Another fish question

[elefun]

I asked about my gold fish awhile ago having ick, well we got that solved and we think he has a new bacterial infection, pop eye.

We're pretty sure we're causing his issues based off google searches- when we add water we think it's too cold and the temperature changes are causing water issues.

He's also a dirty af fish. He was a 99 cent gold fish and we get what we paid for.

But does anyone with fish knowldge have a recommendation for how to add water without causing all these issues? We let the water sit for 24 hours before we add it, currently.

[k3am]

I have no specific advice, but there are a lot of fishkeeping groups on FB you can join that are great.

We spent forever trying to get our water parameters to be great and finally gave up on fish and got a dog, but we got a lot of experienced advice there. You can also stop into a smaller aquarium shop and they are really patient and helpful! (Proud to say, my dog-kill rate is 0%, compared to my fish-kill rate of 100%)

[puppylove64]

Yeah it sounds like both problems are stemming from your water. Have you replaced the filter recently? How often are you cleaning it? Some pet store will test your water for you if you take a sample. There are also water treatments you can add to the water to make it safe immediately, instead of waiting 24 hours. It could be something in the local water that isn’t evaporating after 24 hours and the water treatment chemicals will help.

Another thought, is the tank close to a window? It could be getting too much sunlight

[elefun]

Jan 29, 2024 21:21:31 GMT -5 puppylove64 said:

Yeah it sounds like both problems are stemming from your water. Have you replaced the filter recently? How often are you cleaning it? Some pet store will test your water for you if you take a sample. There are also water treatments you can add to the water to make it safe immediately, instead of waiting 24 hours. It could be something in the local water that isn’t evaporating after 24 hours and the water treatment chemicals will help.

Another thought, is the tank close to a window? It could be getting too much sunlight

Yeah the filter gets replaced every couple weeks. Same for cleaning I'd say. Typically change the filter when we clean. There's algae all over the items in the tank still, we don't take those out and scrub very often. Maybe every few months.

(We are not knowledgeable but doing our best so I hope we're not being too bad of fish parents.)

Eta not near window, and we turn the light off at night

[mcppalmbeach]

We’re brand new fish people and we have mollies. We just did our first water change this weekend. Praying we don’t kill them. My son used a water conditioner first on the replacement water to dechlorinate. It was recommended that we clean the filter out using tank water so as not to kill off beneficial bacteria and stress the tank. And also to do water and filter changes on different days for the same reason. Not sure any of that helps or isn’t common knowledge but thought I’d share

[mala]

Are you using a water conditioner like Prime? Is the tank heated? Easiest way to solve the water temp is to put the water in a bucket and add an extra aquarium heater to it to bring it to the same temp if your tank is heated. Goldfish do fine at normal room temp, AFAIK, they don't need topical temps. Goldfish are straight up the DIRTIEST fish you can get. Try feeding him less (don't starve him, obviously, the goal is that no uneaten food is left in the tank to rot) and if you don't vacuum the gravel you should.

[expectantsteelerfan]

My dd's beta fish had pop eye at one point. We completely changed its water (we normally only do a half-tank change) and washed all the stuff in the tank in hot, soapy water and rinsed really well, and it resolved. I wasn't willing to put much more effort into it.

[lessel]

What is the tank size and filter you're using? Rinsing filter media on changes might be better than entirely replacing it. There are some good beneficial bacteria there.

Are you using water conditioners like Prime and testing the water? (I remember years back when I was into keeping goldfish I know the recommendation was to use the testing kits with the bottles/test tubes and not the test strips.)

Goldfish are dirty little things and need bigger thanks than you'd expect. I loved having goldfish and it's a hobby I miss, but I also know I don't have time in my life for it... it is quite a bit of work to maintain a healthy tank.

[windyseas]

How big is your tank? Are you testing water? Goldfish create an enormous bio-load and with smaller tanks, the beneficial bacteria cannot keep up with the bio-load of a goldfish. Also, goldfish get really big and need a larger tank than you'd think.

Don't change your filter unless it is falling apart. You can rinse it in tank water, but replacing the filter is crashing your cycle. The beneficial bacteria lives in the filter. Goldfish also prefer colder water than tropical fish. Do you have a heater? You may not need one.

You may also want to check your tap water to see what its parameters are. Its possible that your water is causing the issue. Also, make sure you are using some form of dechlorinator before adding the water to the tank. We use Prime, but there's plenty out there that should work fine.

