Fin2you Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 Ok so I've decided to take the plunge into the planted tank world. My experiment is my cycling 10Gal that will house my goldfish & hillstream loaches. It's overfiltered (Whisper for a 20-30gal tank) & I have a big airstone & pump, it's not heated but it should stay consistant about 20-21C So couple ? for everyone... how thick of a gravel base should I have, what types of weights are the books talking about using? My research has given me these plants as good "starter for in goldfish tank", am I on the right track? Java Fern, Water Sprite, Crypts becketii, corkscrew val & banana plant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 Java fern might last, but my experience with goldfish in a tank is that eventually everything will be eaten. If you still want to give it a shot, Java fern does best tied to wood/rock/ornament and water sprite does best floating, IME. Otherwise 1.5" is a decent depth for the others. Don't bother with the weights, unless you're sure the fish will continuously dig up the plants and you just want them to stay down instead of floating; if that's the case, you should be able to find plant weights at most LFS - many plants you buy at the LFS even come with them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremoose Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 How many goldfish are we talking here? Goldfish get to be big fish and produce BIG fish waste even when they're smaller, so waste management may be a problem with such a small footprint. Just food for thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugene Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 The fish are not compatible for several reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperGuppyGirl Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 (edited) For my 2 cents worth, I would say godfish are extremely messy. If you are looking for a flashy fish who prefer cool water , why not do a tank with galaxy rasboras, emerald dwarf rasboras,, cherry shrimp, dwarf corys and the hillstream loach? All are great with plants like room temperature and look amazing. Could easily fit 5 of each of the fish in there, except I would only add 2 loaches and the rasboras will school together for alot of movement. Edited January 4, 2013 by SuperGuppyGirl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fin2you Posted January 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 Jvision: Ok so if I do do it Java Fern is out, or alteast start with it to see & if it's being eatten I could start planting my Betta tanks LOL Jeremoose: we rescued some feeder goldfish from a friends cichlid tank, they managed to get so big they weren't food anymore they were play things. I took 3 (1 for each of my kids) b/c they have been begging for goldfish for years, & my friend took 2. They are only about 1.5-2" long including their tails. When I brought them home, the only tank I had easily available was my quarentine betta 2gal cube so all 5 of them lived in there till we both got 5.5gal set up, after a week with them still alive I'm setting up my spare 10gal. If they live & thrive I will upgrade to a 25-30gal. Eugene: could you please elaborate? My contacts at both Big Als & Pisces recommended the loaches to live with goldfish. SuperGuppyGirl: I know they're messy fish, but my kids wanted them. If they don't last long (which everyone is telling me including the guys at Big Als & Pisces) don't think they'll live long b/c everyone knows how bad feeder fish are kept in tanks in stores, then to be picked on by cichlids. then I'll look into the cold water community like you suggest, but all my research & talking to the guys at the stores suggests that this type of loach are most comfortable living in groups of 3-7 vs alone or in pairs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crystal Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 My feeder goldfish lived for many years with no problems, I kept them in a 65g tank in winter & a small pond in summer. Once treated for disease, I never lost any except to predators visiting the pond. Some plants can survive goldfish, but not many. Mainly elodea, java moss, and a wild lily from the pond - they love to eat duckweed (I also had cucumbers, lettuce and peas growing out the tank, but that is a different story). They lived with mountain cloud minnows, a pair of bn plecos, and a couple of weather loaches. No heater but it remained at 19-21C. PS. If your fish live long enough to need a bigger tank, go straight for a 40g+ and a Canister filter - my Rena XP3 was a life saver for that tank. Regular water changes are a must, the goldfish grow quickly and pull a lot of calcium out of the tank. 3 adult goldfish can live in a 55g for life, although bigger is always better. They grow within 3 years to 8" and then slow down, although they will evenually reach 10-12" or so. They can grow bigger, but not normally in aquarium conditions. For a planted tanks in general, 1.5-2.5" of substrate, fine gravel or even pool filter sand work excellent. For some reason I found a number of plants didn't like the gravel that was bigger than 6mm. Sand is currently my favorite - I use the black Moon sand, although pool filter sand is easier in some aspects - pool filter sand is much cheaper. Weights aren't really needed unless the fish dig or pull on them (goldfish do just by playing in them). I just cheated and siliconed some thread to a small pebble and then tied the plant to it. With planted tanks, it seems to all depend on the light. I always go with HO T5 if possible, or a good T5 can work with lower light plants. I did have 2 goldfish in my 90g planted tank when I first started. Excellent fertilizer producers and they always swam in the top half of the tank and never uprooted anything. I must admit that the 12" long poo strands everywhere eventually lead to them getting their own 65g and a pond. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugene Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 Gold fish are dirty can handle dirty water hillstream loaches live in shallow 12 to 3 inch steams hence there body shape to stick to rocks and eat algae and scum and high oxygen content gold fish eat scum and algae ,gold fish can take cold water loaches can't the list goes on and on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperGuppyGirl Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 For the loaches, I have 4 in a 75G, 1 in a 10G, 2 in a 33G. I admit the bigger the group the more active and playful they are, cute lil dickens especially when the race over top of each other, just have to give them some extras foods as they thrive better, they love spirulina tablets and the shrimp pellets. As for feeders my sister gave my daughter a feeder that had been used as a wedding table center piece, damn thing lasted 5 years so you never know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fin2you Posted January 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 ok thanx for the tips, I'm going to do some thinking on where I can put a 45-50gal tank, but I actually have a friend who has an outdoor goldfish pond that is heated in winter, she was mentioning how a bunch of her goldfish were killed last fall by a wandering cat. I might see if she'd be interested in these guys if they outgrow this tank. She doesn't like Koi & hates paying the big $ to buy larger goldfish at the stores but the really little guys don't seem to last long in her pond. As for planting I'm going to try it in this one just for the heck of it & in my upstairs betta tank. If all goes well I'll consider the beta female sorority tank, but the other betta tank has a growing out clutch of mystery snail baby's so I don't think I'll bother trying to plant that one till all the baby's are gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fin2you Posted January 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2013 ARGH, the goldfish uprooted all the plants & started eatting the roots. I pulled them all out put it back the way it was with "fake" & am now in the process of planting my 2 male betta tanks with the live plants..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HerpsNHarleys Posted January 10, 2013 Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 ARGH, the goldfish uprooted all the plants & started eatting the roots. I pulled them all out put it back the way it was with "fake" & am now in the process of planting my 2 male betta tanks with the live plants..... Wow! Didn't take the goldfish long to cause annihalation did it? This is good to know being as how I am just learning what can go with what myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fin2you Posted January 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2013 They are destructomaniacs, but despite that (& the fact that they are dirty) they are here to stay, even my hubby has been found in a quiet moment sitting in the livingroom staring at them & laughing at their antics. Right now I'm watching the pearlscale try to get into the corner that I've created a "goldfish" free zone for the loaches food, the smallest goldfish can't get behind there so there's no way he can! Oh now the shubnkin has come to chase him away... LOL it's such a nice way to start the day! While I suppose you could find ways to make it hard enough to deter them from uprooting, I figure I'll just accept defeat & have my betta boys tanks planted. They are good little fishies.. the only plants they play with are their Marimo Moss Balls & that's fun to watch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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