First Time Outdoor Fish Owner - Help!

[DeirdreHoyle]

Hi all,

My parents recently moved into a new house and inherited a claw-foot tub full of goldfish. They have no experience keeping outdoor fish and neither do I, though I’m pretty experienced with indoor freshwater fish so I’m trying to help them...by asking for help [emoji846]

I’ve included the pics my mom sent me, it looks like it already has some kind of filter and some sprinkler in the middle but the water looks really dirty. I’m going to visit this weekend so anyone give me some quick advice on how to make sure the fish don’t die?

There are 8-10 goldfish and from what I can tell the tub is about 40 gallons. I’ve never done an outdoor water change so any advice about how to do that would be helpful as well

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Forgot the pictures...

 

[Fresh2o]

Your stocking is okay for now but they will grow and not only volume, but water quality will be an issue.
If you have a hose that reaches the tub you can add water directly (slowly) while periodically adding a dechlorinator. Or fill a bucket with treated water a slowly pour into the tub. Prior to adding, you can scoop out some water with a bucket (and water the plants).

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Your stocking is okay for now but they will grow and not only volume, but water quality will be an issue.
If you have a hose that reaches the tub you can add water directly (slowly) while periodically adding a dechlorinator. Or fill a bucket with treated water a slowly pour into the tub. Prior to adding, you can scoop out some water with a bucket (and water the plants).

Thanks for the reply. I did think they would be over-stocked but it sounds like they have some time. How many full grown fish do you think would fit without causing issues?

Also do you by chance recognize the filter or can you tell if it’s enough turnover for 40 gallons?

 

[Autumnsky]

Do you have a liquid test kit to compare the hose water to the tub water for TDS - GH - KH and the other stuff.

Can barely tell about the fish. If they are Comet they'll get 12++ inches. So 2 fish if they were full grown. Three to 5 if they are pretty small still under 8" and not too old yet, meaning fat and bulky (long but still thin). Rehoming a few would keep life easier right now though, maybe down to 6 and then next year rehome a couple more.

Prime has a Pond Water conditioner, (in half liter and liter sizes I believe) you can usually get at big box stores and online, also often the big box stores will offer website price match for that and foods, etc. fyi.

Funky but kinda fun. Does the tub freeze in winter? I would get them some really healthy food so they can store up before freezing temps if your parents have freezing cold/iced over ponds where they are.

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Do you have a liquid test kit to compare the hose water to the tub water for TDS - GH - KH and the other stuff.

Can barely tell about the fish. If they are Comet they'll get 12++ inches. So 2 fish if they were full grown. Three to 5 if they are pretty small still under 8" and not too old yet, meaning fat and bulky (long but still thin). Rehoming a few would keep life easier right now though, maybe down to 6 and then next year rehome a couple more.

Prime has a Pond Water conditioner, (in half liter and liter sizes I believe) you can usually get at big box stores and online, also often the big box stores will offer website price match for that and foods, etc. fyi.

Funky but kinda fun. Does the tub freeze in winter? I would get them some really healthy food so they can store up before freezing temps if your parents have freezing cold/iced over ponds where they are.

Thanks for the reply! After some research I think they’re shubinkin...does that seem right? They’re about 5” long and they’ve been in the tub for over a year I think. I tested the water today just for ammonia and nitrites and they’re both 0 so obviously there’s a bacterial colony which is great. I didn’t test for hardness but the water here is well water so I assume it would be hard...not sure if that’s true.

I did buy my parents some regular prime and good fish food

They live in Springfield, Oregon so it probably won’t freeze over in the winter except maybe for a week if it gets really cold. It’s been a high of 60 daily here and they’ve been feeding the fish once per day, I fed them tonight and they didn’t seem that hungry.

Last thing...I got better pics of the filter. Going to do some research on it to see if it’s good enough

 

[Autumnsky]

Sounds perfect for the water condition. In a large pond Shubunkin can get like the Comet up to 18" - but probably not that large. In a tub they will need to still thin out the population.

OR-
Build a bigger pond if they grow to like those guys a lot.

That is really beautiful country around there. Know people around Foster, Sweet Home, Albany and Roseburg.

Even a larger already made pond/stock tank kind of pond using what is apparently a decent filter to stay balanced in the cycle.

I would still use Prime in the water in case of any odd chemicals or heavy metals which could be present.

 

[Fresh2o]

Here is more info on the filter: https://www.amazon.com/Intex-Kryst...ocphy=9007576&hvtargid=pla-309780738185&psc=1
This is a cartridge filter in a canister housing. Rated to handle up to 1,000 GPH. It appears that a separate pump is needed to drive this (can’t tell). Is there a pump in the tub? The only thing I would keep an eye on is making sure that the filter does not clog. What are the other parts of the filtration system? Intake, screens, etc. I do not see a biological component in your setup.

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Sorry it took me so long to reply. This is apparently a heavy duty filter! I ordered some replacement cartridges for my mom and she’s going to find out when the previous owner last changed it. I’m not sure what the other components of the filter are since it’s actually made for a pool, not a pond or fish tank. There is gravel and rocks in the bottom of the tub that has definitely been there a while, I think that’s where most of the bb must be.

There aren’t any plants actually in the tub so I’m gonna get my mom some anacharis which I read is good for outdoor ponds...is that right?

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Actually there is one other part of the filter I saw, the outflow tube connects to a sprinkler/fountain that sticks out in the middle of the tub and sprays water so it provides some aeration. I didn’t get a chance to unplug the filter and actually look inside

 

[Fresh2o]

Anacharis will grow outdoors, however, the goldfish may decide to snack on them. Hornwort might be a better choice since is supposedly less tasty.

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

Anacharis will grow outdoors, however, the goldfish may decide to snack on them. Hornwort might be a better choice since is supposedly less tasty.

Good to know, thanks. Apparently the biggest fish has mysteriously disappeared, probably a raccoon or a bird got it. The big fish always stayed close to the bottom though so the animal would have had to dive in there and grab it...that might explain why the sprinkler was pushed over and turned off. Either that or my parents have some devious new neighbors!

My mom has another tub about twice the size of the one the fish are currently in that she wants to move the fish over to. I said I thought she should wait until Spring because the fish won’t be very active over the winter anyway. Any opinion on best time for transferring them?

 

[Fresh2o]

She can move the fish now. Or in the Spring.
Have they overwintered in the current tub before? They may do better in a larger environment. How cold does it get in the Winter? If it freezes over, you’ll want to ensure there is an opening in the ice for gas exchange. Where I live (mid Atlantic), I did not feed the goldfish from October to March (or whenever the temps were consistently under 50 F).
Probably a raccoon got the goldfish. This happened several years ago in my pond. It was small and not very deep. One morning I found a pile of fish tails and scales.

 

[Autumnsky]

I would vote for larger environment for the fish over winter. Not messing with the beneficial bacteria in the filter though.

Raccoons are messy and leave a wreck behind them. Maybe some protection over the tub/netting or wire. Sorry to hear it is gone.

Edit: Probably will be back for more snacks now that it knows where the snack bar is.

 

[DeirdreHoyle]

That’s the weird part is there was no sign of the missing fish at all, no scales or tail or anything it’s just gone. Plus the underwater knob on the sprinkler was turned off sooo I have no idea what happened.

Sounds like we should move the fish over sooner than I thought! Good to know.

 

[Autumnsky]

Missing fish sounds like it could have been a bird, like a Heron, but turned off knob sounds very odd. Birds and Raccoons don't do that of course.