Introduce Me to Coldwater, Please!

[PlasticGalaxy]

So, eventually I'd like to branch out into coldwater tanks, and I thought that starting with this thread would be helpful for the future when/if I do decide to start up a coldwater tank. I've got a couple questions and a few misconceptions that I'd like to clear up before I start doing proper research.

1. Is coldwater as easy as its made out to be? Since it's usually the "beginner" type for tanks, I had assumed it was rather simple compared to tropical or marine.

2. How vast is coldwater fishkeeping? All I really see is dojo loaches and goldfish, so what else is there to it?

3. Are the fish involved in coldwater generally hardier than tropical fish? Are they more, less, or equally prone to disease as tropical fish are?

4. Is there less equipment involved in coldwater tanks?

5. What fish are good as "beginners"?

Any and all answers welcome! Interested in panda moors and ryukins mainly right now, but my tastes are always subject to change.

 

[Herpin Man]

I’ve kept a few cold water tanks over the years, stocked with natives that I’ve collected myself. It’s not particularly difficult, however many species require live food, and not all plants will thrive in colder temps.

 

[Essjay]

I don't know much about the specifics of cold water tanks but I can answer some of your points.

1. Cold water tanks are the same as tropical freshwater as far as maintenance is concerned, though with gold fish being messy fish you do need to keep up with maintenance.

4. The only difference in equipment is that cold water tanks don't need a heater. But see below.

2. A lot of fish sold as cold water are actually temperate fish. True cold water fish can be kept in an outdoor pond in the UK. The fancy gold fish like the panda moors and ryukins you mention could not survive outdoors in the UK in winter.
This means that if the room the tank is in gets very cold in the middle of a cold winter night, you may need a heater set to something like 18 deg C.
Apart from native fish as Herpin Man mentioned, there are few true cold water fish allowed to be sold in the UK as non-native fish could be released into the wild and survive and then play havoc with the ecosystem.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

I’ve kept a few cold water tanks over the years, stocked with natives that I’ve collected myself. It’s not particularly difficult, however many species require live food, and not all plants will thrive in colder temps.

I'm assuming elodea densa would do just fine in coldwater, since it's found in ponds? Same with duckweed.

I don't know much about the specifics of cold water tanks but I can answer some of your points.

1. Cold water tanks are the same as tropical freshwater as far as maintenance is concerned, though with gold fish being messy fish you do need to keep up with maintenance.

Yes... I've read a lot about how messy goldfish can be! Cleaning up others' messes is kind of fun though, so I'm sure I'd be able to manage!

4. The only difference in equipment is that cold water tanks don't need a heater. But see below.

2. A lot of fish sold as cold water are actually temperate fish. True cold water fish can be kept in an outdoor pond in the UK. The fancy gold fish like the panda moors and ryukins you mention could not survive outdoors in the UK in winter.
This means that if the room the tank is in gets very cold in the middle of a cold winter night, you may need a heater set to something like 18 deg C.
Apart from native fish as Herpin Man mentioned, there are few true cold water fish allowed to be sold in the UK as non-native fish could be released into the wild and survive and then play havoc with the ecosystem.

Wow, definitely didn't know that! I'm not a huge fan of pond fish (aside from Japanese koi) so I'll keep my mind set on "temperate" rather than true coldwater fish.

Thanks for the tips and extra knowledge!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I'm assuming elodea densa would do just fine in coldwater, since it's found in ponds? Same with duckweed.

It will grow OK, just not near as fast.

If you plan to take it from your tropical tanks and add it to your future cold water tank/pond, you will definitely need to do a long drip acclimation. If you don’t, the plants will have a very difficult time growing and will most likely die in the first week. (It’s similar to Anacharis “melts”, in the sense that it will die if it’s subject to a sudden, dramatic temperature change)

Are you wanting to do a tank or a pond?

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

It will grow OK, just not near as fast.

If you plan to take it from your tropical tanks and add it to your future cold water tank/pond, you will definitely need to do a long drip acclimation. If you don’t, the plants will have a very difficult time growing and will most likely die in the first week. (It’s similar to Anacharis “melts”, in the sense that it will die if it’s subject to a sudden, dramatic temperature change)

Gotcha. The elodea I got from the local shop (not known for it's fantastic quality, I will say) basically just fell apart when I put in my 54L, soooo... Guess I've learned my lesson with that?

Are you wanting to do a tank or a pond?

Most likely a tank, we rent and only just got the OK to put in a patio so, while a pond would be great, I might be waiting a while.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Gotcha. The elodea I got from the local shop (not known for it's fantastic quality, I will say) basically just fell apart when I put in my 54L, soooo... Guess I've learned my lesson with that?

Most likely a tank, we rent and only just got the OK to put in a patio so, while a pond would be great, I might be waiting a while.

You might be able to do an above ground pond, assuming you get your parents permission.

My parents would definitely let me get a pond, over another tank in the house.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

You might be able to do an above ground pond, assuming you get your parents permission.

My parents would definitely let me get a pond, over another tank in the house.

Could do... My grandparents have a pond, they've got some bog-standard koi in there. Looks quite nice.

 

[OliveFish05]

We have a pond! DON’T DIG ONE YOURSELF, it’s not worth it /joking

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

We have a pond! DON’T DIG ONE YOURSELF, it’s not worth it /joking

The real joke here is that you assume I'd do physical labour! ?
Living for someone actually using tone indicators on here, though! Makes me happy!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

The real joke here is that you assume I'd do physical labour! ?
Living for someone actually using tone indicators on here, though! Makes me happy!

I don’t know, you are pretty jacked, and you have wings... should be a breeze?

 

[OliveFish05]

Living for someone actually using tone indicators on here, though! Makes me happy!

Thought I’d give it a try! I actually quite like it!

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

I don’t know, you are pretty jacked, and you have wings... should be a breeze?

That's me on a good day! Usually I'm not nearly as ripped. Most of the time I look like this potato on toothpicks.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

That's me on a good day! Usually I'm not nearly as ripped. Most of the time I look like this potato on toothpicks.
View attachment 136275

I get called toothpick, Q-Tip, and “built like drywall”, so I feel you.

 

[Sgooosh]

I’ve kept a few cold water tanks over the years, stocked with natives that I’ve collected myself. It’s not particularly difficult, however many species require live food, and not all plants will thrive in colder temps.

ooh sounds cool, i want to learn a bit too!
im planning on getting a bucket and catching some mosquitofish, schoolers, and some little sucker mouths.
i cannot catch any big things cos the bucket is only like 40 or so gals
i mostly wanna do this for planting a water lily lol