Air Pump, Filter? Do I Need Them?

[tanyaGti]

Hi all.

I have a 30l Tetra Coldwater Aquarium setup in my bedroom, and ive just put in 3 Fancy Goldfish (I know one of them is a moore but cant remember what the other 2 are, lol). Do I need a filter and/or air pump? If so can anyone recommend some very quiet equipment? Also should I put an airstone in?

Thanks in advance.
Tanya

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Yes you need a filter, a Fluval 3 one would be good for the time being. You need to read up on the pinned articles in the Beginnger section of the forum, they contain a wealth of very vital info to know on fishkeeping, i particularly advise reading the "Treating and Avoiding New Tank Syndrome" article as it will explain to you how the water quality works in aquariums plus a lot of other stuff like cycling tanks.
A 30litre will surfice for 3 fancy goldfish for the time but they will inevitably outgrow the tank- the average fancy goldfish can easily grow to 6-8inches long, so you should start planning another new tank at some point soon. Ideally, you should have a minimum of 20gals for the first fancy goldfish and 10gallons for every one after that- it may sound a lot right now, but sooner or later your goldfish will start to look very crampt in a 30litre tank. Upgrading to a larger tank in the future will have many bennefets for the fish, from helping reduce stress levels to improving the stability of better water quality and increasing the life expectancy of the fish in the tank .
Filtration is vital for goldfish as they are big waste producers, and the more they poop the more ammonia they produce, which if not dealt with will kill them or make them very sick or generally decrease their life expectancy. An airstone/bubble pump machine is good for increasing the oxygen content in the tank, and can come in very handy during hot weather when the temp of the water in the tank increases and the oxygen content is thus lowered (goldfish are quite demanding fish oxygen-wise), but overal is not as vital as some decent filtration in the tank.
Do you have any dechlorinator/water conditioner?

 

[tanyaGti]

Yes you need a filter, a Fluval 3 one would be good for the time being. You need to read up on the pinned articles in the Beginnger section of the forum, they contain a wealth of very vital info to know on fishkeeping, i particularly advise reading the "Treating and Avoiding New Tank Syndrome" article as it will explain to you how the water quality works in aquariums plus a lot of other stuff like cycling tanks.
A 30litre will surfice for 3 fancy goldfish for the time but they will inevitably outgrow the tank- the average fancy goldfish can easily grow to 6-8inches long, so you should start planning another new tank at some point soon. Ideally, you should have a minimum of 20gals for the first fancy goldfish and 10gallons for every one after that- it may sound a lot right now, but sooner or later your goldfish will start to look very crampt in a 30litre tank. Upgrading to a larger tank in the future will have many bennefets for the fish, from helping reduce stress levels to improving the stability of better water quality and increasing the life expectancy of the fish in the tank .
Filtration is vital for goldfish as they are big waste producers, and the more they poop the more ammonia they produce, which if not dealt with will kill them or make them very sick or generally decrease their life expectancy. An airstone/bubble pump machine is good for increasing the oxygen content in the tank, and can come in very handy during hot weather when the temp of the water in the tank increases and the oxygen content is thus lowered (goldfish are quite demanding fish oxygen-wise), but overal is not as vital as some decent filtration in the tank.
Do you have any dechlorinator/water conditioner?

Hi there.
Yes I have some de-chlorinator. Ok I actually just went out and purchased a filter, but the lady at the pet shop said I would not need a pump, so I have left that for now.
Ok I will definately look into getting a bigger tank at some point soon.
I have decided I would like to add some lighting, I just saw some flourescent lamps, has anybody else used these? and would you recommend them?
Cheers
Tanya

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Yes lighting will be fine with the fish, however you should avoid leaving the lights on for more than 10hrs a day. Here's the link as well to the pinned articles in the beginner section (i forgot to add it in my last post );

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=88643

. How big/long are the goldfish right now roughly?

 

[tanyaGti]

Yes lighting will be fine with the fish, however you should avoid leaving the lights on for more than 10hrs a day. Here's the link as well to the pinned articles in the beginner section (i forgot to add it in my last post );

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=88643

. How big/long are the goldfish right now roughly?

They are roughly 2 inches at the moment. Just out of interest roughly how long will it take for them to get 6-8 inches long?
Cheers
Tanya

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Yes lighting will be fine with the fish, however you should avoid leaving the lights on for more than 10hrs a day. Here's the link as well to the pinned articles in the beginner section (i forgot to add it in my last post );

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=88643

. How big/long are the goldfish right now roughly?

They are roughly 2 inches at the moment. Just out of interest roughly how long will it take for them to get 6-8 inches long?
Cheers
Tanya

I havn't kept fancy goldfish, but i keep various other types like common, comet and shubunkin goldfish and at least for these goldfish i would say they grow 1inch every 3-4months. Generally speaking though, the goldfish will grow faster when they are small, and as they near their eventual size their growth will slow down a lot.

 

[tanyaGti]

Yes lighting will be fine with the fish, however you should avoid leaving the lights on for more than 10hrs a day. Here's the link as well to the pinned articles in the beginner section (i forgot to add it in my last post );

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=88643

. How big/long are the goldfish right now roughly?

They are roughly 2 inches at the moment. Just out of interest roughly how long will it take for them to get 6-8 inches long?
Cheers
Tanya

I havn't kept fancy goldfish, but i keep various other types like common, comet and shubunkin goldfish and at least for these goldfish i would say they grow 1inch every 3-4months. Generally speaking though, the goldfish will grow faster when they are small, and as they near their eventual size their growth will slow down a lot.

Ok thats great, thanks for that!
Also, I have changed my mind about the flourescent lamps, im just going to get some basic lighting. Not too sure where to get them from tho. My tank is 18inches long. If anyone could give me some links that would be great.
Cheers