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I went to Tractor Supply to check into getting a stock tank for my fantail goldfish and his new oranda friend - presently in a twenty nine gallon. They had a good deal - sure less than an aquarium: a 110 gallon for $58.00 and a rubbermaid (much sturdier) for $68.00. Would one of these the the right size for two potentialy large goldies? They had the rubbermaid tank in 150 gallon and 300 gallon sizes as well. 110 is the largest the other one comes in. Because of our recent drought, I have decided to set it up in the back of the garage next to the door to the laundry room (concrete floor should support it). They are all an oval shape. What sort of filtration would I need for one of these? I think they are deeper than the 15 inchs a pond fountain pump would use - will not need a heater or chiller since I can heat the garage in the winter. Any help will be appreciated - will need to get this set up as soon as the garage gets warm enough to work in.

first of all you will probbly have to build supports for the tank so it doesnt bow (paver stones, bricks, cinder blocks, etc would work)

and most people use a large powerhead and a series of mechanical and chemical filtration chambers. if this is not available, might i suggest a large cannister filter, and or s few HOB filters and some powerheads to direct settleing detrius and etc into the filter to maintain cleanliness. also the 300g size would be best, but i am not a koi or goldie expert.

thses are just suggestiosn from my knowledge.

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

As far as I know stock tanks are built specifically to not only hold water, but take a kick from livestock. I don't think structural integrity is an issue here, as it might be with your average rubbermaid container used for storage.

I don't know anything about pond filtration, but it seems odd that there isn't a filter built for this sort of set-up. Ponds are often recommended to be at least 3' deep, which is a guideline that keeps the fish safe when the body of water freezes in the winter. Thus there should be a pump that can handle water depths of that magnitude.

I worked in a lab and they used stock tanks for holding tanks for fish. I believe they used DIY trickle filters, but I forget how exactly they were rigged.

Goldfish will be fine in that volume; you aren't keeping koi or anything and goldfish don't get anywhere near as large.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

The rubbermaid tank was made of a really heavy gage hard plastic (100 gallon); the other one was sturdy, but the plastic was not as heavy weight (110 gallons). I guess an ordinary submersable pond filter would work on either one? I don't think there is any need for supports on either tank since they are made to stand on their own and usually take a beating from large farm animals.

The stock tank that's used for feeder goldfish at the zoo where I work has a canister filter.

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