Help...How can I convince them?

[Sawyer]

I have 6 common/comet goldfish that really need to be put in a pond soon but my parents don't want a pond in the yard (we already have a huge pond but its like a retention pond so I guess it doesn't count), especially my dad. He says he's cleaned out a pond before and it was hard and just from a few little fish it was really filthy everyday and even harder to clean than big pools. I really don't know what to do. I told him that ponds are easier to take care of than tanks and that rain does a lot of the work.. he didn't believe it. How can I convince them? Whats some pros to having a pond? My dad says goldfish will NOT survive outside in FL, that the water will get 90 degrees. which I really doubt is true for a 5 ft deep pond in the shade. He also think goldfish are coldwater fish, I'm pretty sure they're sub tropical. Coldwater is like trout. my mom thinks it'll be stupid, that birds will somehow get thru the netting over the pond, and doesn't want a hole in the yard.

So.. yeah, I'd like them to be put in the pond by the end of June but its going to be really difficult persuading my parents and getting a good filter/pond liner/netting for it. And even though I've tried researching it a lot I'm completely clueless about taking care of a pond (all the info I've found is for fancy ponds, mine is just going to be a approximately 6ft long, 4 ft wide, 5 ft deep hole with pond liner and netting over the top). Like how often to do WC's, whether I put dechlorinator in it, how to get out poop and other stuff, or do I even need to do that in a pond of this size? How will I get it cycled? Ugh, so much to consider.

 

[excuzzzeme]

Goldies are coldwater and will need cooler water than 86F. As far as convincing your parents to do what you want, it is better to respect their wishes. At some point you will leave home and they will be stuck with a hole in they yard they didn't want. In some places it will be required to modify the homeowner insurance as well to protect against indemnity.

Sorry to say, it's their property and they have the right to say "No".

Please respect their decicions.

 

[Sawyer]

uh... that doesn't help my goldies, or me. I care a lot more about my goldfish that my parent's ignorant "wishes". They don't know anything about ponds, they're just assuming it'll be difficult to take care of. The goldfish HAVE to go in a pond, so its not like because they don't want a pond that I can just leave them in a tank. So no, I'm not going to respect their "wishes". And when I move out, I wouldn't leave my goldfish behind. If they wanted they could fill the pond in then.

Goldfish are sub tropical, not coldwater. Like I said, with the pond in the shade and it being 5 ft deep, surely it shouldn't get too hot.

 

[Sawyer]

Can anyone answer these questions?

And even though I've tried researching it a lot I'm completely clueless about taking care of a pond (all the info I've found is for fancy ponds, mine is just going to be a approximately 6ft long, 4 ft wide, 5 ft deep hole with pond liner and netting over the top). Like how often to do WC's, whether I put dechlorinator in it, how to get out poop and other stuff, or do I even need to do that in a pond of this size? How will I get it cycled?

 

[LeahK]

Goldfish are classified as coldwater, at least according to wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coldwater_fish

They are, after all, carp. However, in the wild, the original carp were found in subtropical and even tropical regions (partly through human introduction).

I wish I could help answer your other questions! Other people in the pond forum should be able to give you some info. I bet if you just google "pond care" you can get a basic idea of how ponds work.

 

[Sawyer]

I've tried that, but its all fancy pond stuff for people who have waterfalls and buy preformed ponds. On how to clean out the pond they talk about these expensive vacuums to get debris out and all that just makes it seem even more complicated so I gave up trying to read pond articles.

 

[dixienut]

i got a nice vac from wal mart ,.. its for pools you hook it up to garden hose and water makes suction and flows thru a bag to catch mulm and leaves works well,.. but fine sweep thru but regular filter or large sponge air driven filter takes care of that

 

[Sawyer]

How much was it and Will I definitely need one? There won't be anything to vacuum up besides poop since I'm going to have netting over it.. but I suppose the poop will eventually need to be gotten out?


Do filters have built in pumps, or do I have to separately buy a pump? And I do definitely need a filter, right? I've heard of some people not using filters for their turtle ponds, and turtles are possibly even messier than goldfish.

 

[7itanium]

you will need to do water changes in a pond just as you would in an aquarium

you are also going to need some sort of filter to harbor bio-media just like in an aquarium

ponds are a royal pain to clean.. I have one.. but they can be worth it as well

have you told them that if they dont dig a pond the alternative is letting you have a 400g tank? lol

that might help he argument

 

[Sawyer]

Yeah.. they just don't seem to understand how much room goldfish need. I told them how they get 12+ inches big but at first they believed the whole "they only grow to how big the tank is". It took over a month to get them to understand that their internal organs continue growing even if their body doesn't. Now that they know that I think my dad just plain doesn't care about them because he's so determined that ponds are hard to clean.. when he's not even the one that would be cleaning it or having anything to do with it. And its not even about not wanting a hole in the yard despite what my mom said, considering my brother and I dug at huge hole years ago and never buried it. I don't know what their problem is.

I could always dig the hole in like a day before they noticed (they wouldn't make me fill it in), the hard part is getting the filter/netting/liner. And figuring out where the pond should be. If I don't have to be overly careful about where the sun won't hit it too much, I could make the hole my brother and I dug bigger (its 6 ft deep, but currently isn't very long or wide). That spot probably is the best place to put it anyway.