Care Guide for Freshwater Angelfish – The Feisty Angel of the Aquarium Angelfish are a very popular fish because of their long and majestic fins, spirited personalities, and ease of breeding. To learn more about this unique cichlid, we sat down with master breeder Dean, who has successfully kept them for the past 40 to 50 years and produces high-end strains to sell at the Aquarium Co-Op fish store. This article reveals his real-world experiences and answers to the most frequently asked questions about keeping freshwater angelfish. What are Angelfish? There can b...

5 Best Fish Tank Ideas for a 20-Gallon Aquarium Getting a new 20-gallon aquarium is like starting with a fresh, blank canvas. There are so many possibilities when it comes to choosing the decorations, live plants, and of course aquarium fish. If you’re stuck in analysis paralysis from all the choices, here are five of our favorite setup ideas to help inspire you. 1. The “I Just Want It to Look Good” Aquarium Unless you’re an expert aquascaper or creative artist type, it may be difficult for you to come up with an intricately beautiful desi...

Top 10 Fish for a 10-Gallon Aquarium One of our most frequently asked questions is “What can I put in a 10-gallon aquarium?” When you’re surrounded by hundreds of freshwater fish at a fish store, the possibilities just seem endless! Whether you like livebearers, cichlids, or killifish, check out our top 10 list of both popular and uncommon fish to help you discover a new species that you just have to try. 1. Brown Pencilfish Let’s start off with a top-dwelling fish, which can be hard to find for a 10-gallon tank. Nannostomus equ...

Care Guide for Plecos – The Mighty Armored Catfish Are you looking for a suckerfish to keep your aquarium clean? Many people automatically turn to plecostomus catfish (or plecos), thinking that they’ll magically vacuum up all the fish poop and debris in the tank. Before you make the purchase, let’s talk about this amazing animal, their care requirements, and whether or not plecos are the right pet fish for you. What are Plecos? Plecostomus is the common name given to the Loricariidae family of armored suckermouth catfish that come from Centra...

How to Make a Mini Outdoor Pond for Aquarium Fish When the weather warms up and summer is upon us, everyone is itching to go outside. What better way to enjoy nature than to set up your first mini pond for breeding aquarium fish? If you live in a temperate climate that experiences distinct seasonal changes, then your mini pond fun usually lasts for 3 to 4 months in the summer (e.g., sometime between May and September in the United States). However, if you live in the subtropical zone that stays above 50°F or 10°C for most of the year (like F...

How to Treat Livebearer Disease Livebearer disease is a catch-all term used to describe many disorders that commonly affect livebearers (or fish that bear live young). These different ailments can include the shimmies, wasting disease, body fungus, and more. The first step is to properly diagnose your fish and then treat for their specific type of livebearer disease. Why Are So Many Diseases Called “Livebearer Disease”? Livebearers are frequently raised in hard water or brackish environments (see this article for more detai...

5 Best Schooling Fish for Beginners There’s something so peaceful and awe-inspiring about seeing a large school of fish swimming back and forth in perfect harmony. If you’re looking for a beautiful schooling fish to get started with, check out our top five species that are easy to care for and will look amazing in your aquarium. 1. Cardinal Tetras Paracheirodon axelrodi has to be on our list because of the striking red and blue stripes that run down the sides of their bodies. This 2-inch (5 cm) tetra is a fairly tight schooling...

10 Best Algae Eaters for Freshwater Aquariums If your aquarium is covered with unsightly algae, you need some hungry helpers to get the outbreak under control. In this top 10 list of amazing algae eaters, we’ve gathered animals that are not only safe for aquatic plants but can often work together for increased effectiveness. At Aquarium Co-Op, we’ve sold thousands of live plants, and one of our main concerns is keeping the plants as free of algae as possible. That’s why we utilize the most effective algae eaters in the aquarium hobby for...

10 Best Tank Mates for Your Goldfish Goldfish are beautiful, much-beloved creatures in the fish keeping hobby, but sometimes it can be nice to add a little variety to their aquariums. After many years of owning goldfish, we’ve compiled a list of our top tips and recommendations for keeping goldfish tank mates (including a few that you may have never considered before). What Kind of Fish Can You Keep With Goldfish? If you’ve ever seen a cool fish and wondered if it would go well with your goldfish, here are some general guideline...

How to Treat Sick Aquarium Fish (Even If You’re Not Sure What’s Wrong) Treating a sick aquarium fish can be difficult, especially if you’re new to the hobby or have never seen this disease before. Based on years of experience helping customers at our fish store and online, here are the step-by-step guidelines and medications we personally use to get our fish back to health as quickly as possible. Step 1: Do You Have a Quarantine Tank? A quarantine tank is a smaller, bare tank for the purposes of holding all new fish before adding them into your main display aqua...

How to Hatch Baby Brine Shrimp for Fish Fry When it comes to raising baby fish, baby brine shrimp are one of the best live foods that money can buy. This nutrient-dense food maximizes the survival rate of fry and significantly speeds up their growth. Plus, you can even feed them to adults to condition them for breeding. Keep reading to learn how to easily hatch your own batch of baby brine shrimp at home. What Are Brine Shrimp? Have you ever heard of pet “sea monkeys”? They are actually tiny, saltwater crustaceans that belong to the Ar...

10 Best Clean-Up Crew Ideas for Freshwater Aquariums Looking for a fish or invertebrate that will clean your aquarium so that you never have to do tank maintenance? Sorry, that mythical creature doesn’t exist. However, many animals do an excellent job of eating leftover food, algae, dying plant leaves, and even pest snails. Keep reading to discover our top 10 favorite clean-up crew members that every freshwater aquarium should have. 1. Rainbow Sharks and Redtail Sharks These freshwater “sharks” might seem like an odd group to start with, but yo...

How to Clear Up a Cloudy Fish Tank Cloudy water can be very frustrating, since it prevents you from fully enjoying your beautiful fish tank. In this article, we explore the many reasons why your aquarium may look hazy and how to clear up the murkiness as quickly as possible. The first thing you need to do is pour some of the tank water into a plastic cup or bucket that is solid white on the inside. This will allow you to examine the color and cloudiness of the water more carefully without interference. 1. Particles in the Wate...

The Fish Keeper’s Guide to pH, GH, and KH pH, GH, and KH are terms commonly used in water chemistry, but there is a lot of confusion about them in the freshwater aquarium hobby. What’s the difference between them, and how do they impact our fish? This practical guide for beginners explains what these parameters mean, when you should test for them, and how to raise or lower their levels if needed. pH (or Power of Hydrogen) pH measures the amount of hydrogen ions in liquids and tells you how acidic or basic is your water. On a scale of...

How to Cure Fungus on Aquarium Fish If your fish has a white- or gray-colored growth on its mouth or body (often with a fluffy texture like cotton), it could have a fungal infection. Fungal outbreaks are often caused by stressful or poor water quality conditions and can rapidly lead to secondary diseases, so it’s important to address the problem immediately. In this article, we cover several options for treating fungus, as well as how to stop it from coming back. When you see any symptoms of illness, the first thing we always r...

Care Guide for Pea Puffers – The Smallest Pufferfish in the World Pea puffers are one of the coolest oddball species you can keep in a smaller-sized aquarium. They’re known for their helicopter-like maneuverability, independently moving eyes, and of course, ability to inflate like a tiny water balloon. In this practical care guide, we answer your most frequently asked questions about these amazing, little creatures. What Is a Pea Puffer? Carinotetraodon travancoricus – also known as the pea puffer, Indian dwarf puffer, Malabar puffer, and pygmy puffer – is ...