Goldfish + Tropical!?

I don't know if anyone here would know.. but has anyone put a goldfish with tropical fish? Tropical fish need a heated aquarium and goldfish don't.. so does the heated water kill the goldfish?

Considering that goldfish can live in temps up to and possibly beyond 91 degrees... I don't think it would be a problem. :)

I know of plenty of people who put one or two goldies in with their tropicals to take care of snails (goldies are Awesome snail eaters). I myself used to have a mixed tank like that.

Just remember, tho, that goldies are one of the messiest fish out there and you'll need good filtration. I would say a good filter that's rated so your gallonage falls right in the middle of the range at least. :)

We had put two goldfish in with our tank- and there was problems. They seem to be.. More dirty than "regualr" fish, ad they began to kinda like, pollute the tank and it killed a few fish. So then we started cleaning the tank a lot more often then we ever had to- and one died, so we took the other out and put it in a fish bowl, where it lives for five years (maybe would have been more- but there was a bit of a grousome accident...).

Later on we talked to a guy at a really good fish store, and he said that it all happend because "normal" fish can not handle how dirty goldfish are, and that goldfish have trouble surviving in a clean enviorment that "normal" fish thrive in.., Weird, but it seems to make since with my own and toehrs exsperiances that I know of.

Yep, hence the need for a really good filter and regular cleaning. Goldfish are NASTY as far as wastes, and their wastes contain more bad chemistry than that of almost any other fish. When keeping them with others, you have to make sure to keep things clean...even when the water doesn't look bad, clean it up. :) That's the challenge with a seemingly no work fish.

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Originally Posted by Argentra

Yep, hence the need for a really good filter and regular cleaning. Goldfish are NASTY as far as wastes, and their wastes contain more bad chemistry than that of almost any other fish. When keeping them with others, you have to make sure to keep things clean...even when the water doesn't look bad, clean it up. :) That's the challenge with a seemingly no work fish.

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I have a 20gallon fishstyle tank with a filter thats capable of filtering 20-60gallons of water so I think I have a good filter for it. :]

We only have one goldfish, and would it eat a large snail if we wanted one? :[[ They can be good algae eaters and we wanted to get one of those + some algae eating sucker fish.

Thanks guys!

They're better at snails then at algae, and unless the snail fits in their mouth...expanded, they won't bother it. I had a few mystery snails in with some small goldies and they never touched them. My large plecos on the other hand sucked them right out of their shells. :)

I had two goldfish in my tropical tank for a little while...until they started eating the little fish! An outside pond was built for them and there they stay; happy, healthy and having babies galore!

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Originally Posted by Clementine_3

I had two goldfish in my tropical tank for a little while...until they started eating the little fish! An outside pond was built for them and there they stay; happy, healthy and having babies galore!

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What size/type of fish did they eat?

Plecos get pretty big.. I want to see if there are any smaller species that I can purchase.. :[

I had a rather large school of adult Neon tetras and they ate every last one of them! They also got some of my Ghost tetras and I'm pretty sure they got a few of the Harlequin Rasboras. When I put the goldfish in the tank they were very tiny but grew big fast (due to their fish diet I'm sure). I honestly didn't think they were big enough to eat the other fish but caught one one day. That was it, they got banished to a separate tank until the pond was ready for them. They truly were not that much bigger than the fish they were eating.

i had some big oscars that were eating goldfish. one day they didnt eat them all so we left 3 or 4 feeders in the tank and they were so messy an gross that they ended up killing the oscars. in fact because of them that tank became known as the tank of death because nothing could survive except the feeder goldfish. they ended up making little baby goldfish too. we ended up scrapping that tank (after a while the goldfish were attacking and killing one another so that we only had 1 left and he wasnt doing to well :grabbed:) we had to completely scrub the tank and everything in it before anything else could live. bottom line is i wouldnt put goldfish in with anything but goldfish. they are dirty and sometimes mean.:oops:

As everyone has stated, goldfish are messy fish requiring a good filtration system. Secondly, warm water accelerates their growth. Goldfish and koi are similar species. In warm water you can expect them to grow huge, and eat smaller tank mates.

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Originally Posted by blackcrystal22

I have a 20gallon fishstyle tank with a filter thats capable of filtering 20-60gallons of water so I think I have a good filter for it. :]

We only have one goldfish, and would it eat a large snail if we wanted one? :[[ They can be good algae eaters and we wanted to get one of those + some algae eating sucker fish.

Thanks guys!

