1g aquarium, 2 goldfish, what do i do?!

mHeinitz57

try to give them back to the pet store...fantails don't do as well in ponds as straight-tailed Goldfish. You could put a betta in the 1 gallon but you could also put in african dwraf frog, cory catfish, white clouds, or danios. If you don't put a betta in there a colorful Dwarf Gourami would do well in there too. Most people on here will tell you you can only have an inch of fish per gallon but there are a lot more factors to that and you really could keep 2 or 3 of the fish I mentioned in there given that you keep up on tank maintenance. They are sold as tropical fish but will withstand colder temps (same as a betta would).

Falina

I personally would not recommend danios or cories. They are both schooling fish and on top of that they like a fair bit of swimming space and are active. Not saying it couldn't be done but I don't think they would be very happy fishes.

fish_4_all

Unfortuntely a 1 gallon is not good for many if any fish at all. Petsmart should have 10 gallon tank for around $10. If you get a good sponge filter and an airstone then you could get a lot of different small fish to put in there. A heater will also be needed for most fish except Goldfish.

If I remember my numbers right, I can get a full 10 gallon setup with HOB filter, tank, heater and gravel for around $40 from Wal-mart. Although I don't recommend the AquaView filters they will work in a pinch.

If you get the 20 gallon it will work for quite a while for the Goldfish. I would still try to take them back though and get some danios for cycling the tank. 8-12 of them in a 20 gallon should be enough to cycle it fairly well and not have a huge ammonia problem. If they won't take them back use them to cycle the tank and then get the fish you want for it and find someone who wants the goldies.

BTW, I want to commend you for coming here and getting good information to help your fish survive and turn this into a pleasureable experience that I hope will grow on you.

00ej8

I took the two fantails back today, and the girl picked out a blue betta. I put a fake plant in there (since I read that bettas like foliage), and he seems to be very happy. I am buying a test kit soon so I can keep track of my levels and see when the tank has fully cycled.

What do you recommend for water changes, I read that distilled water is no good since it has no minerals in it.

leifthebunny

For water changes, while the tank is cycling, as needed. Once the tank is cycled, depending on the tank 25-30% once a week.

As for distilled water, it can cause swings in water conditions. You want to keep your water source consistent as your fish will won't handle constant condition changes. The same could be said about going a month without doing a water change and then deciding to do a 50% water change.