You Must Aerate Your Aquarium
As we all know rivers and lakes are the natural habit of fish. Rivers and lakes have a large surface area which makes for the maximum provision of oxygen for fish survival. On the other hand an aquarium is not like a river or lake, having a smaller surface area and therefore there is limited movement of habitats.
This makes provision of alternative means of oxygen for fish to breathe essential. This artificial process of providing oxygen is called aeration. It’s a simple process of re-oxygenating the water in an aquarium tank.
The Aerating System:
These are the materials which increase the supply of air (thereby increasing oxygen concentration). They are:
· the air pump
· t-pieces
· rubber tubing
· clamp or regulator
· diffusers or airstone
Air pumps come in different shapes and sizes, but the most popular are the tecax air pump from Taiwan together with ‘dyna free, and the dragon’. Another popular one is super 555 from India, which although cheaper, is not as rugged. Occasionally available are the more expensive whisper and rens air pumps from UK and France respectively. Always place air pumps above the water level hooked to a non-vibrating material.
You can accomplish aeration in your aquarium tank by using the aeration materials listed above. These materials form the aeration system. For small tanks all you need is to attach a simple aquarium air pump to an airstone by means of a rubber air tube. The system will blow air into the water, thus causing motion in the aquarium tank and providing necessary oxygen your fish need to breathe in your aquarium.