Novice not sure what I'm doing!

[m0mmab2012]

So last week my husband decides to get fish for our 2 year old. He purchased 2 feeder goldfish and one fantail goldfish and put them into a 1 gallon bowl. He dumped them in with the water from the bags and then topped it off with untreated tap water. Now I don't know much about fish but I knew this was a problem so I ran out and got a 10 gallon kit and chems to treat the water. So I've had to do a fish in cycle and so far I think it's going ok. No one has died anyway! This site has really helped me figure out how to do everything. I did get a plant I'm realizing may have been a mistake. I listened to the lady at Petco that told me I didn't have to do anything special but I've been reading they need CO2 supplement to the water. I'm also not sure if the LED lights that came with the kit are enough. I also not sure I should have got the oto because there isn't any algae yet. I bought algae wafers but the goldfish eat them. He's still alive and seems to be doing ok but I'm not really sure the signs of distress. I tried feeding zucchini but none of the fish would eat it and there was a slimy film in the tank afterwards.

So I know the fish will need a bigger tank eventually but for now I hope this works out. Any suggestions are appreciated!

 

[emeraldking]

Hi and welcome to start with...
Don't worry about the oto. He'll be just fine in there. Otos also eat left overs from the fishfood which have hit the bottom. Algae eaters don't only eat algae to be honest. At my place they also eat cucumber.

Depending on the kind of LED it could be suffcient. Overhere at my place most of the lights are leds. And they're doing a good job!

 

[m0mmab2012]

Thank you! He seems to be doing great! He loves the plant I have in there but just found out it may not be aquatic plant! Learned not to trust Petco!


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[henningc]

Welcome to the forum and you have come to the right place for answers.

First and very important thing I think you all ready know is don't trust anything the, "Pet Whatever," store tells you. The current setup will not house goldfish very long, but it was the right move to make for now. Cycling that small of a tank with 3 goldies in is equal to cycling the same tank with 25 guppys. The goldfish have a huge bioload so a 10%-25% water change daily is needed after the tank sits as is for 3-4 days.

Once you are over that tank cycling bump in the road it is time to do one of two things: Wait for the Petco $1 per gallon and get a 55gal or start looking on craigslist for a 55gal or larger set up. The unfortunately the reality is unless you want to do 25%-50% daily water changes the rest of your life, I'm guessing not, even those tanks will be too small to hold two comets-feeder goldfish. Within a year the should grow to 4"-6" depending on food and water quality. Even if you do a bad job on both of those aspects, comets just keep on growning. Mine started as dither fish for my Jack Dempseys and now are twice as big as the Jacks in just two years. Fortunately for me the owner of a pond close to my house said I can release them there next spring. If you just keep the fantail you can get away with a 30H and a lot of water changes. I'd add a sponge filter rated for 125gal and a small HOB that allows you to reload your own filter cartridges. I'd use foam pad and a mesh bag full of carbon.

If you decide Mr. Goldfish needs to go then come back here and ask about tank stocking. There is never a shortage of opinions and the design and fish selection can be a fun experience. Again, no, "Pet Whatever."

 

[JoshandAmelia]

I would return the Oto asap. They are very sensitive to water quality and conditions. He probably won't last long in a cycling tank with Goldfish. You are definitely gonna have your work cut out for you over the next few weeks. One thing that I did to help my tank cycle quicker is; put some bio-media from a friends fish tank in my new tank, when I first started. It's called seeding the tank, I believe. If you don't have a friend/family member, co-worker, etc that you can get some from....there's always Craigslist. Maybe do a wanted add for it. Don't worry about makings mistakes, it's gonna happen. The idea is to correct them right away, and hopefully not loose any fish. If you have to return them, Petco has a 30 day return and Petsmart is 14. Some LFS will take orphaned fish indefinitely. Good Luck!

 

[VADM_Mustang]

Hi there, and welcome.

Just a note: I've hered that those feeders can get big. As for the fantail, at least 20 gallons for him alone (sure, mine lives in a 10 gal, but he is kind of a refugee).

Good luck!