A Little Worried

Dori Nori & Ori

Dori Nori & Ori

New Fish
#1
Jun 26, 2013
2
0
0
Oregon
#1
I have 3 goldfish in a 10 gallon. (yes I know it's a bit small but that's what I found them in and I don't have the money to get a bigger one.)

Today I went to do a 25% change cus the temp keeps going up and I don't want it to get to hot for them.
I noticed the water was a faint orange/pink color and tested it.
Ammonia-4-8ppm
Nitrite-.50-1ppm
Nitrate-0-5ppm

What would be the best way to fix all this?
 

CAPSLOCK

CAPSLOCK

Elite Fish
#2
Jul 19, 2004
3,682
33
48
39
Cape Cod
#2
Change out a larger portion of water (with dechlorinator) - with ammonia that high (that is VERY high) you will probably want to change 75-90% for a few days in a row. Just make sure the water you are adding back is roughly the same temp as the water you are removing.

Alternatively (or additionally), you can use a product like Ammo-Lock or Prime, which will de-toxify the ammonia. Those products do reduce the dissolved oxygen in the water, so make sure there is good water movement if you use one.

What is the temp now? Sometimes a simple fan across the surface will bring the temp down more than you would think. Also, unless you have LED lights the lights do heat up the tank some, so you could either have them on reduced hours or wait until the evening so they aren't adding heat during the hottest part of the day. Assuming you don't have live plants.
 

achase

achase

Large Fish
#3
Feb 1, 2010
765
0
0
British Columbia, Canada
#3
I agree with CAPSLOCK. Continue doing large water changes. Are you planning on getting a larger tank for your 3 goldfish eventually? If you don't want to buy a used tank sometimes you can find tank deals at LFS. In a 10 gallon tank, I expect that you will continue to have trouble with your ammonia level and will have to do large water changes regularly.
 

Dori Nori & Ori

Dori Nori & Ori

New Fish
#5
Jun 26, 2013
2
0
0
Oregon
#5
I'll change the water before I go to work tomorrow.

The temp is at 75-78 now, but it was 82-86 the past week which is why I was worried about that.

I would get a bigger tank, but I would have to move out of the dorms cus we're only allowed a 10 when we live here. I found these guys by the dumpsters during move out week here, that's why I have them now.

The only light I have is a lamp that doesn't even point at the water, more above the tank, and not LED.
 

R

Rotaripsnoc

Large Fish
#6
Feb 18, 2013
194
0
0
#6
Your actions are noble by saving them from their fate, however you might want to donate them to a local fish store, if you want to keep fish, a Betta would enjoy a 10 gal tank, and they can be very pretty, and reasonably easy to take care of in a tank that size.

If you're going to keep them, tomorrow might be too late for the water stats, they are likely already feeling the affects of being poisoned. If possible your best bet would be to use a pot, pan, cup or glass fill it with some of their tank water, only enough to cover them when swimming ( for now ) and place them in it, either let it sit in their tank, or net them. Then remove all the water from the tank minus enough to cover the substrate and any in a filter if there is one.

Dechlorinate enough water to fill the tank, and dump it all again, fill it up a second time if possible add your fish to a large freezer bag, and let them float for 15-30 min to adjust water temps. When the water matches, net them out of the bag and add them to the clean water, don't pour the water from the bag, as it will contain the high levels of Ammonia \ Nitrites, and your new nearly 0/0/0 tank will spike again.

Long term:

if you keep 3 goldfish in the tank you'll be dealing with 50 % or more water changes per day.
 

J

JimmyTaper

New Fish
#7
Jul 5, 2013
7
0
0
#7
Keep it simple and do huge water changes daily 65%+ and buy chems for the ammonia
when the ammonia level goes down to normal levels youll know your done doing huge water changes.& A 40 gallon tank will probably only cost you 60 or less on craigslist lololol cx
 

FreshyFresh

FreshyFresh

Superstar Fish
#8
Jan 11, 2013
1,337
23
38
East Aurora, NY
#8
Welcome Dori.

The best way to fix all this is put the fish in a proper environment.

Based on your avatar pic, those are comet goldfish. Comets are pond fish. They can grow to over a foot long. Sure, they can live in a bowl or tiny tank given proper care, but they won't live well at all. You could probably manage 2-3 of them in a 55g tank, but it's not ideal.

It's said that fancy/fantailed goldfish require a 20g tank for one and an additional 10g for each additional fantail. If it's fantails that you have, they would need a ~40g tank.

Keep in mind Petco's $1/gal sale on tanks.
 

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