how does this sound.. goldfish tank

[rreekers]

55g heated to 75°f
will some Java ferns, anachris and a mystery plant. w pieces of driftwood.. 3 filters running that equal about 10x filtration.. tank is established from previous goldfish

-3 fancy goldfish - 1 is a black Moor, 1 a calico telescope ( moving from a 30g) will buy 1 more soon
-1 BN pleco ( open on suggestions in regards to what pleco would be best. its my sisters tank and she says she " needs" one she loves them)
-2 mystery snails

 

[jlk]

Sounds good but the temp is a bit high for goldies- I would personally keep it in the 72-74 range. I wouldnt personally recommend keeping a pleco with goldies- there is some debate about them sucking off the slimecoat off of goldies (which leads to infection & disease). I dont keep plecos so I dont know this for fact but I have read about it happening to others on my goldie forums. Also, make sure the dw has no sharp/pointed edges or branches to prevent fins or eyes fom being damaged.

 

[revchristinejday]

Dear rrekers,

I agreed with jlk. With the Black Moors and calico telescopes one wants to keep sharp edge and scratchy points away from them as the placement of their eyes insures some depth perception problems and their eyes are delicate. A cute oranda would be a good addition. I too have heard that all plecos including the BN preceive goldfish as a possible food source and suck the slime coat off the fish, etc. The plants sound good. I am assuming that they are affixed to the driftwood. My goldies love to root about and planted plants stand no chance. On the driftwood both thrive in peace.
Chris

 

[rreekers]

I have read about the plecos and goldfish sucking on their slime coat. I think we are going to try it out. if anything is spotted, we have other tanks the pleco can live in. also I know 75 is on the high side but its what are are kept at in their current tank

 

[rreekers]

the plants aren't affixed but if they are uprooted that isn't that big of a deal

 

[rreekers]

so we skipped the pleco and went with a 4th fancy goldfish and 2 mystery snails

 

[jlk]

Sounds good! Just keep an eye on the water parameters for the next week or two because your bb will have to play catchup to the increased bioload. If you see any spikes, just do some extra water changes until things stabilize. Are we going to see any pics?

 

[rreekers]

I will post some pictures tomorrow

I'm worried about the 1 little guy. he got sucked the filter intake hole!!! so happy we found him. at first he was distrought. but then he began swimming around and socializing.. I didn't see any visible injury .. I cut up a fish net and put over the filer intakes ( the guards that come with the filter were thrown out because there were off the filters because the previous gold fish were Commons about 7" and not needed, the filters had better/faster flow with the pieces off)

I feel like there is a little to much water movement for these fancies but I know the filtration is needed.

I will check the water parameters tomorrow as well as do a water change, since its my sisters tank and she isn't very responsible ( her 15th birthday today ) I only visit her house every week or 2 but I think this set up will be less stressful for her since this tank was home to 4 7" Commons and a 8" common pleco .. they have been rehomed to an indoor pond!

my mom has realized how cool it is to feed them vegetables and now wants to do it all the time ( we did peas today) I told her she could do vegetables a few times a week but they need it for sure at least 1x a week.. can their be an issue if veggies are fed to often?

 

[jlk]

I am SOO happy her big guys went to a pond!!! That really is wonderful news!

Ok- this is better suggestion for the filter intake tubes (i have to do this on 2 tanks). Buy a box of aquaclear 70 filter foam inserts & cut hole in middle down the length of the foam but not all the way to the bottom & slide over the tube. Trim it around the outside if you want but make sure theres atleast an inch+ of foam covering the bottom of the tube. It spreads the force of the suction out & makes it much easier for a fish to escape if they do get too close. The sponge then becomes an additional home for bb as well. Do this on all the intake tubes.

In respect to the veggies, they can feed them daily as long as they are plain & cooked. Remove anything uneaten after 24hrs & replace with fresh stuff. Fruits can be fed as well but limit these to a few days a week (bite-sized pieces). You cant overfeed veggies with goldies but you can with protiens (fish food)- a couple small meals a day of fish food is the best method for goldies rather than 1 or 2 big meals. Hope this helps!

 

[rreekers]

I've done sponge over the intake on my tanks here at home I will bring some to her house and do it tomorrow .. the meeting was just a quick emergency fix.

what types of fruits can be fed to fancies?

 

[jlk]

I feed watermelon pieces (and other soft melon), tangerine segments (in plain juice not heavy syrup), bits of crushed grape (no skin), strawberry, etc. Sometimes other stuff if I happen to buy it for the house (soft apple or pear, raspberries, kiwi, orange, etc). Bananas are messy & heavy on starch so I rarely feed them but they can even be used once in awhile.

 

[rreekers]

I feed watermelon pieces (and other soft melon), tangerine segments (in plain juice not heavy syrup), bits of crushed grape (no skin), strawberry, etc. Sometimes other stuff if I happen to buy it for the house (soft apple or pear, raspberries, kiwi, orange, etc). Bananas are messy & heavy on starch so I rarely feed them but they can even be used once in awhile.

oh wow! that you so much for all the info

 

[rreekers]

this is the little guy who got sucked up into the filter intake you can see his tail is tore up. but he is my favorite! !

 

[jlk]

Oh, the poor little lionhead! They are not the most adept swimmers. Just keep the water healthy & keep a close eye on his tail. Everyone else looks pretty happy, too!