advice please

kelly82

kelly82

AC Members
Jun 1, 2007
1,108
0
0
Lincolnshire, UK
i have just been given an up and running coldwater tank,it has 2 big fantails in there, one orange and white and one yellow, and 1 small orange and white goldfish,i was just wondering if the tank is big enough for them to be in,it is 4 ft long x 11inches wide x 15 inches deep. it has a fluval 4+ filter on it,which i had to peel the scum out of as it wasnt pumping any water at all,i rinsed it in old tank water, vacuumed out the gravel, and scraped off the algea so i could actually see the fish, and during the move between houses most of the water was dumped out so they have had about a 80% water change, i added dechlor and filter boost stuff, when i first saw the tanks it was like the glass was painted green, and you could see the orange and yellow shapes of something sitting on the bottom in the corners. now they are all clean, and the filter is up and running as it should be,they are swimming around beautifully, apparently their old owner thought they were boring as they didnt swim,they just sat on the bottom,and is shocked by the change in them! they were fed 3 times a day with about half a handful of food :headshake2: just chucked in on top and then ignored if it wasnt all eaten. i am feeding them once a day as much as they eat in around 3-5 minutes. im hoping they will be ok in this tank,as i cant fit a bigger one in my house,the fantails have been in this tank for around 6 years i think, if what she told me is correct,and the goldfish around 6 months. would i be ok to add 1 or 2 weather loaches to the tank?
 
oh and she also said she was going to get a sturgeon to go in there as it wouldnt outgrow the tank it would only grow to the tanks size-am i right in thinking sturgeons are pond fish??? she told me she had 1 in her pond but wanted a smaller one so it wouldnt out grow the aquarium,im thinking its a good job she couldnt take her tanks to her new home!
 
kelly82 said:
oh and she also said she was going to get a sturgeon to go in there as it wouldnt outgrow the tank it would only grow to the tanks size-am i right in thinking sturgeons are pond fish??? she told me she had 1 in her pond but wanted a smaller one so it wouldnt out grow the aquarium,im thinking its a good job she couldnt take her tanks to her new home!
Click to expand...
She is quite wrong. Sturgeons will end up stunted which is detrimental to their health and well being. They are pond fish, not aquarium fish.
 
That tank is only 34.33 gals according to the conversion on here. I am still learning about all the fish I can and from what I read one goldfish needs 20gal and an additional 10gal for each additional. I don't know if that applies to fantail as well as the comets I was reading about ...
 
i think that tank size is okay for just two goldies. okay for now IF the smaller one is a fantail. if it's a comet they actually need much more room than fancy goldfish because they are larger overall and much faster swimmers. look into getting a 55g or better yet a 75, then you could have all the goldies and 3 loaches.

i think i would have to disagree on sturgeons being pond fish - based on how big some of them get you need to dig out a whole lake! Better just to leave them there in the first place IMO. Besides - won't they eat any goldfish or other smaller fish in with them?
 
3 goldfish in a 35 gallon is not ideal but it can be done. Judging by your description the nitrate in that tank could have been very high. 80% change at one time with old tank syndrome is very hard on them. If you plan on keeping the fish in a tank that size long term, plan on a biweekly water changing schedule of at least 50% a change. Goldfish are big active fish and produce a lot of waste.

If you can see if you can get a 55 gallon tank. They have almost the exact same foot print as your current 35 gal. I bet the stand and maybe even the top will fit on it. The extra 15 gallons of water capacity will really make a difference long term for the fish. They are also very common and easy to find for very little.

I just noticed that you are in UK where the pints are large and the gallons are huge. So for you that would be a 45 gallon tank. :)
 
Last edited:
wataugachicken said:
i think that tank size is okay for just two goldies. okay for now IF the smaller one is a fantail. if it's a comet they actually need much more room than fancy goldfish because they are larger overall and much faster swimmers. look into getting a 55g or better yet a 75, then you could have all the goldies and 3 loaches.

i think i would have to disagree on sturgeons being pond fish - based on how big some of them get you need to dig out a whole lake! Better just to leave them there in the first place IMO. Besides - won't they eat any goldfish or other smaller fish in with them?
Click to expand...

:iagree:

Sturgeons are DEFINITELY lake fish. They grow to enormous sizes. And eat goldfish!
 
Lupin said:
She is quite wrong. Sturgeons will end up stunted which is detrimental to their health and well being. They are pond fish, not aquarium fish.
Click to expand...

sturgeons are river and deep lake fish. growing up to 14 feet long and living to 100+ years. i remember an old fishing magazine i was subscribed to, the cover had a 12 foot 114 year old sturgeon, i dont remember the weight but it was massive.
 
ok thanks for the help so far, should i rehome the goldfish,the smaller one,it is just a normal goldie, not a fantail or a comet, and about 2 inches long, i would say the orange fantail is around 6-7 inches long and the yellow one is slightly smaller at around 4-5 inches long.theres no way i can get a bigger tank,not for the foreseeable future,i dont have much money,so unfortunately im going to have to do my best with what ive got.

i said to her what youve said about the sturgeon,and the one in her pond is now about 1 1/2ft long, its a diamond tipped sturgeon i think she said. anyway,ive told her theres no way one could live in an aquarium,and she now knows about stunting fish.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom