Small aquarium; how many goldfish?

[makoisland]

I don't know if how many of you have goldfish, but I have a question. I'm planning on getting about three goldfish in a few months. I have an approximately 5-gallon aquarium that I'm planning to put them in; will this be too small for three small goldfish?
And if so, how big a tank would I need for three small ones?
Thanks!

[MandiceP]

5 gallons is too small for goldfish period. Sorry. You need at least a 20 gallon aquarium for fancy goldfish, and the common comet goldfish can get as large as koi and need a very large tank! 5 gallons is a great size for a betta tho! LOL

[makoisland]

Originally Posted by MandiceP

5 gallons is too small for goldfish period. Sorry. You need at least a 20 gallon aquarium for fancy goldfish, and the common comet goldfish can get as large as koi and need a very large tank! 5 gallons is a great size for a betta tho! LOL

Are there any goldfish that don't get very big?

[MandiceP]

Not really. Even the fancies get pretty big. It's not just that tho. They produce a huge bioload as they are really messy fish so they will make a 5 gallon have way too much ammonia and such for the fish to be able to survive. You'd have to change the water way too often to keep it clean and that is bad for you cycle. That's another thing. You also want to make sure you fully cycle the tank first. I still don't recommend Goldfish in anything smaller than a 20 gallon.

[makoisland]

Thanks!

[Badjer]

Yes, PLEASE do not put a goldfish in something that small. Fancies require much larger, heavily filtered set ups and comets really do best in ponds. Goldfish really aren't low maintenance fish like they're rumored to be. In small tanks or bowls, they will actually stunt and it will kill them. If you're still interested in some goldfish, I highly recommend talking to thekoimaiden who is a member here. She has both koi and goldfish and knows a lot. (:

[PhilipPhish]

There are always those small feeder gold fishies. They aren't real gold fish, but they are colorful and quite neat to watch. You could probably keep a few in a 5 gallon.

[styggian]

Originally Posted by PhilipPhish

There are always those small feeder gold fishies. They aren't real gold fish, but they are colorful and quite neat to watch. You could probably keep a few in a 5 gallon.

Feeder goldfish are the common goldfish, and grow up to a foot. Goldfish of any kind do not belong in small tanks. Fancies grow up to about 8 inches and Koi carp grow up to 36 inches.

[PhilipPhish]

Oh... i feel kinda stupid now! Lol!
We feed them to our oscar so i never see them bigger than the ones they sell.
There's feeder guppies. At my lfs their 25 cents a dozen. They breed like rabbits though....
Or you can get fancy guppies.

[Olympia]

The general rule is 20 gallons for 1 fancy goldfish, then 10 gallons for each additional one. So for 3 youd need 40 gallons. The minimum would be 30 gallons since you need at least 2 :/
Yes it's a lot of room, but they've been bred for centuries to live in ponds, not gold fish bowls, so it makes sense. A goldfish is basically a mini carp.