WHAT IS ACCLIMATIZATION?
Acclimatization or transplantation of fish into a new aquarium is a process in which the fish will be transplanted with minimal disturbance and change in maintenance parameters. The most common situation when acclimatization is needed is when you bought fish and are transporting them to place them in your aquarium. When you buy new fish, acclimatization begins the moment you introduce them to another aquarium and can last up to two weeks for the fish to get used to the new environment.
WHY IS IT EVEN NEEDED?
Water has many parameters, for example, hardness (the amount of dissolved minerals), pH (acidic or alkaline), salinity, temperature, and all this directly affects the fish. Since the life of a fish directly depends on the water in which it lives, a sudden change leads to stress. In case of sudden changes in water quality, immunity decreases, the fish often gets sick and dies.
How to transport fish from the store?
After purchase, the fish must be transported home. As a rule, such a journey takes no more than three hours. But even in this case, aquarists, especially beginners, do not know or do not think about how to do this with the least stress for the fish. What is suitable for transportation?
Regular bank . Purchased fish can be transported from the store to home in a glass jar. This is very convenient for the fish, but not so much for the person transporting it. You need to take care of the container so that it does not break. This method is suitable if the journey takes no more than 40 minutes.
Fill the jar two-thirds with water. If it is not very cold outside, then just wrap the jar in a thick towel and place it in a bag. This guarantees stable water temperature for 20 minutes. If it is quite cold, then a small jar can be placed in the inner pocket of your clothes. If it is larger and this cannot be done, then it must be wrapped in woolen cloth and placed in a bag, suitcase or box with a heating pad.
Plastic bag . Most often, transportation from the store is carried out in a plastic bag. But ordinary bags are not suitable, as they tear easily, leak and have corners where fish can get stuck and get hurt. There are special durable bags with rounded corners that you can buy at a pet store. No more than a quarter of the water is poured into them. The upper edges are compressed and air is pumped in with a compressor. Just tie the top of the bag with an elastic band.
What is acclimatization?
Acclimatization or transplantation of fish into a new aquarium is a process in which the fish will be transplanted with minimal disturbance and change in maintenance parameters.
The most common situation when acclimatization is needed is when you bought fish and are transporting them to place them in your aquarium.
When you buy new fish, acclimatization begins the moment you introduce them to another aquarium and can last up to two weeks for the fish to get used to the new environment.
How to release purchased fish into an aquarium?
Under no circumstances should you do this right away! Experienced fish farmers advise placing the tied bag in a quarantine aquarium so that the water temperature in both places gradually equalizes. After this, the bag is untied and a portion of water from the aquarium is poured into it.
This procedure is repeated several times, carefully monitoring the condition of the fish. If they feel unwell, the procedure should be stopped. If all is well, then as soon as the aquarium water in the bag is more than half, the fish can be released.
If you catch it, it is better to use your hand rather than a net (less risk of damage). Or you can turn the bag so that the fish swims out of it.
It is better to keep new pets in quarantine for two weeks and then transplant them into a community aquarium. During this period, it is undesirable to turn on the light and make unnecessary movements around the aquarium.
Transportation of fish.
This question is a little more complicated. For long-term transportation of fish (for example, to another city which is a day or more away) - you will need an autonomous compressor (battery-powered oxygen compressor).
Such aquarium compressors are sold at any pet store and supply oxygen using batteries. The cost of such compressors is much higher. In addition, I recommend that you purchase the above-mentioned AquaSafe ( or equivalent) and add it to the bag with the transported fish, it has
calming properties. In addition, stores often sell O2 oxygen tablets that can be used during long-term transportation. And one more little secret - hydrogen peroxide is an excellent “aerator” and, upon contact with water, releases pure oxygen; it should also be used during long-term transportation of aquarium fish.
