The Fluval 405 is one of the most popular filters around today.

It is a very good filter but it has flaws.

Hopefully by uncovering some of these flaws for you it will be easier to decide if it suits your needs.

We want to provide the impartial review of the Fluval 405 so that any flaws with the product are discussed in open forum and not covered up only to be discovered after the consumer has made their purchase. With that in mind…

The Review

The Fluval 405 is very well made, it has a hard plastic body which is clearly a quality construction.

It has been noted though that there can be hairline cracks in the body which will not be discovered until a later point, this is covered under warranty though so don’t throw out your old filter for a few weeks.

Easy Setup

Setting up the filter is relatively easy.

There is an instructional video which takes you through each step of the process.

The hardest part by far is getting the primer started, to do so you will need to fill the canister, outlet valve and tubes as best you can with water and even then it will take a number of attempts before the primer will start.

Attachments

While we bring up the tubing it is worth noting that you only have one tube out of the box which is used for both the inline and outline, you will need to cut this in two to make both lines, a scissors will work. The only drawback is that you can have the filter a maximum of 4ft away from the aquarium due to length of the tubing you get.

NOTE: The filter must be kept below the level of the aquarium as gravity assists in water flow.

 

Easily Dismantled

The filter is easy to take apart although there can sometimes be difficulty in getting the casing apart due to the suction caused within the housing but this is something you get used to.

You will need to clean the filter every 3-4 weeks depending on the conditions within your tank.

There are three levels of filtration in the canister, mechanical (sponge), chemical (carbon) and biological (clay beads).

This is great because you get all three levels of filtration working together to keep your water crystal clear but each level of filtration will need cleaning at different periods of time depending on your own tank so this can be tiresome if you are unlucky enough to need each level if filtration cleaned at different times.

It is worth mentioning that the clips that you get for attaching the tubes to the tank are quite flimsy and could easily break, also the recommended filter pads don’t always fit best and often the pads for the 404 filter fit more snugly.

Summary

In conclusion this is very good filter capable of managing a tank up to 400L/100gallons but realistically you would be better off limiting this filter to a 350L tank as more than this you start to notice less satisfactory results, especially with a crowded tank.

Ultimately though there are many other options when it comes to filters and we don’t have space here to advise on them all.

Luckily we have recommendations to deal with that.

Depending on whether you want a Saltwater Aquarium or a Freshwater Aquarium we have an ebook for you to read which will not only advise on what filter suits you but also what the best practises are to ensure you have a thriving aquarium for years to come.

Although neither of these ebooks are aimed solely at advising about the aquarium filter you need they both have excellent chapters on aquarium filtration and advise what you need to look for depending on what type of aquarium you intend to have.

Although you have to pay for both ebooks the price is relatively low and there is a money back guarantee should they not suit.

This money back guarantee is one of the reasons why we chose to trust these authors.

We recommend you read through the reviews we did on both ebooks, either Saltwater Aquariums or Freshwater Aquariums.

Goldfish are the first fish that come to mind for most people when they think of aquariums.

There is that typical image of a goldfish in a bowl that we all saw growing up.

The problem is the reality is a bit different than they would have us believe.
Goldfish can be beautiful fish, this is what lead to their popularity over the last 1000 years or so.

They have been bred over and over again so we have a massive variety in the species.

Unfortunately most people don’t get told that there are different types of goldfish, they just imagine that stereotype of the fish in the bowl and when they go to the pet store looking for that they are sorely disappointed to find it is much more complicated.

In an attempt to demystify the goldfish we have compiled some of the important information you will need to know, since there are so many varieties of goldfish we couldn’t go through each one to explain how they best suit you.

Instead we have an overview of points you need to consider before you buy and then hopefully you find the goldfish to best suit you.

Choose your seller wisely –

If you are new to fish keeping the temptation is to go to your local pet store and ask them there for what you need.

While this could work out fine, in our experience, and I’m sure your own, often the chain stores have staff which are less informed than say a specialist store so perhaps for your first fish you should consider going to google and looking for a local aquarium stockist.

These guys will be much more capable of helping you and could help guide you away from a simple, yet costly, mistake.

Ask Questions –

Whoever you go to buy the goldfish from make sure to ask questions about the nutritional habits of the fish and whether they have been given medication at all or dewormed.

Even if you don’t know what the right answer is, just by asking the question the person dealing with you will show whether the fish is well taken care of by how they answer the question.

If they avoid giving details then perhaps the goldfish have not been well taken care of an could be diseased.

Watch The Fish –

When you are looking at the fish in a tank make sure to take note of how they interact with other fish.

If they seem to be staying away from other fish or are overly aggressive towards other fish this can be a bad sign.

If the goldfish seems to be staying on the bottom of the tank or worse, floating on the top, this can also be a red flag.

Probably the most telling thing is to see whether the fish goes for food straight away when it has been put into the tank, if it does, it’s healthy, if it doesn’t there is probably something wrong.

Ask the stockist to feed the fish some food while you are there to check this.

Check The Fins –

The goldfish typically have a dorsal fish, pectoral fins on either side, anal fins on either side and a tail fin.

Check the goldfish for sale for symmetry, if the fish has one anal fin for example this could mean that they have an ingrowing fin on the other side which can be fatal.

Be Aware That Goldfish Grow –

It may seem obvious but most people don’t think of fish as actually growing.

People who have Goldfish don’t take a ton of photos of them and put them on facebook so it’s easy to understand how someone might never have seen that a goldfish grows.

It may seem obvious when you say it but it really is an easy enough mistake to make, a baby fish and a grown up fish don’t look that much different to the layman.

So unfortunately goldfish do grow so ask what size they think the goldfish typically grows to when speaking to the stockist as they are often sold in the first few weeks of life and don’t finish growing till their first birthday typically.

Don’t Buy A Goldfish Bowl –

As we mentioned above the goldfish bowl is a typical image we all carry with us when we think of goldfish.

Unfortunately we now know that the fish bowl doesn’t really suit a goldfish because it is too small.

Being honest though, the fish bowl is too small for almost any fish and is more trouble than it is worth.

It is more difficult to clean and the accessories which come with the fish bowl are typically of a lower standard than a real fish tank.

Now having said that you don’t need to go out and buy a massive fish tank but each goldfish for sale you buy should probably have 30-40 litres of water to swim in.

If you get 3 goldfish you should get at least a 100 litre tank.

Popular For A Reason –

Clearly goldfish are popular, they are one of the best known fish in the world.

One of the reasons for this is that they come in a variety of colours and patterns and they are pleasant to look at, the other reason though is that they are a hardy fish.

They aren’t the toughest fish you can get but they are definitely more hardy than a lot of other fish with the same level of beauty and colour variety.

Goldfish are a cold water fish but they can live in water between 15°c and 25°c and can stand a pH level anywhere between 6 – 8 typically.

This makes they good fish for someone who is starting out with fish and maybe doesn’t know yet the finer points of temperature and pH regulation.

Don’t Under Estimate The Filter –

One final point on the goldfish is that they produce quite a lot of waste, as such it is recommended that you spend a little extra on a good filter so that you don’t have to change the water every few minutes.

The filter doesn’t have to be the top of the range just a filter which will maybe handle a tank about 50 litres larger than the one you get.

Really there is a lot more information you could learn about goldfish but if you go with the information above you should be able to find the fish to best suit your needs and hopefully that fish will live a long and happy life. If you want to know more about freshwater fish like the goldfish so that you can maybe take your goldfish tank to the next level or include some complimentary fish we recommend you check out our review of the Freshwater Aquarium ebook.

While packed with a ton of useful information on how to run your aquarium and treat fish for illnesses it also has a great chapter on choosing aquarium fish which can make it an invaluable resource to look back on whenever you want to get a new fish for your tank.

If you are reading this you are probably looking for a new aquarium filter.

You probably have a large aquarium and want a filter which will keep the water clean so you can enjoy the fish.

We are here to tell you about the Fluval 305.

We decided to do a number of reviews of products available online as there seems to be a distinct lack of honest reviews of products due to those who should be unbiased doing the reviews are getting money for each sale they generate.

This obviously stops those people from being truly objective in their product review.

We get no such income for these reviews and so we hope they are more impartial and ultimately better for you.

The Review

The Fluval 305 is a very good filter and should be able to handle up to a 300L/70 gallon tank.

Having said that it will struggle to keep the tank clean the closer you get to that top end and you will probably have to clean the tank more regularly.

Also if you have a lot of fish in a tank it will need to be cleaned more regularly than if you have only a few.

This may seem obvious but not everyone thinks about the density of fish population when they look for a filter.

The Fluval ’05 series

All of the Fluval ’05 series of filters hold some similar characteristics.

They are easy to install, they come with an instructional video.

They are easy to take apart when they require cleaning, which should be every 3-4 weeks.

They are made from a solid plastic which is unlikely to break but can on occasion get hairline fractures so be aware of this as a possibility.

The Fluval 305 will keep the water cleaner than most other brands which claim the same filtration abilities, if you had another filter which could handle 300L/70 gallons of water and that kept your tank crystal clear, the Fluval should be just as good if not better.

The Fluval 305 is also a very quiet filter and if it is kept in an aquarium cabinet you will most likely not hear it at all.

Attachments

Speaking of keeping the filter in a cabinet you should note that the filter must be kept below the aquarium as it needs gravity to help with the waterflow and the tubing which comes with the aquarium is one long piece which you must cut yourself.

Cutting the tubing is not a problem, a scissors will do the trick but the aquarium would need to be within 4ft of the aquarium as this is the length of tubing you get.

The filtration system on the Fluval 305 is triple layered.

The bottom layer is a mechanical filter (sponge) which removes large debis.

The next layer is chemical (carbon) which will remove the majority of what the sponge allows through but there is a final layer of biological material (clay beads) which allow bacteria to grow which will provide the final level of filtration which is what leads to crystal clear waters and ultimately healthy and happy fish.

Another point to mention on the Fluval 305 is that it has clips which allow you to attach the tubing to the side of your tank, these clips are very flimsy and you could easily break them so beware.

Also when you are buying replacement filter pads for the filter be sure to get the 204/304 filter pads as these fit much better into the casing than the ‘3 plus’ filters which are recommended.

Summary

Ultimately this is a very good filter and it should be able to handle any aquarium up to at least 250L/60 gallons with ease and then up to 300L/70 gallons with some loss of water quality.

If you are looking for an excellent product which will filter your aquarium and you fall closer to the lower end of this filters limits it could be perfect for you.

On the other hand this may not be the ideal filter for you.

Unfortunately there isn’t enough space here to go through all your options for selecting an aquarium filter but we always recommend somewhere that you can get the information you want.

So we recommend two ebooks for the aquarium enthusiast depending on whether you want a Saltwater Aquarium or a Freshwater Aquarium.

Both ebooks have a chapter on water filtration and choosing the correct filter and they are in a position to go into much further detail than we can here.

Both ebooks are relatively cheap but with both is a money back guarantee if you don’t like the ebook so if we have misinformed you and they are not what you want you can just get your money back.

Although not directly linked to aquarium filters we recommend you read our reviews of either the Freshwater Aquarium or Saltwater Aquarium ebooks.

You may be looking to get into the fish keeping hobby and are looking for your first tank.

If so you would be wise to test the waters with something simple like a 20 gallon aquarium.

Like anything there are benefits and drawbacks to a small tank like a 20 gallon aquarium but overall for someone starting out there are more positives than negatives.

Firstly though we will look at the drawbacks to the 20 gallon aquarium:

• Because this is a small tank you will need to change the water regularly
• Often small tanks come with substandard accessories and you may need to replace these
• The small size of the tank limits the fish which you can put in it
• pH levels, water temperature and chemical levels effected by waste all need to be monitored more closely than in a large aquarium
• Some fish will attack each other if kept in too small a tank together

Now these might seem like a problem but so long as you get small fish and clean the tank regularly you will be able to eliminate these negative points easily enough.

By contrast here are some of the benefits you can expect from a small fish tank:

• Fun, close, neat feeling to the tank
• Easy to fit the tank anywhere, even on a desk in a home or office
• Low risk start to fish keeping
• Available in ‘tall’ and ‘long’ varieties, tall is suited to aquarium plants while long more suited to fish only.
• If you choose a tall aquarium you can keep some aquarium plants but would advise limiting your fish to neons or danios or something similarly small and easy to handle.
• If you choose a long aquarium you get more freedom with your fish and could easily keep danio, guppies, dwarf rainbowfish, kribs, dwarf gourami or domesticated angelfish.

Whatever choices you make about the size of tank you need or what shape of tank you ultimately purchase you are best advised to read about what is required for the type of aquarium you want.

You could spend hours trawling through the net looking for other websites which have this information and slowly piece it together, you could get a book from the library which gives you a general overview on how to run an aquarium but has to cater for everyone.

Instead you could get an ebook which has been written with the intention of being for just the one type of aquarium and gives all the information you need to get either a Freshwater Aquarium up and running or a Saltwater Aquarium.

Whichever you choose we recommend the ebooks which we have reviewed here so that you are best able to get the information you need in without all the nonsense that goes along with it.

For quick results and all the right info you need to make the right choices you need to pick up either the Freshwater Aquarium ebook or the Saltwater Aquarium ebook now.

Buying any fish can be a difficult decision, even more so when it comes to discus fish as they are fragile and often expensive.

Due to the difficulties that can arise with these fish we thought it best to do some investigation into the details of what makes them unique and so what you need to be aware of when you are purchasing a new discus.

In order to be best informed we did some research and discovered the information below while reading the ‘Discus Fish Pro’ ebook.

We highly recommend this ebook for anyone looking to get a discus fish due to the comprehensive nature of the book.

We were sceptical at first when we were told that this ebook would have the information we wanted, buying an ebook requires a certain amount of trust on your behalf but since there was a money back guarantee it carried less risk so we bought it and have been pleasantly surprised.

What to look for before buying a discus fish for sale:

• Health – Look for swelling around the gills, also notice whether the discus is staying near the surface of the water as this can be an indication it is unwell. Also look for unusual spots or parasites along the body of the discus.
• Responsiveness – If possible watch the fish being fed before you buy it, a fish eager to eat is a healthy fish, a fish which ignores food is typically sick. Whoever is selling the fish might try to convince you that the fish has just been fed but this is rarely the reason the fish is not eating.
• Avoid Youth – Young fish die easily and don’t typically do well in new environments, if you are getting your first discus we recommend you get an adult.
• Quarantine – All fish being brought from a breeder to a retailer should be kept in quarantine for a number of weeks to ensure they are not carrying disease. Enquire about this when speaking to the retailer so see if they have taken this measure. This is also a good time to enquire about other medicines that may have been given to the fish or whether it has been de-wormed.
• Faeces – As unpleasant as it sounds it can help to tell if the fish is healthy by looking on the bottom of the tank for faeces, black is good, white is bad.
• Chemistry – As the seller what pH the fish are being kept in currently, if the pH is far off your own tank the fish may not survive being introduced to the new environment.

For more information like this on discus fish for sale we recommend that you have a look at the excellent Discus Fish Pro ebook. 

There are many fish tank accessories out there, you probably got some when you bought your tank. What you may not realise is just how much of a difference these can make to your aquarium.
To get the most from your aquarium you will need to surround it with the accessories which best suit your needs. To do that though you need to understand those accessories do and how they will benefit you.

Here is a quick rundown of the major accessories you will need for the perfect tank:

1. Water Filter – This is an obvious one but still often overlooked. The better the water filter the clearer the water in your tank. The filter will also remove harmful chemical build-up such as ammonia from waste. If you only make one serious upgrade to your tank the filter is the place to make that upgrade.
2. Lighting – This is majorly overlooked when someone first gets their tank, fish need light in order to stay happy and healthy, they also need this light to be on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours so that it mimics the sun rising and setting. Without this regularity the fish will become visibly depressed and in extreme cases it can lead to fatal complications. Also if you intend on keeping aquarium plants an upgrade on the lighting is essential.
3. Pump – Most water pumps are sufficient for the tanks they come with, the main purpose of the pump is to oxygenate the water so that the fish can keep breathing but also to keep water circulation so that you don’t develop scum or mildew on the surface.
4. Heater – Another obvious one here but the quality of the heater is important for tropical fish which are delicate when it comes to variable water temperatures. You should also consider upgrading your heater if the aquarium is in a room where there is regular outside air coming in as this breeze will change the room temperature by a couple of degrees regularly and so can have a negative effect on the fish.
5. Test Kits – Something which is very underused are test kits, you can get different kits depending on what you want to test but common ones would test the pH level of the water, ammonia levels, nitrogen levels and salt content. It is handy to have a kit for each variable you might ever need to test, that way you don’t have to go buying a kit when you need it.
6. Gravel – When you are setting up your tank for the first time you will probably get some gravel for the bottom of the tank, if you are just keeping fish in the tank really it’s not much of a concern the type of gravel you have. If you want to keep aquarium plants though then it is essential that you get a quality gravel with a high iron content.
7. Ornaments – These serve no functional purpose but they are great fun, while you can still get that stereotypical castle or deep sea diver you see in cartoons and such there is now a massive market for aquarium ornaments so you can pick up anything from life size skulls to sponge bob square pants figurines and everything in between. Like I say, they don’t make the tank work any better but they do make it more interesting and they give it more of your character.
8. Maintenance Tools – These are all the other little bits a pieces that you might want like a net, a magnetic glass cleaner, buckets for water changes and so on. These are the unsung heroes of the fish tank accessories world since they are boring but without them life would be much more difficult.

