Keeping fish in an indoor well.

beveragelady

I've moved into a house which has, believe it or not, a shallow well in a conservatory-type living room. I pumped it out, just out of curiosity, but it filled again. There must be some water table weirdness going on. At its lowest water level it holds about 200L, it's probably twice that when it's at its highest. The radius is about 35cm and it's lined with stone. There's some sediment at the bottom, but the water is clear and so far there's no smell from it. I'm told it never goes dry. As far as I can tell the sun doesn't ever directly reach the surface of the water but the room is very sunny.
I don't need the extra water supply so I was hoping to embrace the oddness of it all and keep some fish. Any suggestions on what type? I'd perfectly happy with ordinary goldfish.
Would I need to add a light source?
I was going to try to introduce some pond plants before getting fish, is this a good idea?
I've had ordinary goldfish before, in tanks and in a pond. In the pond they got carried away and had baby fish but I don't want this to happen in my well.
Is this all just a very bad idea? Any hints or reality checks appreciated.

Silverfish

I'll just steer you away from goldfish, because while the volume of water is fine, the measurements aren't great for them ( a full grown goldfish should reach almost a foot in length) so they prefer shallower and longer bodies of water. You might get away with some of the fancier types, like ranchu, as they tend to stay a bit smaller, maxing out at maybe 9 inches or so. They also don't breed as prolifically as common goldfish.


Whats the temperature range? Does it get very cold at night or freeze during the winter?

Sleepy

Check the temperature range and, if you can, get a full range of tests done on the water. If it's a natural well, it *should* be fine but there's every chance that it could have high levels of metals or other nasties diluted in the water. A pet-shop will typically just do Nitrates / Ammonia / PH tests (and even at that, they're doing you a favour).

Assuming the water is cool, as an alternative to goldfish I'd suggest Rainbow dace. They're not quite as big but they have beautiful colouring.

beveragelady

Thanks for your input. I think I'll try to get some pond plants established first, and monitor the temperature through the winter before I get fish. I was going to just barge ahead with ordinary goldfish, but now that seems less likely because of the shape of the well. I'm afraid I can't stand to look at ranchu or any of the other fancy varieties, they just look deformed and tragic to me. I'd love to get some cold water tetra or danio, but I doubt the temperature will stay above the threshold all year.
Maybe I'll end up with a very interesting aquatic garden instead of an aquarium!

Edit: I should add that I live in the wilderness and there's nothing uphill from me but more wilderness so I am confident that no pollutants filter into the well.

Sleepy

It's worth checking the water anyway imo.

I kept some Zebra Danio and White Cloud Mountain Minnows in an unheated tank for years but I'm guessing a tank at sitting room room temperature is probably a little warmer than a ground water fed well in a conservatory...

él statutorio

I'd love to see a picture of the well if possible?

beveragelady

él statutorio wrote: »

I'd love to see a picture of the well if possible?

Trying to attach picture...

The wall at the front is about 60cm high.

Silverfish

beveragelady wrote: »

Trying to attach picture...

The wall at the front is about 60cm high.

That's amazing. I'm not sure I'd keep fish in it though, partly because it'd be a difficult environment for them, and partly because they'd be hard to see.

I'd definitely put some lighting in there, and maybe some aquatic plants like a water lily or something? Its lovely though.

él statutorio

I'd put some underwater lighting in there, make it stand out a bit.

Sleepy

Call me a weirdo but if I wasn't planning to use the well, I think I might be inclined to nestle a rounded tank in the nook

beveragelady

Silverfish wrote: »

That's amazing. I'm not sure I'd keep fish in it though, partly because it'd be a difficult environment for them, and partly because they'd be hard to see.

I'd definitely put some lighting in there, and maybe some aquatic plants like a water lily or something? Its lovely though.

Maybe you're right about the fish. Pity, I though it would be a nice touch of supplementary eccentricity. I had wondered if there might be a problem because it gets no direct sunlight. It would be easy enough to light it and install a filter but heating it would be next to impossible.

I'm going to put it on the long finger and just see how the well behaves in cold weather.

Silverfish

beveragelady wrote: »

Maybe you're right about the fish. Pity, I though it would be a nice touch of supplementary eccentricity. I had wondered if there might be a problem because it gets no direct sunlight. It would be easy enough to light it and install a filter but heating it would be next to impossible.

I'm going to put it on the long finger and just see how the well behaves in cold weather.

What I would do is get a simple thermometer, I use these ones here in all my tanks.
Get a track on how it looks during the summer and during the winter, so you can see your temperature ranges. I think its eccentric enough already, with some nice lighting and plants it would be a lovely feature!