Upgrade Goldie's Crib for little $$$

 

Setting up a Happy Home.
Upgrade Goldie's crib for a lot less than you would think!

Disney's Cleo, Geppetto's flirtatiously flowy goldfish pet, beguiled in her tiny castle clad bowl.  The image is iconic and is unfortunately, still in the minds of  many new goldfish owners  today as the standard for goldfish care.   Let us remember friends that Cleo was a cartoon who's best friend was a cartoon cat.  So there's that.

A goldfish bowl with a little, shimmery swimming friend looks just perfect on a desk or side table.... a beautiful piece of living art to feng shui your living space.  That is until your goldfish stops thriving.  

The goldfish bowl just doesn't cut it.  It is too small because it gets too dirty too quickly resulting in sick fish. but I'm here to tell you, with a few tweaks and new understanding, your little fishy friend can live a long happy life. 

We are going to set that little fair fish up right with a great new home.
Let's put together a quick little shopping list and follow-up with some information about why these things are important and some of the less expensive options.

• Tank... either splurge on a new glass or acrylic tank or repurpose a large plastic tote.
• Aeration device (air pump)  
• Filter:  Go Big or Go Sponge
• Water Conditioner
• Water Test Kit or Strips
• Food
  
  

TANK SIZE: Bigger IS Better for Both of You
The smaller your goldfish's home is... the more often the water will need to be changed.  When I traveled in my trailer from fair-to-fair with my little goldie, Sisyphus, I did a 50% water change on her little 1.5 gallon filtered bowl every-other-day.

"For the health of your pet PLUS to make caring for Goldie easier, it is recommended that Goldie's home be at least twenty gallons in volume for one fish and an additional ten gallons for each additional fish."

That is the industry standard... it's mantra if you will.  I'm going to make a few people mad for just a minute and say this... You DO NOT need to run out and by a twenty gallon tank.  If you have just "won" a one or two inch, juvenile goldfish, get him in the biggest environment you can but if for now that environment is a two gallon aquarium with a little in-tank filter from Walmart for thirty bucks... do that.  You will need to do more water changes on a small tank but as long as the fish has clean, well oxygenated water to live in and is not over fed, he/she will do well.  A large tank can come later. 

You can do this inexpensively with a plastic tote and then wait for Petco to have their annual Dollar Per Gallon SALE or check online marketplaces for a used fish tank. 

 If you clean a used tank thoroughly with vinegar and water, rinse it and let it dry completely it should work fine.  I usually don't use second-hand decorations for filtration... but that's just me.

MOVE THAT WATER

AIR... Water that moves is oxygenated.  Fish need oxygenated water.  Surface movement oxygenates the water.  So you need something to make the water move.  A simple $9.00 air pump with plastic tube going to an air stone puts bubbles in the water.  It is interesting to note that those bubbles DO NOT oxygenate the water but rather the movement they cause does.

CLEAN THE WATER

Three things make your fish's water toxic.  The most obvious is their poop. But other biologicals like left over food, decaying plants plus the biproduct of a fish breathing contain ammonia which is highly toxic. 

Just like we breath in oxygen and expel a toxic replacement; in our case, carbon dioxide; so does the fish.  Goldfish expel ammonia as they breathe.  When fish absorb oxygen by pulling water into their mouth and release it through the gills, they release ammonia.  So even if the water looks pretty... if your fish is breathing, there is ammonia in it.

WATCH OUT FOR "NEW TANK SYNDROME" 
When first setting up Goldie's home, it is important to note that your filter media is new and has yet to establish a colony of beneficial microbes that turn your fish's amonia waste into nitrates. Therefore, ammonia can build up quickly.

Two things you will do to keep your fish's water livable is 1) filter the water and 2) partially change the water on a regular basis.

1) FILTER   Goldfish poop a lot... that's just the way it is.  When setting up your goldfish's home you want to be sure that the filter you use runs the ENTIRE VOLUME OF TANK WATER through the filter 4 times an hour.  (ex: a 20 gallon fish tank should have a filter with a 80 gallon per hour GPH ... gallons per hour)

There are several ways to filter your Goldie's water:

Listed from the most to the least expensive:

1. Sump filter (cycles the water through several large reservoirs with different sorts of filter media) 
2. Canaster filter (sits under the tank in a cabinet)
3. HOB (Hang on Back)
4. Sponge filter attached to the air pump you already have to create good filtration. 

A simple sponge filter.  Be sure your air pump is strong enough to move lots of air!  More bubbles coming up the top of the sponge... the water that is being pulled through it.

Basically, your sponge filter turns the ammonia into nitrites.  Still not so great for fish.  But a seasoned filter that has had time to establish a biological colony of microorganisms converts the ammonia to nitrites and then the nitrites to nitrates.  Nitrates are much less harmful and you can control the level of nitrates with simple water changes.

