How to Acclimate Salt Water Fish
Measure the specific gravity of your tank., Adjust the tank's salinity if needed., Transfer your fish to the tank.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Measure the specific gravity of your tank.
The specific gravity of a body of water is its relative salinity in relation to pure water.
A higher specific gravity means that there is a higher percentage of salt dissolved in that water.You can measure the specific gravity using a refractometer.
These devices can be purchased through an online retailer or from some pet stores.
Place one or two drops of salt water into the refractometer.
Hold the device towards a light source and look through the lens.
Record the specific gravity reading in the lens.
The ideal specific gravity of a reef aquarium is between
1.023 and
1.025.
The ideal specific gravity of a fish only with live rock (FOWLR) aquarium is
1.020 to
1.025. -
Step 2: Adjust the tank's salinity if needed.
If your tank has a higher or lower specific gravity than your fish's transportation bag, you'll need to adjust your tank's salinity accordingly.
Note that it's easier for a fish to adjust to a lower salinity than a higher salinity.
An increase in water salinity is more likely to shock a fish than a decrease.You can lower the salinity of your aquarium water by diluting it with clean, fresh water.
You can raise your aquarium's salinity by adding more aquarium salt to your tank.
Remember that making these changes to a tank that's already populated with fish could stress or kill those fish.
For this reason, you'll want to use a quarantine tank to acclimate your new fish before adding it to your primary aquarium. , Once you've adjusted your aquarium's specific gravity to meet your fish's transportation bag, your fish can be transferred into the aquarium.
Make sure the tank's temperature and pH are acceptable for your fish, then use a fine mesh fish net to carefully transfer your fish into the tank.Try to avoid pouring any water from the transportation bag into the aquarium. -
Step 3: Transfer your fish to the tank.
Detailed Guide
The specific gravity of a body of water is its relative salinity in relation to pure water.
A higher specific gravity means that there is a higher percentage of salt dissolved in that water.You can measure the specific gravity using a refractometer.
These devices can be purchased through an online retailer or from some pet stores.
Place one or two drops of salt water into the refractometer.
Hold the device towards a light source and look through the lens.
Record the specific gravity reading in the lens.
The ideal specific gravity of a reef aquarium is between
1.023 and
1.025.
The ideal specific gravity of a fish only with live rock (FOWLR) aquarium is
1.020 to
1.025.
If your tank has a higher or lower specific gravity than your fish's transportation bag, you'll need to adjust your tank's salinity accordingly.
Note that it's easier for a fish to adjust to a lower salinity than a higher salinity.
An increase in water salinity is more likely to shock a fish than a decrease.You can lower the salinity of your aquarium water by diluting it with clean, fresh water.
You can raise your aquarium's salinity by adding more aquarium salt to your tank.
Remember that making these changes to a tank that's already populated with fish could stress or kill those fish.
For this reason, you'll want to use a quarantine tank to acclimate your new fish before adding it to your primary aquarium. , Once you've adjusted your aquarium's specific gravity to meet your fish's transportation bag, your fish can be transferred into the aquarium.
Make sure the tank's temperature and pH are acceptable for your fish, then use a fine mesh fish net to carefully transfer your fish into the tank.Try to avoid pouring any water from the transportation bag into the aquarium.
About the Author
John Russell
Brings years of experience writing about creative arts and related subjects.
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