Lockdown Special: Am important update for aquarium owners

Today, the obligatory lockdown has given us enough time to care about our pets. Since we all are maintaining isolation and spending more time inside the home, the tempt to look after the pets, clean their equipment, and change the water regularly has increased. Whether it is done out of necessity or boredom, a significant change in the behavior of aquarium owners has been seen.

Since the time coronavirus pandemic is knocking our doors, we all have inculcated certain habits in our routine. Among them, disinfecting our hands after regular intervals is the one. It is a government advisory to clean hands after every few hours to remain safe. However, on the contrary, if you value the lives of your swirling creatures in the tank, you have to take a break from the ceaseless hand-disinfecting habit.

The reason behind it is very simple. Hand sanitizers have chemicals that don’t take much time to bring a negative impact on the aquarium’s water. As per the experts, disinfectants alter the water chemistry and change the water’s pH value drastically.

Here, we are not saying that you should stop disinfecting your hands completely. But if you are thinking to clean your tank, or for any purpose entering your hand inside the tank, make sure they haven’t just been disinfected. Instead of using hand sanitizer or any disinfectant, clean your hands and arms thoroughly with warm water before starting.

This is a piece of small yet highly important advice for all the aquarium owners. This precautionary step becomes more important for those having small size tanks with around 50 liters water. The chances of fluctuation in pH become relatively more in small tanks than the big size tanks. Since pH is one of the most critical factors that determine the behavior of your fish, keeping it within a set range is imperative.

However, if you have a big size tank, there is nothing much to worry about. This is one of the benefits of having large aquariums that certain maintenance mistakes can be overlooked as they don’t impact the water’s chemistry severely. A little fluctuation in water pH, overfeeding, or overlooking the leftover food and dead fish will not bring sudden dramatic effects to the tank. This way, the fish remain safe.

So, if you are a small aquarium owner and maintaining good hygiene during this lockdown (which is highly important), keep our advice in mind before working on the tank’s water.

Stay inside, stay safe, and keep your fish safe too!