My fish have arrived what do I do?
Upon Receipt of any new fish
DO NOT RUSH TO GET THEM IN THE AQUARIUM,
Follow these 12 easy steps to avoid any unnecessary stress and things such as ph shock
1. Turn Off Aquarium lights
2. Reduce any room lighting to a low level
3. Remove or open the aquarium top
4. Remove the new fish from any outer packing (box, paper bag etc)
5. Place the unopened fish bag on the water surface
6. Go and make a drink or do something for at least 15 minutes, this will allow the water in the bag to reach the same temperature as the aquarium
7. Return to the aquarium with a sharp pair of scissors and cut of the top just under the knot, roll down the sides to form a ring so that the bag floats on its own
8. Add some aquarium water to the bag, we recommend approximately 10% of the bags existing volume
9. Go and find something to do for 5 minutes
10. Repeat number 8 and 9 until the bag is full then remove and discard some of water from the bag so it has the same amount in it as when you got home
11. Repeat steps 8,9 & 10 until you are sure that the fish is now in 100% aquarium water
12. Unroll sides of bag and gently tip it so fish can swim out into their new home, leave the aquarium lights off until the normal time the following day
There are many different ways to acclimate fish but without getting to technical and only using the bare minimum of equipment then this is the basic way.
How do you do it?