Care Guide for Cherry Barbs — Peaceful Barb for Community Tanks Barbs often get a bad reputation because of their boisterous, fin-nipping behavior, but cherry barbs are an exception to the rule. This 2-inch (5 cm) schooling fish acts like your average, mild-mannered tetra and mixes well with other community fish. They are commonly sold at pet stores because of their vivid redness, energetic personality, and ease of breeding. Learn all about how to care for this popular and peaceful barb. What are Cherry Barbs? Puntius titteya are found in the rainforests ...

How to Balance Aquarium Lighting to Grow Healthy Plants (and Avoid Algae) A brand-new planted tank always looks so beautiful and pristine, but if the tank is unbalanced, those same plants may become sickly-looking and overrun with algae within a couple of months. Plants and algae both use the same resources— such as light, nutrients, and carbon dioxide — so the goal is to balance these resources so that the plants grow stronger and outcompete the algae. For instance, too much or too little light can cause algae growth, so we need to fine-tune it for optimal plant g...

How to Pick the Best Fish Foods That Aquarium Fish Can’t Resist With so many brands and types of fish foods at the pet store, how do you know which one to get? Many beginners just reach for a jar that has a picture of their fish on the front without considering whether or not their fish will actually eat it. Living animals actually have preferences when it comes to the taste, ingredients, and form factor, and picky eaters may even refuse the most expensive, high-quality brands if they don’t suit their needs. Let’s talk about the different types of fish fo...

Top 7 Oddball Fish for a 30-Gallon Aquarium If you’ve already kept all of the most popular fish in the aquarium hobby, you may be looking for some oddball species to try. They tend to be unusual in appearance, have special care requirements, or may be harder to source. Because of their rarity, your friends and family are bound to ask what kind of strange creature they just spotted lurking in your aquarium. In previous articles, we covered our favorite choices for nano tanks, so let’s talk about the top 7 medium-sized oddballs for 29- o...

Care Guide for Cherry Shrimp — Tank Setup, Food, and Breeding The aquarium hobby is crazy about Neocaridina cherry shrimp and for good reason too. Not only are they excellent clean-up crew members that eat algae and leftover fish food, but they come in almost every color of the rainbow and are tiny enough to fit in a 2-gallon nano tank. Compared to other types of ornamental shrimp, they are pretty beginner-friendly and can handle a wide range of water parameters. Finally, these adorable critters are very easy to breed and can be sold at local fish store...

Top 10 Aquarium Fish That Love Hard Water Did you know that certain aquarium fish may not do well in your home because they prefer water parameters that are very different from your tap water? For example, if the pH and GH (or general hardness) coming out of your faucet are very high, then discus, crystal shrimp, and other creatures from soft water environments may be more difficult to keep. That being said, do not despair if your water hardness is off the charts and considered to be “liquid rock.” Many species thrive in hard water e...

Care Guide for Rummy-Nose Tetras — Aquatic Canary in the Coal Mine The rummy-nose tetra is a long-time favorite in the hobby because of its unique colors and tight schooling behavior, which is why it ranks in the top 20 fish sold at our retail fish store. This outgoing fish gets its common name comes from the reddish flush on its face, and there’s nothing like seeing a large group of gorgeous redheads darting back and forth amidst an emerald forest of live aquarium plants. Learn more about this dazzling tetra and how to best bring out its crimson colors. Wha...

Colony Breeding: The Easiest Way to Breed Livebearers for Profit Breeding livebearers like guppies, mollies, and platies is not difficult, and many hobbyists joke that all you need to do is add water. But what if you want to produce large numbers of fish to sell for profit at your local fish store or aquarium society? In addition, what if you are limited by budget or space and cannot afford to set up tons of tanks or giant ponds like the commercial farms? Keep reading to see how we’ve produced hundreds of livebearers in a single fish tank with minimal effo...

How to Fertilize Your Planted Tank the EASY Way We're big proponents of getting live aquatic plants because of their natural beauty and ability to purify water, but a common question we get is, “Do I need to fertilize my aquarium plants?” From our experience, most people have to fertilize because fish waste does not provide the proper amounts of nitrate, potassium, phosphate, and other trace minerals that plants require to flourish. Another big factor is your local tap water. If you live on well water, your water may contain lots of he...

Care Guide for Chili Rasboras — Spicy Red Nano Fish for Planted Tanks If you are thinking of setting up a nano tank with live aquarium plants, then you have to try chili rasboras or mosquito rasboras. Unlike most red aquarium fish that tend to have a warmer, red-orange hue, these tiny rasboras display a deep, cool-toned red with distinct black markings. However, they often get passed over because the juveniles sold at pet stores are miniscule and look washed-out. Find out what it takes to raise these stunning nano fish so they reach their full adult coloration ...

Care Guide for Ember Tetras — Orange Jewels of the Nano Aquarium A staple of the freshwater nano aquarium world is the ember tetra. Just imagine a school of tiny, flame-colored fish darting back and forth amongst a lush forest of green aquarium plants. Plus, its peaceful nature and hardiness makes it an attractive choice for both beginners and veterans in the fishkeeping hobby. If you’ve never tried keeping ember tetras before, then keep reading to find out why they’re such a top-selling species at our fish store. What are Ember Tetras? Hyphessobrycon aman...

Top 5 Oddball Fish for a 20-Gallon Aquarium Looking for a fish that is bizarre in appearance, has unique behaviors, or is rarer in availability? In the aquarium hobby, we have a whole category dedicated to these “oddball fish.” Some species are quite hardy and easy to keep, while others have specialized care requirements to accommodate their unusual physiology. Learn about 5 of the coolest oddballs that you can keep in a 20-gallon aquarium. 1. Marbled Hachetfish Carnegiella strigata This 1.25-inch (3 cm) species is one of the smallest...

How to Treat Camallanus Red Worms in Aquarium Fish Fish diseases can be notoriously hard to diagnose, but one of the more easily recognizable illnesses is an internal parasite called the camallanus red worm. There are multiple species of nematodes or roundworms that are part of the Camallanus genus that can infect aquarium fish. They feed by attaching to the intestinal walls and can often co-exist with their host for a long time. However, added stress factors like bad water quality or tank aggression may weaken the immune system, allowing the...

Top 10 Amazing Rainbowfish for Your Next Freshwater Aquarium Rainbowfish and blue-eyes are a unique group of colorful, community fish that can be found primarily in the freshwater habitats of Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Australia. These energetic schooling fish usually hang out in the top half of the fish tank, so make sure to keep a tight aquarium lid to prevent them from jumping out. While males are more vibrant than females, we recommend keeping more females than males to ensure that the boys show off their brightest colors. Having both sexes a...

Top 10 Aquarium Plants for Breeding Fish and Raising Fry If you plan on breeding fish and want to increase the survival rate and growth of the babies, we love using live aquarium plants. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but the foliage serves as spawning sites for the parents to lay their eggs. Once the newborns hatch, they need constant feedings to keep their small stomachs full, and the plants help cultivate the growth of microfauna that the fry can graze on. They also purify the water by absorbing the toxic waste chemicals produced by the...

Top 10 Midwater Schooling Fish for Your Next Aquarium When planning out what kind of fish to add to an aquarium, we like to pick species that live in different layers of the water column. Instead of having animals that cluster in the same area, the entire tank is filled with interesting activity. Since we’ve already talked about our favorite top-dwelling fish and bottom dwellers, let’s show off the most colorful and lively options that swim in the middle of the aquarium. 1. Green Neon Tetra Paracheirodon simulans The green neon tetra is the sm...