Problems When Keeping an Aquarium

Moving the Tank

Re-locating a fully set up aquarium can be as stressful for you as it can be for the fish. Typical reasons the aquarium may need to be moved to another location or room of the house include re-decorating or discovering that too much sunlight is getting into the tank. If there is a heater in the tank, this will need to be switched off earlier than other accessories as it needs time to cool down.

Without cooling it first, the heater could shatter when exposed to the air. Switch off any other accessories like filters or air pumps and then you can begin to remove the water from the tank. The water must be gradually taken out until there is only enough left for the fish to swim in. do not throw the water taken out of the tank down the drain; it should be kept in containers especially for aquarium water as other containers may have chemicals in them. This water has retained a natural balance therefore must be put back in the tank.

If you have some help, it may be possible to keep the fish in the tank and move it but if not, you may have to remove the fish. Make sure you have a spare tank to keep them in until they can be returned to their tank. Once the tank has been moved, replace the accessories and the gravel if you have taken it out. Do not turn on the light for a few hours as the fish will already be stressed and do not feed them until the following day when they will have calmed down.

Power Cuts

Difficulties such as power cuts are bound to occur at some point therefore it is wise to be prepared for this. Loss of heating will not cause too much disruption to the fish as they are used to changes in temperature. As it is gradual, it will not affect their health but they may move a little slower than normal over 24 hours. Try to add some insulation to prevent too much heat loss such as covering the aquarium in blankets.

Loss of light does not cause any health effects and won’t have too much of a negative effect on plants. Plants may begin to use oxygen in the water though so try to think of ways to aerate the water without the use of electricity. The filtration system causes the most problems when there is a power cut. The beneficial bacteria that live within it die as the water is not continuously pumped through it feeding them oxygen. This means harmful chemicals such as nitrates and ammonia are released into the water upsetting the water balance. Minimise waste production by not feeding fish during a power cut.

It may be wise to buy a battery powered pump or a generator to avoid any negative effects on the tank as a whole in the case of regular power cuts.