Straight answers to common questions
Every guide takes one real question and gives one clear pick.
How to Set Up Your First Aquarium (a Beginner's Step-by-Step)
Set up your first freshwater aquarium the right way — what to buy, the order to do it in, and how to cycle the tank before any fish go in.
Updated Aug 20, 2026
Best Light for a 20-Gallon Tank: Fit, PAR and Plants
The best light for a 20-gallon tank: a 24-inch full-spectrum LED matched to your plants, with picks for fish-only, easy plants and a planted tank.
Updated Sep 5, 2026
Best Food for Betta Fish: Pellets, Protein and Portions
The best food for betta fish: why an insect-based pellet suits their carnivore diet, which one to buy, and how little to actually feed.
Updated Sep 5, 2026
The Best 20-Gallon Tank Setup: Every Piece of Gear
A complete 20-gallon aquarium setup: which heater, filter, light, conditioner and test kit to buy, and the order to install and cycle it.
Updated Sep 5, 2026
Best Filter for a 5-Gallon Tank: Nano, Betta and Shrimp
The best filter for a 5-gallon tank: a gentle sponge for bettas and shrimp, or a small adjustable HOB, plus how to size flow for a nano tank.
Updated Sep 5, 2026
The Best Setup for a 10-Gallon Aquarium
A complete 10-gallon starter kit: correctly sized heater, filter and light, plus realistic stocking. What to buy and what to skip.
Updated Aug 30, 2026
Canister vs HOB Filter: Which Should You Buy?
HOB filters win for most tanks on price and simplicity; canisters win on media capacity for large or heavily stocked tanks. How to pick.
Updated Aug 30, 2026
How to Get Rid of Aquarium Algae
Algae is a light-and-nutrient problem, not a bad-luck problem. Cut the photoperiod, cut the nutrients, add cleanup, and it recedes.
Updated Aug 30, 2026
How to Lower Nitrates in an Aquarium
Water changes are the first and most reliable fix for high nitrates. The other levers (feeding, plants, maintenance) and how to keep them low.
Updated Aug 30, 2026
Do Goldfish Need a Heater and Filter?
Goldfish need heavy filtration and space, but usually not a heater. Why the bowl and the small tank are the real problems.
Updated Aug 30, 2026
Do Betta Fish Need a Heater and Filter?
A betta needs a heater and a gentle filter in a real tank, not a bowl. Why, and the specific gear that suits them.
Updated Aug 30, 2026
Best Aquarium Root Tabs, Cost Per Tab Compared
Seachem and NilocG lead on nutrients and value; API is the cheap entry. What separates a good root tab, with cost per tab.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Root Tabs vs Liquid Fertilizer: Which Do Your Plants Need?
Root feeders like swords want tabs; stem plants and mosses take liquid from the water. Which to buy for your plants, and when to use both.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Best Sinking Food for Bottom Feeders (Cory, Pleco, Loach)
Corydoras, plecos and loaches need food that sinks fast. The best wafers and sinking pellets, and the feeding mistake to avoid.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Fish Flakes vs Pellets: Which Should You Feed?
Pellets waste less and sink to mid and bottom feeders; flakes suit small surface feeders. How to choose, and why quality beats format.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
How Long Should You Run Your Aquarium Light?
6 to 8 hours for most planted tanks, less for a fish-only tank. Why a timer and a consistent schedule beat leaving it on.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Best Aquarium Light for a Planted Tank
The Fluval Plant 3.0 is the programmable all-rounder; the Finnex and hygger are strong value. What actually grows plants.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Aquarium Filter Media Order: What Goes Where
Water should hit mechanical media first, biological second, chemical last. The right stack, and the mistake that clogs a filter.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Purigen vs Activated Carbon: Which Polishes Water Better?
Purigen lasts longer and rinses clean; carbon is cheaper up front but exhausts fast. Which to run, and when.
Updated Aug 29, 2026
Where to Buy a Fish Tank (New or Used)
Where to buy a fish tank — all-in-one kits vs a bare tank vs used, and exactly what to check on a second-hand aquarium before you buy it.
Updated Aug 21, 2026
How Much Does a First Aquarium Cost?
How much does a first aquarium cost? A realistic 20-gallon budget — tank, filter, heater, light, test kit and food — with real price ranges.
Updated Aug 21, 2026
Aquarium Water Parameters Explained (for Beginners)
Aquarium water parameters for beginners — ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH, the safe ranges, and how to read them with a test kit.
Updated Aug 21, 2026
How Often Should You Do a Water Change?
How often should you change aquarium water? About 25% weekly for most tanks — but let your nitrate reading, not the calendar, set the real schedule.
Updated Aug 21, 2026
How Many Fish Can I Keep? (Forget “One Inch Per Gallon”)
How many fish can you keep? Why the one-inch-per-gallon rule is wrong, what actually decides stocking, and how to avoid overstocking your tank.
