Top 10 Tetras for Your Next Community Aquarium Tetras (also known as characids or characins from the Characidae family) are a staple of the freshwater aquarium hobby because many of them are colorful, peaceful schooling fish that go well in community tanks. South American tetras are more popular because of their small size and relatively inexpensive price, but they often prefer softer water and lower pH environments. African tetras, on the other hand, tend to be larger and more accepting of a wide range of water parameters, so they can be...

7 Best Foreground Plants for Your Next Planted Aquarium When beginners build their first planted aquarium, they usually buy any plant catches their eye and plunk it down wherever there’s an empty space in the tank. However, if you want to take your planted tank to the next level, consider incorporating some tried-and-true design techniques. A good rule of thumb is to plan out the aquarium in layers from front to back, such that the shortest plants are in the foreground and the tallest plants are in the background. This bleacher-style arrangement e...

How to Feed Frozen Fish Food to Your Aquarium Feeding only fish flakes or wafers to your aquarium fish is like the human equivalent of only eating protein bars every day. Yes, they contain a well-balanced mixture of nutritious ingredients, but wouldn’t it be nice to treat your fish to a sumptuous roast chicken dinner every once in a while? Then you should try frozen fish foods. This premium-grade fish food is packed with high-quality proteins, healthy fatty acids, and gut-loaded vitamins. After live foods, frozen foods are the next close...

10 Best Loaches You Have to Try If you’re looking to add a lot of fun and excitement to the bottom third of your fish tank, loaches might be the perfect fit for you. It’s hard to describe this very diverse group of freshwater bottom dwellers, but many of them have a long-bodied shape, scaleless appearance, and whisker-like barbels on their faces. Find out which ones we love the most and how to best care for them. 1. Clown Loach (Chromobotia macracanthus) These gorgeous loaches are popular in the aquarium hobby because of...

Care Guide for GloFish – Fluorescent Fish for Beginners Have you seen the bright, neon-colored fish at the pet store and wondered what they are? GloFish® are an extremely popular fish among beginners because of their stunning rainbow colors, energetic behavior, and resilient ability to live in a wide range of water conditions. Find out how they got their fluorescent glow and how to care for them so they live a long and healthy life. What are GloFish? GloFish are not just one type of fish but rather a collection of freshwater species that have been...

Care Guide for Tiger Barbs – Colorful and Rowdy Schooling Fish Tiger barbs are often sold at pet store chains to beginners because of their bright colors and strong schooling behavior, but they sometimes get a bad reputation for fin nipping other fish. If you like the action-packed, boisterous energy of African cichlids in a slightly smaller package, keep reading to find out what it takes to care for this fun and fast-paced species. What Are Tiger Barbs? Puntigrus tetrazona is a 2.5- to 3-inch (6-8 cm) barb fish that originally comes from Indonesia and s...

CO2 in Planted Aquariums: Pros and Cons to Consider In the planted tank hobby, you may have heard of two types of aquariums: high tech tanks that inject carbon dioxide (CO2) gas and low tech tanks that do not. CO2 gas is often touted as the magic key for causing plants to grow insanely fast and algae to disappear without a trace. Let’s talk about what CO2 actually does for aquarium plants, as well as some of the pros and cons of using it. CO2 is Used for Photosynthesis Have you ever heard the saying “carbon is the backbone of life”? That phras...

Top 5 Dither Fish to Help Shy or Aggressive Fish If you have timid or territorial fish in your aquarium, try calming them down with dither fish. Dither fish have outgoing personalities and swim out in the open all the time. Their confident behavior signifies to shy fish that there is no immediate danger and it is safe to come out of hiding. A large group of dither fish also helps to distract and diffuse the hostility from fish bullies so that they can’t single out any one fish. Learn more about the best dither fish that can change the dynam...

Care Guide for Clown Killifish – Colorful, Top-Dwelling Nano Fish Looking for a colorful, little fish that stays in the upper third of your nano aquarium? Say hello to Epiplatys annulatus, also known as the clown killi, rocket killifish, and banded panchax. These common names come from the alternating vertical bands of dark brown and tannish-yellow on its body and the vibrant, flame-like tail that males possess. While adult killies can reach up to 1.4 inches (3.5 cm), most of the fish sold at stores are juveniles around 0.5 inch long and won’t display their...

How to Care for Aquarium Fish While on Vacation When going out of town, it can be stressful trying to arrange care for your pets. Thankfully, aquarium fish are generally on the easier side of care requirements because you don’t need to walk them, let them out to use the restroom, or even feed them every day. Here are four methods we recommend for ensuring your fish stay happy and healthy while you’re away. Before You Leave… Give your fish tank a good cleaning a couple of days before your departure. Do a partial water change, vacuum the sub...

How to Grow Aquarium Plants for Profit Caring for live aquatic plants can begin with a bit of a learning curve, but once your planted aquarium starts flourishing and becomes overgrown, what do you do with all the extra vegetation? Is it possible to sell your extra trimmings as an extra source of income? As with most side hustles, you need to determine how much time, money, and effort you are willing to invest. Some people are hobbyists who just want a little fun money to help offset their aquarium keeping costs, while others are m...

Staff Picks: 10 Perfect Gifts for the Aquarium Co-Op Enthusiast If you’re searching for the perfect gift for the fish hobbyist in your life, look no further than this handy gift-buying guide from Aquarium Co-Op. To ring in the holiday season, we asked some of our friends and employees about their favorite Co-Op merch and essentials, and this is what we learned: Aquarium Co-Op Hoodie Jimmy's pick Whether it’s a run to the grocery store or to the backyard to check on his ricefish breeding ponds, Jimmy is probably wearing his Aquarium Co-Op hoodie. It’s...

10 Smart Ways to Use an Aquarium Catch Cup or Specimen Container Have you ever seen those clear rectangle boxes hanging on the outside of tanks at your local fish store? You are looking at one of the most versatile tools in the fish keeping hobby – the aquarium specimen container or catch cup. It acts like a small, transparent bucket for observing fish, holding aquarium supplies, and a million other uses. Learn about the top 10 ways we find ourselves using catch cups every day at our retail fish store and personal fish tanks. 1. Observation It can be hard ...

Care Guide for Clown Loaches – The Pack of Underwater Puppies Thinking about getting a group of clown loaches? Then you’re in for a treat. These jovial giants are an absolute pleasure to keep, and we’ve had the privilege of owning them for more than 10 years. That being said, they do come with a few caveats if you want to successfully raise them to their full potential. Based on our experiences, here are some of the delights and pitfalls of caring for clown loaches that you should know before making the leap. What is a Clown Loach? Chromobotia macracant...

Our 5 Favorite Aquarium Plants That Everyone Should Try If you have ever tried to buy live aquatic plants online, it can be a bit overwhelming when looking at all the different species, care requirements, and difficulty levels. At Aquarium Co-Op, we strive to provide a curated selection of the easiest, hardiest plants in the hobby, but sometimes it can be nice to just talk to someone at the store and get a few personal recommendations. That’s why we interviewed our CEO Cory McElroy to find out what his current favorite plants are that he thinks ev...

How to Increase Water Circulation in Your Aquarium Water circulation is commonly discussed in the saltwater aquarium hobby in order to imitate the movement of waves, but not having enough flow can also be a problem in freshwater setups. Fish tanks (especially large ones) with lots of decorations or hardscape can develop dead zones where lots of debris collects and algae starts to grow. Increasing water circulation can help (a) stir up waste particles so they get collected by the filter, (b) evenly distribute nutrients for aquarium plants to c...