# Does anyone keep goldfish in your planted tank?



## New 2 fish (Dec 26, 2004)

I have a GF in my planted tank- and it can sometimes try your patience! I'm getting ready to move him into some kind of pond, mostly bc he's gotten so big! 
However, he does like to pull things up, esp I've noted my Sag and Vals. He also ate my Java Moss, which they're not supposed to like. Alot of my other plants, he's left undisturbed... some of the finer leaves he likes to "hoover" by sucking them in, but he can't seem to get them off the plant! :tongue: 
He likes to sift through the gravel too, so I wouldn't suggest any small foreground plants with shallow roots...

Try this link: http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/Plants.html
Good luck!


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## WolverineFan (Dec 15, 2004)

Goldfish can be pretty rough on plants, not to mention the fact that the cooler temps required by goldfish are not ideal for plant growth.


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## vlh (Apr 30, 2004)

If you choose your plants wisely you can very successfully keep goldfish in a planted tank. I have a very hevily planted 55gal tank with 4 fancy goldfish. I have had it set up for a little over 6 months with no problems. I have allot of anubias, some smaller swords, lots of java fern and vals, and some fast growing stems to help with the algae. I have been slowly removing the stems, although the wisteria looks really nice.


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## IUnknown (Feb 5, 2003)

> Goldfish can be pretty rough on plants, not to mention the fact that the cooler temps required by goldfish are not ideal for plant growth.


This applies to comets. Fancy goldfish have a different anatomy and actually do better with higher temps. Read through "Fancy Goldfish : Complete Guide To Care And Collecting" by Richard E. Hess, lots of good information. As for my experiences with planted goldfish tanks take a look at my website,
http://www.aquascapingjournals.com/journals/goldfish_article.htm


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## Tino (Jan 9, 2005)

Goldfish belongs in a pond period.
There are number of excellent choises as far as fish for a planted tank -
look through the Fish section of this forum for some ideas.


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## IUnknown (Feb 5, 2003)

Or bring the pond indoors. I always wanted to do dwarf water Lillie's so that it looked like you were looking under the pond. Planted goldfish tanks are a challenge, similar to planted discus tanks, but rewarding because goldfish have more character than any other fish.


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## Navajo (Sep 13, 2004)

Do Koi count? :icon_bigg 

I brought the wife's Koi in to over-winter them and decided one night to place my trimmings in there from my 55 to see if I could "spruce it up"... plants lasted ALMOST 2 whole days! :hihi: 

Not even a stem or root left in the whole tank!

tom


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## figgy (Feb 27, 2005)

Those pix are SO great! I have a new tank coming and was wondering about how to do it with some fancy goldfish! What is/are the scientific names of the lillies you use?

Thanks,
Fig


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

Tino said:


> Goldfish belongs in a pond period.


There's a whole artistry and history behind a fancy goldfish tank, that's quite an arrogant stance to take.

I have four large fancy goldfish in a heavy planted tank and have no problems.

I personally love the brilliant colors and super long flowing fins of fancy goldfish. I think they are one of the best fish there is. They are so peaceful in temperment and to look at.

Fancy (egg shaped) goldfish do best in tanks heated in the mid 70's.










(Notice my airstones that I talk so much about. )


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## jwholmes (Feb 27, 2004)

My sons' Ryuku Goldfish lived in my 75G for a while. He did very well but kept "hoovering" up the gravel and taking my glosso with it! He also thought the riccia was tasty. I finally couldn't afford his snacks and put him in another tank with a new relative. The boys decorated it with treasure chests, bubble-wands, etc and now everyone is happy. So yes you can but you need sturdy, well rooted plants.


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

jwholmes said:


> My sons' Ryuku Goldfish lived in my 75G for a while. He did very well but kept "hoovering" up the gravel and taking my glosso with it! He also thought the riccia was tasty. I finally couldn't afford his snacks and put him in another tank with a new relative.


Goldfish will root around in the gravel in their constant search for food. They do NOT have the "aquascaping" instinct of cichlids however. Sand and other very fine substrates that can cloud water when kicked around are not a good choice. Eco Complete works great!

Very fine rooted plants - mainly the grasses (micro sword, hairgrass, etc.) and the glosso will get uprooted by the goldfish. But there are a TON of alternatives. I use crypts instead of grasses.

Riccia really should be wrapped in a hair net or something similar, goldfish or not.

As a general rule, the more "egg shaped" or compact the goldfish's body is, the less destructive it will tend to be in a planted tank.





jwholmes said:


> The boys decorated it with treasure chests, bubble-wands, etc and now everyone is happy.


ARGH! Another person who puts airstones in the same class as treasure chests! :wink:


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## csfish (Sep 29, 2003)

My goldfish, which include lionheads, commons, orandas, and especially the two calico fantails, have eaten every single plant I've put into their tank, despite being fed a diet of Goldfish Connection Pro-Gold pellets, algae wafers, zucchini, lettuce, shelled peas, and frozen bloodworms. Even the new shoots of anubias, java fern and the growing tips of giant vals are salad for these voracious GF's. The only thing I can do is plant more than they can eat....


