Hi to all we now have an online shop come in and visit we have a massive collection and all at the best prices
http://shop.exoticfishspecies.com
hope to see you soon : )
February 21, 2012
NEW SHOP
January 25, 2012
How to set up your step by step aquarium
Thought we could give you a step by step guide to set up an aquarium hope it helps.
Step 1: Clean the aquarium
Clean the glass thoroughly with warm water and a soft
clean sponge. Chemical (also biological) cleaning agents
are strictly taboo!
Step 2: Add the gravel substrate
Plants need the correct substrate to form roots and take
up food. Also certain types of fish like to dig around in
the gravel looking for food and algae.
• Usually the best is medium sized gravel pieces
(2 – 3 mm). Only certain fish need gravel of smaller
size pieces or sand. With larger size gravel pieces,
fish food remains often fall between the stones, cannot be reached by the fish and rot.
• Use smooth surface gravel as that the fish cannot
injure themselves.
• Choose a natural, not too bright coloured gravel.
(A bright substrate and reflected light can cause many
fish to feel unwell.)
• Wash the gravel thoroughly with warm water.
• First, spread a layer of fertiliser (granulate or flat) in
your aquarium.
• Secondly, mix a first layer of gravel – approx. 2 cm –
with gravel fertiliser and spread this over the top.
• Thirdly cover this with a layer just of gravel –
approx. 3 to 6 cm.
Step 3: Installing electrical equipment
The equipment you use depends on the size and type of
your aquarium, the number and type of fish and you
personal preferences.
Basically you need:
• good lighting
• a heater, eg. EHEIM JÄGER heater
• a thermometer
• an efficient internal or external filter, filled with the
recommended filter media
http://exoticfishspecies.com/heating-for-your-exotic-fish-aquarium
Step 4: Decoration
Stones (rocks) or wood add realism to the underwater
landscape and the fish use them as a hiding place or to
mark their territory. Don’t overfill, so that the plants and
fish have enough room.
• Clean all decorations with a brush under running water.
• Use only stones, which do not leach into the water,
contain no lime and no metal inclusions. Avoid corals, marble and sea shells. Lava or slate stone are
especially suitable.
• Before using any other woods or roots as decoration,
get some advice from your specialist retailer.
Step 5: Add a little water
So that the substrate is weighed down and softened, add
about 20 to 30 cm luke warm water (tap water, approx.
24 °C). Take care – a good idea is to gently pour the water
in over the edge of a bowl or plate, so that the substrate
isn’t disturbed.
Step 6: Put in the plants
In the next pages you will find out which plants are suitable, how they react and how to feed them.
Don’t forget that most plants are still growing.
• Put larger plants at the back, smaller ones to the front.
• Carefully remove all plastic and other packaging material.
• Cut off any dead leaves and stems.
• With rosette shaped plants, you can cut off about a
third of the roots.
• Push the stems and roots upright into the gravel with,
for instance a pair of flat tweezers and then pull the
plant back out as far as the beginnings of the roots.
Step 7: Fill with water and switch on the equipment
When the electrical equipment has been installed, fill the
aquarium up with water:
• lukewarm tap water (approx. 24-25 °C),
• till just below the top of the tank (approx. 2-3 cm)
• Add water conditioner to get the best quality water for
your fish So that the plants become active and the bacteria can
effectively begin to colonise, start running your aquarium:
• Switch on the lights and set the timer to 8 to 10 hours,
• run the filter constantly (day and night),
• set heater at approx. 25 °C.
Step 8: Give it time to improve the eco-system
Before you can introduce the first fish, your aquarium
has to attain an ecological balance. This maturing phase
can last up to three weeks.
• If you don’t want to wait so long, you can speed up
the process with certain preparations and “seed“ the
tank with bacteria.
• In order to trap toxins, you should add a layer of
active carbon (in an external filter) (see p. 23).
• After 2 or 3 days the plants generally need more fertiliser (AQUA FLUID 7).
• Periodically check the water temperature; for most
fish it should be about 24 to 25 °C.
• Regarding fertiliser and water test kits, you should ask
your specialist aquatic retailer and read the information on following pages.
http://exoticfishspecies.com/heating-for-your-exotic-fish-aquarium
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December 27, 2011
Heating for your Exotic fish Aquarium
Hi again from exoticfishspecies.com in this post we will be talking about the Heating for your Exotic fish Aquarium.
Although, by definition, tropical fish come from tropical regions of the world, aquaria even in the tropics very often require additional heating. This has nothing to do with the ambient temperature, of course, but rather with the temperatures that exist inside many 
air-conditioned houses and offices in such parts of the world. Therefore, a freshwater tropical aquarium in, lets say Singapore is just as likely to require the provision of additional heating as an aquarium in a heated or office in Sydney.
At the more sophisticated end of the market, there are superb heating systems that allow for very accurate temperature monitoring and adjustment. There are also canister filters which incorporate a heating element, under gravel heating cables or plates, and various other in tank approaches to temperature control. Among specialist hobbyist, space heating the heating of a room set aside specifically for aquaria-is very popular. Yet even these specialist tend to have a back-up in the form of a traditional heater-thermostat unit in each Exotic fish Aquarium. These traditional units have been around for years and have been progressively refined so that they aer not only highly efficient, but also long-lasting and easy to adjust. At the heart of each heater is a coiled heating element which is switched on or off, depending on the temperature of the water, by a thermostat (either an electronic one, or one based on the old tried and tested bi-metallic strip principle) that can be adjusted t meet the requirements of the fish and plants. Both the heating unit and the thermostat are usually housed together in a heat-dissipating tube.
