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-   -   Goldfish ---Set Up Questions (http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=62303)

Bina April 23rd, 2009 01:16 PM

Goldfish ---Set Up Questions
 
I was going to get 2 of those really small feeder goldfish to brighten up my computer desk area......well,
hubby came back home with 2 good sized fish.:eek: So much for my plan of a simple bowl set up.:rolleyes:
I believe they are comets....about 2.5 inches long.

So, some of my goldfish stuff is with my daughter, but I still have a 5 gallon tank with lid and light.
I have a few questions even after reading through the threads here.

1) Pump/filter: maybe the outside hang on the tank type....AquaClear mini?
2) Can I turn off the pump at night to avoid the noise factor?
3) Do I really need gravel on the bottom.... it's hard to clean.
4) Would snails or an algae eater help with waste in the tank?
Thanks for any help.:)

want4rain April 23rd, 2009 03:27 PM

hopefully being on this forum, my response wont sound rude but informative instead!!!

[B]goldfish should never, [I]ever[/I] be kept in a bowl. [/B]

i can not say this enough.

a single [I]fancy[/I] goldfish should have 15g of overly filtered water (in other words the filter should be rated for at least 30g)

a comet goldfish will grow, in the aquarium, up to 8 inches long.

a pond- 12-15 inches long.



id strongly suggest taking them both back. :)



the least a desk setup should be (to keep -any- fish healthy) no less than 2.5g with a small filter and a heater.

some basic information that is a must-
[url]http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebindex/fwestcycling.htm[/url]

fish that you can fit in a 2.5g tank are probably limited to a betta.

if you bump it up to a 5g tank you can get a few Endlers Livebearers, a few guppies, a Dwarf Gourami, Threadfin Rainbows, a single Dwarf Puffer, OR a single Dwarf Frog.

as in pick one of those, not all of them. most of the fish in there can live with other shrimp but not a cray fish.


good luck with the fish!!

-ashley

want4rain April 23rd, 2009 03:33 PM

[QUOTE=Bina;772226]
1) Pump/filter: maybe the outside hang on the tank type....AquaClear mini?

[COLOR="Red"]unless its seriously under stocked, all tanks need a filter to house the good bacteria that turns fish poo into something less harmful.[/COLOR]

2) Can I turn off the pump at night to avoid the noise factor?

[COLOR="Red"]no, the bacteria needs constant circulation to stay alive.[/COLOR]

3) Do I really need gravel on the bottom.... it's hard to clean.

[COLOR="Red"]nope!! bare bottom makes for super easy clean up. get a turkey baster :)[/COLOR]

4) Would snails or an algae eater help with waste in the tank?
Thanks for any help.:)
[COLOR="Red"]probably make it worse. they reproduce and poop a bunch. stick to water changes to manage waste and thus algae.[/COLOR]
[/QUOTE]

sorry so short- one hand typing.

-ash

Melinda April 24th, 2009 05:48 AM

[url]http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3635107&findingMethod=rr[/url]

these are pretty good tanks, 7 yrs ago my daughters friends were using live feeder goldfish for table displays at their highschool graduation, I woudn't allow it , they returned all the fish except for 3 sick ones, I kept them in a 16 cup measuring cup while giving them daily treatments *L* once recovered I grabbed the cheapest bowl/aquarium at walmart I could find, not thinking they'd live very long....in May it will be 7 yrs they've been "swimming" in my kitchen. This may be a good set up for in your office(desk) I clean it once a month, it has an air stone, light for heat and a nice quiet hum to the pump. My dad raised fish for pet stores decades ago and I grew up with dozens of aquariums in our basement and swore I'd never have fish *LOL*....

Bina April 24th, 2009 12:09 PM

No offense taken, I appreciate honest recommendations. :)

My previous experience with goldfish was that they were "poo factories", but my daughter loved them.
(of course, one day we introduced 2 aquatic frogs, and the goldies were stressed)

Anyway, I didn't want to hurt hubby's feelings, but maybe these comets are better off with my neighbour.
She raises fish in her pond and indoors in a 6 foot tank.

When I was a kid, my Mom had 2 tanks: one with goldfish, one with tropical; guppies, swordtails, mollies, neons. So much fun.
Maybe that kit from Walmart would be sufficient for 2 guppies, or 2 Neons?

want4rain April 25th, 2009 09:35 PM

a 5g kit?? in all honesty the 10g kits are probably cheaper!! you shoudl be able to get a 10g for under $35 with a heater, filter, a net... and a hood. i think thats what i paid for my last one anyway.

a 10g can hold quite a bit actually. a whole school (6 or so) of neons, i wuld start out with only 3 guppies (2 females and 1 male) because they will breed and you dont want so many that you have to take all your first babies back to the store. :) there are some other interesting fish that are commonly found.

you could do a betta and a few neons.

some common fish you DONT want...

do not get a pleco. there isnt a pleco that stays small enough to live in a 10g! :) no angel fish in anythign smaller than 55g. they get really tall... um... do some research on their adult size. [url]www.liveaquaria.com[/url] has some great and reliable fish profiles though some of their tank sizes err on the side of caution.

im heading to bed. hope that helps!!

