LowTech Planted Tank: Starter Plants for Goldfish

Also, what are my options other than what I'm doing now?

I cannot get a bigger tank, and if I were to take these fish back to the store they will end up in bowls... I would take them back and stock this tank with small community fish, but I've taken these godlies into my care and don't really have another option...
 
Any thoughts as to whether they're better off in the 30 gallon I have now, or back at the store?

Or is there an alternative to these options?
 
Given their size and their age, I doubt that they will need bigger housing for some time, and you could probably get away with a 55 long term, if that. For now, a good baseline to go for, would be 50% weekly water changes at least. Keeping a close eye on your water parameters will allow you to judge whether you can cut back, or need to scale up. Expect that as the fish get larger, and the tank gets more established, you will likely need to ramp up water changes to cope with the growing bioload. Be judicious in trimming your plants, as any nutrient uptake they provide will quickly be negated if they are allowed to break down in the tank. Try as hard as you can to get as much excess food and fecal matter out with every water change. Though it is often suggested that planted tanks not be gravel vacuumed, in this situation, where the fish are the main focus, it should be their needs you are more concerned with, vs. those of the plants. Aim to keep nitrate levels below 20 (better yet 15) ppm. The reason this is extra important in your case is because these fish have a lot going against them already. Given that the body morphology of fancy goldfish already presents some issues, compounding this with the deformation of internal structures often caused by stunting, means that these fish will be exceptionally prone to buoyancy issues. Pristine water quality, and a well balanced (goldfish specific) and varied diet high in roughage will work to reduce the the likelihood of these issues presenting themselves. I would recommend Mazuri's aquatic herbivore gel diet (5Z93) as a good staple, supplemented with high protein items such as blood worms and shrimp, as well as fresh veggies.
 
Thank you Inka. Is 25% wc twice a week as good as 50% once, or is the volume the important part?

Can I vaccum EcoComplete? It seems quite light to me - will it get sucked up? If so, I know it's not advised, but can I put a shallow layer of regular aquarium gravel over it to keep it down, or will that encourage anaerobic processes?

I will make a point of going out to get a testing kit for the water tonight.

Also, I think one of the two goldfish has taken on the task of mouthing every grain of the EcoComplete possible. Looking back, I would not recommend this substrate for goldfish since I don't know if she's spitting them all out after her thourough inspection.
 
There's math involved in the first part of that question, so I'm gonna have to defer to someone without a fear of numbers to field that one for you. Do a quick search on how to siphon with a sand substrate, which should bring you to a good number of links on how to siphon without pulling any substrate up. In any case, if you need to do a serious vac, pinching the siphon hose will allow the eco to drop to the ground faster than all the particulates and the detritus, which will continue through the hose as soon as the siphon pressure resumes.
 
Inka, the siphon was fine. It pulled up some eco, but it is heavy enough to fall back out. I was able to siphon out a lot of the stray roots and leaf bits now that the plants have been in the tank for a while.
 
I have 6 fancy gold fish in a 63 gallon tank, I was told at the pet store that I could have 7-8 in my old 110 litre tank......... as per usual they were trying to make a profit and didnt care about the fish. My 63 is very heavily planted and although they love to eat plants the plants do grow quicker than they can destroy them. They are still under a year old and even though they are very dirty fish the levels in my tank are near enough perfect, the nitrate levels are around 5! I dont have any plans in the future to ever move them into a bigger tank as they will have enough space in this tank ( although this may be incorrect to others ) Unless they grow stupidly big and I will of course have to re think. Go with plants and the more plants you have the more chance of success..... in nature they would eat plants so... hey.... let them live atleast a little bit naturally. I just bought all new plants for my tank and it looks perfect, just waiting for my stem cuttings to root properly and I will be happy.
In regards to water changes, I change around 25-30% of my water weekly and also make sure I maintain my two filters atleast weekly to remove the build up of plant debris, just filter like crazy and change your water regularly. You will find a routine that suits you and also your tank! Good luck with them and everyone on here cares about fish so people are going to be blunt, caring people are sometimes firm to be helpful.

Have a good day!!!
Tony
 
Thanks, Tony. So far they're doing well. They've eaten some plants, and I guess I'll just have to save up to buy more to fill in the gaps. eventually I should be able to find a mixture they don't touch. I was actually finding that my snail was destroying more than my fish were....
 
Update on Dip and Wade's Tank

So all but the java ferns and a couple of (now small) swords has croaked. There are two bunches of val roots that are still alive and are trying to spread runners even though the tops are grazed off. Looking back, the upgrade to my 30 gallon was a good move, but I didn't quite have enough momentum to really get the plants going.

I've been able to keep parameters near-perfect for goldies: pH at 7.5 - 7.6, and my nitrates bounce around 10-20 depending on how good I am with water changes (ammonia and nitrites are nil).

I'm now looking into better lighting to pretty much start over with the plants - I do really want this planted tank to work, and I think my issue is light. LEDs are very tempting, but I've read mixed reviews about their growing capabilities... although if a lighting system can suppoert a reef, it can grow green plants, right? The Marineland reef-capable lights are the ones I'm looking at... or even the double-brights, as I don't want super growth I can't manage. Anyone with thoughts?

I'm also looking at canister filters for when I've got the budget for that.
 
For canisters, check out the SunSun/Perfect 302. About $50 shipped to your door and would be perfect for your 30 gallon. I'm very happy with the one I've got on my 40 gallon. So much so that I bought one for the 46 gallon, and one to run alongside the Eheim I have on my 75 gallon. Couldn't be more pleased. :)

And I would say that the lighting for marine stuff is not the same as what you want for freshwater plants, but I'll let someone with more experience answer that.
 
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