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## RoseHawke (Mar 10, 2004)

All right. Go figure. Dreamsicle the Sarassa Comet has anubias, hornwort and java moss in his tank and hasn't touched any of it (that I can tell.) I don't feed him particularly heavily, and just quality goldfish pellets. I'm thinking about trying to get an outdoor "pondlet" set up for him this summer rather than returning him to the whiskey barrel, as I think he's really getting too big for it. That may be problematical, as we do have '***** here.


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## New 2 fish (Dec 26, 2004)

I'd like to clarify the goldfish and ponds comment that I made- I have a common goldfish and two comets. They can grow to 1 foot, so I think mine should be in a pond. My common was going stir crazy in the 30g when he was about 5". He seems very happy now in a 50g pond, with more length to swim and two buddies. The common did like to rearrange my plants, nibble on the sag and even ate all my java moss... but he may have just been rammy from not being able to swim a lot. 
Good luck with the gf... they do have quite a personality!


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

csfish said:


> My goldfish, which include lionheads, commons, orandas, and especially the two calico fantails, have eaten every single plant I've put into their tank, despite being fed a diet of Goldfish Connection Pro-Gold pellets, algae wafers, zucchini, lettuce, shelled peas, and frozen bloodworms. Even the new shoots of anubias, java fern and the growing tips of giant vals are salad for these voracious GF's. The only thing I can do is plant more than they can eat....


That is _highly highly_ unusual. If they're being fed properly, there should be NO reason for this. I've never heard of a single case of goldfish eating java ferns and giant valis (except your post).


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## csfish (Sep 29, 2003)

Hypancistrus said:


> That is _highly highly_ unusual. If they're being fed properly, there should be NO reason for this. I've never heard of a single case of goldfish eating java ferns and giant valis (except your post).



I know, others have said so too; however, if you or anyone else are ever around the West Coast of British Columbia, Canada, I'd like to invite you to observe for yourself this Goldfish Salad Bar. They love their greens.... I've removed the java fern and most of the anubias to another tank, so they have a chance to grow. I also have some hefty rocks in this goldfish tank, one about 8"x3"x4", maybe 3lbs, that the biggest calico (almost 10" including tail) manages to dig the gravel out from underneath it! They definitely have their own ideas about aquascaping....


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## danmhippo (Feb 3, 2005)

It's not easy to get goldfish to be "fed properly". They can go all day long eating, eating, and eating. I am pretty sure tanks with "well fed" goldfish doesn't need extra nitrate feeding.


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

danmhippo said:


> It's not easy to get goldfish to be "fed properly". They can go all day long eating, eating, and eating. I am pretty sure tanks with "well fed" goldfish doesn't need extra nitrate feeding.


I don't know where all this goldfish hate is coming from? :icon_conf 

Yes goldfish have an instinct to constantly be rooting around for food. But yes it IS easy to feed them! I recommend every other day. I feed a mix of Bio Blend Gold, Mega Tropical (a frozen food), and Tetra Color. My goldfish never touch my plants.


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## danmhippo (Feb 3, 2005)

Ha Ha, I am not saying they are "difficult" to feed. Instead, I was referring to their appetite, they need large amount of food. I was also saying that if you are able to fullfill their appetite by giving them large amount of food, hence your "fed properly" comment, then your tank will end up being high in nitrogenous nutrient.

No, I don't hate goldfish.


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## shalu (Jan 16, 2003)

I know what you mean, danmhippo. I started keeping fish with two orandas in a 10gallon. They were so cute and begging for food all the time, so I kept feeding them more, and more, and more. Pretty soon I learned the importance of daily water changes before I discovered that it was being practiced by discus people :icon_bigg With daily wc, I was able to keep them healthy in such a small tank and they bred weekly in there. I put them out in the pond when I converted the tank for tropical fish, and the darn raccoon got to them shortly after. I am going to setup another planted tank for goldfish soon.


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## pinchy1 (Feb 4, 2005)

I'm currently planning a 75 goldfish tank, finally give my four comets a home they deserve after all the attention I spent on my barb tank. I plan on a _very_ spare, zen garden type thing with just a couple tight topiary-style mounds of anubias and java fern that can be simply lifted out and thrown in a starved shrimp tank for cleaning. :icon_bigg Plus some of Mustafa's Amazon Frogbit. They can just chomp away.

Anybody tried anything like this?


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## Aphyosemion (Oct 15, 2004)

Maybe a few of you have been lucky and your goldfish haven't eat all of your plants, but at least with the comets I used to have, they were well fed and STILL would eat anything I threw in the tank. I actually just took my overgrown plants when I thinned them out and tossed them into the goldfish tank. By the next morning there was never anything but a few stems left.
-Aphyosemion


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## all4funwfish (Jan 18, 2004)

how is it that one of the first fish to ever be kept by humans for enjoyment purposes (koi) are the most controversial on this site? Gold fish are herbivorous. They will pick at delicate plants. They also have plants in their natural environment..that survive lots of goldfish. There are definitely problems with keeping goldfish. Ie they are an active, fish that needs ample swimming room...Unless you have some of those weird fancy goldfish that have like six tails and dont swim fast nor far. Additionally they nibble on plants. They dig in your gravel, they eat a lot, they have a lot of waste products...etc...But you can absolutely positively keep goldfish in a planted tank. The problem lies in finding a balance.


