Your fish dislikes dirty water as much as you do—totally. You might not be aware of it but your fish gets stressed in dirty water. Freshwater aquarium maintenance has high concern on dirty water issues.   

A power filter is your best ally against dirty water. This device uses chemicals to filter the water in your aquarium. It filters the dirt, discoloration, and even the rotten smell of the water inside your tank. And you don't have to worry on how to keep them clean because generally filters are disposable. But here's the downside of power filter--you need to replace them every 3-4 weeks.

This is topnotch! “Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms….” To keep it simple, algae exist even in the most gorgeous and healthy-looking aquariums. They can destroy everything alive in your aquarium without you knowing it.

Answer: Plecostomus. Plecostomus is a ‘not so attractive’ fish that feeds on algae. This fish might not bring sightseers to your freshwater aquarium but they will spare you the hassle of removing the algae manually. There are other methods that you could also choose from like the UV sterilizer, algaecide, dyes (for your ponds), etc.

Freshwater aquarium maintenance puts a red mark on you when your aquarium holds unclear waters. Unclear Waters indicate that you have been over-feeding your darlings (your fishes). Pampering them with too much food is a big mistake. Your fishes cannot eat more than what they can. The ‘excess’ food will just add up as water pollutants in your tank. You should feed your fish 2-3 times a day only—to eliminate the unclear water problem. If it doesn’t work, try to use bottled mineral waters or distilled drinking waters in your tank.  

Regular Cleaning is your ace against accumulated impurities in your aquarium. You have to remove at least 20% of the water once in every two weeks (if it’s not possible to do them weekly). You can use siphons or you can slowly pitch in the water as long as you won’t cause your pets to panic—as this is one way of stressing them out.  To remove the dirt along the sides of your tank, you can use a sponge, a clean cloth, or a scraper (as long as they won’t cut your acrylic aquariums). For your decorative, you can take them out and soak them in a hot water solution (hot water with a small amount of salt). Lastly, you can use a gravel vacuum for the accumulated deposits in your substrate (the materials at the bottom of your tank). At any point, never use soaps in cleaning your tanks—the soap residue will kill your fish instantly.  

When you refill your tank, at some point the water temperature destabilizes. Keeping the temperature stability of the water in your tank is also a major issue in freshwater aquarium maintenance. When the water temperature in your tank is not stable, your fish is restless. If this problem continues your fish weakens and will eventually die (if not treated right away). Therefore you have to be very careful in determining the temperature stability of your tank. Here’s a tip: “Heating 5-10 galloons of distilled water is often a better option than using tap water.”

Your aquascape and your fish’s health will manifest the degree of care you gave them. You receive the freshwater aquarium maintenance challenge the moment you decide to accept these adorable creatures as part of your life.