When choosing a heater-thermostat, always aim for one that provides the required heat, with some spare capacity to cope with unforeseen conditions, such as the breakdown of the house’s heating system during winter. The accompanying table list some approximate wattage requirements for the three most popular sizes of standard aquaria housed in a reasonably well-heated room. For clod rooms, double it to be on the safe side.
Aquarium Size Wattage Required
Centimeters (Inches)
60x30x30 (24x12x12) 75-100
90x30x37 (36x12x15) 100-150
120x37x37 (48x15x15) 120-180
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December 27, 2011
Filters For Your Aquarium
Hi again from exoticfishspecies.com in this post we thought we would keep the wrting down, as we dont want you getting bord so we put a video in all about Filters.
So we hope this video was helpfull, next post will be on heating.
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December 20, 2011
Tanks for exotic fish species
Hi again from Exoticfishspecies.com
Today we will be talking about the TANK that you will be keeping your Exotic fish species in.
Many years ago, goldfish bowls were all the rage. Then, as often happens, fashions change and, as they did, the popularity of this once ubiquitous fish ‘container’ waned. Other factors have contributed to the decline,prominent among these being the oft-quoted declaration that the goldfish bowls are ‘torture chambers’.
This is one of the several myths relating to our hobby, that are repeated so often that they are in danger of becoming excepted as self-evident truths, the reality is somewhat different. If you buy a same goldfish bowl and attempt to keep several ( even moderately sized) fish species in it, then without a shadow of a doubt it will become a genuine torture chamber. If, however, you install a proper goldfish bowl aeration/filtration kit, and keep just one or two small fish species, and if you establish a sensible maintenance regime, there is no reason why the fish should not live a healthy, happy life.
The most important thing we can advise is that BIGGER is BETTER when it come to choosing a tank for your new Exotic fish aquarium. There are several reasons for this, and all are linked, either directly or indirectly, to water quality. Contrary to common belief, smaller volumes are more difficult to maintain in healthy state than larger ones. The problem with small volumes is that, by their very nature, they cannot easily accommodate fluctuating conditions. There, just as they react more quickly to heating and cooling, they also deteriorate in overall quality far more rapidly than larger volumes if and when, for example, a fish dies and goes unnoticed for some time, or if so much food is provided in one go that some of it remains uneaten and begins to rot, or if slight overdose of medication is administered, or if stocking levels are exceeded, or if a partial water change is carried out…and so on. Larger volumes have greater in-built buffering (cushioning) capacity and ,consequently, offer the aquarist – particularly the newcomer to the hobby – a wider margin of error. The minimum size that we would recommend for a first aquarium, not just to such aquarist but also ti those who intend to restrict their activities to a single tank, is to opt for a 60 x 30 x 30cm (24 x 12 x 12in) aquarium. More is explained inside this e-book.
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December 18, 2011
Welcome to Exoticfishspecies.com
Welcome to Exoticfishspecies.com
In this first blog were just giving an introduction in to the world of freshwater Exotic fish species. If you have never kept fish before, the chances are that you will no some who has… or does and hopefully you will find some interesting info in these articles.
Some people enter this hobby and remain in the single-tank owners club, others begin with one aquarium and end up building special rooms or separate buildings for their ever-expanding collection. Some of us develop a hunger for aquatically-related knowledge that can only be satisfied through studying, be it with books or online. Some people even go to the extent of visiting the real life habitats where all the freshwater Exotic fish species live and thrive(see this wiki page for more info), other take a more laid-back approach and concentrate on enjoying their community aquarium and occasionally visiting their local dealer. The great beauty of our hobby is that all these approaches plus countless others, are equally valid, there’s room for all our various and varying tastes, with space to spare.
Setting up an Exotic fish freshwater tropical aquarium is always an exciting and enjoyable activity. Setting up your fist aquarium is even more special. It is also a journey of discovery and time of mounting expectation as you prepare your tank for the first time. When starting for the first time or if your experienced its always a good idea to have books to help you there are so many to choose from out there but we can point you in the right direction in our up coming posts. The first thing you we learn is that you can’t rush nature all you can do is help it along, but if you demand too much, too quickly, the inevitable consequence is disaster and disappointment. This does not mean that there is only one method of successfully setting up an aquarium, what are inflexible and most be observed are nature’s laws. If conditions inside an aquarium are such that they will only accommodate a certain number or type of fish and/ or plant, then there’s very little that can be done about this, unless the conditions are modified. For example, if a particular type of fish can only tolerate to coax it (or force it) into tolerating a higher concentration by introducing one or more exotic species will just not work. In fact, what will happen sooner or later (usually sooner!) is that all the fish will suffer. However, if we can find a way of keeping toxin levels under control, for instance, by installing an effective treatments system, then all the fish are more likely to survive. It is with this overriding consideration in mind that the well-being of our fish and plants is paramount aspects of keeping an Exotic fish species aquarium.