You can use chemical filtration which usually means some sort of carbon or charcoal as part of the filter media (filter media is the stuff inside the filter like sponges, little rocks, bags of charcoal, poly fiber, etc)  

I do not use chemical filtration... I just use sponge filters that establish their own biological colonies of microorganisms that convert the ammonia to nitrites and the nitrites to nitrates.  For my 75 gallon fancy goldfish tank, I use two sponge filters each rated at 60 gallons GPH.  Since that technically only moves 120 total water volume per hour,  I pair that with a 50% water change once or twice weekly.  

2) WATER CHANGES

Keeping goldfish healthy means developing a workable water changing routine.
I can not stress enough how important it is to make it easy so you will enjoy doing it!  It is vital for your fish's health and if you make your routine easy to do, it is relaxing and enjoyable for you too.  

WATER WATER EVERYWHERE BUT NOT A DROP TO LIVE IN!

Water is not just water.  "City" water or municipally supplied water has chlorine in it and other substances that can make fish sick.  And if you want to spoil your fish with bottled water.... DON'T! Bottled water is harsh for your fish's delicate slime coat!

Be sure to purchase a water conditioner like Seachem Prime, that makes "city" water safer for your
fish.  You can also "age" the water you are going to put in to your fish's home by filling a wide mouthed container (like a five gallon bucket or two) with water and letting it age for a day before adding it to your fish's home.  Aged water dissipates many harmful substances.  

One last investment and it can by kind of biggish one but it is interesting and important!  You need to be able to check Goldie's water chemistry. It sounds silly but it is important and until you get a handle on how quickly your fish's particular habitat builds up amonia,
it is good to test the water regularly.

WATER TEST KIT:You can buy a fresh water aquarium test kit online at any pet or aquarium supplier, or in person at a pet store.  They can be found as low as $25.00  

WATER TEST STRIPS: A less expensive and less accurate way to test your fish's water.  You can purchase a small amount just to get yourself started but the Master Test Kit is more accurate and actually kind of chemistry cool to work with!

.

BASIC FOOD

Commercial goldfish food can be found almost ANYWHERE.  Common and comet goldfish (which is most likely what your new friend is) can eat just about any commercial food.  Flakes and pellets are the most common.  
For ease of feeding, balanced nutrition and keeping your fish more engaged with his environment, a simple sinking pellet is a wonderful daily food choice.

My go-to fish food is Omega One sinking pellets.  With tiny fish I like the small size but they can eat medium too... they just let it soak a bit.

DO NOT OVERFEED YOUR FISH!  A tiny pinch of sinking pellets, wet with tank water to help them sink more quickly, will give you a chance to see how quickly your fish eats.  Do not feed your fish more than he/she can consume in 2 minutes.  Do that twice a day and your fish will have plenty to eat, not over eat and not leave waste on the bottom.  

Let's recap with a super cost saving shopping list to give your fish the biggest, best home at the least expensive price:

• Your fish needs room to swim. A big plastic tote makes a cool temporary pond
• Your fish needs moving water help the water stay oxygenated.  A small aquarium air pump with air tubing and air stone gets the water moving and is inexpensive
• Your fish needs filtration.  An inexpensive way to filter your water is with a sponge filter attached to your air line (in lieu of an air stone)
• Your fish needs SAFE water.  Purchase a freshwater fish tap-water purifier OR put some new water in a bucket and let the chlorine dissipate over night before adding the water to your tank. 

Additionally you will want water test strips or a water test kit.

There is a lot of info to absorb here so I don't want to run on too long. But if you have another minute, t I just want to say a few words about substrate and decorations.

SUBSTRATE -
You do not have to put any substrate at the bottom of the tank.  In fact, it is easier to syphon debris without it.  If you do want to give Goldie a pretty floor, stay away from small pebbles and gravel!
Goldfish like to sift through the substrate and it is super common for them to suck up a piece of gravel or tiny pebble. 

I recommend sand or bare bottom.

DECORATIONS - 

Your fish likes lots of room to swim back and forth rather than up and down so be sure he/she has clear pathways to swim horizontally. 
Plastic plants are fine and your fish won't eat them but do avoid hard plastic plants and look for soft ones that are less likely to scratch or poke. I bought some soft plastic plants from a dollar store  that are soft, look pretty ... and cost only a dollar!  I'm pretty stoked about that! 
If you are going to choose decorations that have areas the fish can swim in and out of be sure they openings are large enough for him/her to get in and out of with ease.

HAVE QUESTIONS?

I sure did when I won my first fair fish.  You can leave a question here or contact us through our website, MyFairFish.com
Join our Facebook community group: www.facebook.com/groups/myfairgoldfish and show us your fish!


Goldfish are the best!  Let's KEEP them that way!