Newbie! help with fish

[doanh]

We just picked up an aquarium on Craigslist to learn about fish with the kids.

It is a 30 gallons tank and it came with 3 goldfish (5 inch) and 1 cleaner (6 inch).

Since we know nothing about raising fish, how much food should we give these large goldfish? I know they can be overfed but I do not know the consequences of underfeeding them.

If all goes well (aka, these fish survives for a few weeks under our care), I would like to buy a few more fish for the tank. Looking for friendly easy to raise colorful fish. Any recommendations?

We live close to a Petco and Petsmart. A friend recommended against Walmart.

[jarrodaden]

We just picked up an aquarium on Craigslist to learn about fish with the kids.

It is a 30 gallons tank and it came with 3 goldfish (5 inch) and 1 cleaner (6 inch).

The "cleaner" is most likely a pleco if it is a big black fish.

Since we know nothing about raising fish, how much food should we give these large goldfish? I know they can be overfed but I do not know the consequences of underfeeding them.

Overfeeding is bad. I like the 1 minutes rule. Feed them what they can eat completely in about one minute. I do this twice daily. It won't seem like much, but it is enough.

If all goes well (aka, these fish survives for a few weeks under our care), I would like to buy a few more fish for the tank. Looking for friendly easy to raise colorful fish. Any recommendations?

Be careful here. Goldfish are notoriously messy fish. The normal rule is one inch of fish per gallon of water. My rule for goldfish is one inch of fish for two gallons of water. It also depends on filtration, etc.

We live close to a Petco and Petsmart. A friend recommended against Walmart.

I recommend that you find a store specializing in fish. If you tell us about where you are located, we can recommend a store close to your home. Fish specialty stores generally have more knowledgeable staff that are helpful. The fish in my experience are healthier too. You might pay a little more, but it is worth it in my opinion.

Keep coming back to Houston Fish Box with your questions. We love to help here.

BTW, did you buy an established tank? In other words was it running for a while before you bought it? If not, you have other potential problems to worry about.

[ssrprelude]

Welcome to your new addiction! Goldfish are pretty hardy fish. Feed them only what they can eat in a minute or two. When you decide to get more fish for the tank, go with community fish like mollys, swordtails, guppys ect. They are colorful and easy to care for. Keep us updated with progress and pics of course.

[Enin]

Petco and petsmart are good places to buy supplys like food, decorations, and medications. I find that Petsmart in Tomball always seems to have stuff very cheap. Ultimate fish store is a good place to buy fish if you live in Spring and the two young men that work there will be able to help you with almost anything. As far as feeding, a very small pinch goes a long ways. Welcome to the HFB.

[doanh]

thank you!

thank you very much for the feeding hints. this is very helpful.

goldfish are messy for sure, I am not sure how good is this filter that came with the tank. the owner before us have owned this tank for three years, thus it is established I would guess.

we are near spring cypress and 249, thus the walmart and petco. The petsmart in tomball is not far from us either.

I will also check the fishbox classified, maybe folks have from friendly fish on there to sell too. I will locate the recommended ultimate fish store in spring.

what are the thoughts on fake versus real plants? Wife noticed our tank has no plants at all...

[Enin]

http://www.houstonfishbox.com/vforum...fish-store-map This will help you find all fish stores in houston.

[jarrodaden]

thank you very much for the feeding hints. this is very helpful.

goldfish are messy for sure, I am not sure how good is this filter that came with the tank. the owner before us have owned this tank for three years, thus it is established I would guess.

If the previous owner didn't provide you with a gravel vacuum, put that on your shopping list. I suggest vacuuming once weekly with 25% - 50% of the water changed at that time. Don't forget the drops when you add new water to the tank.

we are near spring cypress and 249, thus the walmart and petco. The petsmart in tomball is not far from us either.

As someone pointed out, these stores are ok for supplies, but not so much for fish. In my opinion, quality food is a must and these stores don't carry what I like. I use new life spectrum. I am not feeding goldfish though.

I will also check the fishbox classified, maybe folks have from friendly fish on there to sell too. I will locate the recommended ultimate fish store in spring.

what are the thoughts on fake versus real plants? Wife noticed our tank has no plants at all...

