I want to buy an algae eater because my tank is dirty and I don't have time to keep up with it all the time. (Hence the gold fish as my only personal pet). However, I don't want to kill my gold fish, I've become quite attached. =P So I'm asking to make sure I don't kill my fish due to ammonia poisoning. I had an algae eater before and it died. If you have any idea as to why THAT may have happened, I'd love answers for that too. =) Thank you!!
2006-12-21 06:50:36 · 14 answers · asked by *Kelly June* 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
You should all know that my tank is very well filtered and that I keep it clean. I've had this goldfish for almost a year now.
2006-12-22 02:33:48 · update #1
Gold fish need 10 gallons per fish, you must clean that 1 gallon out daily. If you give him the proper room, you won't need to clean it out as often.
2006-12-21 08:21:43 · answer #1 · answered by pigs003 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
The former algae eater died of ammonia poisoning.
Contrary to what you may have been told, algae eaters don't really 'clean' the water. They eat some algae, they eat some excess fish food - but like all fish, they poop, and they produce ammonia. In fact, many algae eaters like plecos are poop machines and produce way more ammonia and waste than other fish.
Goldfish are the other big waste producer, and by no means can survive in a 1 gallon tank.
The notion that goldfish are fine in a small bowl is a complete misconception. Goldfish are big, and they produce a lot of waste - an adult fancy goldfish needs a 20 gallon tank with powerful filtration.
If you want your goldfish to survive for more than a few months, you will need to get him a bigger tank ; at least 15 gallons, preferably more. The bigger the tank, the less work you will have to do. With a big tank with proper filtration, you will just need to replace 20% of the water every week, instead of cleaning the whole tank out.
If you *must* have a small tank, return the goldfish to the petstore, and he won't live long in a 1 gallon (and they CAN live 10+ years if properly cared for), and get a 5 gallon tank, a small heater and a filter, and get a betta fish or a killifish or some african dwarf frogs, instead.
2006-12-21 07:13:15 · answer #2 · answered by Zoe 6 · 5⤊ 0⤋
No. That bowl isn't even a good home for your goldfish.
A goldfish won't last long in a one gallon bowl.
They get huge and need about 10 gallons of water per goldfish. They also need a filter that moves about 10 times the gallons in the tank per house. Here is a good goldfish caresheet
http://thegab.org/Articles/GoldfishBasics.html
Given you're keeping him in a bowl, you need to understand the relationship between ammonia toxicity and pH... so you'll know when to change the water. If your tap water has higher pH high 7s and up, it takes less ammonia to be a toxic levels. Here's a good page on it:
http://dataguru.org/misc/aquarium/AmmoniaTox.html
Also, Seachem makes an ammonia alert card that makes it easy to tell when ammonia is getting toxic.
2006-12-21 07:05:13 · answer #3 · answered by Betty H 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
A 1 gallon tank isn't suitable for any fish other than a betta, and barely for a betta. Honestly goldfish are small pond fish, and not aquarium fish. They live for a decade and get huge. (Not Koi huge, but we're talking close to a foot.) 5 gallon tank is the bare minimum, and if he survive for most than a few years you'll need to upgrade to a 10 gallon tank. We're talking 5-10 gallons per goldfish.
2006-12-21 10:33:04 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
goldfish can't live in such small tanks for any extent of time!! they get 12+ inches! Ex: i have about 35 goldfish, all well over 6" in my human made pond outback!! so no you really should not even have a goldfish in such a small container! they cause high ammonia levels and that is probably why your other algae eater died! you my work for a while in a 10 gallon!! hope i helped!! good luck!! ;)
2006-12-21 07:06:02 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
no, this is not even enough room for a goldfish. most goldfish need 10 gallon to themselves when young and 20gallon at least when full grown.
goldfish produce a TON of ammonia and need a good filter, usually one for 5-10gallons more than your tank size. you need to keep a close eye on levels of things like ammonia and nitrate and such with goldfish. goldfish are the most abused pet (yes pet, not fish, this includes cats and dogs) in America. get a bigger tank and a test kit for ammonia, pH, and nitrate.
2006-12-21 07:02:36 · answer #6 · answered by Kylie Anne 7 · 5⤊ 0⤋
No, in fact you can't keep a goldfish in a 1 gallon tank.
2006-12-21 10:55:06 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'd say snails would likely be a better choice for such a small tank. Olive Nerites are very good algae eaters and won't reproduce under water...
And yes I agree the tank is too small for a goldfish, even if he's small he will soon outgrow the tank. Definetly don't add any more fish.
Hope that helps
2006-12-21 07:31:38 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 4⤋
no,your going to be very lucky if that goldfish even last a week go back and get a ten gallon slow filtration system,lack of oxygen is going to kill it
2006-12-21 07:06:02 · answer #9 · answered by Bob K 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
no, goldfish don't fit in a 1gallon aqurium, but if you have a small one maybe but when it starts growing both fish will die of stress!
2006-12-21 08:28:03 · answer #10 · answered by Jack Herbert 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