Question about Hoods! (Not sure where to put this)

Hello people. I have a 20 gallon set up with 2 goldfish and I was wondering how to make a hood for it. I bought the empty tank second hand and its pretty good but it doesn't have a hood. I'm not sure what to do. I have a filter so I was concerned the filter would block a hood from fitting on properly. What I was thinking was put cling wrap over the top of it. I just don't want the goldfish jumping out. I have a bubbler in it (+ a lot of bubbles from the falling filter water) Would it be okay to put the wrap over it? My main concern was them not having air because of the wrap but if the bubbler remained in it would it be okay?

*edit*
A heads up request, please don't hound me about the tank size, I'm 15 and I'm not buying a 400 dollar tank to accomodate goldfish that have been suriving for 6 months. I'm just asking about the hood.
thank you!

 

I got a piece of glass cut from Lowe's to fit my tank.

Depending on the goldfish, they may need anything from a 40 gal tank to a pond. If you can't upgrade them to a larger tank, you should rehome them. Otherwise they'll have shorter, sicker lives.

 

Does the glass just lay on the top of the tank?

 

Your aquarium is likely a 'standard' size of length and width, so you may be able to purchase a glass top for it from a LFS. I restarted my old fish tank a few months back and did just that. There should be a indent on the top frame and if you measure this and take the measurements to your LFS, they may have a glass top that fits. They usually come in a few pieces so they hinge for opening along the front. Hope that made sense.

 

So pretty much take measurments of the top of the tank and then measure how big the indent should be for the filter?

 

Most glass tops I have seen have a plastic strip that runs along the back (mine was about 2" wide). You can cut out any part of the plastic for your filter. If you look for google s on "glass aquarium hood" you will see some examples.

 

I cut a few pieces out on mine

 

Are you using a light? If so - more research on materials might be in order

If not, plexiglass may also be an option if you want to make the hood yourself. There are some interesting sliding hood videos on youtube.

Whatever you do, make sure it will be easy to do your water changes. You will need to keep up with water changes for goldfish.

Have fun figuring out the hood...and while you are researching and planning you can lay a folded clear trash bag over the tank. It won't have an airtight seal but the weight of the bag should keep the fish in (and cut down evaporation - just watch for drips down the side, maybe a towel around the tank).

 

Hello I am new here,

A few months ago, I switched to a glass top with LED strip for my 10 gallon fish tank. After doing that I keep getting this clear slime/mucus growing around the edge of the filter and on the inside of the glass top. It forms like a slime film on the glass. The slime forms a only just after a few days after I clean and do my routine maintenance. I was using a standard plastic hood before and did not experience this. Does anyone know what might be causing this? I thought maybe the LED lights might be the case, so I have decided to leave them off for a few days to see it that works.

Thanks for any help.

 

Hello I am new here,

A few months ago, I switched to a glass top with LED strip for my 10 gallon fish tank. After doing that I keep getting this clear slime/mucus growing around the edge of the filter and on the inside of the glass top. It forms like a slime film on the glass. The slime forms a only just after a few days after I clean and do my routine maintenance. I was using a standard plastic hood before and did not experience this. Does anyone know what might be causing this? I thought maybe the LED lights might be the case, so I have decided to leave them off for a few days to see it that works.

Thanks for any help.

The cause of this is actually the moisture that's being evaporated gets trapped inside the tank due to the tight seal the glass lid provides. Is this harmful or bad? NO!

This is actually one reason many choose glass lids over plastic. Much less evaporation/loss of water using glass lids.

One way to counter this is turn your bubbler down ... Most of what you are seeing is likely caused by your bubbler spitting water droplets up at the glass.

Or an extreme counter measure would be to remove the plastic piece on the back of the glass lid. This would allow moisture to escape much easier.