Hi,
Just signed up to the forum, and new to fish keeping in general.
(Apologies in advance for a long first post!)
Unexpectedly, my 5 y/o son got goldfish from his uncle for Christmas. And having spent over a week myself, reading and watching every bit of aquarium/goldfish information that I can find online, in an effort to understand how to look after them correctly.... I can see some issues with our current setup, and would be very appreciative of some advice from the veteran aquarium owners here.
So what he received is:
So, going by everything I have read so far, the tank, is eventually, (if not already) going to be too small for 4 goldfish. What would be the advice here? Would getting a larger tank in a couple of years be ok?... or would it be needed sooner? I would probably be looking at 100 - 120 litre tank then (26 - 32 US Gal).
Water conditions
I want to do everything I can to give to fish the best water conditions... but I don't think it's had the best start!
I only saw the tank for the first time about 6 days after they had been brought to our house. I don't the the pet-shop where they were purchased, were knowledgeable at all!
The filter was not even in the tank at this stage, and the water was starting to look dirty and cloudy. The pet-shop had said to his uncle, "you can turn on the filter for a few hours a day if you want"!!
We put the filter in, and then I started frantically googling the best course of action. The water cleared up with the filter running constantly since, and I've done a (~25%-30%) water change since then.
At least the pet-shop did give him fluval water conditioner, (which I used again for the water change).
So there was of course, no tank cycling, no filter running before the fish were put in the tank, (or for their first few days in the tank), and I presume the gravel wasn't washed. I hope it hasn't all affected the fish too much, and we can improve and maintain good water conditions for them.
Filter
As I mentioned, the filter was not installed until well after the fish were in the tank. So after it is installed, I'm not sure how long it would take to established a good colony of bacteria? I am thinking of getting 'biological enhancer', to pour into the filter.... a good idea?, or necessary or not?
When I did the water change, I took out the filter, and put it in the bucket of tank water, and gently rinsed the cartridge and bioscreen it the tank water.
The manual says to replace the filter cartridge every 4 weeks or so. I presume that will mean a brand new cartridge will have no bacteria, and will need to build up a new colony again? There is also a 'bioscreen' in the filter, will I presume will keep bacteria, and will not need to be changed?
On the filter throughput... it says on the box up to 100l, which I presume is for tanks up to 100l... and not 100l p/h? The booklet does seem to say 380l/h, which would be over 10x our tank.
Accessories
I have ordered the following already: Siphon/gravel cleaner, magnetic tank cleaner, replacement filter cartridges, hollow log decoration, stick on thermometer, and some more food, (tetra goldfish granules, are what we have already).
I'm also thinking of an air stone and pump, if the filter isn't aerating the tank enough. Testing kits, biological enhancer, and possibly some more decorations, (but don't want to fill u the tank too much).
Any thoughts on this list, and other items that we might need?
Any other advice, tips, or insights that could help us in looking after, and enjoying these fish , would be very much appreciated.
Thanks,
Andy
Just signed up to the forum, and new to fish keeping in general.
(Apologies in advance for a long first post!)
Unexpectedly, my 5 y/o son got goldfish from his uncle for Christmas. And having spent over a week myself, reading and watching every bit of aquarium/goldfish information that I can find online, in an effort to understand how to look after them correctly.... I can see some issues with our current setup, and would be very appreciative of some advice from the veteran aquarium owners here.
So what he received is:
- An aquarium 50 x 25 x 30cm, which holds 30-32 litres (~8 US gallons)
- Lid with a strip of LED's
- An internal filter (Marina i110), which I believe will turn over enough water per hour for that tank... I will get to issues/q's about the filter later!
- Some blue coloured gravel
- 2 artificial plants
- And of course, fish. 4 goldfish, which I believe are common goldfish, and are around 2.5 - 3" long
So, going by everything I have read so far, the tank, is eventually, (if not already) going to be too small for 4 goldfish. What would be the advice here? Would getting a larger tank in a couple of years be ok?... or would it be needed sooner? I would probably be looking at 100 - 120 litre tank then (26 - 32 US Gal).
Water conditions
I want to do everything I can to give to fish the best water conditions... but I don't think it's had the best start!
I only saw the tank for the first time about 6 days after they had been brought to our house. I don't the the pet-shop where they were purchased, were knowledgeable at all!
The filter was not even in the tank at this stage, and the water was starting to look dirty and cloudy. The pet-shop had said to his uncle, "you can turn on the filter for a few hours a day if you want"!!
We put the filter in, and then I started frantically googling the best course of action. The water cleared up with the filter running constantly since, and I've done a (~25%-30%) water change since then.
At least the pet-shop did give him fluval water conditioner, (which I used again for the water change).
So there was of course, no tank cycling, no filter running before the fish were put in the tank, (or for their first few days in the tank), and I presume the gravel wasn't washed. I hope it hasn't all affected the fish too much, and we can improve and maintain good water conditions for them.
Filter
As I mentioned, the filter was not installed until well after the fish were in the tank. So after it is installed, I'm not sure how long it would take to established a good colony of bacteria? I am thinking of getting 'biological enhancer', to pour into the filter.... a good idea?, or necessary or not?
When I did the water change, I took out the filter, and put it in the bucket of tank water, and gently rinsed the cartridge and bioscreen it the tank water.
The manual says to replace the filter cartridge every 4 weeks or so. I presume that will mean a brand new cartridge will have no bacteria, and will need to build up a new colony again? There is also a 'bioscreen' in the filter, will I presume will keep bacteria, and will not need to be changed?
On the filter throughput... it says on the box up to 100l, which I presume is for tanks up to 100l... and not 100l p/h? The booklet does seem to say 380l/h, which would be over 10x our tank.
Accessories
I have ordered the following already: Siphon/gravel cleaner, magnetic tank cleaner, replacement filter cartridges, hollow log decoration, stick on thermometer, and some more food, (tetra goldfish granules, are what we have already).
I'm also thinking of an air stone and pump, if the filter isn't aerating the tank enough. Testing kits, biological enhancer, and possibly some more decorations, (but don't want to fill u the tank too much).
Any thoughts on this list, and other items that we might need?
Any other advice, tips, or insights that could help us in looking after, and enjoying these fish , would be very much appreciated.
Thanks,
Andy