There are a lot of options when it comes to fish tank accessories and we don’t have the space here to go through everything in full detail but we do offer an alternative.

We recommend that read through the review of either the Freshwater Aquarium ebook or the Saltwater Aquarium ebook as these books are essential reading for anyone serious about getting their tank perfect.

They are both jam packed with information relevant to the type of aquarium you want to run and take you step by step through each phase of your tank from setting it up though to identifying illnesses in your fish.

You can waste your time and money by learning as you go or buying a ton of books on fish keeping or you can make a small investment now, learn what you should be doing and save yourself the mistakes in the long run.

Choose either Freshwater Aquariums or Saltwater Aquariums depending on your preference or buy both and learn the subtle differences between the two.

Firstly let’s start this off by saying that the Fluval 205 is a good filter so any other reviews you read which recommended the filter may have been correct.

What’s different about this review is that we will tell you why this filter is bad as well as why we think it is a good filter.

You may be wondering why we are making such a big deal out of how products are reviewed online.

Many people just accept the biased review as a reality of the world online.

The problem with that is that it is not what is best for the consumer and so it shouldn’t be what the reviewer is interested in.

What is best for you is best for us.

And on with the review…

To start with the Fluval 205 is a filter designed for 200L/40 gallon tanks.

It is a smaller version of the 305 and 405 filters which do 300L and 400L tanks respectively.

The Fluval 205 is well designed and it is clear when you take it out of the box that it is a quality construction.

The filter is made from a solid plastic which you would feel comfortable would survive a drop onto a hard floor (maybe even a couple of times if you suffer from acute butter-fingers).

The installation of the filter is relatively easy although it can look slightly daunting when you see all the pieces laid out in front of you after unpacking. There is an instructional video which makes it very easy to follow along and get the filter installed.

NOTE: The filter must be kept below the aquarium as gravity assists in water flow. Also the tubing will need to be cut into two pieces by you (one for inflow, one for outflow) but the tubing only allows for the filter to be 4ft from tank.

The Fluval 205 is easy to take apart to clean and there are useful features like the motor can be closed off so that you don’t have to fill the system again to prime it.

On the subject of priming the system we recommend that you fill the filter with water then put the lid on, then pour some water into the outlet port, hook up the hose assembly and then try to get as much water into the hose before you start the primer as possible. Essentially the pump can’t start until there is water filling the system so some people have a lot of difficulty getting the primer going the first time. Follow these instructions and it should be a lot easier although it will probably still take a number of attempts to get the filter started.

 

You might be wondering how the filter actually works, there are three layers of filtration, mechanical (sponge), chemical (carbon) and biological (clay beads).

This triple header provides much better filtration than just one alone would.

The drawback to this though is that not all 3 layers of filtration need to be cleaned as the same time typically so this can mean having to do multiple cleans when usually only one would do.

We also noticed that the side clips for the filter were not very strong and could easily be broken.

The replacement filter pads recommended for the filter are not an ideal fit and the filter pads for the 204/304 filters actually fit better.

In conclusion this is a good filter but we would not recommend this filter for someone who has a 200L/40 gallon tank as they claim it can handle.

Instead we would recommend it for maybe half this capacity.

If you have a 100 litre tank and you want a filter which will keep the water clean and filter out any debris you have then this is perfect.

If you have a larger tank than this you probably want to look at the Fluval 305 at least.

There are other factors which go into deciding what the best aquarium filter for your tank should be but unfortunately we don’t have the space here to go through all of those.

Instead we have come recommended reading depending on whether you want a Saltwater Aquarium or a Freshwater Aquarium.

The ebooks we recommend here were carefully chosen to be resource companions for those of you who want to setup an aquarium and learn everything you need to know to keep that aquarium running smoothly.

As such both ebooks have a comprehensive chapter on filters for each aquarium type.

