If you're a fish owner in self-isolation or obligatory lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, chances are you've been tempted to give your aquarium a proper clean out of sheer boredom.

But if you value the lives of your precious fish, you'll want to take a break from your incessant hand-disinfecting before you get started.

Why? Because the chemical residues on your freshly disinfected skin will have negative effects on the water's pH value, pet experts say.

So the next time you go to change the water in your aquarium or clean the filters, make sure your hands haven't just been disinfected. You're better off just thoroughly cleaning your hands and arms with clear, warm water before getting started.

This piece of advice is all the more important for you if you own a small aquarium. That's because the pH values in a small 50-liter tank will fluctuate much more sensitively when chemicals are added.

This is the biggest benefit to having a larger aquarium, experts say, as you won't need to worry too much about maintenance mistakes such as overfeeding or overlooking a dead fish. Unlike in a small aquarium, these errors won't have a dramatic effect on the water quality in a large aquarium.