What Temperature should my fish tank be?

Fish tanks come in all shapes and sizes and so do our little fish friends!. But what temperature should your tank be kept at?. Well er, the honest answer should be What fish are you keeping!.

As there’s a huge variety of fish. Ranging from salt and freshwater that require cooler waters and then there are tropical fish that require warm water.

So let’s take a look at the basic differences and average temperatures for both cold water and tropical fish.

 COLDWATER FISH TANK TEMPERATURES?

Coldwater fish such as Koi, Goldfish, and other Carp. Some loaches the white cloud mountain and not least the paradise fish.

Which is in fact subtropical and can easily cope with sub 50f degrees around only 10c. Fun fact the paradise fish has a labyrinth organ which allows them to breathe air the same as the betta fish.

Which we will talk about later maybe as it’s a tropical fish. Let’s keep on track with an overall temp of cold water fish this is at 68f or 20c!.

Although outside in a pond environment they tend to do well as low as 60f 15c. Cold-water fish can still thrive in temperatures up to 75f 24c anything higher than this however is gonna cause the fish serious problems!.

Also, it’s worth noting these temperatures are solely down to their environment as they don’t need or require a heater!.

TROPICAL FISH TANK TEMPERATURES?

Tropical fish such as Tetra. Guppies, mollies, etc and our friend the Betta. Like paradise, fish has the labyrinth organ.

Strangely like the paradise fish, the betta can thrive outside the regular temperatures of tropical fish. In warmer conditions up to 86f 30c.

For the majority of tropical fish however well they need between 75-80f or around 24-27c.

Being as they are by definition tropical fish and that they need to be kept at least 75f 24c they will need their waters heated!.

Ideal temperature For My Fish Tank?

So question what temperature should my fish tank be?

Tropical fish need between 75-80f or around 24-27c! Coldwater fish need between 60F – 68F or 15C – 20C Cold-water fish can still thrive in temperatures up to 75f 24c anything higher than this however is gonna cause the fish serious problems!.

BREEDING TEMPERATURES?

Most fish need a specific range of temperature in order to breed and this is most commonly warmer than the normal everyday conditions.

This is also true not only for tropical fish but also for cold-water fish!. But there are some species of fish that breed when normal water becomes cooler!.

This is something that needs to be taken into account when trying to breed any fish. As you will need to know the required conditions of your fish so you can best replicate in a breeding tank!.

TANK PLACEMENT AND EQUIPMENT AND ITS EFFECT ON TEMPERATURE 

Remember where we place our tanks can have an effect on the temperature too. Placing for instance by a window will be vastly different at different times of the year.

Wintertime with summertime and by radiators boilers etc. This will have a dramatic effect on the tanks temp!. Having the sun beating down on your fish tank.

Maybe too much even if you adjust the heater to compensate!. Also, the tank’s lighting plays a more important role in warming than people realize.

Although fish may over time. Be able to deal with changes in water temperature. You could have for instance one tropical tank between 74-75f A24-24.5c and another tank between 79-80 or 27-27.5c.

Both tanks’ fish are similar species, etc but both tanks and both fish are thriving. This, however, doesn’t mean that you could place a fish from one tank into the other and expect them to be ok.

As its sudden changes in the water’s temperature that cause all the problems. Mainly with stress and also sudden changes will likely shut down the fish’s immune system and or shock the poor thing to death!.

FISHES’ BODIES ARE REGULATED BY THEIR TANKS WATER!

Fish cant regulate their own bodies’ temperature as they are cold-blooded. This doesn’t mean their blood is cold but more they can’t warm themselves.

If the waters are cold and vice versa. Put it this way if we are cold we can put more clothes on and our bodies will respond and we will warm up.

Even to the point of being too warm and starting to sweat!. If we do start to sweat or if it’s a hot day we can drink a cold drink and we will again respond.

Cooling ourselves down as we can indeed regulate our internal temperature. Our fish friends cant do this they rely solely on the surroundings of the aquarium.

In the wild, if fish are cold they will swim to warmer water. Vice-versa if too warm they will seek a cooler area.  Within the confines of our tanks, this is not possible.

Whatever temperature you have set the tank the fish will have to deal with. So we need to help them and keep the tank comfortable!.

 IN CLOSING BEST TEMPERATURES! 

So in closing, we would suggest there is an ideal temperature. As stated above for each group of fish and there can be crossovers between species of fish.

With that being said coldwater and tropical should never be put into the same tank. Even if they seem as though it could be possible you would be putting a strain on both sets of fish!.

If a fish gets too cold. Its metabolism will slow down and it will be tired and sluggish and may well go into hibernation mode.

If too hot. They will be starved of oxygen and have a sped-up metabolism. Ending up panicking hyperactive and stressed, to say the least!.

Again don’t panic keep your tanks at the required temperature. For instance, we have a few tropical tanks. We started at the usual 75f 24c but one tank is happily heated at 25c around 77f and the other is equally happy at 27 which is around 80f.

Fish it seems will happily adapt given time and find a natural equilibrium with your tank. It’s the sudden changes that cause problems!.

Hope you enjoyed the read and if you have any advice. Or you need advice. Give us a holler In the comments thanks again the Tank0fish team!.