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AL M
Lv 7
AL M asked in PetsFish · 1 decade ago

Lighting Aquariums & Q about Gold fish?

Just got a small aquarium kit for my kids. Kit came with filtration system and lighting. Currently has 2 Gold fish about an Inch long.

Q#1 - Do they need lighting all the time? During the day I turn it off because there is a lot of natural sunlight coming in the room, not directly hitting the aquarium, but during night time when we go to sleep, it becomes nearly pitch black in that room - do they need lighting?

Q#2. My gold fish are acting weird. They swim vertical up the surface of the water and open their mouths like they are gasping for air. They do this for a long time, I thought they just need feeding, but when I put fish food they suck it up and blow it out right away. Eventually they would go down and swim as usual. Is this normal?

So far its been 4 days and the fish are still alive.

Update:

Thanks!

Not sure if I can return the fish.

I will probably look for a bigger tank, and will remember to keep it away from sunlight.

3 Answers

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  • Sibyl
    Lv 7
    1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    1. Lighting is not necessary unless you have plants. Keeping it on for extended periods will encourage algae growth.

    2. Your goldfish are suffocating because the tank is too small, and not cycled. Their waste builds up and poisons them.

    I would honestly return the goldfish. Goldfish produce a lot of waste and grow fairly large- they are not good starter fish, especially if you haven't done any research on their care. I wouldn't recommend a single goldfish for anything less than 20 gallons.

    Determine the volume of your tank so you can stock it correctly.

  • 1 decade ago

    well for the first question, if their getting sunlight, it isn't good. sunlight causes a lot of algae and isnt good for a aquarium. during the day, it would be better if you kept it on all day but at night time you have to turn it off. it will make too much algae. for the 2nd question, well it can be alot of things. maybe your not getting enough oxygen. gold fish need bubbelers or some sort of oxygen under the water and if they dont get it, they would go to the surface and breath from there. them spitting out their food is normal for the most part. as long as they eat something, but if they spit out EVERYTHING then their might be something wrong. espeacially if they look skinny. hope this helped

    Source(s): i had them before and researched it.
  • mulock
    Lv 4
    5 years ago

    The clear out needs to run in any respect cases, it fairly is what maintains their little environment. you attempt to imitate their organic environment, and that's a delicate stability. the mild ought to basically be used around 10 hours. think of of it as protecting their organic habitat. The sunlight is in simple terms out area of the time. we don't turn our lights furniture on until eventually overdue afternoon specific cases of the 365 days, the sunlight is sufficient in our living house. (no direct image voltaic, in spite of the undeniable fact that.) Their night cycle must be comparable to yours, it particularly is the terrific way. too plenty mild reasons extra algae advance. for that reason, shop your tank faraway from direct image voltaic, and don't place it without postpone close to a window. in the journey that your tank is already close to a window, shop the blinds or curtains closed, so the organic mild will nevertheless clear out in, yet no direct image voltaic will. The direct image voltaic will additionally warmth your tank slightly extra, and because they're goldfish, that would desire to be undesirable. For care, determine you're protecting weekly water ameliorations and gravel vacuums. Goldfish are the "dirtiest" of fish, meaning they launch multiple ammonia with their general waste, so the weekly maintenance is a would desire to. try their water oftentimes, besides. you need to purchase the try kits at your community fish shop. I shop a fish magazine. I checklist tank temperatures, water parameters, clear out ameliorations, any ameliorations I be conscious interior the tank, and so on. it fairly is totally powerful, i individually propose doing that. feels like plenty, yet like something, once you get into the habit, you do no longer particularly think of roughly it. sturdy success, have exciting, that's a dazzling and constructive pastime. wish i've got helped!

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