View Full Version : Will they survive?
legendaryfrog
12-16-2006, 2:09 PM
hello everybody. Pardon if this may sound stupid, but, My mom and dad think 9 medium goldfish (or any type of fish) will survive in an uncycled 190 gallon tank with only an eheim 140 gallon filter. please convince them that it is stupid and the fish will die very quickly. PLEASE RESPOND TO THIS!! AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!!. They plan on buyin the fish monday!
WeeNe858
12-16-2006, 2:17 PM
you need a whole lotta filter for goldfishes.. they poop alot..
what you can to is get another ehiem to help filter it
and as far a cycling it goes.. you can have the fish in there and add in alot of bacteria.. for some reason no one has heard of superbac.. but if you do see it you can use that with the fishes in there already. if you dont know what it is or how to get it.. then tell you parents that the tanks is an ammonia chamber and they're going to suffocate the goldfishes to death. add in stress zyme and wait a week or 2 or get bio spira and that wil cycle your tank in a day or so (but its expensive)
As long as they monitor the water levels and are willing to do water changes when needed they should survive.
legendaryfrog
12-16-2006, 3:15 PM
could i get a straight out answer?
they way it is set up, would 8 medium goldfish(or any other fish of similar size) survive?
With daily, possibly twice daily water changes - sure, they could survive.
Your parents just need to be sure that they stay on top of the water parameters are are prepared to make emergency water changes should ammonia or nitrite spikes occur.
It will take a lot of water changes until the tank cycles. Goldfish produce more waste than anything and so the ammonia and nitrites will go through the roof. I hope you can get some bacteria in there to give it a kick start!
I doubt that the tank will have enough filtration even for normal fish. It would have no hope with goldfish, even though that is not a bad stocking level.
I have 2 canisters about the size of fluval 405's on our 60g goldfish tank. ie each filter rated for something like a 400litre tank and it's only a 220litre tank...
ILOVEBETTAS
12-16-2006, 3:51 PM
Okay, parents, please read this.
You're tank NEEDS to be cycled! An un-cycled tank can kill fish. The water will be too new if it ain't cycled and the beneficial bacteria has no time to start "growing".
If you're talking about comet, common, or shubunkin goldfish, you MIGHT be able to fit two in there! They grow over 1' and poop A LOT! You might be able to fit 9 fancy goldfish in there though, but not when the tank ain't cycled!
You NEED AT LEAST A 200 GALLON POWER FILTER WITH BIO-WHEEL. Goldfish poop a lot! If you have that filter with those goldfish, the tank will be a wreck.
DO NOT DO THIS, FOR THE SAKE OF THE FISH!
icecubez189
12-16-2006, 4:14 PM
200GPH is not nearly enough for a 190G tank, if your going to be getting messy fish like goldfish. i would get a total GPH filtration that is 10x the size of the tank. in the case of your 190G, 1900GPH or higher is good.
if they are really set on goldfish, you can at least steer them away from breeds that will grow too large for tanks or are meant for ponds. Avoid Koi (or carp) at all costs, as they can grow up to 2-3 feet long. comets can get up to 2 feet as well. fancy goldfish are possible, such as ranchu, lionheads, ryukin, orandas, fantails, and black moors.
Fantails get pretty big as well :)
cohazard
12-16-2006, 4:44 PM
could i get a straight out answer?
they way it is set up, would 8 medium goldfish(or any other fish of similar size) survive?
You've been given great answers to your predicament, which would greatly help you plead your case to your parents.
It's obvious that you're still very young, but understand this: It's foolish to look for a yes or no answer and not care about the facts that support the why behind the answer.
:rolleyes: I'm headed over to MFK, I'm done with AC for the week.
Sammie7
12-16-2006, 9:18 PM
Man, that sucks. I wish I could get a tank that big. :rolleyes: Why do they have such a big tank if they aren't experienced hobbyists that know what they are doing. It's like handing over the keys to a ferrari to a 16 year old that hasn't even driven a go-kart a day in their life. :) It just isn't fair. It rarely is. :rolleyes:
ILOVEBETTAS
12-17-2006, 12:46 PM
200GPH is not nearly enough for a 190G tank, if your going to be getting messy fish like goldfish. i would get a total GPH filtration that is 10x the size of the tank. in the case of your 190G, 1900GPH or higher is good.
if they are really set on goldfish, you can at least steer them away from breeds that will grow too large for tanks or are meant for ponds. Avoid Koi (or carp) at all costs, as they can grow up to 2-3 feet long. comets can get up to 2 feet as well. fancy goldfish are possible, such as ranchu, lionheads, ryukin, orandas, fantails, and black moors.
He he sorry my bad! I was thinking of some other fish... my bad!
legendaryfrog
12-17-2006, 5:07 PM
thanks everyone. my parents got the idea. ill be building one of my huge 500 gallon wet/dry filters soon.
5TankHarmony
12-18-2006, 1:36 PM
Man, that sucks. I wish I could get a tank that big. :rolleyes: Why do they have such a big tank if they aren't experienced hobbyists that know what they are doing. It's like handing over the keys to a ferrari to a 16 year old that hasn't even driven a go-kart a day in their life. :) It just isn't fair. It rarely is. :rolleyes:
Exactly what I was going to say. If you care enough to go out and buy such a massive tank, why be reckless with your fish?
legendaryfrog
12-18-2006, 8:13 PM
If you put any sort of fish, even 8 small goldfish, in an underfiltered aquarium, the ammonia (from their poo) will quickly rise, killing your fish.
TRUST ME, you would be very very very lucky, if your fish lived longer than 3 days in this aquarium.
get a wet/dry