Lost in translation
Anyone who has bought aquarium fish at least once in their life knows that getting them home safe and sound is not always easy, especially when it is hot or bitterly cold outside. Being in a limited volume of water, experiencing constant shaking and tremors, and often a lack of oxygen and progressive poisoning with nitrogen compounds, our pets experience severe stress. In addition, the small package quickly cools down or overheats, which further adds to the extreme nature of this trip. And when it finally ends with a safe arrival home, it is quite natural to want to place the suffering fish as quickly as possible in a new home, which we prepared and landscaped in advance for their arrival.
At this stage, the aquarist is faced with a mistake that, probably, everyone who devoted their time to this hobby made at least once or twice. Namely: we take and quickly transplant the tortured new settlers from a tight bag with water contaminated during the journey into our bright and safe aquarium. One would expect that the fish, if not immediately, then in the near future, will feel better, they will stop being stressed and scared, and soon an aquarium idyll will be created.
However, in practice this is often not the case at all. The transplanted fish may not only not feel better, but it happens that after moving into the aquarium they simply feel sick. They can “faint”, hide in a corner or behind the scenery, lose even more color, begin to jump out of the water, lie to the bottom without moving, twitch in convulsions, experience severe suffocation and even die - immediately or after a few days, when, They seem to have completely recovered. What is happening and what exactly are many novice aquarists doing wrong when they practice this kind of “express relocation”?
To understand the essence of this error, let’s think about what exactly is happening at this moment with our pets. Everyone knows what it will feel like if you suddenly go from a room in which it is hot into the street at -20 (naturally, to complete the analogy, we will leave fur coats and hats at home - fish do not have any clothes). In the same way, in a warm room, the frozen hands and cheeks of a person entering from the cold begin to pinch mercilessly. These sensations can hardly be called comfortable, can they? However, this is just one environmental parameter that we have changed. Do not forget that for fish water is the same as air for us. And the most diverse parameters of this environment directly affect the course of all processes in the body. Imagine now that you suddenly come out of a polluted metropolis on a hot summer day - wow! - and found ourselves in the fresh cool air, somewhere in the protected highlands. It seems that the living environment has become much more acceptable in general. But if the transition happened too abruptly, do not be surprised that as a result of such magic your head will mercilessly spin, your temples will pound, and you will no longer have enough oxygen. Not because all this is bad and not useful - but because of this very “suddenly”.
Exactly the same thing happens with our fish. The most important commandment of the aquarist in this case remains the same: patience! Yes, it is not at all sweet for them to travel home in a bag, but the environment in which they find themselves (that is, the water poured into this bag) somehow becomes familiar to them during this time. And when the time comes to move, with a sharp change in conditions, stress increases significantly, sometimes leading to a state of shock. It is not surprising that such a “good deed” can make the fish feel very bad. To avoid this, let's take a closer look at exactly which parameters can give this effect with their differences. And how to level them without harm to pets.
WHEN IT'S HOT OR WHEN IT'S COLD...
The first one, with which we actually started our conversation, is temperature. If the fish become hypothermic or overheated on the way, do not rush to replant them - first equalize the temperature in the bag and in the aquarium. A jump of about two degrees is also acceptable, but if the difference is larger, be sure to wait and smoothly correct this indicator to normal. The easiest way to do it is this way. If oxygen has been pumped into the bag or the fish are not suffocating, simply let it float in the aquarium. To understand their condition, before doing this, put it down for a minute and observe without disturbing the fish - if they do not rise to the surface and do not grab air, then everything is in order and there is time to adapt. Naturally, this does not apply to benthic species; we look at them more carefully and observe their breathing rate and general condition. If the fish still experience suffocation, then we also lower the bag into the aquarium to equalize the temperature, only it must be immediately untied and the compressor sprayer lowered into it. It is convenient to take a paper clip or an ordinary clothespin and use them to attach the bag by the edge to the edge of the aquarium - then it will not float back and forth and its contents will not spill out prematurely into the water. If there is not enough water in the bag, roll it up, otherwise the pressure of the water from outside will flatten it and the fish will feel bad. Also make sure that the stream of bubbles is not too powerful - otherwise the fish will rinse throughout the entire container and quickly lead to a deplorable state. If there is no compressor, you can drop a few drops of pharmaceutical hydrogen peroxide into the bag (estimate how much you need, based on no more than 2 ml per 10 liters of water). In general, how milliliters are converted into drops and vice versa is written here .
Attention! Even severe suffocation in fish is not a reason for immediate transplantation into an aquarium; moreover, it is in this case that it will have the most severe consequences for the fish! We use all the first means of resuscitation only in the water in which the fish was traveling, and at the same time we begin to adapt the pets to new conditions!
...So, temperature changes of more than 2-3 degrees are critical. It is impossible to say exactly how long it will take to equalize this parameter, but with a small difference, after 20-30 minutes the water in the aquarium and in the transport bag usually become the same temperature. In the most difficult cases you have to wait longer, but here a thermometer can help. The greater the difference, the slower you need to raise or lower the temperature. No more than 3-4 degrees per hour is considered optimal.
In addition to this indicator, which, in general, can be easily “touched” with your hands, there are others, implicit ones, which simply cannot be recorded by our human senses. However, they are also very important for fish (even more than temperature), and when transplanting, they can greatly harm their health if the values in the bag and in the aquarium differ greatly. This is, first of all, the total hardness (GH) and the active reaction (aka alkalinity/acidity, or pH) of water. We will not dwell on them in detail - each of these parameters is fundamental in aquarium keeping, and therefore each requires a separate detailed article. For now, for those who are already familiar with them, we will omit the details, and for those who have no idea what we are talking about, let’s say that these important indicators can be determined using reagent tests sold in pet stores, and there is nothing complex. These tests are very useful to buy. Let's agree now: by default we will assume that we already have them. And if there are no tests at hand, we will assume that the parameters are highly variable, and in any case take all appropriate precautions. If this is true, we will guess and do everything correctly; if not, there will be no harm to the fish either.
ABOUT HARD AND SOFT WATER
Let's start with GH - general hardness. This indicator determines the amount of calcium ions dissolved in water (in fact, magnesium is also taken into account here, but aquarium tests only “catch” calcium, so for the sake of simplicity we will only talk about it). Total hardness is usually measured in German degrees; one German degree is one milligram of calcium per liter of water. The more calcium, the higher the overall hardness. Typically, “soft” water is water with a hardness of up to 8 degrees, and pronounced “hard” water is somewhere from 15 and above.
It is a good idea to know this parameter when transplanting fish, since a sharp change in it can cause osmotic shock in the fish, especially for sensitive soft-water and wild fish. There are species that are generally difficult to penetrate by changes in rigidity. But if you don’t know whether this is true for your new pets, again, it’s better not to risk it. It is believed that without problems, the average fish experiences a change in overall hardness of 8 German degrees per day. Sharper surges can cause health problems.
Typically, the overall hardness of water does not vary much within the territory of one city, or even a region, since it is determined by the composition of the rocks in the layers from which water is drawn in a given area. But again, this is not a rule - which is why a bottle of GH test is very useful to have on hand. Often it will not be useful to you, because water of approximately the same hardness always flows from the same tap, and if you do not specifically adjust it in one direction or another, then its value will remain the same. But when transplanting aquarium new settlers, the test is just a very necessary thing. In my city of Sudogda, for example, on different streets the GH value “walks” from 12 to 25, depending on whether you take water from a pump or a well on the street - or are the lucky owner of a water supply system. It's all about the different aquifers from which water is drawn. And here the fish, moving even very close, will need to seriously adapt to new conditions. The test is in your hands... He who is forewarned is forearmed.
