JUST GOT NEW FISH TANK NOOB

[furiousgtz]

i just got a new fish tank i got four fish problery gone get some more

i got this tank in my room can i turn the fish tank light off at night

 

[huffdaddy]

I'm pretty new here, but I can share with you what I've learned so far.

First, you should turn the light out at night. 12 hours on, 12 hours off seems to be a fairly popular response.

Second, and I'm certainly no expert, it looks like you've got a whole lot of fish there for that tank. The rule of thumb is that each gallon of water can support a 1 inch length of adult fish. Any more than that and you'll have a lot of trouble with the fish having enough room to breathe and move.

Third, if you just got these fish, you should learn about the nitrogen cycle that a new tank needs to go through in order to keep from killing your fish. In short, it has to do with the development of bacteria that feed off the wastes of your fish and thus remove some of the toxins that fish waste has.

Poke around on this site and you'll learn a lot more than you could from any fish store (that I've seen, at least).

Good luck,

Alan

 

[furiousgtz]

ohh thanks i m learning new stufff

 

[Zagz]

Welcome to AA! Yes the lights should be turned off at night. Also it looks like those are goldfish right? A little bad news for you, goldfish need 10 gals per fish. Do not put anymore fish in there. What you will need to do to keep the fish healthy through the cycle is regular, every 2 days most likely, water changes with fresh dechlorinated water. Get a good test kit and keep track of your ammonia and nitrites for now. Ammonia should be kept a 0ppm or your fish will suffer burns. Once the cycle progresses, nitrites and ammonia will turn into nitrates. Feel free to ask any questions you want. Everyone here is helpful and supportive.

 

[furiousgtz]

oh so water change every 2 days
the person at the shop said every 15 days and i think this is 6 gal so he said 4 will be fine? anyways i will get testkit

 

[DeathWarp]

I wouldnt listen to the 4 fish rule unless perhaps you had small rosey reds in there or something lol ... Goldfish do need quite a bit of room as Zags had said so I would quickly throw out the idea of adding more into your tank. You may find it tricky with the amount of fish you currectly have and so I would look into returning some.

 

[Zagz]

LFS are notorious for giving advice that isn't practical. They sell more fish and fish supplies if your fish don't make it. They also recommend a ton of additives to the water when the most important thing you need is dechlorinator IMO. Other additives are not needed. There are all sorts of cheaper alternatives to filter media as well that don't cost as much as lfs filter media. For example 100% pure polyester pillow filling, with no mildew treatments, can be purchased at walmart for next to nothing and it is the same thing as the filter media sold at the lfs. Keep an eye on your parameters and do water changes as necessary. I have an overstocked goldfish tank as well and find the longest I can go without changing water is 4 days. Mind you the tank is 33 gal. You will figure out what works best for your fish in time.

 

[furiousgtz]

LFS are notorious for giving advice that isn't practical. They sell more fish and fish supplies if your fish don't make it. They also recommend a ton of additives to the water when the most important thing you need is dechlorinator IMO. Other additives are not needed. There are all sorts of cheaper alternatives to filter media as well that don't cost as much as lfs filter media. For example 100% pure polyester pillow filling, with no mildew treatments, can be purchased at walmart for next to nothing and it is the same thing as the filter media sold at the lfs. Keep an eye on your parameters and do water changes as necessary. I have an overstocked goldfish tank as well and find the longest I can go without changing water is 4 days. Mind you the tank is 33 gal. You will figure out what works best for your fish in time.

ya i got couple of additives i got this little tablets to put in water. and filters where like $16 i m like damm...
i got one question how often should i feed them...some people say two time but i dont no how mutch. and should i change water every week?
this one fish was like find messed up like it was going to die but i change the water and it got better now. so i went to the store and ask this guy and he gave me this medicne tablets..

 

[Zagz]

Don't add meds to the water it isn't necessary. Changing the water and keeping the water pristine is the best thing you can do for them. I feed twice a day no more than they can eat in a minute. Smaller feedings twice a day are better for me. It is a personal preference. Some feed once a day, some twice.

