Goldfish!

[the.fee.fairy]

i didn't think this belonged in livestock, because i'm not going to eat him!

I could do with some advice please folks:

I've got a 6 year old goldfish called Sharkie. He lived in a tank that was too small for him, so i got a bigger tank from a lovely freecycler. i've now got a 30l glass aquarium.

What i want to know is:

What are the best algae eaters for goldfish style tanks (cold, freshwater)?
What's the best kind of filter? I've got a carbon/sponge filter, but owuld an undergravel one be better?

I'm plannng on buying another 3 fish from the local shop (its a proper fish shop, rather than a pet shop) and i was going to get some other bits while i was there.

Inspire me! If you've got a fish tank, show me pics! Its looking a little bare at the moment.

Which leads me to the next question: What shall i put in the tank to decorate it? At the moment, its got a small bridge, a bigger bridge and a stone arch. I was thinking of one of those stone reef thingies - will it be any good? Will the fish like it?

i'm planning on getting a 12" air stone, the 4" one i've got is just not big enough for the tank. I'm also going to get more gravel, so that there's a good inch of it on the bottom.

Would algae eating fish be better than snails/shrimp? (i don't want to get a Plec because they get too big and i'm not planning on buying a bigger tank anytime in the future). If so, what snails stay fairly small? how long should i leave the algae to accumulate for before i get an algae eater? Can i get some now and give them some wafers/cucumber? What do snails/shrimp need to keep them happy (i'm thinking hidey holes etc)?

I'm sure that i'm not the only one who's got fish here, so i'd like some input from the other keepers!

[fenwoman]

goldfish are dirty fish inasmuch as they produce a lot of waste so you will need a very good filter. Undergravel filters don't actually work very well, you would do best with a canister type either external or internal. I got mine on ebay. Don't get snails as you will bitterly regret it. They are as much a pest in the tank as in the garden as they multiply rapidly. Why do you think fish shops sell such a big range of snail ridding chemicals? Algae can be controlled by planting heavily , not leaving the tank light on for too long and using a scraper to keep the glass clean of it.
Apart from goldfish, you could get khuli loaches for the tank to provide a bit of interest but your options are very limited with a cold water set up. You cannot keep a plec' in a cold water tank because they are tropical fish.
Use a combination of real plants (taking care to leave in a mild bleach solution overnight to kill the snail eggs on them) and silk plants. Perhaps get an air pump and buy a bubble wand to make a curtain of tiny bubbles which is pretty.
Here is a pic of my tropical set up. My goldfish live outside in the pond.

[the.fee.fairy]

That's pretty!

I've got one of the standy uppy filters that sucks onto the side of the tank, and i've got an air pump too.

Nice to know about the snails though

Thankyou for the inspiration regarding plants! I'll have a look when i go to the fish shop tomorrow and see what they've got.

The tank doesn't have a light on it at the moment - its kept in a light area. I wasn't planning on putting one on it either - i've got to extend the plug strip that services the tank otherwise.

Thanks again for the advice!

[glenniedragon]

We've got a coldwater tank too, I say we it's actually my son's and he does do the majority of the maintanence too. He's got whitecloud mountain minnows which are lovely little fellas nice lively little fish that behave like proper fish in a group. AVOID snails! accursed things are a bane to rid your tank of!!! I've been replacing his plants with artificial ones and run a kettle of boiling water in through the gravel in a sieve before rinsing in cold just to be sure

kind thoughts
Deb

[the.fee.fairy]

I was offered some snails from my friend who keeps fish too. She said they're great! now i know why she said that

I've offered to take 4 off of her for the pond, and in the pond they shall stay! Any oput of the pond might find that i mistake them for garden snails and send them on flying lessons...

I've read a bit about those minnows. I'll see how big they got, i'd like to get a few if they're shoaling fish, but i don't know if i have the room.

I like these things called 'something' marble. They're coldwater algae eating fish, and they're cute, so i'm going to ask the man at the shop tomorrow.

I'm quite excited about fish shopping now!!