Hey there!
I have been reading these forums lately, and realizing I have a lot to learn, I hope to learn from you smart individuals! You all make these forums seem like a friendly place to share and collect information for your fish friends! Hopefully I am making my first post in the correct category. I know you are all going to think how bad of a fishkeeper I am, and I will admit I am not the greatest. However, I am trying to learn and really want to keep these guys happy! Please share any thoughts or constructive criticism you can think of! I just want to say thanks in advance for reading all of this, if you decide to. You guys are great and thanks a lot for devoting your time so we can all positively benefit from this site and forum!
This is a long story, so read at your own risk! To my surprise, one day my girlfriend brings home an African Dwarf Frog and a Black Moor goldfish in a 5 gallon Fluva Chi tank that her coworker had owned for a while, I think she claimed around 9 months! They were given to us around Christmas time (not as a gift, lol) as my girlfriends coworker was going to be gone for some months on a work related trip to another country. At the time I thought it was acceptable, but quickly learned that they both needed a lot more space, even as little as they are. We bought a 10 gallon tank kit for the goldfish as we thought it would house him effectively for a while. I should mention that at the time we were easily convinced by the random fish store employee's advice.
The goldfish went through what I imagine to be a very rough time in the 10 gallon tank as it cycled with him in it. The ammonia was going crazy and we didn't know how much water to change or when we should change it. We started doing a 20% water change every other day (in the frogs tank too once we realized how dirty it was!) with the gravel vacuum. They seem to like it so we continue to do 20% water changes every other day, maybe missing a day rarely if we leave town for the night. Things were going fine for both of them once we got a schedule down and of course after the tank cycled. At some point we just stopped going into the two places in our town that sell fish and looking it up online because it seemed like every time they would say something different.
A month or two later, things were still doing pretty great with just the goldfish in his own tank and the frog in his own tank while doing water changes every other day or so. We got a little pleco from the fish store... I know what you are thinking; Why did you do that??? I always read about people's pleco's having really funny personalities and I think they are really cool fish! He (or she) really is a great fish and definitely my favorite out of all of our aquatic friends and we have only had him for 3 or 4 months. However, we did no research about the needs of this fish before we got it and knowing now what requirements he has I might not have gotten a common pleco, or any pleco with that small of a tank. To me, he seems healthier than he was when we brought him home. Hes definitely more out in the open and he responds with excitement when I put zucchini, cucumber, broccoli... but watermelon and peas he goes crazy for and guards it from the goldfish at times. Day or night. Its no use to put it in two areas of the tank because the goldfish eats any little pieces I put in there -- of anything -- in one bite and the pleco swims around with it in his mouth so the goldfish gets to it sometimes if the pleco lets it go, lol. Its funny cute. They are pretty small fish still so I don't put that big of pieces in there. The goldfish primarily eats bloodworms though, so does the African Dwarf Frog. It takes a bit more patience to feed the frog with the crushed frozen bloodworm cubes because most of the time the food just floats to the top of the water.
I'll try to stop blathering here, and I apologize. So, we've had the goldfish and the dwarf frog for about 6 months, each in their own tanks with a couple of plants. We've had the pleco for 3 or 4 months. I'm sorry for the vague time-span, I don't recall when exactly we got them though. They all **seem** healthy and happy but I know there are a lot of requirements we have to fulfill for these little guys. Doing lots of research lately after talking to a friend that actually knows things about fish. We have been gathering the resources to build a nice 60 gallon wood tank and plan on starting building it soon. In the meantime though we just bought a 30 gallon tank and are planning on moving both the fish and the pleco to that tank until we finish the bigger tank, which could take a little while given our current budget being set back from the work I do. Its a pretty big/expensive project, but I think it will look nicer and be a bit cheaper as we can just make most things, for instance the hood can be made out of wood.
We bought the 30 gallon tank and it turns out it only really holds 25 gallons with not even all of the decorations we want to put in there so we're going to have to do it a big differently than I imagined the "aquascape" lol. Obviously the fish need a lot of swimming room so an aquascape is kinda impractical for these guys.
