horrible aquarium experiences

[legendaryfrog]

okay, a few months ago i got my first 165 gallon aquarium from a private dealership in kentucky. i was sold a 140 gal. canister filter there for about 200 dollars (which the salesmen said would be enough), and some other aquarium related things (air pumps, airstones, filterpads, etc) for prices that seemed decent. I decorated the aquarium, filled it with water, and hooked up the filter about 1.5 month ago. my friends and family started pressurin me to buy the fish (goldfish) after 1.5-2 weeks. KNowing better, i said no because the aquarium hadnt cycling yet, but they went ahead and bought like 8 goldfish. 2 days later i checked the ammonia levels and they were at 2ppm and climbing! quickly i scooped up the fish (still healthy) into a bowl and returned them to the store. They were saved. Now, that they had learned there lesson, and the aquarium had cycled, I felt that It was ready for fish. I had a stable bacteria colony growing and everything. Like the first time, I bought 8 small-medium goldfish. (from a different place) 5 days later, everything was still fine….. Until the water turned green. This time the problem was the filter, which was underpowered to handle, well, any kind of fish. It was an eheim classic 2215 I believe.

Through all this I realized goldfish need huge filters. currently Everything Is going fine, now that I built my trickle filter.

Having an aquarium teaches you a lot of things.

 

[coupedefleur]

You might be overfeeding as well. That's a very common problem for beginners, and carp family fish are big beggars.

 

[jeffs99dime]

the eheim classic 2215 is nowhere near enough filtration for a 165 gallon. i have a 2215 and an emperor 400 on my 55g.

 

[Pallen81]

I'd like to thank you for your service to our country, my friend. best holidays to you and your family!!!

 

[Shorgasm III]

read my sig, and by no means do i know anything about goldfish... but is 165 big enough for 8 adult goldfish? i always hear/read they need like 30 gallons each :read:

 

[fishisme]

Maybe try to take the filter back??? try doing water changes, Gold fish like to crap alot

 

[amosf]

read my sig, and by no means do i know anything about goldfish... but is 165 big enough for 8 adult goldfish? i always hear/read they need like 30 gallons each :read:

Well, 50 litres each at least, preferably 80 litres. If you want to have a easy time looking after them, then the more volume per fish the better. And lots of filtration. Then add some more.

Depends on what goldfish you have, of course... Some don't get as big as others.

They all do crap a lot... Especially when overfed.

But I'd have no problem putting 8-12 goldfish in that size tank. It's over 600 litres. As I say, it depends on what type they were... If it gets overcrowded then get another tank or a pond

 

[Dwarf Puffers]

You sure you wanna use that big bad giant tank for goldfish? I would buy a small one for small gf if you are a begginer, i find it a little wasteful for gf to be placed in it... maybe like some o, say... BB gobys and indy dwarf puffs? hehe. your choice, but i would have gone with a 5-20 gal to see what goldfish were like and if you wanted to spend alot on them... I myself like Firemouth Cichlids, Discus, Dwarf Puffs, BB Gobys, and for saltwater, clowns, especially Occelaris.

________________________________________
75 gal fish: (other life forms such as shrimp and snails not included on list)
2 Snake Skin Discus -peaceful -show interest in breeding
4 Indian Dwarf Puffers (Pigmy Puffers) -Chase each other around playfully
4 Bumblebee Gobys -Chases opposite gender playfully -Have bred :bday:
12 Neon Tetras -Peaceful -Have bred
6 Dwarf Gouramis -Peaceful -Have bred
(Im caring for young in other tanks, but Discus need parents and parents are sometimes hungry even after large meals :sad: o well... if any live I have a pure discus tank ready for em)

 

[wataugachicken]

they shouldn't be kept in anything less than 25 gallons. the general "rule" for fancy goldfish is 30g for the first, and 20g additional for each extra one, with overfiltration and water changes. would you keep a firemouth in a 5gal tank?

 

[amosf]

Well, no. If you like goldfish (like my wife does) then a big tank is the way to go, especially if you want a few of them. 5g is too small. 60litre (16g) is a minimum IMO and other people say you need 30g minimum, whatever that is in cubits.

A 600 litre tank would be a nice one for golfish. It would be nice for other fish types as well, but that depends on personal preference. Goldfish are nice to look at and 'friendly', tho I think my rainbowfish are better