Goldfish with tropical fish?

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It doesn't look overstocked in the least to me so don't worry about it. As for the goldfish, I have a whole lot of tanks in my home and one is a 55 gallon with goldfish and a large variety of assorted tropical fish and haven't lost a fish in that tank for over a year. I love the look of it. ImageUploadedByAquarium Advice1412782952.827990.jpg


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No hard feelings but does this tank really look stocked to the gills or beyond to you? View attachment 252217 btw what size tank do you have?


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i dont get why people ask for advice, get it, dont like what they hear, and then get testy. you can put whatever you want in your tank. was just trying to offer some help.


you want to know what my tank is? sure. planted 20 gallon long running an ac 20 and an ac 30 with a pair of dwarf cichlids. understocked and overfiltered, just like i like them.
 
It doesn't look overstocked in the least to me so don't worry about it. As for the goldfish, I have a whole lot of tanks in my home and one is a 55 gallon with goldfish and a large variety of assorted tropical fish and haven't lost a fish in that tank for over a year. I love the look of it. View attachment 252245


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Just because your unconventional situation is working for you does not mean you should convey this poor information furtherm. This forum tries to go by the book as not to create confusion. Tropical fish require specific temps and parameters while goldfish require a separate set of temp requirements and parameters. This is fact...

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Well I guess it's not 2 great of a fact seeing as my tank proves this very wrong. It's a matter of finding a temp that works for both and I even have breeding pairs of goldfish and tropical fish if they weren't happy no babies would be born.


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Well I guess it's not 2 great of a fact seeing as my tank proves this very wrong. It's a matter of finding a temp that works for both and I even have breeding pairs of goldfish and tropical fish if they weren't happy no babies would be born.


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"A temp that works for both" doesn't exist. Either goldfish will be too warm, or the tropicals will be too cold. I guess the question is do you want your fish to really thrive, or merely survive? Goldfish are amazingly hardy and will survive and breed under bad conditions. They have an incredible ability to adapt, but it doesn't mean they'll be 100% healthy and thriving. Do you understand how long goldfish can live and how large they can grow when they are kept properly and fully healthy? I would suggest doing some research.
 
"A temp that works for both" doesn't exist. Either goldfish will be too warm, or the tropicals will be too cold. I guess the question is do you want your fish to really thrive, or merely survive? Goldfish are amazingly hardy and will survive and breed under bad conditions. They have an incredible ability to adapt, but it doesn't mean they'll be 100% healthy and thriving. Do you understand how long goldfish can live and how large they can grow when they are kept properly and fully healthy? I would suggest doing some research.

Why do research when you can experiment in yo ur living room?!?

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Well seeing as I have 8 almost 9 tanks in my home and have been keeping fish almost 20 years I think I know what I'm doing. This tank is 3 years old and I have lost 1 fish from it and they are very happy and doing really great. It's ok if if doesn't work for you but that doesn't mean it doesn't work for others.


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Well seeing as I have 8 almost 9 tanks in my home and have been keeping fish almost 20 years I think I know what I'm doing. This tank is 3 years old and I have lost 1 fish from it and they are very happy and doing really great. It's ok if if doesn't work for you but that doesn't mean it doesn't work for others.


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That is all good and well, the fact that you're a seasoned veteran makes it even worse, just like I wouldn't reccomend keeping a pair of breeding gbr in a 10 gal to a newbie looking to get into dwarf cichlids. Let's try and keep it simple for the start ups as not to create a massive disappointment that pushes someone out of the hobby.

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Who ever said it would be a massive disappointment? I don't agree with a lot of other fish keepers but I don't judge them. This is the smallest tank in my home right now. I encourage people to do what works for them not what others think. I don't believe in water changes but a lot of people do it's what works for them not what works for you or I that's where you go wrong there is not one right way to keep fish there are lots of ways. Some people argue we shouldn't keep them at all it's cruel.


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Well seeing as I have 8 almost 9 tanks in my home and have been keeping fish almost 20 years I think I know what I'm doing. This tank is 3 years old and I have lost 1 fish from it and they are very happy and doing really great. It's ok if if doesn't work for you but that doesn't mean it doesn't work for others.

So your goldfish in that tank are 3-years-old? They must be getting quite large by now and ready to move to a bigger tank (unless, that is, they are stunted and unhealthy). :whistle:
 
Yes they are 3 years old and when they get big enough they move but everyone is very happy where they are right now even being bigger.


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Remember everyone community rules state you can give opinions and challenge them but do so civilly and respectfully.

I have been in the hobby since the 70's and have had ponds for 15 or more years currently with a 4000g koi pond and smaller GF pond. I can honestly say that keeping goldfish with tropical's is generally frowned upon unless you are keeping cool water fish such as some barbs, WCMM's, or Hillstream loaches with goldfish.

OP at one time I kept a water barrel with 2 GF and plants for my children in the early 80's. The fish couldn't be kept outside in it during the winter and I didn't want to add these fancy GF to either pond so I brought them in during the winter. I had a large Tupperware tub and put a filter on it. Back then I used a large size Whisper HOB filter. I fed the fish lightly and did WC's weekly. It worked very well and come spring when temps were suitable they went back to their pond. This can be done quite easily.

