looking for fish pump/filter ideas

Froglet

this is bigger than i recommend! but you get the general idea of just how nice you can make a tank.

Now,if you were a goldfish,which would you prefer...............

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

That looks great, froglet!

Are they yours?

It looks rather like the natural habitat of carp family fish - plants to rummage around in, stuff to explore - lots of mental stimulation for fish that are actually, very intelligent.

silkyuk9

Thats a lovely tank and I agree with what you are saying. It hurts me that your tank is better than mine, but if i can get a little filter that cleans up and put in a bit of weed and maybe some larger stones or finer grit it makes it a little better. I cant just give them up. Yes a bigger tank maybe also.

atrixblue.-MFR-.

there is no need to feed fish twice a day or even once a day, it can be done everyother day. fish will "beg" for food their quite intelligent fish.
gold fish have been known recognise owners and allow them to be touched by coming to the surface and you basically patting their heads.

its not advisable to feed a goldie upto twice a day, the more food you add the more mess that they swim in, left over flakes then amplify ammonia and nitrite levels causing massive spikes of the chemical in the water.

those fish have lived years in calm water, adding any power filter to that water will shock them to say the least their fin muscles will be weak, wich will cause them harm than good.

eventhough as your house arrangment is at the moment, have a sit down look at the layout in your home, where can you make up a few extra feet? (some tanks are lovely peices of furniture), then look online on all the ad sited adtrader,gumtree,ebay,facebook, aquarist classifieds, theres minimal cash spend involved in second hand tanks.

goldfish love to play hide and seek, plants, ornimants, wood, all keep their minds stimulated, bodies active (the will become unfit and unhappy if theres no room to let rip now and then).

the fish you have may seem happy and content, and they could possibly be, have a long hard look at their gills and fins, if any of them have back marks on the ends of the fins that ammonia burns, if their scales look dull and discoloured in places or some missing damage has been done with regards to ammonia burns they wont grow back as where the fins can regenerate over time in healthy water.

like i said for now whilst you look around and save for another tank doing water changes of 10% three times or even 4 times a week should help your fish, but i wouldnt put any filter or air into that tank its too small and problems will arise quite quickly.

the myth about goldfish being a hardy fish (can tollerate all sorts of conditions) has almost deminished due to mass breeding and in breeding, your lucky youve had some well bred fishies many others would be dead within a week in that size tank.

Froglet

silkyuk9 wrote: »

Thats a lovely tank and I agree with what you are saying. It hurts me that your tank is better than mine, but if i can get a little filter that cleans up and put in a bit of weed and maybe some larger stones or finer grit it makes it a little better. I cant just give them up. Yes a bigger tank maybe also.

No one is asking you to give them up.It is great that you are realising that thery need more though.No that is not my tank! i haven't kept goldfish in a tank since 1990 when we dug a pond in the garden.Then when the fish bred and grew we built another one and resized the original.I now have up to 150 fish. i keep tropicals though,I have 3 catfish,one is over 20,in a 4ft tank.

Take a look and read up on their care at Practical fishkeeping.

kizkiz

Froglet wrote: »

Keeping fish short of food just to avoid proper filtration and regular maintenance is just cruel.Fish should be fed at least once per day if not twice,with a varied diet. Obviously overfeeding is a mistake but with correct filtration there will not be a problem so long as the tank size is correct and they are not overcrowded.

Feeding them every other day is not starving them.
I've kept fish almost as long as you, and it's really not an issue to feed a little less often.

Froglet

I feed my pond fish every other day because the ponds are mature ,with is insect life and plenty of plants.But in a bare tank,but with good filtration,the fish will thrive better on good quality food,fed little but more often.It all comes down to experience,once you know what you are doing you can alter things slightly.But i do agree that overfeeding is more harmful than underfeeding.