How to smoothly change water parameters? Everything that we have already talked about and will talk about again changes, in fact, in the process of one single manipulation - adding new water where the fish will live to the old one in which they arrived. The most elementary thing that saves a lot of fish lives... This is done either fractionally, with the help of a small glass, with which a little water is manually added to the bag every about five minutes, or with the help of a dropper, adjusted accordingly, so that the water does not flow in a stream, but quickly drips. We usually use the second option: firstly, it is “lazy” (you can put a container of water above the bag, put a straw in it, adjust the flow speed and forget for a while - everything will drip by itself), and secondly - he is also gentle. This method is suitable even for the most sensitive animals, including “delicate” fish species and shrimp that do not like changes in water parameters. The only thing you need to take into account is that the new water you add should not be more than the bag (well, or the jar into which you temporarily poured its contents) can hold, otherwise it will overflow, the fish will jump out, and a small flood may occur on the floor or shelf. Also, make sure that the increase in the weight of the temporary container with fish during the “digging” process does not lead to its overturning or unhooking of the clothespin. Also, for a more effective change of parameters, it is better to drain at least half of the water in which the fish arrived, otherwise diluting it with new water will be more difficult and longer. It is useful to close the top of the bag with another clothespin so that when the water level in it rises, the fish do not jump out.
INSANE pH
Now about pH. This is a rather tricky indicator; it is insidious in that it can change even in a single aquarium in a fairly short period of time, and also in that it is its changes that cause the most serious ailments in aquatic inhabitants. Therefore, it makes sense to purchase a pH test first and use it regularly in order to understand how much this parameter changes in your home underwater world - and when transplanting fish, God himself commanded that you take it in your hands: this will really make life easier for both you and them. Again, to simplify our story, we will not go into scientific details, but will only say that water with pH = 7 is called neutral; if this value is below 7, then the water is “acidic”, and if it is higher, then it is “alkaline”. Typically, pH values in aquariums range from 6 to 8.5, but there are even higher and even lower pH values. In our case, the important fact is how much they differ in the two containers; Let’s leave the questions of optimal conditions for specific species outside the scope of today’s conversation. The following rule applies: if the difference is at least 0.5 units, then this is already a significant difference, and at least 15 minutes should be spent on adapting the fish by adding new water to the old one; further, as the difference increases, the time that needs to be allocated for adaptation increases more and more. A difference of 1 unit (for example, from 6.0 to 7.0) must be corrected within 1 hour; 1.5 units - 2 hours or more. This is a very important point that should never be forgotten, since a sharp change in the pH of the water leads to damage to the mucous membrane of the gill filaments and skin in fish, and this, in turn, makes breathing difficult and causes general irritation of the integument. When this happens, you may not notice anything visually at all, except for general discomfort in the fish (well, except that they itch, and even then not always - but there can be a variety of reasons for this), however, damage of this kind is very poorly restored. It often happens that a fish with gills damaged in this way dies “for no apparent reason” one and a half to two weeks after the housewarming. Sad ending, isn't it? That is why a smooth translation, even if you do not have a pH test at hand, cannot be neglected. It’s better to let the dropper stay in the bag longer, but there certainly won’t be a dangerous drop in this indicator. To protect the mucous membrane, it is very useful to add directly to the bag upon arrival home (or better yet, when packing the fish - Mistes and I always try to do this ourselves) preparations that protect the integument of the fish - such as Stress Coat from API, Sera Aquatan, Tetra Aquasafe and other conditioners with similar properties.
AND AGAIN ABOUT NITROGEN
Finally, there is one last factor that we were going to look at today - the concentration of nitrogenous compounds. They get into the shipping package in two ways: firstly, they can be contained in aquarium water from the store (and, moreover, in rather large doses); secondly, they are formed during the life of fish while they are on the way, if the journey takes several hours or more. The more densely the fish are planted both in a commercial aquarium and in the bag itself, and the longer the journey, the more nitrogenous substances there will be. We have already written separate large materials about their dangers and ways to neutralize ammonia, nitrites and nitrates Let’s just note that the presence of nitrogen compounds in water leads to a sharp increase in the sensitivity of fish to unfavorable conditions, so if the fish traveled for a long time and was planted tightly, and you do not have tests for all these compounds at hand, again, consider that they are in plenty of water and take appropriate precautions . In any case, it will be very useful to add Sera Toxivec to the water in the bag; it instantly decomposes all these harmful substances. Ammolock from API is also very effective, but it only works on ammonia contamination and does not remove nitrites and nitrates. However, they are found much less frequently in store-bought water, but in “homemade” water, if you take fish from a private breeder, they can be found. In general, if fish from the road are breathing heavily and showing symptoms of nitrogen poisoning, immediately add any of these remedies, it will definitely not get worse. Also, drop a little methylene blue into the water - this is an effective antidote against ammonia, quickly clearing it from fish blood. If tests reveal nitrites in the water, increase the adaptation time to an hour or two, even if the other parameters are practically the same: in this situation, a sudden transfer to clean water is absolutely contraindicated for fish.
