Receiving a goldfish properly and providing it with a suitable aquatic refuge is quite a challenging task. Your little fish will soon become a member of the family and start spending time with your closest best friends. Make sure he is happy, comfortable, and more importantly, that he can be more than satisfied with how you maintain the aquarium.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Choosing and equipping the Aquarium
Step 1. Evaluate the size of the tub
To stay healthy, goldfish must live in a particularly spacious environment. Even though it is a relatively small fish, it needs a larger tank than you can imagine.
- Try to offer him a better environment than the classic ball. Despite the pleasant image of a goldfish swimming in a glass sphere, most of these containers do not provide enough space for its inhabitants.
- A single Fantail goldfish can be kept in a 40L aquarium, but a larger specimen, such as the Comet, needs about 200L space.
- If you are able to prevent a single goldfish from absorbing your every free minute and would like to give it a friend to endure captivity with, you need to increase the aquarium capacity by around 40L for each additional specimen.
- An 80L tank is ideal for your goldfish and you can also hold 2-3 Fantail specimens.
Step 2. Decorate the aquarium
Most goldfish prefer a palace or castle-like environment. Choose a middle ground. Gravel is essential and plants are also recommended. That said, the choice of decorations, gravel and plants must respect certain criteria:
- Choose the appropriate gravel for the goldfish; it doesn't have to be too fine, because it can be dangerous. These fish are burrowers, they tend to lift it from the bottom and move around the pebbles to play. Use a type of gravel that is large enough to prevent the fish from ingesting it.
- Provide your friend with large rocks, caves or plants. Goldfish love to venture out and you could easily fool them into deluding them that they are not in an aquarium.
- Don't use wood. It sure looks beautiful, but it stains water and, depending on the type of wood, can also dissolve.
- Be aware that some stones and sea shells can affect the pH of the water. If you want to add decorative elements that you found on the beaches, know that, like it or not, you will have to check the pH of the aquarium often.
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Only put certain types of plants in the tub. Curiously, goldfish are quite aggressive with plants and some are more resilient than others:
Try different types of Vallisneria, different Hygrophila species, Bacopa caroliniana or even Ludwigia arcuata
Step 3. Install a filtration system
The filter is an absolutely indispensable component for the aquarium; it works according to the tank capacity, some models are suitable for specific size aquariums, so you must make sure that what you buy is suitable for the tank in your possession. There are two types of filters to choose from.
- The external filters remain outside the aquarium, while the internal ones are immersed in water; both are suitable for goldfish aquariums.
- The external ones are generally considered better, since they have a greater capacity to retain the filtered material and can consequently clean the water more thoroughly.
- If you have an 80 liter aquarium, choose a model rated up to 150 liters.
Step 4. Put purified water into the tub
You can also use tap water, but you need to add a substance to sweeten it and make it safer for your fish. At a minimum, you need to find ways to neutralize chlorine and chloramines.
- In addition to eliminating any dangerous chemicals present in tap water through a filter system, you also need to make sure the water is at the correct pH for your little pet; it should be slightly alkaline, with a pH level of about 7-7.5. You can use a kit to periodically analyze the pH and adjust it as needed.
- Don't underestimate the place where you put the aquarium. You must not place it near windows or any other source of heat or cooling. Do not leave it even exposed to direct sunlight. You also need to make sure that it rests on a flat and extremely solid surface.
- You may not need a heater. The water temperature should be between 16 and 22 ° C, that of the environment you live in should therefore be fine.
Part 2 of 3: Subjecting the Water to the Nitrogen Cycle
Step 1. Wait for the beneficial bacteria to develop in the water before placing the fish
When you first set up your aquarium, you need to wait for the water to settle for at least a few weeks before it is ready to welcome future guests. It is necessary to wait for this time in order to stimulate the accumulation of beneficial bacteria, a process that is described in this section of the article. Be patient while waiting.
