I have a 29 gallon fish tank with 4 fish in it (irredescent shark, 2 pleco, and a fanned tailed goldfish) . Over the weekend, my area was involved in a widespread power outage. How do I go about keeping my fish tank water from getting to cold for the fish? I would just hate for my fish to die because the water got to cold. Any suggestions?
2007-02-27 07:48:23 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
Keep in mind, this is when my electricity was off due to the weekend ice storm.
2007-02-27 10:01:51 · update #1
Humm, I was going to suggest a heating element especially designed for fish tanks, BUT since lack of electricity is the problem, that won't work. I would suggest calling a pet store or vet's office and see what they suggest. Might want to consider investing in a generator, if your part of the world looses power due to storms.
2007-02-27 07:55:04 · answer #1 · answered by janice 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First, I have to say your tank is too small for the fish you're keeping. ONE of the goldfish would be okay, but the plecos (especially if they are commons) will be 18" as adults and the irridescent will get close to 4 feet!
One thign you could do is to get them a bigger tank - water is resistant to temperature changes, so the larger the tank, the more constant the temperature will stay. Apart from that, you could wrap the sides with blankets, towels, sleeping bag, pillows, foam, etc. to keep the tank insulated. The temperature will eventually fall, but it will do so SLOWLY. As long as there isn't a rapid change, most fish can survive a temporary chill. It would be a good idea to unplug the heater, so it doesn't start a rapid heatwave when the electric comes back on - bring the temp up a few degrees each hour till it gets back where you want it. And since we're talking long-term power outage, get a battery-operated air pump and spare batteries before you need it. One set of batteries is good for about 12 hrs. running nonstop in the model I have for emergencies. There's nothing like a power outage for battery and generator sales! (If you're really worried, get a generator to power the tank, but keep it outside if it creates fumes!)
An electric pump with airstone is a good idea to plug in where you had the heater. Yeah, I know the electric's off, but it will give your fish air if the power comes back on in the middle of the night. If you let a power or canister filter sit with bacteria an no oxygenated water, things will go anaerobic and if this water gets into your tank, it won't be so good for the fish's health.
You can also get emergency oxygen pellets that you can drop into the water and they slowly release O2. I've never had to use them, and they are expensive, but it could help your fish if there's a long outage.
2007-02-27 19:51:26 · answer #2 · answered by copperhead 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Unfortunately, there is little you can do if the heater goes loses power, but if you have advance notice you can throw a heavy blanket over the aquarium and will retain heat for several hours, but after that you have a major problem.Aside from moving the aquarium as is to a heated area ,which would be quite difficult , or getting a generator,there would be nothing I can think of.
2007-03-02 15:47:15 · answer #3 · answered by xxx 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
your goldfish doesnt need any heating.. the others may.. they should be fine if youre in the southern u.s. if youre in the north depending on how long your light were out.. this would make the tank ulimatly get as cold as it is in the room (room temp). get a system of backup in case this happens again to where your heater can run off batteries for a little while at least. this would at least give you some time to move them somewhere warmer or something similar.
2007-02-27 15:54:07 · answer #4 · answered by midi_junkie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You could do frequent water changes (every couple of hours) with warm water. This should work for a while. Other than that, keep the tank covered to insulate it.
I assume you know your goldfish doesn't fit in with your tropical fish? I suggest rehoming it, or buying a new tank for it.
2007-02-27 22:59:50 · answer #5 · answered by Liz 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
buy a heater and thermometer to keep an eye on the temp the heater will either go inside the tank or outside if the temp goes to cold you will have to turn the heater on for tropical fish the temp normally has to be about 24- 28 degrees c hope i helped
2007-02-27 16:52:37 · answer #6 · answered by abbie l 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well i think that you could go to the pet shop and buy those medium size lights for fish tanks it will keep your fish tank pretty warm :] good luck
2007-02-27 15:52:44 · answer #7 · answered by liana 1 · 0⤊ 2⤋