Plants can be a bit tricky for beginners. Some plants have very demanding lighting and CO2 requirements. If you tank is getting good light, you might try java moss, java fern, or amazon sword. I have had good luck with those and I am horrible with aquarium plants. Fake are fine and require less maintenance.

Good luck!

[Enin]

If you buy fish from Walmart (some people do) make sure to raise the bag over the electronic scanner as you are leaving the building. Im not sure what it does to the fish but they wont live long after that. Also Mr. Jarrodaden, you can buy NLS from petco.

[doanh]

No gravel vacuum was supplied. Any recommendation on what to get. I see fancy ones at $40 and some at $9...

I was planning on changing 30% of water every two weeks. Is this not good? To add water, I pour the water into a 5 gallon bucket and let is sit for 1 hr before I add it to the tank. Of course, I use the chlorine neutralizer as the water sit to cool to the same as the house temp.

I read a few postings on pH of the water. What is the best way to monitor this along with nitrates and all?

As for the plants, the tank get a little indirect sunlight along with the hood light thus maybe that is not enough. I will stick with fake plant for now.

[jarrodaden]

No gravel vacuum was supplied. Any recommendation on what to get. I see fancy ones at $40 and some at $9...

For the tank you have, you might want to get a python. It allows you to fill from and drain to the sink. No buckets needed. Buckets will work just fine though. With buckets use a gravel siphon. It is a clear tube with larger diameter attached to a smaller diameter clear hose.

I was planning on changing 30% of water every two weeks. Is this not good? To add water, I pour the water into a 5 gallon bucket and let is sit for 1 hr before I add it to the tank. Of course, I use the chlorine neutralizer as the water sit to cool to the same as the house temp.

Once every two weeks is ok. Once a week is better, but not necessary. I add the water conditioner to my tank, wait about 10 minutes, then slowly add the water directly to the tank. This isn't always a good idea, but I have a carbon filter on my hose. For yours, add the water and conditioner to the bucket then stir and wait a few minutes before adding it to the tank.

I read a few postings on pH of the water. What is the best way to monitor this along with nitrates and all?

For Ph, nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia you need a test kit. They cost about $25. Be careful with these. Follow the instructions closely. Also, the kits have expiration dates. The chemicals will eventually go bad, stop working properly, and give false readings.

As for the plants, the tank get a little indirect sunlight along with the hood light thus maybe that is not enough. I will stick with fake plant for now.

For the plants that I recommended, I think the lighting you described will be adequate. Fake is a good choice for less adventrous beginners.

Hope this helps.

[Mzungu]

For a 30g with three 5" goldfish and one 6" pleco, you will probably want to do a lot more water changes. I would recommend at least 50% a week. Once you obtain a test kit, you can more easily determine when to do your water changes, and how much to change. You have acquired some pretty messy fish. :)

If you don't want to spend the money on a python you can always just get a regular gravel vac, but like jarrodaden said, you'll be using buckets, and that's a lot of water to be lifting. The python's great because it comes with a gravel vacuum tube, connections for your faucet at home, and different lengths of hoses to choose from. All you have to do is connect the python to your faucet, turn on the tap and a suction will be created, allowing you to vacuum the gravel and change the water at the same time. When you're ready to add new water, just twist the python's faucet attachment so the water is now flowing from the tap through the hose and into your tank. Then add your dechlorinator and you're done!

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[jarrodaden]

Don't forget to turn off your heater (if you have one) and your filter before draining the water down. I keep my pumps, filters, and heaters on a outlet strip together so that I can turn them all off without unplugging. You may have to reprime the filter after re-filling the tank.

[doanh]

The python is very convenient but I just hate to waste so much water for the vacuum part...

[Mzungu]

The python is very convenient but I just hate to waste so much water for the vacuum part...

You could always just drain the tank water into your yard, and then hook up the python to your sink when you're ready to fill. That way you're not wasting water.

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[jarrodaden]

I used to feel the same way. You can hook the python to a hose in the yard and run it long enough to start the siphon then turn the hose off and let it continue to drain.

With me now, speed is everything. I have a pool vacuum hose that I run outside. I start my siphon old school and then once my gravel siphon is started I dump into that hose. After drain down, I put the water directly into the tank. I prefer to fill slowly will a carbon hose (design "borrowed" from John Crowder)

I have not had any problems yet.