How to Raise Freshwater Angelfish

Freshwater angelfish are known for their elongated and triangular shaped bodies. Their bodies are also striped and colorful, with numerous color possibilities available. Freshwater angelfish are actually a cichlid species that originated in the Amazon River of South America. Angelfish are normally very calm, which makes them easy to breed and pair with other angelfish in the same aquarium. Proper angelfish care is easy as long as you follow certain steps.

Things You'll Need

  • Aquarium
  • Aquarium thermometer
  • Sponge filter or under-gravel filter
  • Live plants
  • pH test kit
  • Fish food
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Instructions

    • 1

      Purchase the right sized aquarium to properly take care of freshwater angelfish. The correct amount of water to fish ratio is as follows: 1 gallon of water per nickel-sized angelfish, 2 gallons of water per quarter-sized angelfish, 3 gallons of water per silver-dollar sized angelfish and 4 gallons of water per full-sized fish. If you are breeding two angelfish, the tank needs to be at least 15 gallons in size, and 25 gallons if the offspring is going to stay with the parents in the same tank.

    • 2

      Make sure the temperature of the water is correct before placing freshwater angelfish into an aquarium. The perfect water temperature to promote breeding and a better immune system for the fish is 80°F. If your fish are just for show and no breeding will take place, the water temperature can be lower, between 74 and 78°F. Use an aquarium thermometer to keep accurate track of the temperature. Lower temperatures are ideal to help angelfish live longer, but higher temperatures let them grow faster.

    • 3

      Set up the proper filtration system to keep the aquarium clean and the water quality high. The body of a freshwater angelfish is not designed to swim in fast moving water, which means a high flow filtration setup will be too stressful for them. Use a sponge filter or under-gravel filter to maintain the water quality. You can buy either at a good pet store. Since a high flow filtration system is too stressful on the fish, partial water changes will be needed regularly. Change 20 percent of the water once a week if multiple angelfish are sharing a smaller aquarium; if it is a big aquarium or only one angelfish is living in it, you can do this every couple of weeks.

    • 4

      Check the pH level of your aquarium weekly with a pH test kit. The proper pH level for freshwater angelfish breeding is between 6.5 and 6.9. You can use a slightly more natural pH level if no breeding is going to take place. A good way to see if your pH level is getting out of hand is to incorporate live plants in the aquarium. If the plants start dying, the pH level is too high or too low, and needs to be adjusted accordingly.

    • 5

      Feed your fish twice daily if they are adults, and three to four times daily if they are still growing. When feeding them, let them eat as much as possible during a five minute period. Flake fish foods and cichlid fish foods are popular store-bought freshwater angelfish foods. You can use live foods as well, including brine shrimp, blood worms, black worms and chopped earthworms.