Complete noob looking for help :)

ashlingm

I've been reading through alot of old posts and stickys so I'm gradually learning how to care for fish properly So here goes with my (possibly millions) of questions! Please bear with me...

I'm more then likely getting an aquarium in the next day or so (someone I know is getting rid of one and I jumped at the opportunity of taking it on). It's a 60l tank with a Black moor goldfish, a common goldfish, 2 Fantail goldfish and 5 small minnows. It's about 30 minutes drive away from me so my first question is what would be the best way to transport the fish and aquarium?

I've been reading alot about cycling a tank before adding fish... what would be the best thing to do with a tank like this? I presume I'd have to leave some of the water behind during travelling, do I just top it up with treated de-chlorinated water once I get it home? The tank itself comes with a pump, so I presume I'll have to get a filter installed and sorted? How should I go about this? (is there brands you would recommend or avoid?)

I'm just worried about killing off all the fish once they get here and upsetting the ph, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate balance? I can't do a proper cycle with the fish in the aquarium so what would be my best course of action?

Aghhh! I know I'm over thinking and over complicating this but fingers crossed someone will be able to put my mind at ease I really appreciate ANY help!

are you serious

this thread is 3 posts earlier than yours...

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056554191

kylith

ashlingm wrote: »

I've been reading through alot of old posts and stickys so I'm gradually learning how to care for fish properly So here goes with my (possibly millions) of questions! Please bear with me...

I'm more then likely getting an aquarium in the next day or so (someone I know is getting rid of one and I jumped at the opportunity of taking it on). It's a 60l tank with a Black moor goldfish, a common goldfish, 2 Fantail goldfish and 5 small minnows. It's about 30 minutes drive away from me so my first question is what would be the best way to transport the fish and aquarium?

I'm sorry, but that's way too many fish for a tank that size. That's too small for any goldfish. Common (comet) goldfish get up to a foot in lenght and need a minimum of 100L for one fish, fancy goldfish get up to about eight inches and though they don't need as large a volume they'll still take what they can get. For 4 goldfish you'd need a 220L tank. Please bear in mind that they will also eat the minnows if they can fit them in their mouths.

Are the fish already a done deal? You could fit some very pretty tropical fish in a tank that size. Maybe some dwarf gouramis and a little shoal of tetras.

ashlingm

garkane wrote: »

this thread is 3 posts earlier than yours...

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056554191

Thanks Garkane!

I did read it, but say the tank is 60l and I can only manage to take ...say half the water. Once it gets here what should I do? Do I just top it up with de-chlorinated water, let it settle for a while and then re-introduce the fish? (they'll be travelling in the small plastic bags you get from pet shops)

And since It doesn't currently have a filter so I will be adding one asap does that make a difference?

ashlingm

kylith wrote: »

I'm sorry, but that's way too many fish for a tank that size. That's too small for any goldfish. Common (comet) goldfish get up to a foot in lenght and need a minimum of 100L for one fish, fancy goldfish get up to about eight inches and though they don't need as large a volume they'll still take what they can get. For 4 goldfish you'd need a 220L tank. Please bear in mind that they will also eat the minnows if they can fit them in their mouths.

Are the fish already a done deal? You could fit some very pretty tropical fish in a tank that size. Maybe some dwarf gouramis and a little shoal of tetras.

I even checked out wiki last night and it confirmed that gold fish need WAY more room then I thought! I'd love a tropical fish tank, but the fish come with the tank so I'll just make do with what I have (unless someone here wants to rehome the fish to a bigger tank).

I heard tropical fish are slightly less work (and less messy) then goldfish ...is it true?

Silverfish

I can tell you in my experience, tropicals are a LOT less work than goldfish, they eat less, produce less waste, their water is way easier to keep, their tanks look nicer, you can plant actual plants without them being dug up...

That said, I prefer goldfish

If I were you, I'd try find someone with a pond to take the common goldfish, they should grow to a foot long and shouldn't really be in tanks at all, for the maximum life and health.

Then I'd either try re-home the rest of the goldfish and go tropical, or else buy a bigger tank - you'd need 220L or so for the remaining fish without the common.

From the way things go in this forum, in a month or two you'll end up with the 60L, a 240L, and you'll be considering where to put the 3rd tank.

kylith

Silverfish wrote: »

From the way things go in this forum, in a month or two you'll end up with the 60L, a 240L, and you'll be considering where to put the 3rd tank.

So true!

Hatgirl

You said the tank has 5 minnows. Are they White Cloud Mountain Minnows? (wild colour, golden cloud, long-finned Meteor) They're a great little fish, perfectly suited to that size tank. They don't need a heater and are more tolerant than most fish to pH changes, water quality etc.

Maybe you could rehome the goldfish and keep the minnows? If you decide you do enjoy keeping fish, you could upgrade to the more tricky tropical set up, or get a larger tank for goldfish... or end up with aquariums of every type like so many of us :-D

ashlingm

Well, my friend sold the tank and fish to someone else (got a decent offer so why not?!) ...so I've been checking out second hand 60l tanks for sale and I think I'm gonna read up a bit more, learn about the basics of good fish keeping and take the plunge and get a few tropicals.

So fingers crossed it all works out this time around Thanks so much for all your help...I'll be back on here soon asking yet more questions!

vibe666

there's a good starter tank that most aquarium related shops in ireland have, usually in 55l & 65l sizes, complete with lights, heater & pump/filter.

the tank itself is grand and the heater is fine, but you'll probably want to upgrade the filter before too long. other than that it's grand.

i can't actually remember the name of it, aquael or something like that. i still have mine anyway after about a year, although it now been converted to a nano marine tank and is doing well.