When caring for a tank, there are numerous smaller
items you’ll need to maintain your aquarium. Some of these items you may not
even find in a pet store, or aquarium shop. These items will definitely make
these basic tank maintenance tasks easier. Just a side note: never use products
that have come into contact with soap!
Scrapers
are used to remove algae and calcium build-up from the aquarium glass inside of
the tank. My own scraper has a two-sided head, containing a soft sponge and
scrub pad. Scrapers will also commonly feature a plastic blade at the top of
the sponges for scraping away stubborn algae. Another feature, is a fork-like
structure at the end of the long handle of the scraper, this is used for
turning gravel and planting aquatic plants. This tool is very useful in
numerous ways.
Strainers
can be used to rinse gravel (which should be done once a month). Make sure the
strainer does not have holes that are big enough for the gravel to slip
through, and NEVER use it for food purposes in your own kitchen, the fish owns
it now!
Turkey
Basters are probably a strange item for you to
see on here. Turkey basters actually work much better than a gravel vacuum or a
siphon. I use a turkey baster to remove the fish waste and uneaten food from my
aquariums; I’ll never use a gravel vacuum again! Make sure to replace the water
you remove from the tank during this process with fresh water. Also, NEVER use
this for food purposes in your own kitchen, the fish owns this too!
Cups
are also useful when you need to feed fish separately, change tank water, keep
fish in order to clean the tank, and more! Remember the little plastic cups
your Betta came in? KEEP THEM!!! They will come in useful! Just make sure to
rinse them thoroughly before and after use.
Nets
come in a variety of different shapes and sizes and can be used for just about
anything. Smaller nets can be used to catch your fish, or remove debris from
the water. Larger nets can be used to rinse tank ornaments as well as gravel,
much like strainers. Always make sure to rinse nets before and after every use!
Test
Kits are important to keep track of your water
conditions. These tests generally come in test strips or liquid tests. I’ve
found the liquid tests tend to be more accurate. Purchasing a complete test kit
is ultimately more inexpensive than buying separate tests. These tests check
Ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, PH, and water hardness. These tests are kind of fun
to play with, they remind me of chemistry class (lol).
Buckets
come in handy for doing water changes and decontaminating some items in the
tank. I currently use two 5-gallon buckets and one smaller bucket. I use one 5-gallon
to remove dirty water from my fish tanks, while I use the other 5-gallon to
return clean water to the tank. The smaller bucket is used for decontaminating
newly purchased items for the tank.
***I
used personal experience for this posting***
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