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Transporting Your New Fish

Great! You’ve finally decided to buy a fish, but how the heck are you going to get it home? Transporting your fish really isn’t that difficult if you’re careful and have the right tools.

Bringing the fish home from the store

The nice thing about buying a new fish is that the fish store or fish breeder will give you everything your need for transporting your new fish. They don’t just expect you to walk in with your own carrying containers to cart your fish home! No. They’ll provide you with the proper bag, water and water level for the fish. Each store or breeder will give you a different bag depending on the size of the fish, but all of them will recommend getting home as soon as possible so your fish can be introduced to its new environment.

Transporting fish from the bag to the tank

Your fish can’t live in his bag forever. So, when you get home, you’re next step is transporting your new fish to it’s new tank. Do not just plop your fish into the tank! This is never ever a good way to introduce your fish to its new environment.

Transporting your new fish into a new tank takes time. For starters, the tank water needs to be set at a temperature that’s desirable to your fish. Wait until the water is the right temperature and the right pH level. Then, place the fish (while it’s still in the bag) into the water and leave him in the bag for about an hour. This lets your fish get used to the water temperature. Putting a fish in a tank before it’s used to the new water temperature can cause the fish to go into shock or die.

Transporting your new fish into a tank with other fish takes much more care and often requires quarantining the new fish.

Transporting the fish for tank cleanings

Many times you can leave your fish in its tank while you’re cleaning the tank. But, many times you need to remove the fish during cleaning, especially if you’re using a tank vacuum or adding more chemicals to the water. At some point you’ll end up transporting your new fish to a temporary home and here’s how you do it.

Get a clean plastic container or a clean smaller fish tank and fill it with some water from your fish’s main tank. This ensures that your fish will be used to the water and pH level in the container. Next, place the fish in the new container using a clean fish net. Transporting your new fish quickly is important so it doesn’t jump out of the net.

Once your fish is in its new container, cover the container with a breathable lid. This can be a lid with holes or a netted lid. Once you’ve cleaned the tank and adjusted the pH level and temperature, use the same transporting your new fish techniques that you used when introducing the fish to the tank for the first time.

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