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 Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2008 4:17 am
Okay so i'm just going to kill three birds with one stone (figuratively of course... poor birdies) and discuss/ask about three things.
1. Do fish ever sleep?? I mean they shouldn't ever mope around, dwelling on the floor but someone told me that what they do when they sleep... i don't believe her... XP If they do sleep what do they look like??
2. Is it alright to leave the aquarium light on 24/7? Because wouldn't it disorientate their sense of day/night? Does it really matter if it disorientates their sense of day and night? Do they even have a sense of day and night??
3. Tanks are so damn expensive and i can't find the perfect one that i want. At the moment i've got a 34L tank which is just under 10 gallons i think and really want to get a bigger one so i can get bigger/more fish. Obviously not NOW but within the year at least while i get used to the fish i have now. Anyway as i said they're so expensive -_- and never seem to be exactly right so i thought, "Hey! Why don't i make my own custom one!" With the help of my handy Daddy who claims he made one years back when i was too young to remember.
Is it a good idea? Would it be cheaper do you think? What could i do in terms of the top lid... I've been researching and they say a glass lid is a big no-no. And i'll need holes for cords from the heaters etc... (I'm planning on having freshwater tropical fish)
Basically i think it'll be alot more exciting to build it as well as it being cheaper, after all i am a poor uni student -_- I need to keep my money to live.
Have any of you guys ever built your own fish tank? Thought of it? Can give me some pointers or any info. i might need?
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Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2008 7:22 am
I'm going to be blunt. I'm a fishy newbie and also a poor university student myself. But I can answer two of your questions from what I've heard and my experience.
Fish do "Sleep" Since fish don't have eye lids they will go somewhere in your tank to sleep. If you have decorations in your current tank with a filter they will most likely go hide in one of your decorations or near it for cover and where the current is moderate but slow. Usually that's near the bottom and in a corner. Watch it carefully. If around the time of early daylight and night time your fish's activity is low and it seems to lazyily swimming or floating its "sleeping" but if its like that even during daylight it's probably sick or stressed. Watch their fins too. Healthy fish look like healthy fish with their fines up and fanned. Unhealthy fish that mull at the bottom with their fins semi closed or down it means they're not feeling well.
My uncle's tank had a light and kept it on 24 hours and the fish didn't seem to be bothered by it. But it would also mean that they would sleep at what ever time they were tired so you couldn't tell if the fish is sleeping or not feeling well. My aunt finally took over the care of the tank and did lights on when it was light out and off when she was about to go to sleep, that way there was some establishment of light and day. I don't have a light on my tank since its in veiw of the window and so natural light lights the tank and darkens when its dark out.
I don't know much about building a tank. But getting one with the right dimensions is a good idea though. As for the top you can get a top rather cheaply at the pet shop. I have a wire cover. It fits onto the top of my tank like a box cover. Its a mesh wire cover. The only problem with it is the black "paint" is peeling because of the water exposure and the wire near the filter is rusting. If you are getting a beginners tank with not that many fish you can get a 10 gal. I have a ten gal and its too small with the number of fish I have now, I need at least a 20. But for now. the fish will have to live in the 10 gal with a every 2 week or so water change. (since they are 4 comets in a 10 gal.) ( I went and bought several comets to get a tank mate expecting all to die except 1 but 3 ended up living....so now with them and my other fish its 4 comets in a 10 gal)
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Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2008 3:16 pm
Thanks alot Ta Lu ^^
My first two fish that were mollies used to mope around on the floor and i used to get really worried about them but my friend kept saying it was just sleeping. One of them died within the week but the other got much better and seems perfectly fine now. I suspect that they were sick when i bought them 'cause they were from the same tank and they all looked similar.
I'll keep the light thing in mind just so it'll be easier to monitor the fish's behaviours. Also i'm a little worried about getting a wire top because of the smell. Although it's not hugely terrible you can still smell a fish tank just because of the bacteria/fish in the water and stuff. It might attract mosquitoes... XP It's summer here and because i don't have air conditioning in my room i like to open up the windows in the morning/night.
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Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2008 5:13 pm
You needn't worry about the smell. If you have a filter it will filter the water and the wastes. Plus it will keep the water moving so that will prevent it from becomeing stale. Fish tanks normally will not smell bad unless you over stock them with dirty fish *like golds lol* or you don't clean the tank. You need to keep an open top some how. The moving water is the factor that captures the oxygen in the air and dissolves it into the water. Without an open surface your fish will suffocate and the gaseous wastes will not leave the tank either.
Mosquitos love still water and will only be attracted to it if there is a definate food source. Bad smells come if the water if bad. There is an accumulation of fish waste and excess food in the water. The only thing you would probably be worried would be flies but I doubt if you keep clean it will attract them.
Keep the tank away from the window, especially if it has direct sunlight that will promote algae growth and will heat your tank which may also cause the "fishy" smell. Keep your fish in a shaded area.
For the cover there are also aquarium hoods that are equiped with a light and has a cover. Its slightly curved to allow air flow and the most major opening is the hole slot for the filter. And theres a lid that you can open and close whenever you want.
Heres an example of a cover. http://images.aquariumsdirect.com/mgen/master:BCL136.jpg
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