Stupid (and boring) question re aquarium filters from adoptive mother of goldfish!

[gibbberish]

I 'inherited' four goldfish a few days ago from someone who had grown tired of them.

Anyway, I know NOTHING about fish or tanks and am not sure whether the filter should be completely under the water (I assume it should be) or whether there is a right way and wrong way to fit it? i.e. does it have to be a certain way up?

It doesn't seem to be working terribly well which is why I am wondering if I have put it in incorrectly.

Sorry to be dim... and tia.

I'm also a novice as was given a tank and fish so can only tell you about my tank.

There is a pump half in and half out the water sucking it up and it comes out over a piece of sponge which is out of the tanks water but in a constant stream before going back into the tank making bubbles to oxygenate.

There isn't hardly any noise and when there is I know I've not put it in quite right or the pump is clogged with stuff

We are 18 months and a great many dead fish further on that you

The filter itself lies underneath the gravel at the bottom, is that the type you have? We have moved from dead goldfish to tropicals. The top of the filter i.e where the water flows into the tank is just above the surface of the water. It makes a noise but a gentle water flowing noise.

Ca you not get the people you got the goldfish from to pop round and ensure you have set it up correctly?

Thanks for that furball and poopscoop. Oh dear at the ones who have passed away poopscoop The filter we have has vents at the sides at one end and a hole (which presumably is for blowing out the air) at the other end. Sounds a bit like yours furball. The foamy filter stuff is at the bit with the vents.

So are you saying (sorry for being dim) that the bit with the filter goes at the top, half in and half out of the water, then it blows air out of the hole bit at the other end? I can't see any bubbles coming out from anywhere, but can feel a faint stream of air coming out of the hole at the bottom.

What has confused me is that I saw the same filter in a shop the other day and it was pictured the other way around - with the vent bit at the bottom. So assumed I had put it in the wrong way round.

Our four girls have chosen one each and have named them - Nemo, Ribble(?), Fish(!) and Elephant(!!). Unusual.

sory I don't think mine sounds like yours gibberish.

Mine is a square box (which sits in the top of the water) with a snorkel type thing comming off it which trickles water over a sponge before trickling back into the tank making bubbles

Ah right. Hmm. Not sure what to do now...

Okay, do you think the spongey filter stuff should be right in the water?

Hah think I have worked it out from extensive research (google). The spongy vent bits submerge under the water and the spout bit, where the water comes back out (I only just discovered it does this), goes just above the waterline so that the clean water flows back into the tank. That makes such obvious sense now.

Poor fish. The previous owners have had the pump the wrong way round all this time. AND they don't have an air pump in the tank. No wonder the fish are oxygen deprived. Off out to buy one.

Thanks again for your help

glad you sorted it gibberish - your fish will be much happier

hello, I'm a fish geek

Fish don't technically need an air pump in their tank, the filter should keep the water oxygenated enough. Oxygen deprivation is only really a problem in very heavily stocked tanks where the water is too warm (and then there will be a host of other problems too). Goldfish get very big, how big is the tank? Do you have a water testing kit?

Your research is right, the outlet should be close enough to the surface of the water to cause some turbulence, this helps with the gas exchange between the water and the air. The sponges should be submerged at all times (unless you're cleaning it) because the good bacteria in the sponge need to be kept wet. Don't clean the sponges in tap water, the chlorine will kill off the good bacteria.