[elefun]

Jan 30, 2024 7:12:07 GMT -5 mala said:

Are you using a water conditioner like Prime? Is the tank heated? Easiest way to solve the water temp is to put the water in a bucket and add an extra aquarium heater to it to bring it to the same temp if your tank is heated. Goldfish do fine at normal room temp, AFAIK, they don't need topical temps. Goldfish are straight up the DIRTIEST fish you can get. Try feeding him less (don't starve him, obviously, the goal is that no uneaten food is left in the tank to rot) and if you don't vacuum the gravel you should.

The tank is heated. I'll see if we can do a heater for the new water too.

And omg yes he's so dang dirty

[elefun]

Jan 30, 2024 11:12:48 GMT -5 windyseas said:

How big is your tank? Are you testing water? Goldfish create an enormous bio-load and with smaller tanks, the beneficial bacteria cannot keep up with the bio-load of a goldfish. Also, goldfish get really big and need a larger tank than you'd think.

Don't change your filter unless it is falling apart. You can rinse it in tank water, but replacing the filter is crashing your cycle. The beneficial bacteria lives in the filter. Goldfish also prefer colder water than tropical fish. Do you have a heater? You may not need one.

You may also want to check your tap water to see what its parameters are. Its possible that your water is causing the issue. Also, make sure you are using some form of dechlorinator before adding the water to the tank. We use Prime, but there's plenty out there that should work fine.

It's 10 gallon. He seems to be an okay size for the tank right now. We are probably going to have to size up eventually.

We don't test the water. Do you have recs for that?

[lessel]

API Freshwater Master Test Kit is the water test kit I used to use. Searching online about the 'goldfish tank water cycle' will turn up some good resources.

10 gallon is the recommended size for a fancy goldfish. A common goldfish is probably fine in that size when it's very small, but 20-gal is the recommended size in general for them.

You'll want a workhorse filter for a smaller tank. Power filters, I think, were what I had. I think Marineland or Fluval brand... can't remember.

[k3am]

Jan 30, 2024 12:08:07 GMT -5 elefun said:

Jan 30, 2024 11:12:48 GMT -5 windyseas said:

How big is your tank? Are you testing water? Goldfish create an enormous bio-load and with smaller tanks, the beneficial bacteria cannot keep up with the bio-load of a goldfish. Also, goldfish get really big and need a larger tank than you'd think.

Don't change your filter unless it is falling apart. You can rinse it in tank water, but replacing the filter is crashing your cycle. The beneficial bacteria lives in the filter. Goldfish also prefer colder water than tropical fish. Do you have a heater? You may not need one.

You may also want to check your tap water to see what its parameters are. Its possible that your water is causing the issue. Also, make sure you are using some form of dechlorinator before adding the water to the tank. We use Prime, but there's plenty out there that should work fine.

It's 10 gallon. He seems to be an okay size for the tank right now. We are probably going to have to size up eventually.

We don't test the water. Do you have recs for that?

Did you cycle your tank before adding the fish? If you don't test the water, my guess is no, and your ammonia levels in your water are likely damaging to the fish. For a healthy tank, you need to cycle it, which involves buying a test kit and test the water regularly. Since you'll be doing an in-tank cycling, it will take a while longer and you'll need to do more frequent water changes. 


www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/nitrogen-cycle

aquariumscience.org/index.php/2-5-aquarium-fish-in-cycling/

[windyseas]

Jan 30, 2024 12:08:07 GMT -5 elefun said:

Jan 30, 2024 11:12:48 GMT -5 windyseas said:

How big is your tank? Are you testing water? Goldfish create an enormous bio-load and with smaller tanks, the beneficial bacteria cannot keep up with the bio-load of a goldfish. Also, goldfish get really big and need a larger tank than you'd think.

Don't change your filter unless it is falling apart. You can rinse it in tank water, but replacing the filter is crashing your cycle. The beneficial bacteria lives in the filter. Goldfish also prefer colder water than tropical fish. Do you have a heater? You may not need one.

You may also want to check your tap water to see what its parameters are. Its possible that your water is causing the issue. Also, make sure you are using some form of dechlorinator before adding the water to the tank. We use Prime, but there's plenty out there that should work fine.

It's 10 gallon. He seems to be an okay size for the tank right now. We are probably going to have to size up eventually.

We don't test the water. Do you have recs for that?

We use the API Fresh water kit.  Every fish group I'm in recommends that particular test.  It's a good one.  You might also read up on the nitrogen cycle if you haven't already.  

If your goldfish starts to get black spots on him, he's getting ammonia poisoning from the ammonia in the water being too high.  This is going to require frequent water changes (likely 1-2 times a week) in order to keep the ammonia down to safe levels.  Prime does detoxify ammonia and nitrites for fish, but you'll still need the water changes because the ammonia won't come down any other way until the take is cycled (and with a goldfish, the tank likely will never be able to cycle properly because it's too small for a goldfish bio-load).