Tank positioning

• Don’t place your tank next to the television or loud music as it is surprising how quickly sound travels through water.
• Place the tank out of draughts; draughts affect the temperature of the tank, often rapidly.
• Do not place the tank in direct sun light as this heats the water to unbearable levels and algae will grow rapidly all over the tank.

Acclimation
Firstly check your basic water quality parameters are within acceptable rang which are;

• Temperature range: 24oC – 28oC (Optimum 25oC – 26oC)
• Salinity 30ppt – 35ppt  (Optimum 32ppt – 33ppt)

Acclimate your seahorses slowly but do not take more than 30 minutes to complete the following procedure;

1. Open your box away from any bright lights.
2. Turn off the aquarium lights.
3. Float the bag in your tank for about 10 minutes to equalise the temperature.
4. Partially open the bag and add 1 cup of water.
5. Wait 10 minutes.
6. Remove 1 cup of water and add another cup of water from the tank.
7. Wait 10 minutes.
8. Repeat this procedure again.
9. Gently use your hand to transfer the seahorses into the tank, discarding the water left in the bag.
10. Do not feed your seahorses for 24 hours after they arrive as they have been on long journey and need some time to adjust to their new home.
11.  

Temperature and Salinity
In the ocean your tropical seahorses and othre tropical marine fish are found in waters of around 25oC – 26oC and salinity of 32ppt – 33ppt. You should maintain the aquarium water as close to these figures as possible, however, anything between 24oC – 28oC and 30ppt – 35ppt will suffice.
Important Note: Rapid changes in temperature in a short time and salinity levels outside the above range are one of the major causes of poor health in seahorses. Therefore we would encourage you to check the temperature and salinity on a daily basis.

                                                How to use a Hydrometer – Salinity Tester
Weekly / daily maintenance

• Algae 
• Regular cleaning of the algae and “keeping on top” of its growth is one of the secrets to maintaining a clean aquarium.
• Light is one of the main causes of algae so minimise their use. Remember that the fish do not need the lights and are really for you to enjoy your fish so it is best to turn them off when you are not at home.
• Clean the inside of the glass of algae / dirt every other day if possible with the enclosed cleaning magnet.
• For the back of the tank or tough algae, use the enclosed algae scraper.
• Corals / Plants
• The corals and / or plants can be removed when they are dirty, being careful  not to disturb your seahorses too much and make sure to leave the living rock in the aquarium.
• The corals / plants can be lightly cleaned with hot water and toothbrush (just use the toothbrush for this purpose) or soaked overnight in a Milton solution (1 cap / 5 litres )
• Water Change –
• To ensure the continued health of your seahorses, you will need to change 10% of your water every 2 weeks for the first 2 months and once a month after that.
• We advise you to purchase a small bucket (10litres) and keep it strictly for your water changes without ever adding soap or detergents to it.
• Before commencing your water change, wash your hands in warm tap water only.
• Disconnect power to the aquarium.
• Clean the algae as described above.
• Siphon 10% of the tank water by using the substrate vacuum pump as follows;
• Insert the sand washer in the aquarium and move rapidly up and down to start the siphon.
• Work gravel tube so a continuous flow of sand is picked up and returned to the bottom whilst siphoning, moving to new areas as the water changes from cloudy to clear.
• Be careful not to remove any of the sand during this process.
• Rinse out prefilters and filter media, using aquarium water in bucket only.
• Empty the bucket and fill with warm tap water for the water change, the same temperature as your tank water (use thermometer included). Add Aquasafe and the required amount of salt (320gramms / 10 litres) and mix well.
• Prior to adding the new water to your tank, use your hydrometer to measure the salinity in your tank water. If your salinity in your tank is higher than the specified levels (30ppt – 35ppt), then add a more dilute solution of new salt water. If the salinity in your tank is lower than the specified levels, add a slightly more concentrated solution of salt water. Before measuring the salinity of your new water, ensure that all of the salt in the bucket has fully dissolved.
• Very gradually add the replacement water to the aquarium by pouring from the bucket or better still use a jug to slowly pour it in with.
• Once the tank is refilled make sure that that the power is back on and that the lights, heater and pumps are working properly.
• The last job is to clean the outside of the glass with a soft cloth and glass cleaner whilst the lid is closed.

Choosing safe tank mates
At Seahorse Aquariums we specialise in breeding and supplying creatures that can be kept together in perfect harmony. A list of all our available fish can be viewed at www.seahorseaquariums.com Please remember that understocking is ALWAYS better than overstocking. Always! Rather than risk overcrowding an established tank, consider starting up a new aquarium when the urge to acquire many new fish becomes overwhelming.

• Rinse Hydrometer with fresh water before using.
• Sink the hydrometer in the water and fill until the water flows up and over the inner weir.
• Dislodge air bubbles by tapping hydrometer with finger or gently with a pointer, e.g. pencil.
• Placing hydrometer on a level surface, read specific gravity (inside scale) and ppt (outside scale).
• Rinse hydrometer with freshwater before storing.
• To clean, soak hydrometer in vinegar for 30 minutes periodically.