Well, it really sucked. my son got attached to seeing the two goldfish when he woke up at night and in the morning. i had to flush them when he wasnt there. he still looks for them. Anyways, i got everything set up and tried to ( in what i could only describe as a halfazzed attempt) live cycle. I added my plants, two goldfish and things seemed to be working great. well my wife noticed the day after we put the fish in one of the goldfish had a spot on its back fin, a white spot. well its fins started to disintigrate. slowly at first, but i knew it was a problem when my blackmoore's eyes started to cloud over. i talked to a buddy that has fish and he said it sounded like ick. i treated them once for ick and it seemed to go away, the BM's eyes got better, but it came back with a vengence, destoroying fins, the eyes clouding bad and the gold gold fishes side basically being "eaten away" i dont know how else to describe it. Both dead now. the suggestions from the person i bought the fish:
tested my well water. Everything is good but ph. its on the higher side. he suggested if i wanted to live cycle try chiclids, as they are hardy and thrive in higher ph water at higher temps. my water was warmer, i live in an old house and the room they are in stays about between 75 and 85 degrees. i try to keep it cooler but its hard. he said the goldfish hate the warmer water, and it stresses their systems. he said to clean the tank not with bleach but a 2/3 white vinegar mix, and no live plants. i hate to kill fish so if this doesnt pan out im gonna quit and buy a hamster.
tested my well water. Everything is good but ph. its on the higher side. he suggested if i wanted to live cycle try chiclids, as they are hardy and thrive in higher ph water at higher temps. my water was warmer, i live in an old house and the room they are in stays about between 75 and 85 degrees. i try to keep it cooler but its hard. he said the goldfish hate the warmer water, and it stresses their systems. he said to clean the tank not with bleach but a 2/3 white vinegar mix, and no live plants. i hate to kill fish so if this doesnt pan out im gonna quit and buy a hamster.