I have just started up a tank on my patio using a 300 gallon Rubbermaid livestock tank. It will supplement my 125 gallon traditional in-ground goldfish pond.

Follow my adventures in small pond fish raising at my blog, Big Puddle.

I've just obtained a 100 gallon rubbermaid stock tank and intend to stock it with common goldfish. Can you recommend a filter for it (specific brand name and model)? Most of the filters on the pond supply websites seem to be intended for much larger ponds. I know that I need to "over filter" water for goldfish, but a filter intended for a 1500 gallon pond would be overkill! Thanks for any advice that you can offer me...

Being Scotch, I bought a filter box at a home supply store for about $30 for my small 125 gallon pond. I found a great pump at Harbor Freight, just $25 for 250 gal/hour. The filter box came with two layers of mechanical foam filtration and some poorly made plastic bio-balls. I replaced the bio-balls with Supra media, which I find the best. If you can't find Supra, just buy Bio-Max ceramic tubes at any aquarium/pond store. My investment totalled only about $60.

There are ready-made one piece filter kits that work for a little more money. They are rated for 200-250 gallons, so they are good for 100. The Pondmaster 190 costs $80 and can be found at most pond/aquarium stores, and Lowe's sells a Tetra one piece pump/filter combo (CFK 250) for $79. I would still change the biological media if I bought either of those.