Now back to the GF with Tropicals issue... Temperatures are an issue because while GF can live in and tolerate slightly warm temps it is a fact it will shorten their life span. Some tropical fish such as some barbs, hillstream loaches, platies, and a few others will do fine in temps in the low 70's to higher 60's most tropical fish do not do well. Then look at the fact that GF produce copious amounts of waste and ammonia which uses up buffers in the water quickly causing ph to be low. This is why most GF keepers do large weekly or even bi-weekly water changes. This is a poor environment for all tropical fish. GF also should be fed with sinking foods, especially heavy bodied fancy GF so they do not ingest too much air which can lead to swim bladder issues. Comets and regular GF are very fast and will often outcompete other types of fish when it comes to eating. These are just a few reasons why they shouldn't be kept together.

Now before anyone's feathers get ruffled I am not saying they can't be kept together BUT just because in some instances it can work doesn't mean it should be done. This can be very misleading to people who are inexperienced or new to the hobby.

I also won't start in on the no WC issue either other than to say WC's are done to remove excess nutrients and toxins that build up in an aquarium over time. They also add buffers to the tank, unless you have a very soft water supply which in that case minerals need to be added, to keep Gh, Kh, and Ph at suitable levels. Tanks left without WC's for long periods of time also use all buffers up in the water (kh) especially in GF tanks which makes the ph drop very low. A ph of below 6.5 causes biological activity of slow and a ph of 6 or below biological activity stops and BB begins to die off. I just want to put this info out for anyone new to the hobby and let's not start a discussion on WC's in this thread.

So OP were it me I would simply get a suitable large Tupperware tub and winter them in that. Depending on the size of the GF will determine the size of the tub needed.
 
Remember everyone community rules state you can give opinions and challenge them but do so civilly and respectfully.

I have been in the hobby since the 70's and have had ponds for 15 or more years currently with a 4000g koi pond and smaller GF pond. I can honestly say that keeping goldfish with tropical's is generally frowned upon unless you are keeping cool water fish such as some barbs, WCMM's, or Hillstream loaches with goldfish.

OP at one time I kept a water barrel with 2 GF and plants for my children in the early 80's. The fish couldn't be kept outside in it during the winter and I didn't want to add these fancy GF to either pond so I brought them in during the winter. I had a large Tupperware tub and put a filter on it. Back then I used a large size Whisper HOB filter. I fed the fish lightly and did WC's weekly. It worked very well and come spring when temps were suitable they went back to their pond. This can be done quite easily.

Now back to the GF with Tropicals issue... Temperatures are an issue because while GF can live in and tolerate slightly warm temps it is a fact it will shorten their life span. Some tropical fish such as some barbs, hillstream loaches, platies, and a few others will do fine in temps in the low 70's to higher 60's most tropical fish do not do well. Then look at the fact that GF produce copious amounts of waste and ammonia which uses up buffers in the water quickly causing ph to be low. This is why most GF keepers do large weekly or even bi-weekly water changes. This is a poor environment for all tropical fish. GF also should be fed with sinking foods, especially heavy bodied fancy GF so they do not ingest too much air which can lead to swim bladder issues. Comets and regular GF are very fast and will often outcompete other types of fish when it comes to eating. These are just a few reasons why they shouldn't be kept together.

Now before anyone's feathers get ruffled I am not saying they can't be kept together BUT just because in some instances it can work doesn't mean it should be done. This can be very misleading to people who are inexperienced or new to the hobby.

I also won't start in on the no WC issue either other than to say WC's are done to remove excess nutrients and toxins that build up in an aquarium over time. They also add buffers to the tank, unless you have a very soft water supply which in that case minerals need to be added, to keep Gh, Kh, and Ph at suitable levels. Tanks left without WC's for long periods of time also use all buffers up in the water (kh) especially in GF tanks which makes the ph drop very low. A ph of below 6.5 causes biological activity of slow and a ph of 6 or below biological activity stops and BB begins to die off. I just want to put this info out for anyone new to the hobby and let's not start a discussion on WC's in this thread.

So OP were it me I would simply get a suitable large Tupperware tub and winter them in that. Depending on the size of the GF will determine the size of the tub needed.


I think it's a matter of opinion like I said I've been doing this 20some years and have always had one tank that has both tropical and GF in it. Never had one problem and everyone had always been happy and healthy. In this tank I have 4 butterfly tails along with. Mickey Mouse platys, 2 red tail sharks, a black molly and 2 plecos one being very large seen in the picture. Oh and 2 glow fish. Plus fry that get takin out when they hatch. This specific tank was set up 3 years ago and I have only lost one fish and it was because he got stuck under a rock. I think it's all a matter of opinion and there is no one right way to keep fish. :)


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i dont get why people ask for advice, get it, dont like what they hear, and then get testy. you can put whatever you want in your tank. was just trying to offer some help.


you want to know what my tank is? sure. planted 20 gallon long running an ac 20 and an ac 30 with a pair of dwarf cichlids. understocked and overfiltered, just like i like them.


Don't get me wrong I appreciate your advice. I will not add anymore to the tanks and I will look in to finding them a larger home for the winter. Thanks


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no problem, whatsoever.

in the meantime, you may want to consider adding some sponge/media to your established tanks. then, when you do buy the tub or rain barrel or whatever, you can pull that sponge from the tank and use it to jump start a cycle.

rivercat's advice was spot on. some other things i read in this thread made me cringe, but i will refrain from elaborating.

good luck
 
I'm pretty sure your referring to me it's ok though I'm cool with it because my fish are happy vas healthy and that's what matters most not what other people think about how I raise my pets


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