Hello Everyone,
I am Married and Father of 2 Awesome Teens. I am Retired on Disability but only in my 40's due to Spine Issues. We now have a new Fish along with 3 cats.
All I Have To Say Is: Ya Gotta Love Those Carnivals!
Ok, my In-Laws took my Daughter to the Local Carnival and she comes home with a Goldfish and they had stopped by the pet store and bought a "Betta" Tank(about a Gallon). My wife and I hopped on the internet and found out that they can get up to 12"+ and they needed a Large Aquarium with Filtration and all the Trimmings! Of course, it is Late Night, and the store was closed.
First thing in the morning we head out to Petsmart and get a 10 Gallon Aquarium with hood, filter, gravel, Stress Coat, Gravel Vac, Food, Air Pump, Air Stone, Pagoda, Bridge, Cave........
Because my wife and I are Animal Lovers, even though that was probably a 10 cent "Feeder Fish", He is now a Happy Little Bugger!! Of course we only got the 10 gallon because of the mentality "Don't these poorly treated Carnival fish usually die in the first week or so? If it does, what will we do with a large aquarium?"
After a bit of research for what type of goldfish, I think it is an American Shubunkin. Comet shaped, Forked Tail, slender body but "Calico" orange, black and white. Also learned they not only can get over 12" but live for 20+ Years!!!
Now.... I know the 10 Gallon is a bit small from what we have read, but he is the only fish in it. Unfortunately, I had to do a "Fish-In" Cycle
But it has been just shy of 2 weeks and the water just got a bit cloudy, which I believe means it is Almost There!! I have already done a 20% water change at the one week mark and will do one in a day or 2. The fish seems happy as can be!
The goldfish "Pierce McBubbles" did not like the bright 25 watt lights I put in the hood and would hide under the cave all day, but would swim all over when the light was off... I picked up 2 15 watt bulbs to see if that would help, but when I started to unscrew the first bulb, the metal socket fell out...
Hopped on the internet and purchased a Marineland 20"x10"
LED Hood, 3 foot Artificial Bamboo and a Current USA Single Ramp Timer, which come in a couple day. I figured the ramp timer would turn light on slowly, the bamboo would give shade (not gonna use all of it) and the
LED Hood was lower Lumen than the bulbs I had in first.
So..... 10 Cent Fish = $200+ investment.
not to mention the Bigger Aquarium or Pond when he gets too big for this one... I am sure I will find a Lot of helpful info here and look forward to sharing what I Learn.
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