Elleric

I decided to go with goldfish once my tank has finished cycling but i am worried about something now...

Up to this point, I have only had betta splendids and one of them, named Sushi was a Crown tail. Because of this he has especially delicate fins and when i put him into the tank where i had kept other betta in the past, the power filter caused some problems. the trails of his fins would be, at least in part pulled into the filter tube when ever he was near by, this was gentle and not an issue until he would swim away then the sudden movement would cause the fins to be scraped up against the edge of the filter. I solved this by building a 'filter shield' that was just a piece of shaped acrylic with many large holes drilled and sanded round in it that prevented Sushi from getting closer then 2 inches to the filter tube.

My new tank is a 26 gallon with a power filter that is basically a stronger version of the other betta tank filter. I am very, very worried about an Oranda or other fancy goldfish's fins being damaged by the filter in the same way Sushi's fins were run ragged at first. In this case, due to the tank set up a 'shield' isnt possible.

So im wondering what kind of filters people use for gold fish tanks and if im making a mountain out of a mole hill / worrying about nothing. I dont mind paying some money for a new filter as long as its a decent quality and i dont mind having to start the cycle over if a new filter will make for a better quality tank for the fish.

Shawnie

you can buy a sponge and put it over the intake valve very cheap and will be safe

Elleric

Wouldnt a sponge like that make it so the filter was no longer taking in solid debris? missed food or fish waste etc?

Shawnie

the sponge allows water through it and the debris sticks to it and you rinse it with water changes

Fishies-for-me

sponge prefilter is a very good idea for messy fish like goldies as it gives a very big area for bacteria to grow...looks like this

Attached Images

Fish Tank 008 - Copy.jpg (301.0 KB, 8 views)

Elleric

I had to make my own but i used some filter sponge and made something that works. When i went to the LFS and asked about it, the clerk looked at me funny and told me they didnt really make those, but he pointed me in the right direction to get something i could make due with.

Fishies-for-me

I am sorry I guess I have explained so many times that I made that one myself out of a filter sponge that I bought just for the job that I forgot that you didn't know that. Yes the clerck looked at me like I was crazy when I asked for it but when I explained what I wanted and what I was going to do with it she was like " ahhh..ok that looks cool and should work"...lol