Water Temperature Options

[yckhor]

Hi, all.

I had recently purchased a 4' x 1.5' x 1.5' tank with sump.
however, I discovered that the water temperature is pretty high.
I can feel the water to be warm even in the morning.
Questions:
1. Do I need a chiller to cool down the water temperature?
2. What is the optimum water temperature for gold fish?
3. What type of lamp should be used? 6500K is for planted tank right? what about goldfish?
4. How many hours per day should we switch on the light?

I found that the GFs swim more lively in my outdoor tub that has a much lower water temperature, now that I move all except one calico ranchu. Please advice whether a chiller is necessary?

Was told by LFS (myth?),
1. chiller keeps water cool at 26 degree which is good to keep GFs colour?

Thank you for your kind advice.

P/S: great to see RG back online. Was shocked to see it went offline.... keep up the good work.

[CyberET]

when u say high, how high is high?
my outdoor tubs can hit 30degs during hot spells.
u want lamps for viewing fish or ?
your outdoor tub bigger is it? maybe the sun too bright, so the fish very active.

[greenhorn]

I have my heater in my goldfish that at all times set at 30 degree. So it this high? They are always active.

[CP]

I have my heater in my goldfish that at all times set at 30 degree. So it this high? They are always active.

Do away with the heater.Goldfish can tolerate up to freezing temperatures and besides, you are lowering the dissolved oxygen level in your tank.

[greenhorn]

Sometime I wish I can do away with the heater, even my discus does not require that. However, I tend to find more secure with heater and once off it, they are more prone to sickness. The dissolved oxygen level should be sufficient as the air pump are at full speed. The disadvantages are that I am not able to breed them due to lack of fluctuation in temperature.

[CP]

Heater is only used when treating the goldfish for diseases, eg to accelerate the cycle of ich when treating white spots.Other than that it is not necessary.You can keep them in air-conditioned room even, no problems.

When you have max aeration already the amount of DO in the water is temperature dependant.So suppose if you have max aeration at 24C, if you maintain the same aeration but increase the temperature the DO level will drop.
In other words, if you have moderate aeration at 24C but DO is already saturated, you will not increase the DO by increasing the aeration.I hope you get what I mean by "saturated DO, then its tempearture dependant."

[jhansolo]

actually I also used to put in a heater as 2ft temp change is big. But thinking back, if I'm still on a 2ft, I might just do that, but I never set it to 30. Back in those days I change the temp on the heater almost daily. the max I would go is 27

[CyberET]

aiyo.. ppl want water to be cold, u want it to be hot..

[goldrush]

goldfish are often classified under cold water fish and not under tropical fish so dont subject them to unnecessary heat treatment constantly.They will loose their lustre and coloration in no time

[skiver23]

i have a 2 ft tank with 2 4" ranchu..... it is place in my living room, do i need a heater ? if yes.. wat temp should i maintain the water ?

[CP]

I though it is pretty clear from all the replies that heater is NOT required?

[The Matrix]

i have a 2 ft tank with 2  4" ranchu..... it is place in my living room, do i need a heater ? if yes.. wat temp should i maintain the water ?

Small tank, mid size fish. Better think of how to maintaining the water condition than worry about temperature.

[engliang]

I though it is pretty clear from all the replies that heater is NOT required?

Hi,

I feel that putting a heater in the tank is not to heat up the water, but to help to maintain a constant temp for the fishes.

1. If I remember correctly, water gains and loses heat pretty fast.
Say at night, I believe water in the tank in the house can drop to maybe about 25C, while in the afternoon, can rise to about 29-30C? So this is about a 5C fluctuation. By using a heater set at 28C, the fluctuation reduces to about 1-2C.
Isn't a constant temp better for the fishes?

2. Many ppl always say goldfishes are coldwater fishes, which of course is true, and that they can tolerate v low temperatures. I feel that this is true for wild-bred goldfishes in the ponds where 4 seasons exist. However, those goldfishes that we bought at LFS are already domesticated and may not go throught the seasonal change. As such, I don't really believe these goldfishes can withstand high temp fluctuations.

Just my personal views.

[CyberET]

my outdoor tub goes up to 32 deg during a hot day, and down to 25 deg at night, my fish ok le, growing well.

will you be using a heater to warm the water up to 28deg before u change water?

har? i thought GFs u buy from lfs most of them are imported from 4 seasons china?

[desireless]

The fluctuations in our country is usually about 4-6^oC and this changes do not occur adruptly. SG is not like other climate countries where the temp fluctuation from day to night is usually more than 10^oC. The temp of the our tank water is a result of acclimating with the temp of the room, and the fish will not be subjected to shock, as in the case of the abrupt change in temp during water change.

Take the advices from our bros here - We do not advocate using of heater for goldfish in SINGAPORE. Most of us have been keeping goldfishes for many years without the use of heater (They only come to good use when treating sick or new fishes).

Of course, I cannot say the same for hobbyists in other countries. They'll need thermostat and heater so that temp will not go down too fast for their fishes to adapt.


Edit by CP - I've added the "not".I think desireless meant "do not".

This post has been edited by CP: Mon, 10 Oct 2005 3:58 pm