Hi thanks for accepting me! i was just wondering because i live in an apartment if its fine to have a koi in a tank?
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j.w
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Only if you plan to keep it in there temporarily as it is going to need a lot of room soon. They grow pretty fast and would not be fair or easy to keep it in an aquarium. I think it is 500 to 1000 gals per koi. Why don't you check out Shubunkins, they are similar in looks to koi and are a type of goldfish.
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Welcome to the forum.
That koi will outgrow that tank really fast. I would find a pond for it.
That koi will outgrow that tank really fast. I would find a pond for it.
Absolutely no. There are far better fish that are adapted to indoor tanks than koi. I've walked into restaurants (Chinese in particular seem to be prone to this idea) with a large koi in a tank - it's infuriating. All the fish can do is just basically lay there - like a koi prison. UGH.
Having said that - we had a longtime member here who had a MASSIVE indoor tank with koi, but he eventually moved those to an outdoor pond. We haven't heard from him in a while though.
I see. I suppose I could get a much bigger tank.
j.w
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For one koi you would need 1000 gals and a super good cleaning filter!
you can get some gold fish that are almost impossible to tell whether they are a koi or not . Petco and others should be banned from selling koi to aquarium keepers. for one koi the absolute minimum is a 300 or a 500 gallon tank and those weigh a ton glass or acrylic
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Welcome to the forum!
Some koi are only about 12" long at maturity when they are raised in small aquariums, but even such a koi would require something close to 500 gallons once it grows that large. They have a huge waste load. And 12" is the absolute minimum koi size.
Keep in mind that an aquarium large enough to contain a mature koi would be hard to support on an upper level of an apartment. If you currently possess a small koi then you might be able to construct an indoor pond about 8' l x 6' w x 18" d if you have the apartment space. This might lighten the load on the flooring compared to a tall aquarium. But this would make the room very humid, and if you do not currently possess any koi, then I strongly recommend ornamental goldfish. Maybe 1-3 of these can be kept in a 55-gallon tank.
Goldfish can actually grow over 10" long, but when kept in a 55-gallon tank most will be about 4-8" long.
Rosy red minnows are even better, and can be kept in a 10-gallon tank since they are only 2-3" long. Just keep in mind that you have to buy them as feeders in unhealthy tanks, and as a result you will have to quarantine them to check for illness. If you can find healthy fish, then I would definitely recommend them!
The smaller the fish you choose, the better.
Most people who want to buy large fish only want them before they are actually stuck with them!
The picture below shows the size comparison between goldfish and other unheated aquarium fish.
The average koi would take up the entire picture (it wouldn't even be visible).
Even though this picture claims that goldfish DON'T grow to the size of their tank, goldfish outgrowing their aquariums is usually caused by people doing excessively huge water changes when the water is dirty instead of doing small water changes frequently (which is more ideal anyway). This picture also ignores the fact that goldfish have different breeds (most fancy goldfish will never reach that body mass even in a pond).
Some koi are only about 12" long at maturity when they are raised in small aquariums, but even such a koi would require something close to 500 gallons once it grows that large. They have a huge waste load. And 12" is the absolute minimum koi size.
Keep in mind that an aquarium large enough to contain a mature koi would be hard to support on an upper level of an apartment. If you currently possess a small koi then you might be able to construct an indoor pond about 8' l x 6' w x 18" d if you have the apartment space. This might lighten the load on the flooring compared to a tall aquarium. But this would make the room very humid, and if you do not currently possess any koi, then I strongly recommend ornamental goldfish. Maybe 1-3 of these can be kept in a 55-gallon tank.
Goldfish can actually grow over 10" long, but when kept in a 55-gallon tank most will be about 4-8" long.
Rosy red minnows are even better, and can be kept in a 10-gallon tank since they are only 2-3" long. Just keep in mind that you have to buy them as feeders in unhealthy tanks, and as a result you will have to quarantine them to check for illness. If you can find healthy fish, then I would definitely recommend them!
The smaller the fish you choose, the better.
Most people who want to buy large fish only want them before they are actually stuck with them!
The picture below shows the size comparison between goldfish and other unheated aquarium fish.
https://injaf.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Goldfish-PFK_JULY13_Big-Mistakes-Goldie-infographic.jpg
The average koi would take up the entire picture (it wouldn't even be visible).
Even though this picture claims that goldfish DON'T grow to the size of their tank, goldfish outgrowing their aquariums is usually caused by people doing excessively huge water changes when the water is dirty instead of doing small water changes frequently (which is more ideal anyway). This picture also ignores the fact that goldfish have different breeds (most fancy goldfish will never reach that body mass even in a pond).
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You mean the fish chart? Yeah, I didn't make that myself, but it is good for reference.
I'm a visual person. Seeing things like that really hammers home the idea that fish are not all created equal! And you're right - superimpose a koi on that picture and you'd need to print it on super sized paper!
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Surprisingly, it wasn't the goldfish that got my attention when I first saw the chart, but the weather loach. Like goldfish, weather loaches are often sold at pet stores as tiny little fish. Yet another fish that's more suitable for a pond than the average aquarium.
But attempting to keep koi in an aquarium is a completely different world of difficulty.