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I have 3 fan tail goldies and they are filthy little guys! You are probably going to need a larger filter specially if you want an algae eater in there too. An algea eater will outgrow a 20 gallon tank in no time. You don't want to over populate your take since it will just crash and you will end up with some dead fish. I have a 30 gallon tank right now that has a 90GPH canister on it. When if comes to gold fish you will want to over do it on the filtration.

goldfish lack stomachs, that is why they are so messy, an no, i am not kidding. As far as mixing them with tropicals, I wouldn't do it, why? bc thier cold water fish, and tropical ones are well tropical, two different requirements. Goldfish get huge, and really if you want to raise them properly, a 125 gallon tank is recommended. Getting plecos for algae is kind of pointless too imo. Unless your going with something smaller such as a gold nugget, thier going to outgrow your tank (problem is though, the fancier the type, the less algae they seem to eat, and the 'normal' plecos tend to eat less algae as they grow as well). Also, keep in mind that the pleco won't be able to thrive off algae and algae alone, so they will have to eat either leftover food, or algae waffers. Ive seen some commons well on thier way to two feet, so thier not really a good option for your tank. Those are some problems, and as far as filteration, unless your doing a lot of water changes, you simply do not have enough. Sure your water may be clear, but that does not mean your water chemistry is still at the appropriate levels.

I'm with Warm-Blooded, I would never house cold water and tropical fish. Just because they can live together doesn’t mean they should. And often times the ph and hardness of the two species are not compatible but people often ignore that because it's easy to neglect that part of fishkeeping.

Personally, I wouldn't keep goldfish and tropicals together for all the reasons already mentioned. Also because I keep real plants in my tropical tanks and goldfish eat them all.


As far as algae eater... plecos are useless, so here's what you need:

1. Otocinclus catfish (aka oto-cats in the aquarium world) are voracious eaters of algae. They only get about 2 inches long, so get a small group of them.

2. Ancistrus- there are a variety of species which all remain under 5 inches long. We keep bristlenose ancistrus currently. They do eat algae throughout their entire lives. They can be expensive, though, but are well worth the investment.

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Originally Posted by desertpirate

Personally, I wouldn't keep goldfish and tropicals together for all the reasons already mentioned. Also because I keep real plants in my tropical tanks and goldfish eat them all.


As far as algae eater... plecos are useless, so here's what you need:

1. Otocinclus catfish (aka oto-cats in the aquarium world) are voracious eaters of algae. They only get about 2 inches long, so get a small group of them.

2. Ancistrus- there are a variety of species which all remain under 5 inches long. We keep bristlenose ancistrus currently. They do eat algae throughout their entire lives. They can be expensive, though, but are well worth the investment.

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I decided to move the goldfish to a separate tank a while ago.
I never had a pleco or planned on getting one. I currently have an actual ALGAE EATER. That's its actual name that was given to me.

I have a peppered catfish as well. Are those useful for algae?

Without pictures I would guess that the peppered catfish is probably a corydoras catfish. They don't eat algae but they do a great job of cleaning up all the crud on the ground level of the tank (leftover food, etc.).

If you post a picture of your "algae eater" or link to one that looks like it I'm sure that someone here could identify it for you! Without an id it's hard to say what it might eat...

I'm guessing if it was sold to you as such, based on availability it is most likely a chinese algae eater aka Gyrinocheilus aymonieri, or an oto like desertpirate allready mentioned.

Gold fish have a more acidic slime coat as well.....they pollute the water on many many levels causing most tropicals far more harm then good.

I have kept and bred tropical fish for nearly 20 years and the rule of thumb is dont mix golds with anything other then carps, which they are realated to.

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Originally Posted by Warm-blooded

I'm guessing if it was sold to you as such, based on availability it is most likely a chinese algae eater aka Gyrinocheilus aymonieri, or an oto like desertpirate allready mentioned.

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Yup!
http://www.aquariumlife.net/profile-...lgae-eater.jpg

This is what my catfish looks like.
http://www.dkimages.com/discover/pre...2/45007064.JPG
He's very tiny. A Peppered Cory Cat is supposed to be his name.

Chinese algae eaters get big and aggressive. They're known to eat the slime coat off of tankmates and leave bite wounds as evidence. Not something I'd want in my tank. Return it while you can... They can get nearly a foot long!

Another vote for the bristlenose pleco over here. They stay pretty small and are good algae eaters.

I'm glad you've decided against mixing goldfish with tropicals :).

Algea eaters get huge as stated before and are mean. Flying foxes are a type of algea eater and they do not get that huge or are aggressive. If u cant find bristlenose u can also try rubber lip plecos almost all petsmart has them. Cories are cute but they like groups 3+ if u can. Otos also like groups. :)

personally i think gold fish should be kept by themselfs.
they are messy.
they urinate PURE amonia.

and if you dont keep up on it... they will kill everything.