kind of a dumb question but . . .

[~Erik3.8.07~]

can too much oxygen in the water be bad for a fish? i have a fantail goldfish

[Rue]

I don't fully understand...but I know supersaturated natural waters can result in fish deaths...so I assume the same could be said of aquarium water...

...there is more air in cold water than hot...which is why goldfish don't do well in warm water...they're O2 deprived...and I know that gas exchange occurs on the surface of the water...that why airstones and bubblers are good...they aggetate the tank surface, the airbubble don't diffuse directly into the water column...

[~Erik3.8.07~]

basically what i meant was can u over oxygenate the water? causing fungus or algae or anything to grow faster that would be harmful to the fish also about how often would u need to clean the gravel in a 10 gallon tank with just one goldfish?

[Nick_Pavlovski]

If the goldfish is not an elaborate, long-flowing fin, slow moving type, then it will be damned hardy. You can keep it in green water and it'll be ok.

It's the quality of life you want to give it, that should match how often you want to clean it.
Goldfish are messy fish, and their faeces can build up.

I used to rinse my gravel thoroughly once a month (and agitate it with my fingers while doing so) while my Black Moors used to sit in a bucket on the floor beside me.

[Chrona]

You can never over-oxygenate the water, unless you have ammonia in the tank, in which case oxygenation (bubblers) reduces CO2 levels, raising pH and making ammonia more toxic. Algae, while unsightly, is actually good for the fish to a certain extent. It absorbs nitrates, nitrites and ammonia from the water and is a source of food for some fish.

[~Erik3.8.07~]

i have another quick question, from ur guys experience what works better to ge rid of algea, a algea eater or those scrub things? or both?

[Rue]

For a goldfish tank? Definately scrubbing!

For tropical tanks...scrubbing and some algae eaters...the oto cats do an excellent job of eating algae off plant leaves...in fact my lone surviver I think has had a LOT to do with ridding my tank of my hair algae...

[Incredulous_Ed]

You'd be better off with scrubbing the algae off the walls and other stuff.

[Nick_Pavlovski]

Scrubbing with those magnetic scrapers, scrubbing using an old toothbrush or other brush only ever well rinsed in plain water then kept in tank water (after a water change).

When I was younger I used to keep a big snail in my goldfish tanks to help keep down the algae, but you couldn't force it to always clean the glass...

[~Erik3.8.07~]

ok thx for the tips guys