# [email protected][email protected]



## thorpe84 (Sep 1, 2007)

i just got my goldfish from the pet store where it would have been in near perfect conditions, water ph, light,air and so on.

my tank is large, about 6 foot by 3x3, there are no airstones, no filter, alls we have a the moment is some gravel and some fern water plant things. the water is straight out of the tap, it has fluride added to it to protect our teeth,but would this harm my fish? im not sure of the ph level either because i dont have a tester, yet. we left the tank of water sit for a day to hopefully kill off some of the bad things in it.

but im worried, my fish swims to the top of the water and gasps in complete vertical (upright) position,
it looks like it isnt happy, sometimes it rests on the bottom of the tank? this doesnt look good

what is wrong with it? im guessing a combination of no air movement and bad ph level?

any suggestions would be very heplful because if it dies my girlfriend will kill me!!!
thank you, Dann


----------



## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

hello
well your fish is suffering,and will continue
to do so unless you change the conditions
that it is living in.
you need a filter,and it needs to grow bactieria in
your tank needs to cycle,if you have any friends
who keep fish,ask them for a spare sponge or
filter media,or even gravel.
you need also to de-chlorinate the water as well.
can you get these things today,as you really need to .
then you will start to see a difference in the fish.


----------



## thorpe84 (Sep 1, 2007)

*i hope it lives till tomorrow*

there are 3 fish in the tank, the other 2 are different kinds of goldfish, one has the big eyes and the other is multicolored. these 2 fish seem to be fine, they are swimming around and everything seems to be okay, but the gold/orange one ISNT!!

its night time now and nothing is open, im going to kmart to see if anything they have could help, im broke at the moment so i cant go out and spend hundreds on necesary items.

i WILL give the fish back to the aquarium tomorrow, if its still alive. then getting more fish once i have all the proper gear.

the reason i got them so early is because as kids we had goldfish and alls we did was put them in a bowl with some gravel and fed them every day, no water checks/filters/airstones, nothing. and they lived for years! i thought these would be the same but they clearly arnt.

you people must hate me for doing this to the fish, i dont blame you i feel pretty bad myself.


----------



## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

hay
we all did,and do things things,don't worry
the thing is,is that you now know that you can 
do something about it.Sorry i didn't know where you
were fro,m if you could atleast get a small bottle of
de-chlorinater for now,that may help,
do you not know any one who keeps fish at all ?
any chance of a picture ?


----------



## thorpe84 (Sep 1, 2007)

*i got some stuff for it*

im from australia,

i went to the shops and got some water aging stuff that takes away the chlorine, and also a ph netralizing stone thing?

i also got some pump tube with an air stone and have set this up

hopefully this will make a big difference, consindering when i first had it, it was just a tub of tap water


----------



## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

great,
there are some other members from Australia
here so hopefully they will pop in later and help,
as there may be different products there.
still,great that you were able to get some stuff,
although i don't quite understand the PH stone ?
the next most important thing will be your filter,
as the Gold fish are great waste producers,
and the tank water will get big amounts
of Amonia,nitrate,and nitrIte.
let us know how you get on,once the stuff is in
use.


----------



## beetlebz (Aug 2, 2007)

fear not pal, i did the same exact thing when I setup my first tank a couple of months ago. i wound up losing more than half the fish i started with  just follow willows advice to a T and keep up on the water changes! get through this and you wont regret sticking it out with the hobby


----------



## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

Moved here.


----------



## homegirl2180 (Jul 6, 2007)

If you cant get dechlorinator, you can just let tap water set out for a few days, the chlorine will go away. 

Goldfish really need oxygenated water, so the air stone should help alot. 

If you don't have a filter, you'll need to do alot alot alot more water changes...

I know you are tight on cash, but perhaps for the time being you could buy like a small one gallon-ish tank kit. They are fairly inexpensive ($10-$25) and come with a tank, light, gravel filter, and air stones. It would be cheaper in the short term and save the life of the fish. Plus, later down the road that would make a good quarantine tank.

Best of luck![/i]


----------



## jones57742 (Oct 31, 2006)

homegirl2180 said:


> If you cant get dechlorinator, you can just let tap water set out for a few days, the chlorine will go away.
> Best of luck![/i]


Hg:

Virtually all of the disinfectant utilized in potable water systems is chloramine instead of chlorine.
Chlorine is now only typically used in the disinfection of water mains which have been installed and which do not communicate with existing water mains.

Chloramine will not dissipate with "setting with an open water surface" for a few days and chloramine is lethal to fish.

TR


----------



## Julie's Julies (Jun 11, 2007)

Hey, don't beat yourself up about what happened. And we don't hate you! I plopped two goldfish into a teeny-tiny tank at first because I just didn't know any better. We all have to learn, and sometimes we take the hard way of trial and error (I sure did). You're doing great by observing that the fish is sick and by taking what measures you can to help the poor thing out. Keep on asking questions as they arise; everyone here is great at helping us newbies out.


