Hello

[Kendall]

Hello, My name is Kendall. I have two goldfish, well actually my daughters have two goldfish but considering they are 2 and 4 years old they need a lot of help taking care of them. My older daughter decided she wanted a fish after watching finding nemo about a year or so ago. My wife and I thought about doing a saltwater tank and purchasing a clown fish but after doing some research I decided that I wasn't confident enough in my aquatic skills to spend that kind of money so we decided on the gold fish as a less expensive option. Long story short, here we are a year later and perfectly happy with our goldfish.

Just a little information about our tank. We have two gold fish in a ten gallon tank with a penguin 100 power filter with bio wheel and a bubble stone. I typically do a 20% water change every two weeks. I used to feed them goldfish flakes but recently decided to switch to the slow sinking pelets. I have fed them green peas on occassion but thats about it.

Edited October 15, 2010 by Kendall

[Trinket]

Welcome to Kokos Kendall

Let us know if there is anything you need help with. There are many, many helpful and friendly fish people here !

[Quasi]

[Hidr]

[Chrissy_Bee]

Nice to meet you

[number20121]

Hello and welcome to Koko's!

[johann_pond]

Welcome to Koko's tank.

[blackteles]

Hiya Kendall...you've certainly come to the right place! Plenty of friendly people here to assist! Welcome aboard!

[amynmitchell]

Welcome! Your tank is a bit overstocked, so to keep your daughters' goldfish healthy and happy I would up the water changes to one 50% to 75% a week. Good to have you on here!

[caitie]

[tehminion]

Welcome! Hope you enjoy your stay.

[Helen]

hi kendall, pleasure to meet you. we'd love to see pics of your fish

[Cynders]

Welcome to Kokos

[koko]

[Wendy]

we are picture addicts...HELLO!

[Kendall]

Thanks everyone for all the welcomes.

Welcome! Your tank is a bit overstocked, so to keep your daughters' goldfish healthy and happy I would up the water changes to one 50% to 75% a week. Good to have you on here!

Wow, really? That seems like a lot. I have heard the rule of thumb is typically 1 per 10 gallons or something like that so I did realize that my tank was a little small. Both fish are very small and I was hoping that the 10 gal tank would suffice until they got bigger. I don't know why but I thought doing large water changes at a time was not good. I guess what I need to do is start testing the water so I have a better idea of the water quality. I just did a 20% change this past weekend so I think I will test the water this comming weekend and post the results. Maybe you all can help me understand them and see how bad the water quality really is.

Edited October 19, 2010 by Kendall

[Cynders]

50%-60% isn't much when you see how much wastes they make It's crazy! Have you ever heard of a python or a siphon to make water changes easier?

That 1 per 10 gallons rule is for fancy goldfish. Commons and comets do better in ponds as they get up to over a foot long in a short period of time. You risk stunting your fish which can lead to swim bladder issues and organ failure later on if they are kept in the small environment. You'll want to do more water changes like the others suggested to keep wastes down. Goldfish are a lot harder to take care of than most people think, but you are in the right place!

I would invest in an API freshwater master test kit. They are the best for testing your water and are very accruate. They also last a year or longer . Have you read up on the nitrogen cycle yet?

[Kendall]

50%-60% isn't much when you see how much wastes they make It's crazy! Have you ever heard of a python or a siphon to make water changes easier?

That 1 per 10 gallons rule is for fancy goldfish. Commons and comets do better in ponds as they get up to over a foot long in a short period of time. You risk stunting your fish which can lead to swim bladder issues and organ failure later on if they are kept in the small environment. You'll want to do more water changes like the others suggested to keep wastes down. Goldfish are a lot harder to take care of than most people think, but you are in the right place!

I would invest in an API freshwater master test kit. They are the best for testing your water and are very accruate. They also last a year or longer . Have you read up on the nitrogen cycle yet?

I do have a syphon that I use for my water changes.

As for my goldfish I think one of them for is a fantail maybe both. I was trying to upload some pictures but don't really see how on here.

I have read up on the cycle some so I am a little bit familiar with it.

[Cynders]

You can upload your pictures to an image hosting website like photobucket for free and just link them here. It saves Koko bandwith too I think.

You're doing great! Now this is where the test kit comes in. Cycling will usually take a month or two so you'll want to watch your ammonia and nitrite levels in your tank. Always strive to keep these numbers below 1 while cycling, this will be less stressful for your fish. When you are finished cycling your tank should be consistently at Ammonia: 0 Nitrite: 0 and Nitrates anywhere between 1-20 When Nitrates show up you know you're finished.

[Kendall]

You can upload your pictures to an image hosting website like photobucket for free and just link them here. It saves Koko bandwith too I think.

You're doing great! Now this is where the test kit comes in. Cycling will usually take a month or two so you'll want to watch your ammonia and nitrite levels in your tank. Always strive to keep these numbers below 1 while cycling, this will be less stressful for your fish. When you are finished cycling your tank should be consistently at Ammonia: 0 Nitrite: 0 and Nitrates anywhere between 1-20 When Nitrates show up you know you're finished.

Thanks!

Its actually not a new tank. I have had it about a year I think it has been cycled well.