Water Matching Methods and Precautions

Sometimes goldfish get sick and die soon after purchase. The reason for this may be that the handling of the goldfish after purchase may have been wrong. The moment you change to a new environment is the most dangerous time for your goldfish. In this article, I would like to explain how to adjust the water.

What is Water Matching?

Buy goldfish from specialty stores and other sources,If you do it incorrectly when placing goldfish in aquariums or pots at home, it can cause them to become ill, sick, or worse, die after a few days or so.If you can take the right initial measures, even beginners can reduce the risk of disease in goldfish in the early stages of their lives. After you have purchased your goldfish, you will need to adjust the water before placing them in the aquarium, and this can be broken down into three steps.

Regarding the first point, "adjusting the water temperature," humans are also more susceptible to catching colds during periods of extreme temperature differences (spring and fall). Goldfish also become ill more easily when there is a large difference in water temperature. For this reason, it is important to adjust the water temperature as much as possible.

Match water temperature

As for the second point, "adjusting the water quality," even humans may not be in perfect physical condition after a sudden and drastic change in environment (e.g., transferring to a new job, changing schools, etc.). Goldfish may also become ill and suffer from diseases if the water quality is suddenly changed. Therefore, it is important to match the water quality.

Match water quality

As for the third point, "reduce the risk of disease," even humans can get sick no matter how many measures they take to avoid catching a cold (e.g., wearing a mask). Therefore, even if you take the first two measures, goldfish can still get sick, so it is important to reduce the risk of disease by adding salt to the water or by other means.

Reduce the risk of disease

Methods of Water Matching

How to adjust water temperature

From specialty stores, etc.When you purchase goldfish, you will be asked to put them in a bag, etc. Please leave the bag in the aquarium tank for about 30 minutes to an hour. In most cases, the mouth of the bag is tied with rubber or string, so it is important to leave the bag tied and floating.First, it is most important to acclimate the water temperature of the water in the bag and the water temperature of the new location where the goldfish will live, as it is only a matter of matching the water temperature. If the water temperature in the bag differs by more than 5°C from the water temperature in the aquarium, you should make an intermediate point by putting the water in another container, such as a bucket or a tub, with the water temperature within 5°C. If you do not have a water thermometer, you should make an intermediate point once and let the goldfish get used to the water temperature in the aquarium. If you do not have a water thermometer and are wondering if you should make an intermediate point, you can have the goldfish touch the surface of the bag containing the goldfish you purchased, and if you feel there is a difference, you can make an intermediate point.

How to Match Water Quality

Once they are acclimated to the water temperature, the next step is to acclimate them to the water quality.To acclimate the water quality, open the mouth of the bag and let the bag float on the surface of the water so that the water in the bag and the water in the aquarium will slowly mix, just as in the "method of adjusting water temperature" explained above. After about 30 minutes to an hour, the goldfish in the bag will begin to repeatedly move in and out of the bag at the mouth of the bag. When they begin to do this, it is a signal that the bag can be slowly removed from the aquarium.If you are concerned, you can have the bag removed from the aquarium after making sure the goldfish are completely out of the bag.
Some other websites and books may say "do not put water in the bag". The reason is that the water in the bag contains pathogens. On this site, we recommend that you do include bagged water. This is because it is very hard on the goldfish to easily throw away the water in which they live (water in the bag) and replace it with new water (water in the aquarium) when the goldfish have been purchased in the bag. It is best to keep the burden as low as possible until the goldfish are acclimated to their new environment. If you are not sure whether you should put the water in the bag or not, we recommend that you do not put the water in the bag if the water in the tank that contained the goldfish you purchased looks bad, if the other goldfish are sick in some way, or if you see goldfish that are not in good health. Ultimately, it is a part of the owner's decision to be resourceful.

How to Reduce the Risk of Disease

I've been doing the above two things to keep the goldfish I've purchased swimming in aquariums, etc,Some goldfish may take a long time to adjust to their new environment, or they may become ill due to stress caused by a variety of factors. Therefore, when introducing new goldfish to the aquarium, it is advisable to perform a salt bath to reduce the number of pathogens in the water and reduce the risk of disease.Please see the following page for a detailed description of the salt bath method.

Points to keep in mind after water-matching

Please refrain from feeding them for 1-3 days after water adjustment.If you feed your goldfish when they are not accustomed to their new environment, their internal organs may not be in perfect condition, and they may become ill and susceptible to various diseases due to a weakened immune system. Therefore, please allow a few days for feeding after water adjustment. Goldfish have a body structure that does not need to worry for a few days if they do not eat, so if you want to do the best for your goldfish, you should refrain from feeding them.