Far to many fish keepers lose their fish too soon. For many first time fish keepers putting their first fish tank aquarium together, the thrill and excitement soon turns to horror when their new collection of fish don’t make it through the first week.

Your aquarium tank needs to provide the perfect conditions for your fish to survive. The water conditions are very sensitive and these fish need optimal conditions to be healthy. There’s usually very little warning and if you get it wrong you might know too late.

There’s 3 common mistakes that I see most newbies make when setting up their fish tank aquarium.

1. Going Too Small
Most people think that they want to start small and get a small tank. The problem is that with a small volume of water there’s virtually no room for error and even experienced aquarium keepers can struggle with small tanks. It’s just too hard to maintain optimal water conditions. With bigger tanks and bigger volumes of water it’s much easier to control the conditions. To play it safe, you should try and get at least a 20 gallon tank – especially if it’s your first tank aquarium. This will also give you enough room to keep a good collection of fish.

2.Not Letting The Water Stabilize
Aquarium kits are the new thing in the world of fish tank aquariums. These tanks come shipped and packaged as complete “plug and play” aquariums. Because of this many new tank keepers make the mistake of thinking they can just plug it in, add water and add the fish straight away.

Regardless of where you live, your tap water is filled with harmful chemicals that can potentially kill your new fish within the first 24 hours. Your tank needs to stabilize first. You need to treat the water to neutralize harmful chemicals and allow harmful gasses to escape. You should let your tank run for a day or two and test the water before you add your first fish.

3. Insufficient Filtration
The filter is the heart of your fish tank aquarium. It’s continuously circulating water to remove the waste particles that can pollute the water. Because the filter collects all the dirt it needs to be cleaned and replaced frequently to ensure that your tank maintains a clean environment for your fish.

The bigger the volume of water in your tank, the bigger a filtration system you will need. As a rule of thumb your filter needs to circulate all the water at least 3 times per hour. This should give you a good indication of which size to get, but if you are unsure always go one size up.

By avoiding these three mistakes you can quite easily set up your first fish tank aquarium with success. Keeping a healthy aquarium can be a challenge, but in the end the rewards are just so worth it. Make sure you know what you are doing before you do it and investing in a good aquarium book can be well worth the money.