When shipping ammonia, the fish’s water needs to be changed as soon as possible, however, for the reasons stated above (changes in GH, pH and temperature), this still cannot be done during transportation. That’s why we are talking here only about the chemical correction of the composition of the environment and the condition of the fish, but the rest remains the same: methodically “dropping” the bag with a dropper will do its job. The limiting factor, the most important in determining the time of adaptation to new water, is usually pH (as well as temperature, but only in cases of severe overheating or hypothermia).
SUMMARY
As you can see, our article again turned out to be quite voluminous. Therefore, let’s summarize all these arguments by making a list of everything necessary for the successful adaptation of fish.
When going to the store for new pets or ordering them from an online store, it would not be superfluous to have, in addition to the aquarium prepared for their settlement, the following: a compressor (or a bottle of hydrogen peroxide), a thin silicone hose from a dropper with a regulator (you can take a regular thin aquarium hose and tie a loose knot on it - it will also accurately regulate the flow of water), a syringe without a needle, a couple of clothespins, Stress Coat, Sera Toxivec, methylene blue.
Drip tests for ammonia, nitrites, GH and pH will be very helpful, although their availability is associated with certain monetary costs and trips to “advanced” pet stores.
And, of course, the most important thing is the reserve of patience you and your loved ones have. We specifically made this article so detailed to show how harmful it can be for the fish to be transplanted to a new home as quickly as possible. If you don’t know how different the water parameters are and have nothing to measure them with, take them by default as very different and adapt the fish longer, at least one hour. The less stress there is during transplantation, the more they will delight you in the future with good health and bright colors. Happy housewarming to your pets!
Tasha.
How to transport fish in winter?
In general, the transportation procedure is the same. The main difficulty is to prevent hypothermia and maintain the optimal temperature of the water in the containers for as long as possible. In what ways can this be done:
- Cover the bag or jar under clothing on your body. Not always suitable for obvious reasons.
- Wrap the containers with several layers of fabric or newspapers.
- Place bottles or heating pads with hot water in the box (the fish should not have direct contact with this container). You can line them with cloth or paper. If the water in bottles or heating pads is additionally salted, then heat transfer will take longer.
- If transportation is carried out by car, then the container can be placed on the seat and covered with a blanket or jacket.
- Use a thermal bag. This is the best option.
How to transport aquarium plants?
The main thing in this matter is to prevent them from drying out, overheating or freezing. And also remember that plants will not survive more than two days without light. That is why they should never be sent by parcels.
Plants are packaged as follows:
- you need to place them in a damp plastic bag;
- there is no need to fill it completely with water, just a small amount is enough;
- bushes can be wrapped in wet newspaper;
- There is no need to pump in air either;
- tie the bag tightly, place it in another one;
- Fill the last bag with air and tie it too.
Aquarium plants are better preserved when transported in a cool place, but not below +12 degrees. If this happens in winter, then it is safer to transport them in water, which will serve as a buffer against a rapid drop in temperature.
Overheating should not be allowed, as this will destroy the plants. In summer, do not allow the temperature to rise above 30 degrees and do not leave it in the open sun.
Once the plants arrive, they should not be immediately placed into the aquarium. They must adapt. To do this, let them sit at room temperature without opening the packaging.
