Aquarium Care: Mechanical, Chemical and Biological Filtration
From the living room of a grand mansion to a humble cubicle in an office building, an aquarium is one great way to bring a little life into any space. The fish flitting around here and there provide a little fun and whimsy, while the presence of water provides a more soothing and relaxing environment for a person to be in. However, aquarium maintenance and care is not as easy as it looks. You need to understand how to set up proper aquarium filtration — this is an essential aspect of proper aquarium care.

Mechanical Filtration - Leftover fish food, waste materials and other bits and pieces of dirt eventually builds up in any fish tank, and these need to be taken care of as soon as possible if you do not want you tank to be filled up to the brim with algae and toxic buildup.

Mechanical filtration can be done in two ways: by using filters to screen out the dirt in the water or by regularly cleaning it yourself. Using filters will help reduce the buildup of these particles, but cannot get every single bit and piece of dirt that will pile up somewhere in the tank. You will still have to clean the tank for yourself. Just be careful not to empty out all the water in the tank. This will be explained later, as this leftover water has a major role to play in biological filtration.

Chemical Filtration - Water, especially from the tap, usually contains trace amounts of chemicals and other hazardous materials that can kill fish in the long run. Chlorine is one of the biggest problems, even though it used to kill bacteria and organisms that can harm humans.

This is why proper aquarium maintenance involves not just cleaning the dirt in the water, but the chemical buildup in it as well. A chlorine remover is easily available from your local fish store, while activated carbon will facilitate proper chemical filtering by absorbing the trace chemicals found in water. Just make sure to check when to replace the filters, as charcoal-based filters may not last as long as activated granular carbon filters.

Biological Filtration – Have you ever wondered why long-time aquarium enthusiasts have to ‘break in’ their fish tanks before actually putting any fish in it? And why they caution you not to empty all the water in your fish tank? This is because any good aquarium needs a certain culture of bacteria in it for proper fish care.

The natural respiration and excretion process of the fish as well as decomposing waste matter all produce ammonia, and this ammonia can be lethal to fish when it reaches certain toxic levels. Good fish tank care requires that certain strains of bacteria, Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter, in order to process this ammonia into harmless nitrate.

The growth of these bacteria can be promoted by using simple under-gravel filters, sponge filters or canister filters. However, you may want to use rocks, sponges or filters that have already been used in older, more established tanks. They already contain a healthy bacteria culture, and can be used to promote their spread in new fish tanks. Aquarium filters are an absolute must if you want your fish to be healthy, so make sure you make getting the right fish tank filter part of your aquarium care.