goldfish and loaches

[Phoenixphire55]

So I want to have a 50 - 60 gallon tank with several goldfish in it sometime in the not so distant future. I'm trying to think of how I'd do the tank as far as plants? tankmates? etc. I'd like it to be a pretty cool looking tank because I want the goldfish to add to how sweet the tank is, not be the only thing to look at. However, I know the amount of waste goldfish produce causes some limitations. With those in mind I'm trying to figure out what plants could be in a goldfish tank without being eaten. The plants would be for ornamental purposes, not there to oxygenate the water or for spawning, so I wouldn't need a bunch of plants. I was thinking of putting some in pots. Also, tankmates. I think the idea of having a school of corys in the tank would be awesome. Any other ideas for goldfish tankmates?

[blazeyreef]

Originally Posted by Phoenixphire55

So I want to have a 50 - 60 gallon tank with several goldfish in it sometime in the not so distant future. I'm trying to think of how I'd do the tank as far as plants? tankmates? etc. I'd like it to be a pretty cool looking tank because I want the goldfish to add to how sweet the tank is, not be the only thing to look at. However, I know the amount of waste goldfish produce causes some limitations. With those in mind I'm trying to figure out what plants could be in a goldfish tank without being eaten. The plants would be for ornamental purposes, not there to oxygenate the water or for spawning, so I wouldn't need a bunch of plants. I was thinking of putting some in pots. Also, tankmates. I think the idea of having a school of corys in the tank would be awesome. Any other ideas for goldfish tankmates?

Plants wise-would have to be coldwater species of plants, like Elodea.
I would not use corries, as they prefer warmer waters than the Goldies. I would suggest maybe mountain minnows, hillstream loaches, cooler water species

[Zagz]

Good luck with plants, my goldies eat all plants in their tank. Definately do not put cories in with goldfish. You could also consider a dojo loach as long as you have the tank well covered. They are escape artists.

[theotheragentm]

Dojo Loaches are a good recommendation. They are a coldwater species.

[jsoong]

You don't have to stick with cold water plants if you heat your tank. Fancies like to be in the high 70's anyway. At that temp, you can have tropical plants (although I suppose growth will be slower.) You have to choose plants that the goldies won't eat. Mine don't seem to eat any of my plants (they like their veggies cooked!). I have Java ferns, Anubias, Crypts, Hygro (several sps), Vals & hornwort. <Note that single tailed golds are much more prone to be plant eaters.>

As for tankmate .... be very careful. This is a good forum on people's experience with goldies & other fish:
GP :: View Forum - Goldfish Compatible Tankmates

Cories are not too good, as bigger golds will try to eat them & the barbs on the cories will be stuck in the gold's throat, killing both.

I have Hillstream loaches with golds, and they get alone fine. Dojo or weather loach is another choice. Rubberlip & bristle nose plecos are Ok with golds as well. The classical companion for golds would be white cloud mountain minnows. You should have a big school (looks much more impressive .... and here is protection in numbers). Some will become goldie snacks, but since they reproduce well, you should be able to keep up the numbers as long as you have plenty of hiding places for the frys.

[Phoenixphire55]

Thanks guys! Yeah, I wouldn't put cories with goldfish... not sure why I suggested that, lol. I made another post about the river tank setup, and I was wondering if that sounded like a viable option for goldfish since they originated in streams. I'd have a slower version of the river tank. Who knows. I really like the idea of hillstream loaches (I've been reading up on them). Also dojo loaches look awesome. I'm planning to keep my goldfish around 76 as well since the water will be high in oxygen with the whole river aspect. Still just thinking so I have lots of time to get this right. I was planning to do a 30 gallon amazon-esque tank, and then the 50-60 goldfish tank. I can't have a 3rd for the river setup, so I'd like to do that in the goldfish tank if possible.

[jsoong]

The truely fancy golds don't like a lot of current, since they don't swim that well - what with double tails & egg shaped bodies. A river tank type setup would be great for shubinkins & the like. Metallic fantails & moors might also do OK, but lionhead & all dorsal-less breeds would have troubles.

Having said that, flow is a relative thing. River tanks I've read about have flow at 1000's of gph. My set up has 650 gph flow, and my fancies do fine - although I do point the return to the back so there is calmer areas in the tank.

[Phoenixphire55]

Thanks for the info jsoong. I think I'm going to avoid the dorsal fin-less goldfish (even though I think lionheads/ranchus are super cool), but I'm very likely to get some egg shaped goldies. The problem for me is that I would like to have a slow river tank that is appropriate for some fancy goldfish, but also fast enough for hillstream loaches. I guess if thats not possible I'd rather have a suitable river sytle tank for fancy goldfish and then maybe dojo loaches instead of hillstream. Would kuhli loaches work for this or no?

Alos, jsoon, what is your tank setup? It sound similar to a river tank.

[jsoong]

My setup is more in line with a reef tank or a pond. Basically, my tank overflows to a wet/dry filter (with 1 gal of bioballs) & a sump, with a return pump circulating the water back to the main tank. Total water volume in my setup is 90-100 gal. So my 650 gph pump is only turning over the water 6 or 7 times an hour. That is not too high by goldfish standard (a lot of goldies keeper run their tank or pond at 10x an hour - similar to a reef tank). River tanks would run at 20+, so I am not even close to a river tank's flow rate. All my golds can handle swimming directly into the current with this flow rate, with the exception of my lionhead & bubble eye (both dorsal-less). They get pushed around if they swim too close to the pump return. However, there is enough calm area in the tank for them with a big drift wood creating a shadow & adjusting the return so it is not blasting directly into the middle of the tank.

My hillies don't seem to mind the less than ideal flow rate. Normally, hillies stay in the current for the higher O2 content. Mine tend to hide in the drift woods, where the current is weakest. I take that to mean that there is enough O2 in the tank & they don't need the current. <The wet/dry is supposed to be the most efficient in saturating the water with O2, plus the plants will help also.>