenance Mistakes

1) Allowing too much time between water changes.

2) Letting the mechanical filters and skimmer become dirty and clogged

3) Using impure water for makeup

4) Overfeeding

5) Using cheap synthetic

6) Allowing dead spots to form and detritus to build up on, under, and behind rocks

7) Not using activated carbon to clarify water

8) Only changing the fluorescent lights after they are burned out

9) Using window cleaners containing ammonia near the aquarium

10) Not using Dallas Aquarium Experts as your aquarium maintenance service company

Contact Dallas Aquarium Experts today for a free estimate!

One last “maintenance task” that should be done daily is to sit back and observe the aquarium. As simple as this sounds, there is no more important habit.

Below you’ll find some tips on chores you can do daily to ensure your aquarium is running in tip-top shape.

Top off fresh water lost to evaporation—usually about a half-gallon a day, depending on the humidity level in my home. This process can be fairly easily automated, however, eliminating even this simple step.

Each day’s routine also involves an inspection of all the livestock in my tank. You want to make sure that all the animals are present and accounted for (i.e., nothing has perished in the rockwork or leapt from the tank) and that everything looks healthy, uninjured, and disease-free. This really isn’t much of a chore, since it gives you an excuse to observe the tank and enjoy the fruits of my labor.

Check water temperature and specific gravity to make sure these crucial parameters aren’t straying off course. Monitoring these parameters daily allows you to catch and correct subtle deviations using small adjustments rather than having to make hug corrections after a precipitous change has occurred.

You should perform a quick daily inspection of all my heating, filtration, lighting, and protein-skimming equipment to make sure everything is functioning properly.

This may sound like a lot to do each day, but again, these are all very simple steps and virtually all of them can be completed in a matter of minutes.

Perform Water Changes – Bi-Monthly

In addition to refilling your top-off reservoir, you should also perform water changes at least twice a month. These water changes do not need to be drastic – in fact, they should not exceed 25% of the tank volume. You must prepare your saltwater at least 24 hours before performing a water change and you should carefully check the salinity to make sure it matches the salinity of the tank. You should also try to match the water temperature so the water change doesn’t have an effect on your tank temperature. In addition to performing water changes, you may also want to wipe down the tank glass and clean away any salt deposits on tank equipment.

Research, Research, Research

If you are considering setting up a saltwater aquarium in your home, your first step is research. Learn as much as you can about the individual fish and invertebrates that interest you. Not all species offered in the industry are equally well suited for the typical home aquarium. Choose fish and invertebrates suitable for the novice aquarist and refrain from pursuing unsuitable species, or species that have poor success rates in captivity.