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

OK people, you are lumping too many different types of fish together.

Koi (_cyprinus carpio_) are _related_ to goldfish but are _not_ goldfish. They can get up to 3 feet long (so they really are too big for tanks), and there are some reports of lifespans of over _200 years_. They are _voracious_ plant eaters. It's said if you want a Koi pond... you're not going to have _any_ pond plants because even a few Koi will eat _everything_ in sight.

Goldfish (_carassius auratus_) have been bred into DOZENS of different body shapes and types. The more "common" varities with a standard long body will have a _greater_ tendancy to pick at plants. This includes comets, which are basically commons with a long flowing tail. A "common" goldfish most closely resembles the "wild" goldfish - the Gibel Carp (also considered _carassius auratus_) - except Gibel Carps are usually a metallic dull brown color.

It is the goldfish with "egg-shaped" body mutations and very long flowing tails that are usually more peaceful, slow moving, and tend to avoid eating plants and even eggs and fry. This would include the orandas, the moors, the telescopes, and the pearscales.


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## figgy (Feb 27, 2005)

Hypancistrus,

Would you post a pic or two of your planted goldfish tanks? I'd love to see them--I'm still considering what to put in my newly planted 46 gal...

Figs


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

I posted a pic on page 1! roud:


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## figgy (Feb 27, 2005)

Thanks--I had to change to another computer to even realize there WERE pics on that thread [the mysteries of the cyberworld...]. I finally got to see them.

Now the wheels are turning--the 46 gal is already committed to planted W/ angelfish, but there's always room for one more tank! Do they prefer tall or wide?

Checking the koko site now...studying up on lillies

Figs


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## jeff63851 (Oct 17, 2004)

sigh...I have common goldfish that I saved from a school fair....and they are veryyy good plant eaters. The longest one of my walmart bulbs lived in there is like....two weeks. Just get some cheap plants and try. You don't want to buy some expencive plants and let it turn into a very expencive lunch. Well...maybe it's with common goldfish. The only plant that I ever had sucess was duckweed. Even if they eat them, they still grow back.

Good luck

-Jeff


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## Palisade (Feb 15, 2010)

*Setting up a planted tank with goldfish*

Hi all,

I’ve lurked on this forum for the past week to read and soak in as much as I could learn about planted aquariums. I’d kept fancy goldfish before in minimally planted 30g tank, with mechanical filter and weekly water changes until I got busy with school and work and became slacking off with the water change, then the filter broke down, and the goldies eventually died off. I still love goldfish and have contemplated to give myself another chance with a bigger tank, el natural.  Glad I found this thread.

Here are my thoughts and plan, and questions regarding my setup. Please feel free to critic and offer your suggestions in any part. Many thanks.

Tank: 120g, 4’x2’x2’

Light: 2x48” 54W HO T5 1red, 1 blue, spacing 8” apart under a homemade wood canopy. The underside of the canopy will be painted with silver paint to reflect light. I hope this light intensity is adequate for 120g tank, and allows the plant to grow and suck up CO2 from the fish. There will be no mechanical filtration and oxygenation other than the plants doing the work.

Substrate: Turface is affordable, but are light weight. So I plan to put 2” and top it off with 1” round river stones (marble size) so the goldfish can’t accidentally swallow into their stomach.

Plants: I read the forum threads about the “tough” plants, mainly crypt, val, anubias, swords, wisteria, hornwort. Will throw in goldies’ munching like anacharis. Please suggest any other tough plants for goldfish tank that you could think of. I would want a carpet of low growing grass in the foreground if the goldfish will not tear them up. I will let the plants grow and establish in 1-2 months before adding fish. In the beginning, some fert will be added to promote plant growth. Later, fish wastes will feed the plants, so no fertilizers would be added unless necessary. No adding CO2. Goldfish will provide CO2.

And I won’t forget the lovely duckweed, always goldies’ favorite. I plan to make a floating frame and use about 2 square feet of water surface to farm the duckweed right in the aquarium. This floating frame will have a fiber glass net on its bottom and around the 4 sides, and duckweed will grow inside this frame. Therefore the fish can not eat the duckweed unless I take some out of the frame to feed them. I thought about this scheme to contain duckweed growth in the aquarium, and to provide a constant source of veggie for the goldfish. The duckweed would also help to pull ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, phosphorous, etc... out of the water column. Together with other aquatic plants, they (hopefully) will render quality water which I don’t need to partially change at all, except to replenish the water due to evaporation (???) I will test water once every week, or every 2 weeks.

Fauna: maximum 5 fancy goldies (about 2” in size to begin with), likely oranda or veil tail, plus 10 apple snails, maybe a dozen of algae eater shrimps too.

That’s my plan to set up a minimum maintenance, low tech eco-system for goldfish as close to the El natural style of Diana Walstad as I can think of. Do you think it’s doable? What would you do otherwise?

Wayne


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