About Goldfish?

Question

I am wondering. How often do you clean out the fish tank and replace the rocks on the bottom. I cleaned out the fish tank and put new rocks on the bottom. I use to have goldfish years ago and I can't remember how I did it. I did the usual things like you put in the water before putting fish in. I always had clean the rocks when I clean the fish tank. I was wondering and how often should I clean the fish tank. Thanks

Answer 1

you're suppose to do weekly partial waterchanges of 25% with a gravelsiphon, and never a 100% waterchange, because you will kill all the good bacteria that is in there, and you would have to do a cycle all over again
http://fishlesscycling.com/articles.html


Hope that helps
Good luck


EB

Answer 2

You should never need to remove the gravel. This is where bebeficial bacteria attach, and these convert the ammonia and nitrite (both toxic to your fish) into nitrate which is far less harmul to them. (I know, I had to clean the gravel when I got my first goldfish when I was 5, but fishkeeping's come a long way since!)

If you already have the fish, you should do cleanings 1-2 times a week (assuming that you have a filter for the tank). If you only clean once, do partial water changes of around 30% of the tank volume. If you do twice a week, do around 15% each time. This will keep your ammonia and nitrite levels down while your tank cycles (builds up the beneficial bacteria your tank needs). You should be familiar with the signs of ammonia and nitrite stress and poisoning in the even the changes are needed sooner: http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/disease/p/ammoniapoison.htm , http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/disease/p/nitritepoison.htm. If you haven't purchased your fish yet, consider doing a fishless cycle: http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

You should also be careful not to overfeed the fish, since extra food and wastes (poop) add that much more ammonia to the tank. Only give the fish what can be eaten in 2-3 minutes, twice a day.

Also, if you don't have the fish yet, only get one to start, and add another a week later. This allows the bacteria to adjust to the increase in wastes. And remember that as adults, goldfish can grow to 8-18" and they can live for up to 20+ years with good care. A single goldfish fish should have at least 20 gallons to itself as an adult, and 10 gallons more for each additional fish.

Answer 3

Gold fish produce alot of ammonia so the water needs to be filtered very well and since they produce alot of waste, the rocks need to be syphoned quite often. Unless you have a disease condition in your tank, Never, Never, Never remove all of the water and clean or replace the rocks in the bottom. From time to time it's ok to remove at most 1/3 of the water and replace with fresh water. But remember to use a dechlorinator first. The reason for these rocks is to provide a place for bacteria to grow. This bacteria is vital to the ecosystem of your tank and actually filters the water of contaminants. If you thouroughly clean or replace the rocks, you remove this neccessary bacteria. Just use a tank syphon to remove large particles and debris from the rocks if they start to look gunky.

Answer 4

Goldfish produce loads of waste and are a harder to care for than most people think. My goldfish tank is cleaned weakly, with a 25 percent water change with a gravel siphon plus a dose of AmQuel+

Also remember that when you get a tank for goldfish, your asking for trouble if you get a "bowl" (imagine I said that word with disdain) the general rule for goldfish is 20 gallon tank for your first goldfish, and with each additional fish, the tank should be 10 gallons larger. so 5 fish should be kept in a 50 gallon tank.

If kept right, goldfish can outlive most other animals. The oldest goldfish was 43 years old.

Answer 5

I have 5 goldfish and I clean the tank partially (about 10%) once a week with a gravel cleaner that gets all the grossness out of the gravel so I don't have to change the rocks. Once a month clean the tank out 25% of the water. I hope this helps you and your fish!

Answer 6

I clean the tank once a week. You need to use a gravel syphon to clean the gravel. Dont replace it or you will lose all the healthy bacteria. All you have to do is suction out food inside the gravel, and you can get a syphon for $5.

Answer 7

spend some time at your fish store and buy some books