 

[fearlessfisch]

Hi there,
I hate to say this, but you really need to either return your fish and restock with the right size and number for that size tank, or you need to buy a tank that is at least 40 gallons for the four fish you have, if you want to keep them.

You can't keep four goldfish in a six-gallon. It is just not humane or healthy to/for them. You will get ammonia poisoning so fast, and you will have to change water (with dechlorinator) about daily just to keep them alive. Their growth will be disrupted, and they most likely will die soon of illness and stress.

I am really sorry the fish store people led you wrong. It is not your fault, but it is in your lap now to make changes so that you can have a healthy tank. What you have now is just going to cause you and them stress and eventually heartbreak.

I would recommend springing for the bigger tank if you can afford it. Larger tanks are actually easier to maintain, because the water parameters stay more stable.

I am so glad you came here. Please keep asking lots of questions, and people here will help you do it right and create a tank you AND your fish can be very happy with.

 

[furiousgtz]

can i return this few an get somethign else?

 

[fearlessfisch]

You have a few choices with a tank that small. Take a look at this thread:

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=69218&highlight=stock++gal


You could get a single male betta, which are gorgeous fish with great personalities. With a 6-gallon you could also maybe get a couple of otos for the bottom too as a cleanup crew. That would be the limit probably.

Or you could get a small school (around 4 or 5) of little tetras, like neons or glowlights. They would be very pretty in the tank.

Note in the linked thread above, that with tropical fish you will need to get a little (25-watt) heater and thermometer to make the temp stable at 78 to 80 degrees. You will also need a mini gravel vacuum, bucket, and dechlorinator for water changes, if they didn't already sell you these things. And you will need a test kit.

You might want to post a separate question about the best way to start up a 6-gallon. Small tanks are harder to cycle and keep stable.

Cycling is the process by which you make the water safer for your fish--it involves growing colonies of bacteria so the ammonia in the fish urine won't kill them. Not cycling is why new fish tanks most often fail and people give up on fishkeeping in frustration. There are good articles explaining cycling on this site. Very small tanks are difficult to cycle--when I kept my 2-gallon tank, I just did large water changes very frequently to keep ammonia down. But cycling is THE most important thing you can do to keep your fish safe in a larger tank. I think I have seen people here who are successful cycling 6-gallons. You should talk to them and see what they say.

Cycling is hard on fish, and tetras and some of the other options for small tanks (see above linked topic) are pretty fragile. People here who keep small tanks might have some good tips on how to start your tank safely, how often and how much water to change at first, and what regular maintenance afterward requires.

Good luck, and keep asking questions!

 

[DepotFish]

You definately need to get rid of those fish. At most you can keep one small goldfish in there alone, if you plan to do a lot of work. I have a goldfish in a 10 gallon and she need a water change daily. I suck out about a half gallon while cleaning the gravel with a turkey baster. They produce a lot of waste chemicals. To illustrate what happens, my mom has her one pond goldfish in a 5 gallon over the winter. She doesn't clean it, I have to when I get home every 3 weeks (not much more than your 15 days). The poor fish has burns all alone its sides. I had a rough talk with my mother about her fish recently and now she's keeping the tank a little cleaner. The rule of one inch of fish per gallon does not apply for goldfish because they produce so much in waste chemicals. Another thing about goldfish is they dig in gravel. I don't use gravel with mine, I use marbles, because they can have problems if they accidentaly swallow a piece of gravel. You'd be better off returning all of these fish and trying tropicals, or making changes to accomodate one goldfish in there. try not to ask for advice from this fishstore again. Most stores don't hire experts for salespeople, they are just people working the cash register as they would at any retail store.

 

[furiousgtz]

i got two gold fish now...i got rid of others
why do water gets cloudy?

 

[DepotFish]

Check your water parameters and do a partial change. The tank is cycling so cloudy water is normal, but it's not good for the fish. Its much easier to wait till the cycle is done to add the fish because there is no need to worry about chemical spikes when there are no fish. You'll need to do water changes and clear it up since you have fish in there.

 

[furiousgtz]

ok now i return my mini5gal and got 10gallon and i have two gold fish..

 

[DepotFish]

Good. Do you have test kits for ammonia and such?