need help with 300 gallon goldfish pond

[gar man]

This weekend im going to be setting up my 300 gallon 6'x4'x1.5' pond and im going to be relying on plants for filtration. im going to be getting comets and mabye a fantail or two. im going to put river rock in the bottom and a clay pot here and there for hiding places. im going to want a scavanger in their also so should i get a bullhead or crayfish or both?

[rocker92]

electric blue crays!!!

[Lupin]

Crayfish are out. They just do not mix well with goldfish IMO. These are not to be considered scavengers but ambush predators. I can't speak for the bullhead catfish but I would like to ask, why do you feel it necessary to have scavengers added in the pond?

[gar man]

because the goldfish i get usually turn out to be messy eaters and also if anykind of insect or something dies and ends up in my pond i would like it to be eaten by a fish and not just sit there and rot. that and i love to have some diversity in a pond :D i might put some shiners in the pond as well to eat the mosquito larvae.

[gar man]

how many goldfish would be able to go into it?

[gar man]

and rocker i live in iowa. it gets to cold for them here and im not paying $30 apiece for them at my lfs's only to have them eaten by racoons... but i got a 4/10 that'll take care of them :D

[NorCalFish]

what kind of goldfish are you putting in? i know that Kois (Carp) do scavenger for food and the goldfish my dad use to have would search through the gravel for food.

slightly off topic but because carp are well adapted to scavenging for food on the bottom, it makes them a very invasive species.

[Lupin]

because the goldfish i get usually turn out to be messy eaters and also if anykind of insect or something dies and ends up in my pond i would like it to be eaten by a fish and not just sit there and rot. that and i love to have some diversity in a pond :D i might put some shiners in the pond as well to eat the mosquito larvae.
Goldfish naturally are messy but your reasons for getting a scavenger is not right. You need a filtration system to cope with the wastes unless you are willing to clean all the muck at least twice a week and do large water changes in the process.

Sorry to say this, gar man, but I think you really need the filters. Submersible pumps may be expensive but they are worth the investment in the long run.

[Lupin]

how many goldfish would be able to go into it?
How cold does it get in your area? Your pond is not deep enough to permit you to skip wintering of the fish. If your area suffers winter season, then you'll need a spare tank to winter your goldfish temporarily. A pond that size can permit at least 10 common goldfish, comets or shubunkins or 15 fancy goldfish but in your situation, I would not recommend the fancies. Fantails being an in-between of commons and fancies will however work just fine there. Plan your wintering and filtration ahead before you get your fish.

[gar man]

i thnik that i might just buy a filter or should i do a diy? whats cheaper? and for the winter situation im going to buy a pond heater to keep it ice free. as soon as i find it ill post it.

[Lupin]

i thnik that i might just buy a filter or should i do a diy? whats cheaper? and for the winter situation im going to buy a pond heater to keep it ice free. as soon as i find it ill post it.
Have you planned yet how you're going to make a DIY filtration system? I don't know about your budget but I find the overhead filtration system quite affordable in my experience and still is very efficient but it can be unsightly if you don't want it clashing with the looks of your seemingly natural pond. You could build something similar to this. The rectangular box can be replaced with large drums connected to powerful submersible pumps and tubes/pipes.
http://www.fishtankforums.com/frontpage/index.php?p=vB10974

Using heaters might be costly to the electric bill due to the constant changes in temperature during the winter. Can you not just winter your fish temporarily?

[Sawyer]

I'd make it deeper than that. 1.5 isn't much, especially to a large common goldfish.. I'm going to be making a pond about that size, but it'll be 5 feet deep at least (for heat reasons, doesn't hardly get cold here)

[kyryah]

Yes, I agree, you need something that has a deep spot in the middle or your fish are going to cook in the summer and freeze solid in the winter. Something like this

http://i285.photobucket.com/albums/ll63/kyryah/nonsense%20for%20whatever%20reason/pondiilus.jpg

The depth in the middle helps to regulate temperature.

Kristina

[Zebulon]

In Iowa it consistantly gets below zero every winter at least for a few days. My friends back home with ponds have all hand dug with sheet liners, and shoot for 5 feet on the deep end. They run bubblers in the winter to keep ice broke up in a couple spots, but heating the pond is simply not an option.

In the fall you'll want to choose out your favorite fish to slowly acclimate for indoor keeping because survival rates can be hit and miss over the whole winter. The deeper the better but a few years ago it got so cold my buddy lost all but a few fish. The summer does get warm, over 100 degrees regularly, but be sure to place the pond in the shade and summer losses will be very minimal.

As to shotgunning the wildlife for being hungry, well that's sorta messed up. If you make a pond outside you are opening it to nature. Bugs will lay eggs in it, frogs will come live in it, birds will wade in it and yes predators will want a piece too. To them it's just a waterhole with food in it. If you want a sterilized, human controlled pond then you'd be better off putting a pool in your garage, insulating and heating it and going that route.

[gar man]

well i cant make it any bigger becas=ue its a pond kit thing i got for $5 and mabye i will be able to get a tank indoors but idk if my mom will permit it.

[rocker92]

i know, i live farther north than you :lipssealedsmilie: and i read it wrong, i thought you had an indoor fish tank...

[gar man]

huh? lol