Bina April 26th, 2009 07:27 PM

When I was a kid we had great fun with the guppies and neons....simple, pretty fish.
I should mention that I have well water and a water softener that runs once a week. I read somewhere that
guppies were quite tolerant of hard water...?

want4rain April 28th, 2009 03:19 PM

guppies are typically pretty tolerant of anything though they ahve been way overbred. :) so some are titanium, others are wax. :)

you can also add a little aquarium salt to a guppy tank.

neons like a lower pH, softer water. :)

-ashley

MyBirdIsEvil June 6th, 2009 10:46 PM

If you just want something hardy danios and white cloud mountain minnows are nearly impossible to kill.
White clouds look kind of like tetras and don't even need a heated tank.

Joe549 June 29th, 2009 07:49 PM

I picked up 6 goldfish for my 30g tank to use them to get the fresh tank started figuring they would probably die within 2 weeks. It's been 2 months now and they are doing great. It took about a month to get the tank balanced and I have only had to do a 25% water change once so far. I test the water weekly and the levels are staying where they are suppose to. I have a 3 stage Aqua Clear filter that is so quiet you can't hear it run even when you are sitting beside the tank.

Bina June 29th, 2009 07:59 PM

Joe, my fish are still doing well....surprise!
What model of Aqua Clear do you have?

Joe549 July 1st, 2009 07:59 PM

Aquaclear 30 is all it says, according to the box is says "formerly model 150". I guess now they just name them according to the size they are rated for.. 15, 20, 30 and so on

MyBirdIsEvil July 29th, 2009 02:26 AM

Joe-
You will probably have to upgrade the filter and your tank as your fish grow.
If a filter is rated for a certain size tank it is usually too small for that size tank, that's the general rule. A filter that is rated for twice your tank size is usually adequate.
6 goldfish will produce enough ammonia to overpower your filter and even if your biobacteria are keeping up, enough ammonia will be turned to nitrates to effect the health of your goldfish.
Keep testing, and if you see your nitrates getting too high (books usually recommend keeping it below 40), consider upgrading to a larger tank and/or doing more water changes.
If you see ammonia show up at all your filter isn't keeping up with the load so you'll need more adequate filtration. While your filter may be adequate now, having too small an amount of biobacteria means your biological filtration can be more easily disrupted, so it's always good to have as much filtration and biomedia as possible.

Bina July 31st, 2009 02:34 PM

An update for the fish fans here.
My 2 goldfish have gone to my neighbour's house...they have a huge natural pond and a 5-6 foot tank indoors. I'm very happy about this, as I don't have to worry about them not having enough space here. They were so friendly and I was having a hard time to part with them, but they are in paradise now with experienced fish people.
Thanks so much for all the great advice given to me here, hopefully in the fall I can start a set up for a couple of guppies, or neons. :)

Joe549 August 1st, 2009 04:26 PM

[QUOTE=MyBirdIsEvil;807624]Joe-
You will probably have to upgrade the filter and your tank as your fish grow.
If a filter is rated for a certain size tank it is usually too small for that size tank, that's the general rule. A filter that is rated for twice your tank size is usually adequate.
6 goldfish will produce enough ammonia to overpower your filter and even if your biobacteria are keeping up, enough ammonia will be turned to nitrates to effect the health of your goldfish.
Keep testing, and if you see your nitrates getting too high (books usually recommend keeping it below 40), consider upgrading to a larger tank and/or doing more water changes.
If you see ammonia show up at all your filter isn't keeping up with the load so you'll need more adequate filtration. While your filter may be adequate now, having too small an amount of biobacteria means your biological filtration can be more easily disrupted, so it's always good to have as much filtration and biomedia as possible.[/QUOTE]

I have actually picked up another filter, got the same one so I will be installing it and running 2. I think I will put in an amonia filter in one and a carbon filter in the other......

MyBirdIsEvil August 8th, 2009 10:35 PM

[QUOTE=Joe549;808943]I have actually picked up another filter, got the same one so I will be installing it and running 2. I think I will put in an amonia filter in one and a carbon filter in the other......[/QUOTE]

If by ammonia filter you're talking zeolite then I would stay away from that. Your biological bacteria feed on the ammonia and zeolite absorbs ammonia, which will starve your biobacteria. When the zeolite is depleted your ammonia will spike back up possibly without you noticing and you'll either have to replace it immediately or re-cycle your tank.
I'd just stick to the actual biological filtration :)

Carbon is ok, but isn't really necessary unless you're removing medications. Water changes should take care of any built up nitrates and toxins.


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