SMMSAM

My son won a goldfish from the school carnival, we brought it home, got a 1/2 gallon fish bowl, and the fish lasted about 1 month! All went well, and we changed the water once a week. We then went to the local pet store to buy a 2 replacements, $0.27 feeder fish, and the water is cloudy and smelly after 1 day. Those 2 eventually died after changing the water every other day. Now we upgraded to a 2.5 gallon tank with 3 feeder fish, more gravel and a "filter" that blows air into the tank (I don't think it actually filters the water) and the water needs to be changed everyday. What am I missing? I add 2 tap water additives, is it normal to have to change the water everyday? Any info would be appreciated, I feel terrible for killing these fish.

Chrisson

This may be hard to imagine but a gold fish needs 20 gallons for one and a additional 10 for another. Also I recommend you to read about the nitrogen cycle. It's a very important info every fish keeper needs. Also check out the profile for goldfish. Usually you don't change the water everyday but since your aquarium is small and goldfish produce lots of fishy poop it's makes a mess pretty quickly. It's recommended to do a water change atleast once every two weeks but most people do it once a week. It really depends on the situation though.

Lucy

Hi welcome to Fish Lore

Really sorry about the fish. I know your son must have been disappointed.
I wish carnivals and fairs would stop giving fish as prizes.

Great info from Chrisson.
It would be a really good idea to get a bigger tank like Chrisson suggests or return the fish if you can.
Unfortunatly they way produce too much waste to live in 2.5g's of water without changing the water everyday. However, that only address part of the problem.
Goldies can grow really big. If left in that size tank it will stunt their growth. Their insides continue to grow, but their outsides can't.
I'm sorry not to have better news for you.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do

Tigerfish

you can always house 1 betta in a 2.5 gal but I would suggest going bigger too. smaller the tank the harder it is to keep the water and once something goes bad it's even harder to save the fish. 20 gals or more upkeep is easier partial water changes are every 2 wks in an established tank and more fullfilling and fun.

Tigerfish

Let us know if you need help starting a tank

enthusiast

considering how much space a single goldfish needs, & how messy they are (as you can tell with such frequent water changes), maybe your should consider spending like 15 bucks, go out and get a nice little 10 gal tank for ten, and then u got enough leftover for a few guppies & some floating hornwort plant

your kid would soon be happy (if he was ever sad with not having goldfish) to see babies

Chrisson

Try checking craigslist. Alot of people have great deals on aquarium and comes with bunch of stuff you need.

SMMSAM

Thanks for all the great info...I guess we should have been a little more informed before we started on this journey.

Lucy

Your welcome. It doesn't help that a lot of fish stores don't give correct info. It's natural to trust the stores who should know better.

Good luck and keep us informed.

aecw

[quote=Tigerfish;611854] smaller the tank the harder it is to keep the water and once something goes bad it's even harder to save the fish. 20 gals or more upkeep is easier partial water changes are every 2 wks in an established tank and more fullfilling and fun.

I agree - we got a 10 gallon for my son for xmas one year - it lasted barely 3 months tops - it was so hard to get the water stable let alone keep it there. Switched to a 20 gallon -took about a month to cycle it, and it has been in great condition since then and that was over a year and a half ago! Easy to maintain and clean.
good luck!

TedsTank

One other thought......Be very careful not to overfeed your fish....that can easily foul the water, eat up the oxygen, and basically throw your whole system into a new dangerous cycle. Goldfish will nearly always eat....try to adjust feeding so food does not remain on the bottom of the tank too long...or big goldfish poop!!...lol

Tigerfish

a good rule of thumb is drop food in little amounts into the tank and if everything is eaten up in 3 mins they are good to go even if you feed your fish everyother day you are in good shape most fish will eat some of the algae in your tank as well. Tip: leftover food in the tank should be netted out that will help too.

janiskfp

You might (or might not)enjoy or benefit from this. Warning, it's a few-page read.

Creating an essentially alien environment for a pet is really hard work at first. I don't see a lot in the way of Guinea Pig and Hamster forums (fora, whatever). If you want to take the plunge, as it were, into fish care, it's a worthwhile endeavor, if not for the fish, for all the learning (5 commas in one sentence. Whoa).

You've got a supportive community here if you decide to do it. These people are amazing.