Hi there,
I have had my 21 litre tank for a month and a half now! I currently have 2 shubunkins (colourful goldfish). I do a partial water change every week and siphon out thir gravel from gunk every month!
They have a filter in their tank (elite stingray one), But the question is do they need an areator? because i was thinking i could get one and hook it up to a special typr of toy you get in pet shops that let out the oxygen!
So do i need one?
Also how far down the tank wall do i place the filter? i have it about one inch below the surface right now! oh and btw i use the nessacery water conditioners and suppliments!
Oh sometimes i see them at the surface but for only like twice a day for a few seconds!
Thanks for looking!!
Answers:
You don't need an aerator, unless you want one. Your fish aren't gasping for breath, most filters provide adequate aeration. If you are really worried about the oxygen i recommend moving the filter so that the out end is close enough to the water line to "agitate" the surface. This adds more than enough oxygen.
Also i recommend that every few weeks you take the filter apart to clean the mechanical parts. many sources have told me that the stingray kind clogs easily. If your filter is clogged, it will not be able to process as much water as it should and your fish could get very sick.
Go ahead and put your aerator at the bottom. This will create a bubble curtain that the fish love to swim in and also carry more bubbles to the top to break and help oxygenate the water.
The bubblers are fun to watch and the fish do like to swim in them, but they don't provide any additional aeration to the water. All of that oxygen is carried to the surface where it then breaks and escapes into the atmosphere. First, for two shubunkins, you need a 152 liter tank. If these fish are properly taken care of, they will grow to 2 feet long, and even 6-8 inches is more than inevitable unless this 21 liter tank kills them first. As I already mentioned, no, they don't need an aerator, filtration provides adequate aeration, but goldfish require massive amounts of filtration. For a 21 liter tank, you would need a 210 lph filter. Until you can properly upgrade, I would suggest twice weekly water changes of 20%. Good luck and goldies rule!
Hi Edward, I agree with the above %26 would also suggest you siphon the loose gunk %26 debris out during each of those partial water changes %26 not leave it a whole month, also you really need to be looking for a 21 GALLON tank as quickly as possible.
