Setting Up a Tropical Aquarium: Week By Week

by Stuart Thraves

Overview

This authoritative encyclopedia—revised and updated to reflect the latest developments in current fishkeeping technology and technique— takes a fresh look at the popular topic of setting up and maintaining a tropical freshwater aquarium.

It begins with guiding hobbyists, especially novices, through the first steps. This begins with determining the most suitable aquarium and accessories by referring to the equipment section of the book. The substrate and "life support" systems are the first items installed. Two weeks later, the first fish are added. At this time, the book provides detailed descriptions of 50 suitable plants and 100 recommended species of fish from which the hobbyist can choose.

During the next ten weeks, the tank turns from an artificial environment into a living community. This is a crucial period in the life of a new aquarium often beset with problems that fishkeepers find alarming. Throughout this section, the emphasis is on providing the answers to common questions and offering practical advice to keep the system working smoothly.

The book's updates bring the content in line with all of the latest fishkeeping equipment and techniques.

• New equipment which has benefited from lower cost for higher technology, such as: LED lighting; discrete, compact pumps and water quality sampling and monitoring equipment; improved energy efficiency; programmable submersible heaters that maintain accurate water temperature; programmable digital feeders; canister filters capable of self-diagnosis; compact algae scraper magnet; feeder-Webcam combo.
• Real-time practical coverage—Detailed step-by-step photographic sequences show each stage of a typical aquarium set-up recorded in real time over a period of ten weeks.
• Integrated presentation—Information on equipment, what it does and how it works, is introduced at the relevant stage of the building process for foolproof practical guidance.
• Profile sections—Detailed descriptions of 50 aquarium plants and 100 popular freshwater aquarium fishes are featured as they are added to the tank, rather than in separate unrelated sections.

By Setting Up a Tropical Aquarium Week By Week, hobbyists will establish a new aquarium with little stress and without risk of failure. They can then refer to the book whenever needed, where they will find guidance on maintaining their aquarium in top condition for many years to come.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781770855182
Publisher:	Firefly Books, Limited
Publication date:	09/30/2015
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Stuart Thraves is brand manager of a leading aquarium company.

Table of Contents

Before You Begin

• First Thoughts and Decisions

DAY 1: Building the System

• First steps
• Adding the substrate
• Fitting the filter, heater and CO2 system
• Preparing and adding wood
• Choosing rocks
• Treating and adding water

DAY 2: Planting the Aquarium

• Preparing to plant the aquarium

Plant Profiles

• Background plants
• Midground plants
• Foreground plants
• Floating plants
• Lighting
• Water chemistry

WEEK 3: Bringing the Aquarium to
Life

• Tidying up the tank
• Adding first fish

Fish Profiles

• First fish

WEEK 5: Increasing the Fish Population

• Quarantine

Fish Profiles

• Second fish

WEEK 8: Towards a Stable System

• Care and upkeep
• Feeding plants
• Adding third fish

Fish Profiles

• Third fish
• Feeding fish

WEEK 12: The Finished Display

• This is just the beginning
• Fish health
• Routine maintenance

General Index
Fish Index
Plant Index

Preface

Introduction

We are constantly fascinated with other worlds. Apart from outer space, the only other domain we have yet to completely explore is the underwater world. It is a world of sumptuous variety, from the swirling sun-drenched waters of a coral reef to the tranquil shadows of an Amazon stream trickling slowly beneath a canopy of heavy-leaved tropical trees. These are just two examples of many thriving habitats in which plants, fish and invertebrates live together in aquatic harmony.

Since the great age of discovery and invention in Victorian times, we have tried to bring this fascinating spectacle into our homes. The first aquariums were simple boxes with glass fronts in which temperate fish species were kept. With little appreciation of their needs, the fish soon expired and had to be replaced regularly. This approach would be totally unacceptable today with our regard for animal welfare. A greater understanding of how natural cycles work and the technology to sustain them now offers fishkeepers the exciting opportunity to create and maintain aquariums that will thrive for many years.

This book follows the sequence of setting up and running a tropical freshwater aquarium for the first twelve weeks of its life. At logical points along the timeline of practical progress there are profile sections that feature extended selections of suitable plants and fish. Throughout, the emphasis is on explaining how vital life-support systems work, including the basic science behind the processes they depend on. Unlike many hobbies, where learning can be phased and levels of difficulty matched with emerging ability, fishkeeping requires the immediate grasp of a crucial technique — how to turn a transparent box of water into an environment that will sustain life from day one and beyond. Fishkeepers are pet owners, with all the responsibilities that title entails. How you control that environment dictates whether your display will thrive or deteriorate into an unsightly mess. This book will give you a head start in the quest to be successful.

Editorial Reviews

[Review of previous edition:] Tropical fish tanks are beautiful and soothing; the set-up, however, is less relaxing. It takes two weeks before you can put in your first fish and 10 weeks before the tank becomes a living ecosystem. Don't despair. This book gives you easy-to-follow week-by-week instructions with graphic illustrations to ensure success. You're also introduced to 50 aquarium plants, 100 popular [tropical] freshwater fish, and tips for ongoing maintenance. It's better than watching TV!

Good Times - Liz Grogan

11/01/2015
A tropical aquarium can be a vibrant, thriving ecosystem within your home if it is set up and maintained correctly. In this second edition of a reference first published in 2009, fishkeeping authority Thraves details how to prepare as well as sustain proper environmental conditions, with "first fish" added to the aquarium in the third week. Color photographs accompany text that covers some 50 plants and 100 fish choices and is now updated to include the latest available equipment, such as affordable, ecofriendly LED lighting. A general index, plant index, and fish index are also provided. VERDICT Critical "prep school" for aquarium fish tank owners.

Library Journal