Hi,

I'm new to the forum. I have more tanks than I need (!), but want to add one more dedicated to fancy goldfish.

I'm nearly out of room so I'm considering a hexagon tank. Right now I'm bidding on a 75 gallon regular hex on ebay and have some questions about using it for goldies.

Over the years I've learned that "Light is Right" as far as stocking goes and don't plan to keep more than 3-4 goldfish in even this volume of water. If I use tons of bubble rope and a good aerating filter and keep to this few fish--would it be okay to use it for goldfish? Will their troublesome little squnched-up [that's a technical term] swim bladders allow them comfortable use of a tank like this?

Many thanks for your advice!

Aqua

Hexagon tanks generally aren't the best for goldfish. The big reason
is they are big air pigs and need lots of surface area for water. A
hex tank doesn't allow for much surface area, while a rectangular
shape does. The other main reason is, goldfish like to swim side
to side (lengthwise of tank) rather than up and down.

Now, if you were to have a 75 gal tank with a rectangle shape, the
stocking level you mentioned would be great. It's recommended for
fancy goldfish to have a minimum of 10 gallons of water per fish.
With more being better. Another thing to consider is the filter(s).
You'll want 10x the amount of water--75 gallon tank-750 gph of
filter.

I agree about the tank shape. I have a 20 gallon hex tank now and I had ?s about the fact that they seemed to start having a hard time getting to the bottom. That is when I learned that the tank shaped wasn't the best. I am working on getting a regular rectangle 75 gallon set up now. DH is building me a stand for it. Anyways if you can, I would go for a different shape so you'll be happy in the long run.

Hi and Thanks,

I'm going to go with your good advice and save myself some money at the same time. I have a 38 gallon rectangular Eclipse sitting around unused which is probably a better choice. Right now it has the Eclipse filter set up on it. Would that be enough filtration or will I need another filter, maybe an HOB?

Would 3 goldfish be okay? Maybe just 2? That's going to be a tough choice--they are ALL so gorgeous!!!

Aqua

As I am unfamiliar with the exact specs of the eclipse filters - Do you have any idea of the gph of the filter? A recommended rate is 10X number of gallons. So for a 38 gal tank you want approx 380 gall per hour filtration rate.

Hope this helps!

I think your 38 gallon will work great for you. You could probably be fine with 3 fish. Everyone always suggests AT LEAST 10 gallons per fish so you would have an extra 8 gallons so they should have plenty of room. It is very hard to limit yourself when picking out new fish! Good luck with everything