Conundrum!

[Seaside23]

Hello

New here and a bit rusty on fish keeping.
I have a brand new 230L tank. It’s currently empty.
I also have one fancy goldfish and a pleco in a smaller old tank.

I used to have tropical fish as a teenager and found them a lot less hassle than the fancy fish to be honest. So I’m not planning on getting any more fancy fish.

However, would you start again with tropical in the 230l tank? If so what would you put in there.
Or would you put the fancy fish and pleco in there and try and mix it with an alternative type of fish? If so what do you think would work? Maybe a molly?

I don’t want the old gang getting jealous of the new tank

Thanks in advance for your advice and ideas!

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

What size tank are the goldfish and pleco currently in (tank dimensions please - length x width x height)?
What species of pleco do you have (if unsure, post a picture of it)?
What sort of goldfish do you have?

What are the tank dimensions of the 230 litre tank?

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What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website (Water Analysis Report) or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

Depending on what the GH of your water is, will determine what fish you should keep.

Angelfish, discus, most tetras, most barbs, Bettas, gouramis, rasbora, Corydoras and small species of suckermouth catfish all occur in soft water (GH below 150ppm) and a pH below 7.0.

Livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), rainbowfish and goldfish occur in medium hard water with a GH around 200-250ppm and a pH above 7.0.

If you have very hard water (GH above 300ppm) then look at African Rift Lake cichlids, or use distilled or reverse osmosis water to reduce the GH and keep fishes from softer water.

[Seaside23]

Hi!
Old tank is 76 x 30 x 38 cm
Water is 88.2 mg/l calcium
230l is 116 x 38 x 60 cm
Goldfish is a fantail.
Pleco I can’t attach a photo for some reason (computer illiterate probably) but it looks like a common pleco. Round brown spots.

[Seaside23]

PH is 7.4

[Colin_T]

Originally Posted by Seaside23

Water is 88.2 mg/l calcium

Is that water reading for KH (carbonate hardness) or GH (general hardness)?
If it's the GH, then it's very soft water and you should avoid livebearers like mollies, swordtails, platies and guppies.

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I would move the goldfish and pleco into the new tank because both fish grow to a decent size and need more space than a 30 inch tank. If you have a Hypostomus plecostomus, they can reach 2 feet in length but usually get to 12-18 inches in captivity. Fantail goldfish can reach 8-12 inches long (not including the tail, but most reach around 6 inches in aquariums (again not including the tail).

Make sure you have some driftwood for the pleco and encourage algae to grow on the glass.

[Seaside23]

Thanks @colin_t appreciate your help

They deserve a lot more space so I will put them in the bigger tank.