GOLDFISH OR TROPICAL FISH

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Hi guys i have seen a thread on here about fish tanks. i am getting a fish tank very soon off a friend but i am debating what type of fish to keep as i am a complete novice at fish keeping so your opinion would be appriacted and any equipment i will need and any advice you can give me

many thanks

martinharris201
 
I would have actually suggested Tropical fish.. Have a tank full of them and (somewhat shamefully due to other crisises going on in my life) they were rather negelected for a while..

Filter was broken so dirty water, heater was broken so the water was cold...

Went on like that for a year before ended up taking over their care myself and replaced everything but they are hardy little SOB's, they were thriving in the tank despite the conditions and now that its warm and clean again they are quite relaxing to watch.

I would consider them the SAS/Green Berets of fish :D
 
as chipmunk said goldfish are really easy to maintain. just make sure you get one that has been told its not supposed to outgrow its tank, its replacement tank, and the replacement for the replacement tank. we eventually had to put ours in a friends pond.... its probably outgrown that by now :p
 
contrary to popular belief tropical are actually easier to keep than golfish.
Goldfish are extremely messy. You can pick up a simple tropical setup for around £70 (65 litre) with everything except substrate so its a pretty good deal.
 
contrary to popular belief tropical are actually easier to keep than golfish.
Goldfish are extremely messy. You can pick up a simple tropical setup for around £70 (65 litre) with everything except substrate so its a pretty good deal.

Yeah I can't stand the way goldfish leave my living room. They are so messy and unapologetic about it

:confused:

My mum has a goldfish thats a few months older than me (28), it requires very little maintenance
 
Tropical are easier, plus the variety available is much wider.

Goldfish are messy fish and create a lot of waste. They also require much larger tanks than tropical. A single goldfish will actually be your total safe stocking in a small tank like that.

You could have a nice easy to keep and well populated tropical tank in that size. Or a single goldfish.

In my fully established 190 litre tank, maintenance is down to feeding once every two days, and 40 litres of water-change a month.

Just do your homework with the fish you purchase, and don't overstock. Too many fish is a sure fire way of ruining a tank, and giving yourself a lot more work to do!
 
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Yeah I can't stand the way goldfish leave my living room. They are so messy and unapologetic about it

:confused:

My mum has a goldfish thats a few months older than me (28), it requires very little maintenance

I think you mis-understand the meaning of messy.. They produce a lot of waste compared to most tropical varieties. This leads to problems with water quality unless you do regular water changes and feed sparingly.

There is nothing wrong with Keeping goldfish in tanks, but its never going to be as rewarding as keeping a thriving tropical community tank.

Sounds like your mum has managed to keep her fish very well, i guess it is on its own, and has a very regular routine? If so, perfect :) They have been known to live upwards of 40 years in odd circumstances. 25 years+ is fairly
common.
 
As others have said you would only be able to keep 1 goldfish in that size tank and after a few years it will probably out grow it and you will need to get a bigger tank, or give it to someone with a pond. I have just got a 4.5 foot 300 litre tank for my goldfish as it is now 4.5 years old & around 7-8 inches long & will probably grow to around 12-14 inches.

Goldfish are easy to keep if you have a lot of filtration & do regular water changes, but from what I have read tropical fish are generally easier.

If you want to have plants in your tank then you will also have more options with a tropical tank as goldfish tend to try and eat most plants, or just pull them up and re-arrange the tank.
 
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