Setting up a new fish tank?!?

Question

currently have male fantail, am wanting to get mate for it since its last one died last year, am wanting to upgrade to a larger tank so ill b able to purchase 2 fish as someone on here told me that they were happier in a school, i know when setting up a new tank you have to let it establish for week, am wanting to buy new ornaments n plants for this tank as the other ones wont come clean anymore, and maybe new gravel, was wondering 1 if its right youre supposed to situate the plants and that at the back of the tank, 2 if i should keep the gravel from the old tank but mix with some new to keep some of the goodness even tho i will be putting some of the water from my current tank into this one, 3, does it matter what size the other fish are? i know to get other fantails but ones ive seen at pet shop are smaller than him dont want him picking on them! wil my current fish b ok goin into brand new tank with new surroundings and new fish?? Sorry its so long! any advice would b gr8, thanks!

Answer 1

so you have 1 male fantail goldfish? so if you wish to add 2 more you will need a minimum tank size of 55 gallons for the trio, you could get away with 30 but bigger is better. when you set up the new tank, use the old gravel with the new and add only dechlorinated water to the tank, establishing it for a week is rubbish, it does nothing, it needs to be cycled, which will easily be kick started by adding your old gravle to seed the new with the bacteria and keeping the filter media you are already running on your current tank along with any new filters you want to add, just for a few weeks until the new filters are seeded. as long as you use some or all of the old gravel it wont make much difference if you replace all the plants and ornaments etc. you can situate the plants etc where ever you want them in the tank, tho most people do it at the back so its easier to see the fish. water from your old tank will hold very little if any of the bacteria needed to cycle the tank and keep it healthy, gravel and filter media holds the most. if you dont want the gravel to mix with your new then add a few handfuls to a clean new leg of a pair of tights, and either sit it on the bottom or hang it on the side for a week or 2 to alow the bacteria to spread. you can buy bigger fish but they do cost more but in the long run, if you buy them small and keep the tank clean and healthy they will very quickly grow. i have different size fantails in my tank and they dont pick on each other. sometimes they chase but its not for long and as long as there are many hiding places in plants etc they will be fine. and as long as your old fish is aclimated to the new water by means of adding new water to old in a smaller container little by little then adding him to the new tank it will be fine. hope this helps

Answer 2

Ok, if you are doing this correctly, you should have a minimum tank of 30 gals and a week is not long enough fir your tank to cycle. You need a PH of around 7.0, and no ammonia and nitrates, keep checking your water daily.

Live plants, Yes - larger plants at the back, middle in the middle, small in the front, Same for Artificial.

I'd go for a whole new amount of gravel personally.

Depends, if the new fish is considerably smaller then yes bullying will probably occur.

Answer 3

You are doing a good thing by getting a bigger tank and it should be fine to get smaller fantails than the one you currently have, as long as they are not so small they can fit into your fish's mouth.  To make sure he doesn't pick on them, make sure you put them all into the new tank at the same time so none of them feels like they already have an established territory before the others.  

There is no rule about having all the plants and decor at the back of the tank.  Whoever told you that is full of it.  Put your plants and decor where you want them.  You don't need to run your new tank for a week, either.  Not unless you are going to do a fishless cycle, which you don't need to do if you are keeping some of your old gravel.  

Do keep some of your old gravel for your new tank.  That will help kick start your new tank's cycle by keeping some of the beneficial bacteria alive.  You have to keep the gravel wet though, and don't scrub it clean, or you will kill the bacteria you are trying to keep!  Bacteria colonizes surfaces, it doesn't live free-floating in the water, so you have to add some of the old gravel or the old filter media, not just some of the old water if you want to keep some of the beneficial bacteria from your old tank.

Answer 4

I don't think where you put the plants and ornaments matters, but if you put them at the back then your view of the fish will be less restricted.

Make sure you wash the gravel and ornaments in water before you put in the tank. Keeping the gravel and the water from the old tank will be beneficial to the fish when they go in the new tank. This will provide the tank with it's eco-system quicker than setting up from scratch.

I don't think fantails are particularly bothered about size. If you have plenty of plants and ornaments, then the smaller ones can go and hide and get some relief if there is bother. Your old fish will probably take a bit of time to settle in, but he should be ok.

Make sure you use dechlorinator to treat all the new water you will be adding to the tank. Change approx 25% of the water every week and replace with dechlorinated treated water. If you need to wash plants, ornaments or gravel at any time - then use the water you have removed from the tank as it stops any chemicals from untreated water contaminating the tank

Hope this helps and good luck with your new tank :-)