One of the biggest things that confused me when it came to setting up and maintaining an aquarium were the chemicals that are involved. When I first went to the pet store I was over whelmed overwhelmed with the selection of aquarium chemicals that were avaiable. This is completely understandable but you should be happy to know that you really do not have to have an overload of chemicals in your fish tank.
Generally, when it comes to beginners, there are only two chemicals that are highly recommended for the fish tank. One of these chemicals would include a dechlorinator. The other would be an Ichthyophthirius medication. This is commonly referred to as an Ich or Ick medication. The first chemical, the dechlorinator, is probably pretty easy to figure out in terms of what it is used for. This is going to help you with the water changes. Most likely, you are going to be using tap water to fill your fish tank. Tap water is chlorinated and chlorine is not good for fish. Therefore, you will want to try to neutralize the chlorine water in order to make sure that your fish will not be harmed.
Then there is the Ick medication. This is something that you simply do not want to pass on. Do not think that you are not going to have to deal with this problem, because you will. So it is just beneficial to your peace of mind to get it ahead of time. You will want to make sure that you are purchasing a product that has Malachite Green as the main active ingredient. With the right Ick medication, the Ick should be able to be fully treated in a manner of just a few short days.
You might be thinking, "But what about pH?" and if you are, you are not alone. The thing is though, most of the fish out there are living in waters that vary greatly in pH levels. There are hardly any fish out there, especially once that you will be caring for, that are going to require a particular pH level in order to survive. So do not worry about trying to figure out how to perfectly adjust or troubleshoot your pH level. Just leave it be.
Then there are the algae destroyers, the water clarifiers, the bacteria boosters and the ammonia removers. Are these needed? No, not really. The Ammonia removers are a waste because they tend to cause more issues than they solve. The bacteria boosters are not a great idea because again, a lot of people find that these cause more problems. There are better ways to control algae than through the use of algae controllers. A water clarifier? If you are having trouble with water clarity, there is a good chance you are not properly maintaining your fish tank. Something has gone wrong and you need to address the issue instead of adding chemicals to the water.