Raising tropical fish, changing the water is a very common thing, but many tropical fish die because of improper water changes. So how to change the water is also a big question for fish farmers. Exactly how to change the water, many people are asking, many people are pondering. Here are some things that you should pay attention to when changing the water of tropical fish, and share them with you.

Water Preparation

In general, we all use tap water in urban areas, and well water may be used in suburban or rural areas. Let's talk about tap water first. Tap water contains bleaching powder or chlorine dioxide, because the current tap water is generally disinfected with these two substances. The sterilizing effect is the hypochlorous acid generated by bleaching powder or chlorine dioxide in water. When breeding tropical fish, it is necessary to remove these substances first, because it will have a strong irritant to the gills of fish.

These substances are easy to decompose under strong light, so we need to expose the water to the sun. What we usually call aeration is to expose these substances that are irritating to fish. When the content of these substances is low, it is usually enough to dry for one day on a sunny day. Of course, it is not ruled out that the content of tap water in some places exceeds the standard, so it is necessary to dry for one more day. In addition, the weather will also affect the effect of aeration. The better the sun, the shorter the aeration time. Well water pays attention to the temperature difference, aeration and the nitrate content in the water. If the nitrate content is high, it cannot be used.

Acidity and alkalinity (ph value): Before officially starting to raise tropical fish, I suggest that you test the local water quality yourself. It is enough to have a general understanding. If it is not suitable for the fish you are raising, then To be adjusted, there are many adjustment methods for partial acid or partial alkali. We won't go into specifics here.

Dissolved oxygen: the water that has been aerated must be inflated before the water can be changed, especially when a large water change is performed, it must be inflated first to prevent hypoxia. adapt to the new water quality.

Hardness: The hardness of the newly replaced water may be higher than that of the original tank water. If the fish is not demanding in this regard, it can be ignored. If necessary, ion exchange resin can be used to reduce the hardness.

Temperature: The temperature difference must be well controlled when changing the water. Generally, the difference should not exceed 4°C, and in special cases, it should not exceed 1°C.   Partial water change and full water change

If we only need to change part of the water, there is no need to fish out the fish, and use a siphon to remove the feces and residual bait at the bottom of the fish tank. Just suck it out. Under normal circumstances, the amount of water for part of the water change is no more than a quarter of the water in the entire fish tank, and then the new water is slowly injected into the fish tank. When to change how much water, it depends on the specific situation. Generally, more than half of the water will be changed after taking the medicine, and the water should be prepared in advance. Under normal circumstances, according to the different habits of different fish, fish that like new water should change one-fifth of the water every day, and fish that like old water should change one-fifth to one-quarter of the water every week.

All water changes are usually done when a large number of drugs are used, or when the fish tank is cleaned. When the fish is sick, in order to save the amount of medicine, a part of the water is often drawn out and then added with medicine. In this way, the dosage of medicine per unit of water body is reduced, and the concentration of the medicine remains unchanged. , and then fish out the fish, or pump out more than 90% of the water and refill it with water. Generally, the aquatic plant tank needs to be cleaned regularly. You can fish out the fish, take out all the water, then take out the aquatic plants and decorations in the tank, clean all the stones and gravel in the tank, and then re-arrange the fish tank.

A trick for changing the water of the siphon: I choose a hose for the siphon, and the front end of the pipe is covered with a hard pipe, so that when the sundries at the bottom of the tank are extracted, the hand will not be immersed in the water too much. A lot, and it won't be too hard because the tube is too soft. Before pumping, many aquarists do not have a special siphon and use their mouth to suck the end of the tube to siphon the water out, which is very unsanitary. My method is to put the front end and the back part of the tube into the water, let the water soak into the front part of the tube, then pinch the back of the tube with your hands, and then quickly take out the water that enters the water part of the tube (the tube head cannot leave water surface), release the pinched tube, and the water will automatically siphon out, so that you don't need to suck the end of the tube with your mouth, which is much more hygienic.