Enforced Choice - Chlorine Or Ammonia

[Aljy]

I know goldfish are not tropical fish, but I need help fast and this could apply equally to tropicals.

Unavoidable circumstances have temporarily left me with a large goldfish in too small a tank. Now the fish is suffering ammonia poisoning and I need to know which of the two courses of action I should take. I can either replace the water in the tank with chlorinated water straight out of the tap, or leave the fish as it is until the chlorine leaves the water I've set up for a water change. Can anybody please tell me which is the lesser of the two evils?

I know there are chemicals available to get rid of these toxins, but I live right out in the sticks and can't get them easily. Unless somebody knows of a homebrew solution, I'm stuck with the choice of changing the water now or leaving it until later.

I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions.

 

[mattbleasby]

Do you have access to Rain Water...? I have heard of people using this in there tanks, Im sure someone with a bit more knowledge may come along.

In fairness though, You should not been keeping fish from the sounds of it. This fish will die eitherway without The correct water setup. You really need to get out of the "Sticks" and get some De-chlorinater then everything will be ok

 

[StandbySetting]

Do the water changes, if you do have chlorine you can remove a lot of it by agitating the water, however if your water contains chloramine that is a different matter, I'd still do the water changes however, this is quite possibly the most bizarre question you've ever heard, but do you have access to a thiosulphate salt?

 

[Aljy]

Do you have access to Rain Water...? I have heard of people using this in there tanks, Im sure someone with a bit more knowledge may come along.

In fairness though, You should not been keeping fish from the sounds of it. This fish will die eitherway without The correct water setup. You really need to get out of the "Sticks" and get some De-chlorinater then everything will be ok

Unless it really starts chucking it down tonight, water from a nearby river or loch is about the only rain water I can get.

I've been keeping fish for years. The "circumstances" I mentioned are that I had the fish in a pond in my mum's garden. My mum died recently and the pond was filled in. The tanks I had were suitable when I first got the fish, but the fish has outgrown them.

 

[mattbleasby]

Im sorry too hear about your Mum. Unfortunately i know how you feel.

But you really do need to get some water treatment, it will be horrible too hear you have lost the fish i dont know what else too recommend. Ill have a little google now.

 

[Aljy]

Do the water changes, if you do have chlorine you can remove a lot of it by agitating the water, however if your water contains chloramine that is a different matter, I'd still do the water changes however, this is quite possibly the most bizarre question you've ever heard, but do you have access to a thiosulphate salt?

Great, thanks. I know the water is not treated with chloramine, so that's not a problem.

As far as I know, no access to thiosulphate salt.

 

[StandbySetting]

In that case when you get the water out of the tap set it at the highest pressure and literally blast it into the bucket, any other remaining chlorine will soon gas off.

 

[Aljy]

In that case when you get the water out of the tap set it at the highest pressure and literally blast it into the bucket, any other remaining chlorine will soon gas off.

I've always done this. The water I used has been standing for about 6 hours already, which should help. I also know that chlorine dissipates faster if the water is boiled and left to cool, so I've done a bit of that, too.

I've done a partial water change of about 40% for now and set up more water in preparation for tomorrow if things don't start looking up.

Unfortunately, it's not looking very promising for the goldfish right now. Shocking how quickly it's gone downhill. It looked perfectly healthy this time last night. Just have to wait and see how it goes now and see if I can order a bigger tank in the morning /

Thanks for the help guys.

 

[Aljy]

Just a quick note to say thanks to mattbleasby and StandbySetting. I really didn't think my fish was going to last the night, but it's much more active now and showing signs of improvement.

The new tank won't arrive until Tuesday, so until then I'll be doing partial water changes on a daily basis as a precaution. I also managed to get my hands on dechlorinator - a 70 mile round trip, but it was worth it - and plan on building a more powerful filter in the morning to add to the one I already have. Hopefully that will prevent the same thing happening again.

Thanks again guys,
Aljy & Goldie the 7.5 inch goldfish.

 

[fluttermoth]

Best of luck guys and condolences for your mum

 

[mattbleasby]

Sounds too me like you have got is sussed Cant wait for updates.

 

[Aljy]

Thought I should give you guys the latest news.

Goldie went from sitting motionless on the bottom of the tank and eating nothing to moving around normally and feeding like a half starved shark in the space of 2 days - about the same time it took her to go from looking healthy to looking that sick in the first place.

I wasn't able to get the new filter fixed up due to problems with getting bits to connect properly. I should have it going by tomorrow. The water changes and minor improvements to the existing filter (including the addition of a few "filter bugs" I added to the pond filters from time to time) seem to have brought everything under control anyway.

The best news is that the new 23 gallon tank arrived yesterday and apart from the ugly black marks that I understand are a sign of healing ammonia burns, she looks a lot happier and more comfortable in her new home. Obviously, I would have prefered to cycle the tank first, but desperate measures and all that...

Just to add that filter and get some plants, then I think I'm set to give my wee pal all the care she needs and deserves

 

[mattbleasby]

Sounds like you have it sorted? Pictures? Just add all the media from the other filter too the new one and you can carry on where you left off