Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Pick out a tank and tank stand that fits your space and budget. Wipe down the tank with a clean, damp cloth. Rinse off any gravel or substrate before adding it to the tank. Hook up the equipment before adding water to the tank. Fill the tank halfway with saltwater and test the salinity. for 24 hours.

Answer: As a beginner, you may be tempted to get a small tank, but it's actually hard on your fish to transition from a small tank to a large one over time. For the best results, pick the largest one you can that fits into your budget and allocated space (choose a location that's away from doors, windows, and heating units). A 48in (120cm), 120USgal (450L) tank is a great choice for beginners. Buy a tank stand rather than relying on a piece of furniture you already have. A 10USgal (38L) tank could easily weigh over 1,000 pounds (450kg) once it's full of water, creatures, and rocks. Aquarium stands are specifically built to hold that volume, whereas your normal table or TV stand isn't meant to withhold that much weight. Most tank stands are designed to also house the tank's equipment, so it provides storage as well as a base for the tank. Take a clean, damp washcloth or rag and thoroughly wipe out the interior of the tank, the top rim, and the outside of the tank. Rinse the tank out with lukewarm water and let it air dry. Never use bleach, detergent, soaps, or any other kind of abrasive cleaner on the tank. You don't have to use gravel, but if you choose to, rinse it out in a colander before putting it in the tank. Use 1 pound (0.45kg) of gravel or substrate for each gallon in your aquarium to create a 1 inch (2.5cm) thick bed of gravel. After the gravel is rinsed, spread it out evenly over the bottom of the tank. Substrate is sandy, and it's a better material for fish that like to burrow. If you're planning on buying fish that burrow, get substrate. Otherwise, gravel should be just fine! Rinsing the gravel beforehand will get rid of excess dust, which will put less strain on the filtration system. Adding or not adding gravel is a personal preference. Some people prefer the way an ungraveled tank looks. Make sure to read all the instructions that come along with the equipment as you set up each piece. Luckily, many pieces of equipment are built to work with various sizes of tanks, so you should have lots of options available to you when you start researching; just make sure the equipment specifies it is meant for saltwater aquariums. For a basic tank, you will need: A protein skimmer or filter A heater and thermometer A circulation pump Aquarium lighting You can, of course, buy new equipment from aquarium stores. You could also look to purchase equipment from other people in the aquarium community. If you do that, just look for a reputable seller and check that the equipment works properly before you pay for it. Never use table salt in your aquarium. Purchase pre-mixed saltwater from the aquarium store, or make your own by mixing reverse-osmosis water and a sea salt mix, which can be bought from the aquarium store. Follow the instructions on the sea salt mix to combine the right proportions for your tank. Keep adding salt or water until the hydrometer reads 1.025. Don't use distilled water. Distillation generally filters through copper piping, and copper can kill coral and other fishes. You're only filling the tank halfway so that you will have space to aquascape the tank without causing water to spill over the top. tion system for 24 hours. Before adding live rock or any creatures of any kind, turn on the filtration system and let it run for at least 24 hours. Check that the equipment runs properly, and troubleshoot any hardware issues you come across. Letting the filter run for 24 hours helps purify the water and clean out any dust that is present in the tank. Part of running a successful aquarium is taking the time to let the water and tank acclimate correctly.

Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Plan your meals in advance. Inspect nutrition labels closely. Measure proper portions. Total sodium for ingredients. Use your sodium numbers to calculate your salt intake.

Answer:
If you carefully plan what you're going to eat each day for a week, you can shop only for the ingredients in those meals. The planning makes it easier to track your sodium intake, because you won't have unknown items that you have to calculate after the fact. You may have already started a food diary so you could estimate your salt intake. Continuing to use your food diary can make it easier to plan your meals and stick to that plan. It's a good idea to go through your fridge and pantry and get rid of snacks and high-sodium foods, so they won't tempt you. This is particularly important if you're trying to cut back on sodium in your diet. On packaged and processed foods, you'll find a nutrition label that indicates the sodium content of an individual serving of that food product. Choose foods that are low in sodium or have no salt added. Keep in mind that different brands of the same food product may have different amounts of sodium. Generally, you want to choose the brand that has the lowest sodium. Frozen vegetables have lower sodium than canned vegetables, and many frozen vegetables may have no sodium at all. Watch out for sodium particularly in foods that you normally wouldn't consider salty, such as bread, rolls, and cookies. Salt often is used as a preservative, and is used in baked goods as well. Some countries, such as the United Kingdom, mandate color-coded labels to help you choose low-sodium foods. If you live in such a country, look for labels with a color that corresponds with the lowest levels of sodium. Nutrition labels provide sodium content for packaged food products based on individual serving sizes. To adequately and correctly track your salt intake, you must ensure you're eating no more than a single portion. The amount of food that is considered an individual serving will be listed on the nutrition label. Use a measuring cup, measuring spoon, or a food scale to determine how much food equals a serving. You can also estimate the portion sizes of certain foods. The sodium content listed on the box is the content for a single serving. If you eat more than 1 serving, you need to multiply that amount by the number of servings you've consumed. For example, if the bowl of cereal you normally eat for breakfast actually equates to 2 individual servings, you would need to multiply the sodium amount on the cereal box's nutritional label by 2. Sodium can sneak into meals you make at home, even if you don't add salt specifically. Make sure you've determined the sodium content for all the various ingredients in a recipe so you can account for it properly. If you've purchased whole foods that didn't come in a package with a nutritional label, you may have to do additional research online to determine the sodium content of that food. When you total the sodium for ingredients in an entire recipe, don't forget to divide by the number of servings. For example, if you made a casserole and ate 1/4 of it, you would take the total amount of sodium included in the casserole's ingredients and divide by 4 to find your personal sodium intake. Don't forget to include any table salt, garlic salt, onion salt, or any other seasonings you use in the recipe that contain sodium, or that you sprinkle on the food before you eat it. While you may be able to track the exact amount of sodium you consume, you'll have to go 1 step further if you also want to find out exactly how much salt you're consuming. Generally, you probably want to track your sodium intake for at least a week. Get your sodium total, then divide by 7 to get your average daily sodium intake. This will be a more accurate number than if you simply track your sodium intake for 1 day. Once you have your daily sodium intake number, multiply that number by 2.5. The result is your salt intake.