The 30 gal was purchased this Monday. I immediately, that night in fact, filled it up with water and the normal stuff that we always use to make tap water safe, we just ran out though and I tossed it in the garbage already but I think its called Goldfish Protect from API . We also put the Fluval Biological Enhancer into the tank with the recommended 25ml per 10 gallons for the first step - we have 25 gallons in the new tank to start because of water displacement. The day after I put the next dose of the Bio Enhancer in at 10ml per 10 gallons. Day 3 I put the recommended dose in again and that finished the bottle perfectly. I also put some gravel that was used months ago in the 5 gallon tank, rinsed really good with no sediment, along with some gravel that was unused from beautifying the 10 gal. There is also 2 Anacharis plants in there, along with a terracotta pot and a couple rocks that were in the 10 gallon tank to hopefully swiften the cycling process. Last night, I did a water test with the API Master Test Kit, results were: 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate. Ph is high, at least 7.4 but I hadn't yet put the driftwood I found in the tank.
Now for the questions! Finally! Sorry for making you read all of that, lol.
Most importantly: How long should I wait until I add my goldfish to the 30 gallon tank? And what about the pleco? Consider the last paragraph above!
There is often a lot of waste in the gravel substrate when doing a water change using the gravel vacuum. I imagine thats normal with the two waste producing fish I have, but doing a water change every other day or so along with an ammonia test, the ammonia is never high, rarely its a slight shade above the base yellow color for the test. Why is that? Could the fact that I've never really cleaned the filter (or the pump mechanism) add to the debris in the substrate? How long should I typically wait until I change or clean the filter really good?
What are some ways I can keep my fish tank cool during the summer? Don't these fish like cooler water temperatures? Its not even full blown summer yet and the tanks are already around 75 degrees Fahrenheit!
How long can I leave the pleco in the 30 gallon tank with just my goldfish?
How often should I change my water in the 30 gallon, at what percentage? With just the two fish in the tank.
Driftwood will in fact reduce the ph in your aquarium, right?
My goldfish lays in the plants often, and sometimes on the gravel. Is the water quality poor and/or am I overfeeding him? I'll do a test tonight, we just got the Master Test Kit last night after running out of other tests.
Weird tiny white worm things on the glass rarely. I hadn't seen them in a while but they were around for about a week. What in the world are they? :O
Which species of pleco do I have? I thought he was a Hypostomus Plecostomus but I can't really tell, lol.
I have been reading these forums lately, and realizing I have a lot to learn, I hope to learn from you smart individuals! You all make these forums seem like a friendly place to share and collect information for your fish friends! Hopefully I am making my first post in the correct category. I know you are all going to think how bad of a fishkeeper I am, and I will admit I am not the greatest. However, I am trying to learn and really want to keep these guys happy! Please share any thoughts or constructive criticism you can think of! I just want to say thanks in advance for reading all of this, if you decide to. You guys are great and thanks a lot for devoting your time so we can all positively benefit from this site and forum!
This is a long story, so read at your own risk! To my surprise, one day my girlfriend brings home an African Dwarf Frog and a Black Moor goldfish in a 5 gallon Fluva Chi tank that her coworker had owned for a while, I think she claimed around 9 months! They were given to us around Christmas time (not as a gift, lol) as my girlfriends coworker was going to be gone for some months on a work related trip to another country. At the time I thought it was acceptable, but quickly learned that they both needed a lot more space, even as little as they are. We bought a 10 gallon tank kit for the goldfish as we thought it would house him effectively for a while. I should mention that at the time we were easily convinced by the random fish store employee's advice.
The goldfish went through what I imagine to be a very rough time in the 10 gallon tank as it cycled with him in it. The ammonia was going crazy and we didn't know how much water to change or when we should change it. We started doing a 20% water change every other day (in the frogs tank too once we realized how dirty it was!) with the gravel vacuum. They seem to like it so we continue to do 20% water changes every other day, maybe missing a day rarely if we leave town for the night. Things were going fine for both of them once we got a schedule down and of course after the tank cycled. At some point we just stopped going into the two places in our town that sell fish and looking it up online because it seemed like every time they would say something different.
