goldfish tank

[Bizz]

I have not kept goldfish since I was a kid, now my sister want's me to set her up a tank for her. She want's it to be only gold fish but I've read that they produce a lot of ammonia what equipment and how many fish could I keep in my 36 gallon bow front i have lying around. Any info would be great.Tahnks

Kyle

[squeeker]

Hello, Bizz!

Goldfish are my favourite fish.  I currently have a 77G set up just for them.  

Assuming you mean fancy goldfish and not comets (aka feeders), I would really only put 3 goldfish in your 36 gallon tank.  The general "rule of thumb" when it comes to goldfish, because they are so messy, is to allot 10 gallons per fish.  This may seem like a lot while they're small, but remember that goldfish will grow to be 6+ inches long, NOT including tail.  Also, these babies that you pick up at the store can double to quadruple in size in a single year.  

On a 36 gallon tank for goldfish, I would recommend either a Fluval 404 or two Aquaclear 50's (formerly Aquaclear 200).  Again, the rule of thumb for a goldfish tank is to have 10X filtration per hour on the tank, therefore you need to turn over 360 gallons per hour.  The Fluval 404 is rated to do 360 gallons per hour, the AC50's do 200 GPH each.

Hope that helps you get started!  If you have any more questions, just ask!  Also, a really great goldfish forum is:

http://www.kokosgoldfish.invisionzone.com/forum/index.php

Good luck!