The great thing about these ebooks is that although they are relatively cheap for the amount of info they have they also come with a money back guarantee so if we are wrong and they don’t suit you then you can get your money back at no risk.

This is one of the features that made us trust each author enough to recommend them to you, we wouldn’t recommend a product we don’t believe in but it helps you believe in the product when you know that you can get your money back if it doesn’t suit you.

We recommend you read through our review of each ebook for either Saltwater Aquariums or Freshwater Aquariums now.

If you are reading this you are probably looking into buying aquarium fish online.

You may have already looked up some websites but you want to check out any problems that might come up before you order.

Unfortunately you may be in the minority.

All too often people rush into getting a new fish and they make mistakes.

Mistakes which could easily have been avoided with some experience.
Before you buy any fish you should go through a similar process, you need to assess your current aquarium and see how compatible the fish you want to get is in relationship to your current setup.

If the fish you want is a saltwater fish and you have a freshwater aquarium, you will have to change your choice in new fish or get a second aquarium.

Often it’s easier and cheaper to simply choose a different fish.

Saltwater and Freshwater aren’t the only factors to consider:

• Fish Size V’s Tank Size
• Current Fish Diet V’s New Fish Diet
• Fish Temperament
• Water Temperature
• pH Levels
• etc.

Assuming you find a suitable fish you may then want to purchase that fish online and have it sent to you buy courier rather than go to your local pet store.

While this may seem convenient there are disadvantages.

When you buy online you are much less likely to ask for information on the fish.

Buying something online is clearly much less personal and so we are less likely to enquire about the health of a fish or its eating habits.

This can mean you get a fish which may not perhaps be well enough to survive the journey to your tank or would not survive long once it got to you.

You also cannot see the actual fish, when you are purchasing online it is unlikely that you will be able to see a picture of the actual fish you get.

There will just be a generic stock photo of the type of fish you are ordering and you will just get something similar but sometimes you may be getting something which is the same species but very different.

A lot of online sites don’t include information about the fish such as the size of the fish which you will receive, they may advise the average size range for that type of fish but this could just have been taken from Wikipedia and may have no relation to what you actually receive.

Having said all that; if you are aware of these things they can easily be avoided and you can use the internet as an amazing resource for new fish.

Due to the improvements in overnight shipping and improved collection methods there has never been a better time to order a fish online for delivery to your home.

There is a massive selection of fish online which your local pet store may never have available.

If you find the perfect fish online be sure to consider the following tips:

• Shipping is not always advertised when you are looking at the price of fish so be sure to take this into account when budgeting.
• Shipping multiple fish together is often cheaper than having one delivered at a time so plan ahead if possible.
• Have a small tank available for your fish when it arrives so that you can quarantine it from your current fish for a short while to ensure it does not bring disease with it.
• Make sure to enquire from the site which your purchase the fish from whether the fish have been given any medication or have been treated for worms.

One of the major concerns with purchasing a fish online has to be the health of the fish when it reaches you.

Assuming that it wasn’t damaged in transit there is still a possibility that it is diseased or unhealthy in another way.

The most underappreciated skill a home aquarium enthusiast could hone is the ability to tell when a fish is unwell and learn how to treat that sickness.

While the diseases and injuries that saltwater fish and freshwater fish carry are similar in nature they can often be very different in reality.

With this in mind we would recommend that you decide which type of aquarium you wish to keep and then read one of our recommended ebooks on that related aquarium type.

Both the Freshwater Aquarium ebook and the Saltwater Aquarium ebook are packed with information you need to know about how to setup an aquarium, look after your fish and keep the system running smoothly but more importantly for this topic both ebooks have a substantial section on recognising illness in your fish and treating it.

Without this valuable information you could be throwing money away by buying fish after fish only to never see them flourish in your tank.

Buy either the Freshwater Aquarium ebook or the Saltwater Aquarium ebook now before making any other purchases, read the book for cover to cover and then go forward with the knowledge you need to have the aquarium you have always wanted.

There are a lot of choices out there when it comes to buying an aquarium. If you don’t know what to look for you could end up with a product you don’t want or need.

If you go through the 3 choices below with us you should be able to pick the best aquarium for you.

1)      Glass or PVC

As you probably know glass is an important part of an aquarium. What you may not know is that not all glass in aquariums is actually glass.