Updated Aug 21, 2026
Do I Need a Heater, Filter, and Light for a Fish Tank?
Do you need a heater, filter, and light for a fish tank? A filter almost always, a heater for tropical fish, and a light mainly for live plants.
Updated Aug 20, 2026
Where to Buy Aquarium Fish (Online vs Local)
Where to buy aquarium fish — local store vs online, how to spot a healthy fish, and why you quarantine new fish before adding them.
Updated Aug 20, 2026
Why Is My New Aquarium Cloudy? (And What to Do)
Why is your new aquarium cloudy? Usually a harmless bacterial bloom — here's how to tell the types apart, and what to do and what not to do.
Updated Aug 20, 2026
Where to Buy Aquarium Plants (Online and Local)
Where to buy live aquarium plants — local vs online, tissue culture vs potted, and how to quarantine new plants so you don't import pest snails.
Updated Aug 20, 2026
What Size Aquarium Should a Beginner Get? (Bigger Is Easier)
What size aquarium should a beginner get? Why a bigger tank is easier to keep stable, the best first-tank sizes, and what each one needs.
Updated Aug 20, 2026
NilocG Thrive C vs Seachem Flourish: Complete or Supplement?
Flourish is micros-only. If it is your only fertiliser, your plants starve — Thrive C is the all-in-one.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
How to Cycle a New Aquarium (Fishless): A Beginner's Guide
How to cycle a new aquarium the fishless way: grow the bacteria that turn ammonia into nitrate before adding fish. The steps, and what to test.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Seachem Matrix vs Fluval BioMax: Best Biological Media
Seachem Matrix vs Fluval BioMax: both are excellent reusable bio media. Matrix has more surface area; BioMax is cheaper and universal. Which to pick.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Fish Food for a Community Tank
The best fish food for a mixed community tank: one quality staple for top and mid fish, plus a sinking food so bottom feeders get fed too.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Preset vs Adjustable Aquarium Heater: Which to Buy
Preset vs adjustable aquarium heater: an adjustable dial lets you tune to your fish and nudge the tank for treatment. Why it's the better buy.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Fish Food for Picky Eaters
The best fish food for picky eaters: high-protein, aromatic foods in the right size that fussy fish actually take. Our picks and how to switch.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Filter Cartridge Cost Per Year (and the Bulk Media That Beats It)
Proprietary filter cartridges cost $100+ a year per filter. Here's the real cost, and the bulk media that does the same job for pennies.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Root Tabs and Liquid Ferts for a Low-Tech Tank
The best root tabs and liquid ferts for a low-tech planted tank: one all-in-one liquid plus root tabs for heavy root feeders. Our picks.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
API Master Test Kit vs Test Strips: Which Is Better?
API Freshwater Master Test Kit vs test strips: liquid is more accurate and cheaper per test; strips are faster. Which to use, and when.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Budget Aquarium Light for Live Plants Under $60
The best budget aquarium light for live plants under $60: full-spectrum, low-to-medium light picks that grow plants without feeding algae.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Water Conditioner for a Planted Shrimp Tank
The best water conditioner for a planted shrimp tank: shrimp-safe, pH-neutral, and it must detoxify ammonia while cycling. Our pick and why.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Aqueon Pro vs Eheim Jäger: Which Aquarium Heater Wins?
Aqueon Pro vs Eheim Jäger: the Eheim is the recalibratable durability benchmark, the Aqueon Pro is shatter-resistant and cheaper. Which to buy.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Sponge vs HOB Filter for a 20-Gallon Tank: Which to Use
Sponge vs hang-on-back filter for a 20-gallon: a HOB wins for most community tanks, a sponge for shrimp, fry and bettas. The deciding line.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Water Test Kit for Beginners — Cost Per Test Compared
The best water test kit for beginners, with an original cost-per-test table: liquid vs strips, and which is actually cheapest per reading.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Seachem Prime vs API Tap Water Conditioner: Which to Buy
Prime does more per drop and detoxifies ammonia; API is fine if you only need to dechlorinate.
Updated Aug 15, 2026
Best Aquarium Filter for a 20-Gallon Tank Under $50
Best aquarium filter for a 20-gallon tank under $50, with a 3-year cost table showing why the cheapest filter to buy is often the priciest to run.
Updated Oct 6, 2026
Best Aquarium Heater Under $30 (and the Failure Mode to Avoid)
Best aquarium heater under $30: the budget best-seller worth buying, the safety ladder that shows what cheap heaters can't protect against, and the $2 fix.
Updated Oct 6, 2026
Aquarium Heater Wattage by Tank Size — the Actual Formula
How many watts your aquarium heater needs by tank size and room temperature — the real formula, not a lookup guess.
Updated Aug 29, 2026