A month or two later, things were still doing pretty great with just the goldfish in his own tank and the frog in his own tank while doing water changes every other day or so. We got a little pleco from the fish store... I know what you are thinking; Why did you do that??? I always read about people's pleco's having really funny personalities and I think they are really cool fish! He (or she) really is a great fish and definitely my favorite out of all of our aquatic friends and we have only had him for 3 or 4 months. However, we did no research about the needs of this fish before we got it and knowing now what requirements he has I might not have gotten a common pleco, or any pleco with that small of a tank. To me, he seems healthier than he was when we brought him home. Hes definitely more out in the open and he responds with excitement when I put zucchini, cucumber, broccoli... but watermelon and peas he goes crazy for and guards it from the goldfish at times. Day or night. Its no use to put it in two areas of the tank because the goldfish eats any little pieces I put in there -- of anything -- in one bite and the pleco swims around with it in his mouth so the goldfish gets to it sometimes if the pleco lets it go, lol. Its funny cute. They are pretty small fish still so I don't put that big of pieces in there. The goldfish primarily eats bloodworms though, so does the African Dwarf Frog. It takes a bit more patience to feed the frog with the crushed frozen bloodworm cubes because most of the time the food just floats to the top of the water.
I'll try to stop blathering here, and I apologize. So, we've had the goldfish and the dwarf frog for about 6 months, each in their own tanks with a couple of plants. We've had the pleco for 3 or 4 months. I'm sorry for the vague time-span, I don't recall when exactly we got them though. They all **seem** healthy and happy but I know there are a lot of requirements we have to fulfill for these little guys. Doing lots of research lately after talking to a friend that actually knows things about fish. We have been gathering the resources to build a nice 60 gallon wood tank and plan on starting building it soon. In the meantime though we just bought a 30 gallon tank and are planning on moving both the fish and the pleco to that tank until we finish the bigger tank, which could take a little while given our current budget being set back from the work I do. Its a pretty big/expensive project, but I think it will look nicer and be a bit cheaper as we can just make most things, for instance the hood can be made out of wood.
We bought the 30 gallon tank and it turns out it only really holds 25 gallons with not even all of the decorations we want to put in there so we're going to have to do it a big differently than I imagined the "aquascape" lol. Obviously the fish need a lot of swimming room so an aquascape is kinda impractical for these guys.
The 30 gal was purchased this Monday. I immediately, that night in fact, filled it up with water and the normal stuff that we always use to make tap water safe, we just ran out though and I tossed it in the garbage already but I think its called Goldfish Protect from API . We also put the Fluval Biological Enhancer into the tank with the recommended 25ml per 10 gallons for the first step - we have 25 gallons in the new tank to start because of water displacement. The day after I put the next dose of the Bio Enhancer in at 10ml per 10 gallons. Day 3 I put the recommended dose in again and that finished the bottle perfectly. I also put some gravel that was used months ago in the 5 gallon tank, rinsed really good with no sediment, along with some gravel that was unused from beautifying the 10 gal. There is also 2 Anacharis plants in there, along with a terracotta pot and a couple rocks that were in the 10 gallon tank to hopefully swiften the cycling process. Last night, I did a water test with the API Master Test Kit, results were: 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate. Ph is high, at least 7.4 but I hadn't yet put the driftwood I found in the tank.
Now for the questions!
Finally! Sorry for making you read all of that, lol.Most importantly: How long should I wait until I add my goldfish to the 30 gallon tank? And what about the pleco? Consider the last paragraph above!
There is often a lot of waste in the gravel substrate when doing a water change using the gravel vacuum. I imagine thats normal with the two waste producing fish I have, but doing a water change every other day or so along with an ammonia test, the ammonia is never high, rarely its a slight shade above the base yellow color for the test. Why is that? Could the fact that I've never really cleaned the filter (or the pump mechanism) add to the debris in the substrate? How long should I typically wait until I change or clean the filter really good?
What are some ways I can keep my fish tank cool during the summer? Don't these fish like cooler water temperatures? Its not even full blown summer yet and the tanks are already around 75 degrees Fahrenheit!
How long can I leave the pleco in the 30 gallon tank with just my goldfish?
How often should I change my water in the 30 gallon, at what percentage? With just the two fish in the tank.
Driftwood will in fact reduce the ph in your aquarium, right?
My goldfish lays in the plants often, and sometimes on the gravel. Is the water quality poor and/or am I overfeeding him? I'll do a test tonight, we just got the Master Test Kit last night after running out of other tests.
Weird tiny white worm things on the glass rarely. I hadn't seen them in a while but they were around for about a week. What in the world are they? :O
Which species of pleco do I have? I thought he was a Hypostomus Plecostomus but I can't really tell, lol.
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