Some manufacturers have chosen to use the cheaper PVC as an alternative to glass. This can be good for you since you can now find cheaper aquariums for sale than if it was just glass.

The advantage is PVC is stronger than the glass so will not crack or break as easily. The drawback is that the PVC gets scratches quite easily so you may want to buffer the glass once a year.

2)      Freshwater or Saltwater

Although there is really no difference between the aquarium you would buy for a freshwater aquarium and the aquariums for sale with saltwater in mind, there can be differences in accessories.

If you plan on having live rock in the aquarium you should consider a protein skimmer, if you can find aquariums for sale which include a protein skimmer this will save you money.

Saltwater aquariums also require that you maintain salt levels in the tank which means if you get a tester which will identify the sodium content then you will be able to save a little money here too.

If you want to get aquarium plants you may find aquariums for sale which provide you with free iron rich gravel.

We advise that you think about what you want to put into the aquarium and keep this in mind when looking for aquariums for sale.

3)      Size does matter

If you want your aquarium to be easy to look after then you should get the largest tank you can fit in your house and afford.

Since an aquarium is a mini eco-system the smaller the eco-system the more delicate the balance. If you have a 30 litre tank you will have to be 10 times more accurate than if you had a 300 litre tank.

Also the larger the tank the more you can put in it. There will be a better selection of fish available to you.

You will also get better accessories with a larger tank (usually).

If you want to be sure you are getting a good deal unfortunately the best advice is to spend money. The more you spend on the tank when you initially make your purchase the less you will have to spend later in the tank’s life.

If you are buying a second hand tank be sure to read reviews from people who own the tank so that you get real practical advice.

If you want to be sure you are getting a quality product then check out the aquariums for sale in our online store. Our friends over at seapets ship to Ireland for free, provide a great selection at an unbeatable price and give you everything you need to get started except the water and fish.

For more tips like this on how to make sure you’re not going to make a mistake in your aquarium choices we would recommend that you invest in a companion guide for your aquarium adventure. The best ebook we can recommend which will include chapters on choosing your aquarium and then setting up your aquarium is the Ultimate Secrets for Saltwater Aquarium Fish and Invertebrates.

There is a lot of choice out there when it comes to different tanks.

Whether you are looking for a little fish tank or a big fish tank we have you covered on a budget.

Here are our fantastic offers:

Fluval Edge –

This visually interesting and easily managed tank is perfect for the home office or a small home.

Because of the unique design of this tank it gives the appearance of having no air in at the top of the tank. This gives the owner a great view from all angles that you cannot get with a normal tank.

As this tank has proved to be incredibly popular the price has been slashed in our store. This is the highest recommended of our cheap fish tanks for sale.

This tank usually retails at €120 but can be purchased from through our store and shipped to your door for €83.

Fluval Profile 850 –

This is another quite unique aquarium from Fluval. This time the aquarium stand is part of the aquarium so that they all come as one unit.

The stand and brackets around the aquarium glass are make from brushed steel.

The cabinet has side opening doors so that the front of the aquarium retains the flush appearance.

The aquarium is an unusual 232 litres in capacity. This aquarium is extra deep making this aquarium well suited to plant or rock as they have room to grow.

The Fluval Profile 850 usually retails at €920 but is available in our store from the bargain price of €560.

Interpet Aquarium 120 litre –

The Interpet 120 litre aquarium is a great starting point on a budget. This aquarium has everything you need to get started with fish keeping.

The aquarium comes with lighting, filter and heater so you will not have to buy these separately.

It should be noted that this aquarium and the accessories with it are cheap. If you want to do anything more than keep a couple of fish in this aquarium you will be disappointed.

The lighting, filter and heater will not be powerful enough to house more than 2 medium sized fish.

This tank would also not be able to support live rock or plants.

If you just want an entry level aquarium for putting a few gold fish in to see if you enjoy it then this is perfect.

Maintaining a cheap fish tank can be difficult, the extra money that you save by getting the economy version will cost you in time and effort. In order to minimize the amount of  extra effort you will have to put in we recommend that you have a look at the Ultimate Secrets for Saltwater Aquarium Fish and Invertebrates.

This is an excellent ebook packed with tons of useful info to keep your tank running smoothly. While it might seem better to spend that extra money on an aquarium if you don’t know what you are doing that extra cash probably won’t help.

Whether you’re just starting out or have had an aquarium before this could prove to be an invaluable companion for your fish keeping experiences.