New contributor Matthew Hayes (AKA Fish Shop Matt) answers the top 10 questions he was asked during his time working in aquatic shops.
After working in the aquarium hobby for the last 18-ish years, and with most of them spent serving and talking to customers, you get asked a lot of questions. Some of these questions aren't that relevant to fishkeeping, like:
"Do you have Nemo here?” "Yes, we do. He's just over there." This question is more frequent during the school holidays…
Some of the questions come up more often than you want them to: “Does this puffer actually puff up? How do I make him puff up?” The kind answer is “Yes, he does puff up, but I’d rather you didn’t try.”
But, of course, some questions are genuine ones that a lot of fishkeepers ask. I've tried to include 10 of the most popular. But I'll be honest—I could probably do 100 questions and still have more to answer.
The first question asked by new fish keepers
“What size aquarium should I get?”
This is one of the most popular questions when people are looking at getting an aquarium. There is no ‘right’ answer to this question but the bigger the better.
When a staff member in an aquarium shop says you need the biggest aquarium you may question their motives. These tanks often have the biggest price tank, so perhaps they’re being paid commission. The majority of the time, it’s actually because most people regret buying a small aquarium.
Fishkeepers get six months down the line, their tank is full, and now they need to purchase their second aquarium. They could have just bought a larger one in the first place.
Also, bigger aquariums and larger water volumes are generally easier to manage. This a good reason to get the biggest aquarium you can fit and afford early on. Although if you're looking at keeping small Neocaridina shrimp, then a 300-litre system is probably not for you. On the other end of the spectrum, you cannot keep large cichlids in a 30-litre nano tank.
I would often answer this question with another: “What fish and setup do you like the look of?” Going from there, you can start working out what size tank, filtration, lighting, and so on they will need.
“Where do all these fish come from?”
Once new hobbyists see all the fish that are available in this fantastic hobby, this question normally comes up.
Most of the world is fairly accessible by plane these days. Which is lucky as in the UK, we don't have the climate for breeding tropical fish. Instead, we import fish from far-off countries that are much warmer than ours, resulting in the best selection of species we've ever had.
Tropical fish farms are all over the world. You'll find fish that were originally from a river in the Amazon now bred and grown in Asia.
I've been lucky enough to deal with fish imports from pretty much every continent on Earth. Except for Antarctica, as there is not much tropical fish breeding going on there that I know of.
A lot of the most popular aquarium fish originated in the wild in South America, Africa, and Asia. You will still find a lot of wild exports of tropical fish happening from these countries. This gives local communities a good incentive to protect their rivers, ponds, and lakes. However, local governments and associations must be monitor this to ensure this practice is sustainable.
Related article: Where do our aquarium fish come from?
“What fish can I keep together?”
Once people understand that all these fish come from different areas, countries, and habitats, this question soon follows.
With so many species of tropical fish in the hobby, there are thousands of combinations of fish that you can keep together. When presented a fully stocked aquatic store, it can be easy to make mistakes. You do not want to add something that isn’t peaceful to your friendly community tank.
Researching the freshwater fish available is key, take your time. Don’t buy a fish on a whim, and always make sure you get help and information from your local fish shop. Then back that up by searching online to see what everyone else is saying.
Most of the time, when I’m setting up an aquarium, I pick one fish that I have long wanted to keep. This gives me a good foundation from which to build a community around them. If you pick something like a cardinal tetra, there are a lot of fish that would get along with them. If you've got your heart set on something like a domestic Betta splendens, your options are a lot more limited.
Huge fish out there with giant mouths, and small fish that will fit easily into those mouths are not a good combination. Beautiful, long-finned fish, and fish that like to nip long fins will also cause you headaches.
Also ensure the water conditions each type of fish requires to thrive overlap. Ideally they should match your tap water, this will stop you having to adjust things like pH.
Remember, take your time, research your fish, and build a community that’s going to work. But don’t forget- sometimes that ‘community’ may just be one fish.
Aquascaping and decorating your aquarium
“Can I keep live plants in my aquarium?”
After being amazed by the hundreds of community fish you could keep in your tropical aquariums, your attention turns to decoration. Aquatic plants are often one of the first questions asked when looking at decor.
The answer to the question above is absolutely- yes, you can. Aquariums with plants can actually make your life easier. They make your fish tank look more natural, give your fish somewhere to hide, and they also help you by using up fish waste as a food source.
We are lucky in the aquarium hobby to have access to a wonderful selection of aquarium plants nowadays. But it’s well worth being aware that there are different difficulty levels of aquarium plants.
Anubias or Java ferns are some of the toughest, hardiest, plants in the aquarium hobby. They can thrive without receiving much love and attention.
At the other end of the spectrum, you have some of the more delicate colourful stem plants. Species of Rotala and Alternanthera sometimes need as much care and love as the fish that live with them.
As with any hobby, it’s all about learning. I would normally set customers on the path of the hardy plants to start with; ones that don’t need a lot of work. With some tweaks to their equipment and routine, they could try some of the more difficult varieties in their aquariums when they feel ready. Maybe ending up with a high tech aquascape soon after.
Related article: An introduction to aquascaping
“How would you aquascape this tank?”
This was one of the most difficult beginner fishkeeping questions to answer because it’s all down to personal taste. Obviously, as long as you're keeping your fish's needs in mind, you can aquascape it however you want. For me, I always tell people to have fun with it, and to have a look online or around the shop for inspiration.
