Confuzedd

that:

1. Can be stocked in high numbers per gallon of water.

2. Will produce more waste than a fantail goldfish per gallon of water. (e.g. will 6x small fish produce more waste than 1 fantail goldfish?)

3. Hardy and low maintenance.

4. Slow like goldfish so they do not hog food from the goldish.

OR

1. A different type of freshwater fish that grows fast with a maximum length of less than 12 inches long?

2. Produces more waste, or about the same, per inch of fish than goldfish. e.g. will a 12" [insert fish name] produce roughly about the same waste as 3x 4" long fantail goldfish?

3. Hardy and low maintenance.

And... a quick question, does the 1 gallon per inch-long of fish apply to fancy goldfish?

Lucy

I can only answer the last question. No. lol
The 1" thing isn't as much of a rule as it is a guide line and usually applies to the smaller fish. You also have to weigh in waste produced, bulk of the fish and characteristics.
A good example being you wouldn't put a 10" fish in a 10g tank.

sirdarksol

These two requisites are mutually exclusive. In part because of their waste production, fantail goldfish shouldn't be stocked in high numbers per gallon, so a fish that produced more waste per gallon also wouldn't be able to be so stocked

Perhaps if you let us know why you're looking for these things, we can help, although there are very few temperate fish that fit in aquaria, so there are very few fish that do well in a goldie tank.

Red1313

WCMM would be compatible with fantails if you're looking from something small and fast (think of them as cold water neons). Another option is a type of cool water cory. You need to keep in mind the most fancy goldies are pretty defencless against regular fish so while you may find sub-tropical fish you need to be aware of some of the down sides. (Agression, Size, Speed, etc)

gremlin

Mosquito fish would work. They stay fairly small and you could put a small school (1-2 males and 3-4 females) in a 30 gallon with one goldfish. They would not compete so much for food as they prefer tubifex worms, blood worms, and such. So you could put the pellets in for the goldie and a cube of freeze dried tubifex worms in for the mosquito fish. I hold the cube for my skeeter eaters so the goldfish don't steal it from them.

Or you could try a pair of american flag fish. They are mainly algae eaters, but they also like the tubifex worms. The males can be agressive towards each other. The store where I got mine said to have at least 2 females per male, so now I have a male and female that have paired up and a female that kind of hangs around the edges. For a tank, I would say one each male and female or 2-3 females.

White Cloud Mountain Minnows. I don't know a whole lot about these ones, but they may work also.

Tank size for a goldfish - 20-30 gallons for the first goldfish with an additional 10-20 gallons per additional goldfish.

The larger the filter on the tank, the more leeway you have to add that school of small fish. Just remember to allow plenty of swimming room.

aquarist48

Hello. As far as stocking Goldies...The first Goldfish should have 20 gallons and each additional Goldfish 10 gallons each. Example for a 40 gallon tank could house 3 Goldfish and you would be fully stocked.

If you would be so kind, when you have a chance, to fill out your aquarium information in your profile. This will really help members to help you more in the future.

Ken

Lucy

I'm wondering why you're looking for a high waste producing fish.

Amanda

Rosy Red Minnows do well with goldies

Confuzedd

This might sound weird and pointless to some but I'm trying to grow a small tree in my bedroom. It's just a little project to have some fun. The volume of the bio filter to the volume of fish tank is 1:1; I got 400 lbs. of gravel to house the good bacteria.

If it's 20 gal +10 gal per extra goldfish, and I have a 28 gallons of water volume, that means I'm already over by 12 gallons since I have 3 goldfish already. But what if I take into account that they will only grow 4" long? That leaves 7 gallons per inch of fish, right?

Lucy

You can't count gold fish in 1" per gallon guidleline, they produce too much waste.
That's where the so called 'rule' is flawed. You have to take into consideration waste produced, bulk of the fish and characteristics, like swim room etc.
The 1" per gallon mostly works with just smaller low waste producing fish.

sirdarksol

Agreed. That's why I try very hard not to use the word "rule" when talking about it. I try to refer to it as the '1" per gallon guideline.'

gremlin

28 gallons is okay for one - maybe 2 goldfish, if you have an excellent filter. You say they will only grow 4" long - what type of goldfish do you have that only grows 4"? The common, comet, and shubunkin varieties will grow upwards of 12 inches - even the fancy goldfish can grow 8-10 inches or more. By that size, they should be in nothing smaller than a 55 gallon just for the swimming room. You have 3 goldfish - put three rulers in your tank. Can they move around without bumping into each other, the walls, or the decorations in the tank? If the answer is no - the tank is too small.

Next question - what type of tree are you trying to grow and how does the fish tie in with the tree? I'm just curious...

iloveengl

I'm curious about the tree connection as well; I'm assuming it has something to do with fertilizer? Sorry, I'm definitely a fish noob, so I'm kinda lost, but really interested in this thread.

Confuzedd

No clue, will have to write down the name of the type of goldfish next time I go to the pet store. Unless I misread it, the label said "max length 3" to 4" Or maybe, the store changed something around and forgot to move the sticker...

The tree is Moringa Oleifera. The tree actually grows tall but I want to see how it fairs indoors by trimming it down.

Attached Images

aquaponics.JPG (37.8 KB, 51 views)

Red1313

oooh neat let me know how that filtration thing works out!....

gremlin

It will be interesting to see how it does in such a wet environment. I was not familiar with this tree, so I googled it. Wikipedia says it prefers a dry sandy soil with good drainage.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moringa_oleifera

This website ( http://www.winrock.org/fnrm/factnet/...SH/Moringa.htm ) says that it does not tolerate water-logged soil, so it really will be interesting to see if it would grow hydroponically.

Definitely keep us updated - I look forward to seeing how it grows.

Confuzedd

Yeah, this is why I need to know what the minimum measure of water volume that is needed to make goldfish and other compatible fish comfortable without taking into account their waste production. I will be adding more fish as the tree grows bigger.

And the attached pic is the Moringa babies at 20 days old. They don't look healthy right now, or they could be fine, as I do not know anything about plants -- their leaves were propped up earlier today. And yes, what Gremlin said, the media will probably be too wet for the roots. Furthermore, after several days old I moved the seedling's position so that must have caused some damage to their roots.

But I'm surprised they are still growing as the fish are not present to fertilize them. I'm really just waiting for my nitrite spike to go down. I'm a fish and gardener newb...

Attached Images

Baby Moringas 20 days old.JPG (91.4 KB, 44 views)

Red1313

Hmmm... I may have a couple links for you that you might like however I can't find them atm. However aquaponics is basically what you're trying to do. When I find those articles of mine I'll pass the adress onto you. In the meantime you might find this interesting. http://www.aquaponicsjournal.com/
Good Luck

Confuzedd

Yep - and thanks for the link, that is exactly it. The online community I frequent is Backyard Aquaponics.

yukoandk

Interesting...that sounds fun! Keep us posted!