New to the site and need help ...

[Goldfish_noob]

First like to say hello to all. at first I hated the fish it wasn't my idea to have them but they have grown on me especially when one died and I seen how my kids reacted and it killed me so now I am worried. So we 9 goldfish in a pretty big tank idk exactly how many gallons and dont know what kind of goldfish to be exact. Maybe a couple days ago I went to clean tank and it has been a while I cleaned the tank. So I did a complete water change(now I know I shouldn't have from reading) but as I was moving fish from tank to clean it I noticed 3 of the fish have a couple red dots on them. One has his/her chin mostly red but it was coming on prior to cleaning. I have pics that I was able to catch from my iPhone. I just need help idk what to do and my kids are worried about the fish as am I now. I'm going to pet smart tomorrow but I have no clue what to get to help.

 

[Fishie]

Welcome to AA!!! Is your parameters (PH,nitrates,ammonia,etc. )okay?

 

[Goldfish_noob]

I'm buying something to read all those stats tomorrow. I just don't know what to get?

 

[Goldfish_noob]

I'm sorry also the bigger ones we had for 6 years never had problems maybe 6 months ago we got 3 snails and 4 smaller goldfish 1 died the other day the snails the fish ate all I found was the shells in the tank.

 

[blackmolly]

API master kit welcome to AA! could you give us the dimensions of your tank? it sounds like your fish have ammonia burns from bad water quality. definitely go get that test kit, and in the future, do multiple 50% water changes rather then 100% water changes.

 

[Goldfish_noob]

30 inches length 12 inches width 17.5 inches high. Prior to the water change they had the red marks I'm sure but I will get the test tomorrow.

I just caught one of the the small fish nibbling on the other fish should I seperate them?

 

[blackmolly]

you have a 27 gallon tank. i'm sorry to say that is far too small for those goldies. i would suggest a 90 gallon at minimum so they can grow to their full size. the older ones won't get any bigger, as they have been stunted, but the younger ondes still have a chance.

 

[Goldfish_noob]

I'll look into getting a bigger tank then I have to see with misses. Should I remove the nibbler? He seems to be doing it to all the fish now

 

[blackmolly]

is he doing any actual damage? if so, then yes, i would separate him. if not, i'd let him be and just watch him closely.

 

[Goldfish_noob]

Well since I've been watching a lot more closely past days a couple of the tails seem messed up but I'm not sure of its only him.

 

[blackmolly]

it might also be from having so many fish crammed up in small quarters. upgrading would spread out the aggression, along with adding some decor to help give them something to explore.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Hello and welcome!
I have some bad news for you unfortunately. All your goldfish appear to be commons or comets. They can grow to almost 2 feet long and require ponds to live in. If you where to keep fancy goldfish (like moors) you would need 20g for the first fish and 10g for each fish after that. So a 30g tank could have 2 fancies. Goldfish are very messy and poop a lot so they require a filter or filters that can turn over the tanks volume 10 times an hour.

Your tank would be suffering from old tank syndrome. This is a build up of nitrates and dissolved solids. If exposed to this over time your fish can loose sight and gain burns to gills and body. Fin rot can also occur from the poor water conditions. I will add a link for you to read. It contains information on proper tank care/maintenance and info on the nitrogen cycle.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/guide-to-starting-a-freshwater-aquarium-186089.html

Any questions don't be afraid to ask! We are all here to help and offer support.

(edit: I highly recommend Dwohlge1, jlk and jsoong for any goldfish info. They have been very helpful with my three guys)

 

[Goldfish_noob]

I don't mind having the common goldfish my kids love them so much that's why I'm so worried about them I'm reading about all that stuff now to see what I can possibly do for now cuz money is tight. But I will figure something out

 

[Mumma.of.two]

I don't mind having the common goldfish my kids love them so much that's why I'm so worried about them I'm reading about all that stuff now to see what I can possibly do for now cuz money is tight. But I will figure something out

I understand completely. I have kids and money Is hard to come by these days. Your taking a step in the right direction. I don't know how old they are but maybe you could explain to the kids that the goldfish need to be taken to a new home because they are out growing their old home? You could quite comfortably house a fancy goldfish in your tank.

 

[Mlani]

I don't know about your local fish place, but here some of them will actually give you a store credit for any fish you bring to them. Maybe look into that and pick which ones the kids absolutely love and put the credit towards getting them a bigger home?

 

[Goldfish_noob]

So I picked up the master kit some aquarium salt (didn't know I needed that) and melafix to see if that works won't be able to use any of it till later cuz of work kids bball practice but hope our fish get better.

 

[jlk]

Let us know the results for your ammonia, nitrites, & nitrates when you able to test your water. Your fishes health issues are most likely due to water quality issues & their cramped living conditions. Healthy water is often enough to cure most fish ailments related to water quality issues.

 

[Goldfish_noob]

Ok these we're the results

Nitrate no2- 0ppm
Nitrate no3- 0ppm
Ammonia didn't change color at all
High range ph 7.4
Ph 7.2

It's been two days I haven't seen popcorn eat anything fml and now I got another fish laying on bottom of tank

 

[blackmolly]

are you sure the test was done right? is so... do more water changes and see if you can get some color onto it.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Ok these we're the results

Nitrate no2- 0ppm
Nitrate no3- 0ppm
Ammonia didn't change color at all
High range ph 7.4
Ph 7.2

Can you repeat the tests? I only ask because the ammonia should have changed color even just to a yellow which indicates 0 and in any cycled tank (except for heavily planted) there should be some nitrates. The nitrate #2 test solution has a powder that sits in the bottom that needs to be thoroughly dispersed through it to get correct readings. Bash and shake the bottle to loosen the powder then follow the directions exactly.