#GOLDFISH TANK WATER CHANGE MANUAL#

Once you’ve performed a water change and allow the tank some time to settle, you should check your water parameters using the test kit. Image Credit: JenJ_Payless, Shutterstock Now What? If you aren’t performing water changes on a regular basis, then you may be opening your fish up for illness.

This can help prevent infections, as well as creating an environment that isn’t hospitable to parasites and other undesirable critters. Routine water changes can help you ensure you are maintaining the healthiest environment for your goldfish. One of the most common causes of illness in goldfish is poor water quality. Not to mention that water changes also give you the opportunity to vacuum your substrate or tank bottom and to clean in and around décor and other places waste collects! Water changes help remove excess nitrate. Plants absorb nitrate as fertilizer, but they usually won’t remove all of it from the tank. It won’t, however, remove the nitrate from your tank. Adequate filtration will neutralize ammonia and nitrite, converting them to nitrate. You’ve got a good filtration system, so why should you perform water changes? Well, a good filtration system will only get you so far.

Related: Water Quality and Healthy Goldfish (5 Tips for Success)

#GOLDFISH TANK WATER CHANGE MANUAL#

If you used the manual method of siphoning instead of using the faucet, then you can follow steps 3-6 from the nano and small tank water changes. Make sure the end of the tubing is in your tank before you do this! Once you’ve filled your tank the appropriate level, turn off the sink, remove the siphon, and plug your electronics back in and turn them on. If you’re using the method involving your water changing system being connected to the faucet, then you can switch it over to “fill” and turn the sink back on. If you removed 30 gallons from your 75-gallon tank, then you should treat the tank for 30 gallons of new water. Using the water conditioner, treat your tank directly using the guidelines for the amount of water you will be adding into the tank. This will cut off the suction, stopping the water removal from the tank. If you used the method involving connecting the tubing to your faucet, then you should turn off the sink once you’re finished removing water. It covers everything from water conditioners to tank maintenance, and it also gives you full, hard copy access to their essential fishkeeping medicine cabinet! If you are looking for help to get the water quality just right for your goldfish family in their aquarium, or just want to learn more about goldfish water quality (and more!), we recommend you check out the best-selling book, The Truth About Goldfish, on Amazon today. If your water level is still too low, repeat steps 3 and 5. Make sure to double check that your water level is high enough for your filter to work properly and to at least hit the “fill line” on your heater. Once you’ve added the clean water to the tank, you can plug your electronics back in and restart everything. Slowly pour the clean water into the tank, taking care not to stress your fish or move tank plants or décor around. It’s a good idea to make sure the clean water is close to the temperature of your tank water to ensure you do not accidentally shock your fish. You can begin adding the clean water back to your tank at this point. Your water conditioner should remove chlorine and chloramines, and neutralizing ammonia and nitrite is a bonus but not a requirement. Allowing the water conditioner to sit in the clean water before you add it to the tank allows it time to neutralize or remove toxins before the clean water is added to the tank. Fill up your clean water container and add the water conditioner. This step and step 2 can be performed in an alternate order if you prefer. Image Credit: Andrey_Nikitin, Shutterstock 3. Think of the places in your tank where the most waste might accumulate and focus your vacuuming in those areas. Make sure you vacuum in crevices, the substrate, and in and around tank décor. You will either due this with a hand pump that is built into the tubing or by putting the end of the gravel vacuum into the tank, flipping it upside-down, and allowing it to fill with water until suction is created. If you forget to turn your filter off before removing water, you may burn out the motor. If you forget to turn your heater off before removing water, it may explode. Unplug everything to ensure water doesn’t drip into the outlet. Turn off the heater, filter, and other tank electronics. The 6 Steps for Goldfish Nano and Small Tank Water Changes 1.

Goldfish tank water change