# Need Advice



## LexisDad (Apr 30, 2005)

I have just bought my daughter a 10 gallon tank and 3 goldfish for her room. She also won a goldfish at fun night last night which is how this has all gotten started. I know that after reading some post that 10G is not enough tank for all of these fish, but I don't expect them all to make it either. :roll: We bought a kit from Walmart since we had no clue of what we needed. After unpacking the boxes we found that someone had returned the kit and had decided to keep the heater. My question is: Do we really need a heater for the goldfish or will they be OK with room temp water?

Thanks in advance for your replies!!


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## Pac-Man (Mar 18, 2005)

b4 the heater, why dont u concentrate on getting the goldfish a bigger tank. they need a 55 gallon i think for all 3. second, i believe goldfish like cool water. someone correct me if im wrong


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

Welcome "dad"  (couldnt resist)

and congrats on the plunge into the aquarium hobby. Unfortunally pac-man is correct in the long term you will need a much bigger tank. But if you dont have the cash on hand right now they will be fine for a few months in that setup. Seeing how we are comming into the summer months and you have coldwater fish they should be ok without the heater. 

One thing I do suggest is to keep up on water changes. I am not sure what kind of filter you got with the kit but goldfish will dirty it very quick I would suggest water changes of 30% three times a week. 

Somthing you will learn is that the bigger the tank the eaiser it is to maintain. Please stick around and dont be afraid to ask questions.


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## daSchooler (Apr 20, 2005)

Pac-Man

I'm new to this hobby so please excuse my ignornance. But are you serious that you need a 55g tank to house 3-4 goldfish? The goldfish I see at the lfs don't look that big! I would think with no investigation that a 10-20g tank would be plenty for 3-4 goldfish.


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## MyraVan (Jan 19, 2005)

The goldfish you see at the fish shop don't aren't that big because they are babies. Almost all fish at fish shops are babies. Sone of them stay quite small, some grow very big. Goldfish, especially the plain-looking ones, grow big. If the fish are the fancy ones, a 55 gallon will give them enough space to live long, happy lives. If the fish are common goldfish, almost no tank will be big enough, you really need a pond.

Even with fish that are quite small as adults, the adults look very different from the babies. The zebra danios you see at the fish shops are small skinny things, with little wimpy stripes. A full grown adult in all its 2" glory is a much more robust fish, bulging with muscle, and has big strong bold dark stripes.


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## Pac-Man (Mar 18, 2005)

i dont think u are ignorant, but u obviously are new to this hobby.  yes 3-4 goldfish would need a 55 at least. the reason some goldfish dont seem as big is becuz their growth is stunted in small tanks. this will in turn reduce the goldfishes life span. goldfish can get quite big, in contrast to societys image of them in 1 gallon bowls. so yes your goldfish will need at least a 55 gallon. do u wanna see how big a goldfish in proper conditions can get??? here ....


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## Pac-Man (Mar 18, 2005)

heres another pic


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## sumpthinfishy (Jan 21, 2005)

We got plunged into the aquarium hobby with a school fair goldfish too! A common "feeder" goldfish that costs about .12 each. THis was in November. "Harbor" was about 2-3 inches.

Well, I knew it couldn't stay in a small bowl. That would just be mean. So, we figured if we were going to have a fish, we should house it appropriately. Lessons for the kids and all that. A 46 gallon bowfront tank came home. 

It cycled in about 5 weeks with my doing 20-30 percent water changes every 2-3 days.

We still have the 46 gallon. Harbor is now 6-7 inches long (can get 18", btw). We also have a 55 gallon, a 10 gallon nursery tank and a 29 gallon. And yes, I'd love a big one - over 100 gallons - just so Harbor would have even more swimming room. 

Good luck with your school won goldfish! It can be addictive. THis is the right place to go to ask questions. Most everyone is really friendly and helpful. If there's abruptness, it isn't intentional. Everyone is just thinking about the fish.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Several years ago I worked at a zoo. The moat around "Monkey Island" was full of goldfish, and these fish were the biggest goldfish I have ever seen. 
The distance from my elbow to the tips of my fingers is 18.25 inches. The biggest one of these fish was easily two inches longer than that.
( they had lots of growing room, and they ate a lot of monkey chow bits that didn't make it all the way to the island )

I currently have three goldfish in a pool at home which last year were mere hatchlings, but are now 6 inches long minus the tails.

Goldfish grow large, and they grow quickly.

As for your missing heater, LexisDad, don't worry about it. Goldfish don't mind the cold. In fact, if you want them to spawn, you have first have to overwinter them. We'll worry about that later, but for now, your 10 gallon tank can support your new pets for several months as long as you give them regular water changes.

Don't feed them too much! That's a common killer. Don't feed them any more than they can completely eat in three minutes. Feed twice per day.

Is that all there is to it? No, not even close. However, you have come to the right place, and soon you'll learn everything you need to know. In the meantime, consider buying a book about goldfish and/or tropical fish, or at least visit your local library to peruse their selections.

How old is your daughter? Fishkeeping is VERY educational, and if she thinks the hobby is fun, it will teach her a staggering amount of things about many subjects.


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## Ownager2004 (Apr 4, 2005)

Goldfish will be fine without a heater, in fact its pretty much the norm to keep goldfish without a heater. They dont like warm water and survive in many peoples ponds over winter. They will live in water as cold as it will go without freezing.


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## LexisDad (Apr 30, 2005)

Thanks to all who have posted replies. We are going to to ahead with putting these into the 10G and see how they react. If they make it we will invest in a better filter system and a larger tank. We will hold out to see how they all are doing in the next few weeks. :fun:


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

i have 2 goldfish in a 10 gallon. they are each 6". I want a 55 gallon but i can't afford 1 / my paernts won't let me get one so all i can do is give them a 20 at best till we build a pond (which may take a year or two  ) My neighbors goldfish lives in a 3 gallon bowl yet still grew over 6" i'm convincing them to upgrade as well


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## osteoporoosi (Jan 27, 2005)

Keep up the good work, fishboy and lexisdad! I have always wanted an outdoorpond, but it's too much work here because you would have to bring the fish inside for the winter.


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## MyraVan (Jan 19, 2005)

osteo -- couldn't you put a heater in the pond? I have heard of people using heaters to keep their ponds from freezing over in places in the US where it gets very cold in the winter.


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## osteoporoosi (Jan 27, 2005)

Well I wouldn't have plugs for the heater, I would wan't a big pond. Would be kind of impossible to heat that amount of water.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

If you make it deep enough, and put powerheads in there you should be able to keep it from freezing over... also a heat source would be nice too... its like a river that stays open because of the current.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

depending on how big it is, just get a stock heater used for cow or horse waterers


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## sbsociety (May 1, 2005)

*Friend's goldfish*

I agree, it is really cruel to stick a fish in a tank too small to accomodate it. Would just like to tell you about a friend of mine who's parents has had this goldfish for about 10 years. They don't know too much about goldfish, and it was like you guys all said, also from a fair loooong looong ago! 

But anyway, I hadn't seen her in about 5 years, and I walk into her parents house who she was living with at the time (last year) and they had this HUGE goldfish in about a 30 gallon tank. And I mean huge. He could barely turn around in the tank! He was topping a foot and a half, and really fat! I felt really bad for the poor thing, and just made a slight comment to her that she should tell her parents to get a bigger tank. She said she's tried to but they say it's doing fine... I guess they figure since it's lived 10 years that it's comfortable. Poor gold fish.


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## fish_doc (Jan 31, 2005)

Kind of like you or me trying to live in a closet. Not real comfortable but it is possible if someone takes care of you properly.


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