Getting an aquascape right isn’t something that comes straight away. I often sit back, look at the tank, and go back to move a few rocks around. Sometimes, I even head back to the shop and pick up another piece of wood… or two… or three… I think I have a problem!
Sometimes, the best aquascapes I’ve ever done are the ones I’ve not thought about in depth. Ultimately, they often end up the most natural. Work out where your fish are from, figure out what kind of habitat they like, and then work out what you want your tank to look like. From there, you can create something that blends the best of both worlds.
Watch some of Matt's scapes being built on his YouTube channel FishShopMatt.
The dreaded maintenance
“What water parameters do I need to monitor?”
By this point, you’ve picked your fish, you’ve picked your plants, and now you have to think about the thing that’s going to keep them all happy: the water.
The best place to start with this is one of the aquarium multi-test kits. These kits, like the NT Labs Aquarium Lab, have everything that most hobbyists will ever need to worry about. They include tests for pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, KH, and GH.
Liquid tests are generally more accurate but are time consuming. Test strips can give you a quick overview of what is going on in your tank.
Other tests are out there which you may come across, but they’re generally a lot rarer than the ones I’ve mentioned. You might encounter tests for phosphate, oxygen, or maybe even CO2.
“How am I meant to maintain water quality?”
Most of the time, with a decent filter, good maintenance, a water change regime the water quality will be fine. A few aquarium plants can also help you with that fish waste.
I always explained in the same way, if you didn’t vacuum your house for six months, it would take you ages to get all the dust and mess cleaned up. But if you vacuum once a week, it only takes you 10 minutes, and it’s a way easier task. Treat your aquarium in the same way, little and often.
Ultimately, everyone ends up finding a regime that works for them and their fish, because no two tanks are the same. So much influences how much maintenance a fish tank requires. For example: the number of fish, amount of plants, the photoperiod and the feeding regime you follow.
Related article: How to set up a low maintenance aquascape
“How often and how much should I feed my fish?”
This question often comes after someone has had a little hiccup with their water quality. Most of the time, once a day is more than ample for feeding your fish.
You don’t want the fish food sitting around in the aquarium for hours on end. Add a small pinch and watch your fish eat it, then add another little pinch if needed. One of the worst things is adding too much food in one go and turning it into what looks like a living snow globe. You always need to remove uneaten food after feeding!
You’ll have some fishkeepers tell you that they feed their fish multiple times a day. Others might only feed once every other day. Again, there’s no solid rule on how often you should be feeding a fish.
Get to know your fish and your aquarium by observing them and learn how much and how often your fish need feeding.
I have tanks currently with solitary bettas, and they may get a small feed of a few pellets every day or every other day. I also have community tanks where I could feed them three or four times a day and they would still constantly beg for food. Again, it’s all about little and often. As long as your fish have nice, round bellies and you’re not getting tons of algae growing, you're probably doing okay.
“How do I handle algae growth?”
As I just mentioned the dreaded “A” word, this is another common question for all fish shop staff. With so many different species of algae there are many different things that can cause it. Common causes include water quality, overfeeding and an imbalance of light, nutrients and carbon dioxide.
Normally, one of these would be the root of the problem, and we could end up fixing it. The thing to remember is it’s a natural environment, and a little bit of algae is normal. But an excessive amount of algae, where you can't see your fish through a green soup, is not normal.
Battling algae is all about methodically working out why it’s growing and how to combat it. Look at where the algae is growing as this might give you a clue. Localised algae could indicate an area of slow water flow and uneaten food building up. Whereas a full plague across the whole tank could be a wider issue like excess nitrates and phosphates.
Fix these things and if that doesn’t change anything, try altering the lighting. It might also be that the sun is beaming in through the window at this time of year so closing the curtain could help. Remember, don’t make any rash decisions unless your fish are in immediate danger.
Photo by Shutterstock
Questions regarding fish health
“How do I prevent fish diseases?”
I could probably list a hundred more questions, but the last one that most new fishkeepers worry about is this. Honestly, you’ll probably never prevent all fish diseases from entering your tank. You can do a lot of things to help your chances and minimise the risks, but this is never going to work 100% of the time.
The first thing I would always say is to buy your fish from a trusted fish shop. Look around the shop, see how clean it is. Check for any poorly fish, and ask the staff some simple questions. The answers will normally give you an idea of how well the fish are being looked after.
It probably goes without saying that you should inspect the fish you're buying closely before making a purchase. Watch the tank for several minutes, see how the fish are acting, and check that there's no damage or problems with any of the fish. This will at least ensure that the tank you’re buying from visually looks good.
Another great option, if you’ve got the space, is to set up a quarantine/hospital tank. This will allow you to keep any fish you’ve recently purchased away from your main aquarium for as long as you deem necessary. Most of the time, a week or two at home in a quarantine tank is long enough to watch the fish and check that they're doing fine.
Lastly, have a couple of general medications at home, ready to use. The last thing you want is to come home from work at 6 p.m., with all the local fish shops closed, and notice there's a problem in your tank. I normally keep an antifungal and an anti-parasite at home, just in case.
This article was originally published in the February 2025 issue of Practical Fishkeeping. Check out our latest subscription offers to make sure you never miss an issue!