Step 2. Change the water once a week
Keep in mind that goldfish defecates a lot and can't stand having to swim around their own droppings; on the other hand, you wouldn't want it either. The feces accumulate a lot (even when you change the water frequently), stressing and making the fish sick. To slow this buildup of unsanitary material, you need to change 25-50% of the tub water every week.
- During the change operation, rinse the filter and all decorations with the water you remove from the aquarium. Never use the tap; the good bacteria you want to keep live on and in those elements.
- Add only clean water that you have purified and treated.
Step 3. Do a complete water change once a month
You have to replace the aquarium water regularly, this means changing it completely. The goal of this procedure is to allow the beneficial bacterial colonies - which mainly focus on the filter and gravel - to replenish. These bacteria are important for the nitrogen cycle, which is necessary for the survival of the goldfish.
- Once the aquarium is properly installed and ready to run with the filter on, add the ammonia. Keep adding until enough bacteria have developed to "eat" it along with the nitrites.
- There are various forms of ammonia, among which the most widespread and readily available is that in bottles. Follow the directions on the package.
- Calculate ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels using a specific kit for this purpose.
- Continue the process until the kit reports zero ammonia and nitrite values. When you notice any trace of nitrates (which are produced by bacteria), you have subjected the aquarium to the nitrogen cycle correctly.
Part 3 of 3: Introducing the Goldfish to its New Home
Step 1. Choose the new aquarium inhabitant
Check that it is a healthy and beautiful fish. Don't get one from an aquarium where there are also sick or dead fish. You have to choose a specimen that seems aware of its environment, that actively moves, that "gnaws" the elements present and that moves like the boss of the aquarium.
- Look carefully at the eyes; you have to make sure they are clear and not cloudy.
- Check the fins and body. The fins must be very straight, not frayed; when they are sagging or untidy they often indicate poor health. For the same reason, you shouldn't choose a fish that displays white specks, fluffy spots, or red streaks.
- Once you have found your new friend, put him in a plastic bag filled with water from the aquarium he will live in. Put this plastic bag in another paper bag to make the journey to your new destination less traumatic.
Step 2. Show the new home to the fish
It is important not to be in a hurry at this stage. Float the bag for about 15 minutes on the surface of the aquarium water so that the fish can acclimate to any temperature difference. After about 5 minutes, allow some aquarium water to enter the bag, but avoid spilling the water from the bag.
- Do not pour the water and fish from the bag into the aquarium. Instead, you must gently collect the animal with a net and slowly submerge it in the tank, letting the fish swim out of it by itself.
- Turn off the light and leave the room. Leave the new host quiet and undisturbed, so that he can become familiar with his new habitat.
- Add a specific additive to the water to reduce stress and minimize the risk of fish becoming ill due to environmental change.
Step 3. Feed the goldfish with the utmost care
There are several food alternatives, choose according to your preferences; the most important thing is preparation. If the food is dry (like most fish foods), soak it in the water from the tank before feeding it to the fish. If it has not been previously softened with water, it can injure or make the animal ill by increasing the volume in its stomach.
- The fish food should either drop to the bottom or hang on the water. What floats is likely to create problems for the animal's swim bladder.
- Feed your new friend once a day, 6 days a week; on the seventh day the fish must rest.
Advice
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There are a few ways to speed up the water replacement process:
- During the procedure, keep the water slightly warmer to stimulate faster bacterial growth.
- You can also get a pack of bacteria. If you opt for this solution, be prepared to add some ammonia and test the water until it is well balanced.
- You can also borrow bacteria from a friend who has recently replaced the water and has stabilized it well. Insert the bacteria into your aquarium by taking them from your friend's gravel or by cutting a small piece of his filter sponge and inserting it into your tank.
Warnings
- Not all types of goldfish are compatible with each other; check that they can live together without problems, before adding different varieties to your aquarium.
- Do not put any kind of sharp object in the tub. Many types of goldfish have special eyes which, strangely, prevent them from seeing clearly; if they get scared and move quickly, they can even get injured.
- While you probably need to keep the aquarium near an electrical outlet, you should never let the cords hang over it. Make sure there is no wire stretched against the side of the tub or the surface it sits on.
