How to raise angelfish to be beautiful?

Angelfish are beautiful additions to any freshwater tank. These friendly fish glide across the water, showcasing their long, beautiful fins and unique patterns. When you come to an aquarium or pet store to watch them, they'll often swim right up to the front, ready to greet you with a swish of their fins. 

1. Tank Size

Angelfish are a taller species of fish with long, vertical fins. It's good to invest in a deeper tank, so your angelfish don't feel cramped. They can grow to four inches in diameter, but their fins alone can lead to some being over a foot tall in length. Tall, narrow tanks can work for them, but they'd also love tanks that are both tall and wide so that they can swim around more.

Aim for a minimum size of 20 gallons for angelfish so they have plenty of room for their long fins once they're fully grown. If you want to keep small  school of angelfish together, such as four or more, try a tank that's 55 gallons or larger. 

Make sure you invest in a good filter for your tank. Look for a low-flow filter since this better mimics an angelfish's natural environment, where water currents are slow.

You'll also want to invest in a quality water conditioner to ensure the water is safe. Keep a water test kit on hand to make sure all nitrate, ammonia, and other levels in the water are safe too. Your test kit's instructions will be able to elaborate on what levels to watch out for. 

2. Heating and Lighting

Angelfish can thrive in the same type of lighting you'd use for any standard aquarium. If you're keeping your angelfish in a planted aquarium, you want to provide about 10 to 12 hours of light a day for the plants. Otherwise, about eight hours of light a day should be sufficient. It's important the lighting mimics the day-and-night cycle so your fish have a daily routine that stays the same. Setting the lights on a timer can help with this. 

Since they're tropical by nature, angelfish prefer warmer water. This means you'll keep the tank at a comfortable 76 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. 

3. The Best Decor for Your Tank

Angelfish's natural environment is full of tall plants, so adding taller, soft plants to your aquarium can be a nice choice. In fact, if you're building a medium-sized or larger planted aquarium, angelfish might love this. 

Angelfish may also enjoy driftwood in the tank. Angle the driftwood, so it extends from the surface to the bottom, like a branch. You can purchase driftwood from a pet store. 

Remember: angelfish have delicate, long fins. So make sure you're using smooth decor, without any sharp edges the fins could catch on. If you're using live plants, java moss, water sprite, and java fern are good choices. 

Nutrition and Food for Your Angelfish

You can help your angelfish live a longer, healthier life with the right food. Tropical Granules or Tropical Flakes are a good choice for your friendly, tropical fish. They'll also enjoy the occasional live food treat, like bloodworms or brine shrimp. 

Remember, don't overfeed your angelfish. Just feed them once or twice a day at the most, typically in the morning and evening. And only feed what they can consume in about two to three minutes. Signs  you're overfeeding your fish include finding uneaten food at the bottom after about five minutes, cloudy aquarium water, or a clogged filter. 

Aside from when they're guarding eggs, angelfish tend to be peaceful unless they're cramped up with too many other angelfish and don't have enough space. They get along with a variety of fish — including other angelfish. You can even keep six angelfish together in a 55-gallon tank or larger and they'll be fine. Gouramis can often make good tankmates for angelfish. Other good tankmates include pictus catfish, plecos or suckermouth catfish, mollies, dwarf cichlids, and discus cichlids.

Avoid putting fish that tend to nip at the fins of other fish — like barbs — with angelfish. 

Angelfish can be carnivorous by nature, so you want to avoid pairing them with smaller fish they might feed on, like neon tetra or certain invertebrates like crabs or shrimp. 

When choosing additional fish to live with your angelfish, it's best to aim for roughly one inch of adult fish for every net gallon of aquarium water. (Except for angelfish themselves, which need more space due to their large fins.) If you have a lot of decor in the tank, you may want to have fewer fish. You should also add in a little extra space if any of the fish are territorial.

Raising an angelfish can be an incredibly rewarding experience. You'll watch your beautiful fish grow and thrive thanks to your tender loving care. Setting up the tank and getting everything in place may take a little time, but it's worth the effort when you see your fish living its best life.

CR: https://www.aqueon.com/articles/the-ultimate-guide-to-angelfish