Goldfish Tank?

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TomK2

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Dec 5, 2004
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Glen Ellyn, IL
Well, my tropical tank has been "cycled" for two or three days, so that means its time to....Start setting up a new tank! My wife wants to make our unused 55 gallon a goldfish tank. I have never had a goldfish tank, and was planning on leaving it unheated, filtered by a fluval 404, have gravel in it but really not much in the way of decorations (My wife wants the fancy goldfish to be the focal point). I have never had a goldfish tank, so what's your advice?
 
water change-water change-water change-water change-water change-water change-water change-


they are very dirty little beasts

choose them wisely you will be looking at they for a very long time
 
I loooooooooooove goldfish! They have so much personality

my only suggestion is to buy a heater to keep the water at a steady (cold) temperature

Also, yes you need to do water changes like normal, but they are very hardy creatures

Also, make sure to buy the goldfish food and not the normal tropical flakes
If you or your wife are interested, white clouds have been known to make good tank mates

good luck!
 
Agreed. There are MANY different types of goldfish. Definitley get a heater anyways, just to keep your water stable.

Also, goldfish need ATLEAST 10 gal per fish. In a 55 gallon, I personally would get no more than 4 fish, but 5 might be ok.

Here is the lowdown on dirty water and goldfish:

http://www.petlibrary.com/goldfish/dirty.htm

Other than that, do your research. Do some shopping and pick out that perfect goldie that grabs your heart. :wink:
 
I used to keep large goldfish tanks and they make very nice pets, because as mentioned, they can live such a very long time. They are lovely to watch and the tank is always active. Someday I plan to do the same thing with my 55.

They are indeed dirty and so you will need to service your Fluval more often that what you might be used to (I'd change out the floss weekly) so what some do for big, dirty fish is to keep the canister with biomedia only - no mechanical filtration, and run a powerful HOB (like an AquaClear) for mechanical, since it is so much easier to rinse out HOB media than to crack open the canister.
 
Try : http://www.goldfishparadise.com/
for a list of articles on goldfish & browse their forum as well.

Lots of filtration is good for goldies, and for the fancy varieties, you'd want the water at 72-75, so a small heater is a good idea. For the gravel, suggest big pebbles <1/2" or bigger> so fish don't chock on them. If you have small gravel, make sure it is smooth as goldies like to mouth the rocks looking for food.

BTW, choose your golds carefully ... there are lots of poor quality fish out there .... I'd go for double tailed varieties in a tank (only grow to 6-8"). For what the different varieties are supposed to look like, try Bristol Society.

http://www.bristol-aquarists.org.uk/
 
so what some do for big, dirty fish is to keep the canister with biomedia only - no mechanical filtration, and run a powerful HOB (like an AquaClear) for mechanical, since it is so much easier to rinse out HOB media than to crack open the canister.
TG- wouldnt the biomedia only canister just clog up with debris? I would think that the debris wouldn't choose the filter, both would suck up an equal amount. Unless you put a sponge over the intake of the canister filter? Well, to tell the truth, I don't service the canister all that often in my tropical tank, about every two months or so. I use two canisters, service one this month, service the other next month. With sparse feedings and water changes, I've not had any trouble in the past. I like the silence of a canister, no water splashing. But if Goldies need the mechanical filter rinsed weekly, that makes a HOB sound easier. I am not too interested in opening a canister weekly. I would do water changes at least weekly. Any filter recommendations? Is there a HOB that doesn't make noise?
EDIT: but room placement makes it desirable to keep it close to the wall. How much room do you need for a HOB filter?

Thanks everyone for the great links. I probably won't fill the tank for another week or so, so now is the time to save me from mistakes!
 
What will happen is the canister won't trap any more debris than normal, it will trap less without the floss and fine sponges. Those particles will just cruise right through the filter and be picked up by the HOB. The canister will trap some debris, and of course need to be cleaned out, but not as frequently. It is there to act as a biofilter, with ceramic noodles and/or bioballs.
 
The canister will trap some debris, and of course need to be cleaned out, but not as frequently. It is there to act as a biofilter, with ceramic noodles and/or bioballs.
Interesting. That brings me to another question, what do people put in their canister filters? The fluval biofilter is ceramic rings, but they sell them in little bags that really don't fill up the chamber. I've been looking around the local shops for some unbagged ceramic noodles, but havent run into any yet. Of course, bioballs would work too, woudn' they? I started my tank with the stuff that came with the fluval, but now that I am adding livestock I wanted to add more biofilter surface area. Also, the fluval 404 is much easier to open and service than the 403 (i just tried it today)! I suppose I could clean the sponge for a goldfish tank once a week. If I have lots of biofilter surface area in other chambers, couldn't I just rinse and clean the mechanical filter in tap water, letting the ceramic or bioballs support the biofilter? This would be essential, since the goldie tank would be entirely serviced by a python (and therefore no tank water buckets to rinse with), my prenuptual agreement states no buckets in the carpeted areas! :lol:
 
I had fancy goldfish for years in my 45 gallon and I loved them. I actually never used a heater, but to each his own. I agree about the rock size...there were a few times were I thought I'd have to do the Heimlich (sp?) on one of my fish. :lol: I used an HOB Aquaclear filter...the biggest one they made for my 45 gallon...I never had any problems...well until they all eventually died. :wink:
Anyway, good luck!
 
I think they would eventually get eaten, and they require warmer water.

Tankmates are tricky when it comes to golds!
 
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