----------



## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

hi
i must say this....
how wonderfull to have that size tank for G/fish.
i'm sure that once the proper filtration is in place
they will have a wonderfull time.


----------



## thorpe84 (Sep 1, 2007)

*air stone thing*

i went to k-mart/walmart whatever you want to call it. and they had these stone things they disolve in water one is an oxygenating thing (didnt buy it) and the other is a ph neutraliser or something, aparently they wear down more if the water is not the right ph and it automatically adjusts to suite it? no idea? it was only $2.50 the brand is called "vitapet"

im going back tonite to get the filter, it is one the kind that has the spray water bar thing? its $20 and says its for a 100L tank, but my tank is 120L would this really matter as there is no bigger at the store?

went to the river today and got some water plants and smooth rocks, i have cleaned them and they are sitting in a bucket of tap water. will these be okay to use or will they most likely be riddled with disease?

THE FISH SEEM TO BE ALOT [email protected], the gold one isnt comming to the top and gasping for air then sinking. so yay bit by bit i must be doing something right.    

thanks for all your help with this people, its been stressing out my gf alot then she cracks the sh!ts with me. so yeah im glad they looking a bit more healthy.

EDIT: what other cold water fish can i have with goldfish? can i put in those little neon ones or something similar? would it be okay putting in a very small freshwater crayfish or am i just asking for trouble?


----------



## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

*Re: air stone thing*



thorpe84 said:


> i went to k-mart/walmart whatever you want to call it. and they had these stone things they disolve in water one is an oxygenating thing (didnt buy it) and the other is a ph neutraliser or something, aparently they wear down more if the water is not the right ph and it automatically adjusts to suite it? no idea? it was only $2.50 the brand is called "vitapet"


Avoid that pH neutralizer. You don't need it.


> im going back tonite to get the filter, it is one the kind that has the spray water bar thing? its $20 and says its for a 100L tank, but my tank is 120L would this really matter as there is no bigger at the store?


Buy 2 filters instead of one. In case one breaks, then you still have the other running until you sort out the problematic filter.

120 liters would be too small of a water volume for a 6-foot length tank. Isn't that gallons rather than liters?:?


> went to the river today and got some water plants and smooth rocks, i have cleaned them and they are sitting in a bucket of tap water. will these be okay to use or will they most likely be riddled with disease?


How did you clean them? If you are using bleach solution or other chemicals, rinse them thoroughly.


> EDIT: what other cold water fish can i have with goldfish? can i put in those little neon ones or something similar? would it be okay putting in a very small freshwater crayfish or am i just asking for trouble?


No crayfish should be put alongside a fish as they can ambush fish and kill them. Weather loaches will be fine. Do make sure to test your water regularly as goldfish are heavy waste producers.


----------



## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

hi
glad things are turning around for you.
is there a chance of a picture of the plants,
as this will help members to identify if they will
be ok for your tank.


----------



## thorpe84 (Sep 1, 2007)

*it isnt a 6 foot tank its 5 foot*

lol sorry i asked my bro how big the tank was and he said 6x3x3 now that im looking at it, its clearly [email protected] its 5 by about 1 and a half deep, and 2 tall. and its about 3/4 full atm...no idea why we havent filled it up yet.

okay the yabby is gone back to the pond it came from, i will post pics up of the tank/plants and everything when i can find my camera!

when i say cleaned i dont mean with a solutions or anything, i just mean i rinsed them off in tap water,then let them soak for about 12 hours or so in clean water, then cleaned off some of the slippery muddy stuff.

alot of fish poo is starting to build up on the bottom of the tank, the filter can only get so much i think. is there any way to stop the debris from building up so much?

the yellow/orange goldfish has red dots near its butt, im not sure if its getting better/worse or if thats just how it is. il take pics of it when i can.

once again thank you for all your help. im pretty sure all my fish would have died if it wernt for all of you helping me. *thanks*


----------



## beetlebz (Aug 2, 2007)

a couple things... 

first, if you only have 1 filter id recommend getting a second one like lupin suggested. that will get more water flowing and help out with the fish excrement. just keep up with gravel vaccuming and it will be fine in the meantime. 

second, you might wanna watch some of the language! im just suggesting, I know alot of family oriented types hang out here, id hate to think we cant all get along


----------



## thorpe84 (Sep 1, 2007)

*lol*

lol sorry its funny though, you changed @$$ too butt, is that really a swear word?

does anal cavity really sound better?


----------



## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

*Re: lol*



thorpe84 said:


> lol sorry its funny though, you changed @$$ too butt, is that really a swear word?


I have no idea what else to call it.:dunno: It's still better than the former though.:?


> does anal cavity really sound better?


I've never even thought of such word.:shock: :lol:


----------

