goldfish tand

Question
Hi I have a 60 gallon gold fish tank that keeps getting out of balance. I have 2 80 gal biowheels on it with the extra space for the add in containers and I've filled them with the ceramics for extra biological filtration. I have orandas and it is not overstocked. I cannot keep the thing cycled. This tank is over a year old. I don't think I'm overfeeding. I have the sinking medium sized pellets (good quality brand)and I drop a pinch or two per day and the fish have it gone quickly. I have a shallow layer of sand covering the bottom of the tank and I can clearly see if the pellets are there or not. My other tank is a 26 gal and has about 3" of gravel with an undergravel filer and a 30-50 gal Aqueon  hang outside filter and it works perfectly. Everyone told me that the underground filters were so bad and that 2 Emperor 400's would do the trick for this 60 gallon tank. I even added the ceramics in the extra containers that came with them. I'm wondering if that slows water turn over too much. I can't win. I've never gotten this thing really stable and I have lost beautiful fish. I've had the golds stable in the other tank and now it's got discus in it and they are doing just fine. Why can't I get this tank to stabilize. I can get it there and then it gets out of whack again. Plus this tank develops algae much more quickly than the other tank so I know something is out of whack. Please help. The fish do grow and at times I have had the tank test okay but it never stays and I can tell when the goldfish get sluggish that the tank is out of balance again. I usually remove 2/3 of the water when I change it and vacuum b/c in theory all the bacteria are in the filters and the sand is such a small amount it is really no different than keeping a bare bottom tank. If I loose fish again in this tank, I'm taking it down b/c I'm tired and doing large water changes on a sixty gallon is just too much when I have no clue what is going wrong. Should I count the food out so each fish say only gets two pieces. I can see no food at the bottom wasting away. The two filters are rated for 80 gal apiece but is that enough for orandas that are 2-3" in body length. Once I put in the extra containers and filled them with ceramic "logs" (fluval brand I believe) did that slow the water flow too much through the filer. Couldn't get the tank to stay stable before adding the ceramics and the extra containers came with the filters. So I'm not doing something that the manufacturer doesn't recommend. I need help from someone who has keep goldfish successfully in an individual tank with an individual filer. I've asked at my local fish store and they weren't much help b/c I was doing what they'd recommend and their goldfish tank runs off of their huge filtration system. I'm frustrated and disgusted and if these weren't living creatures I'd quite this big tank tomorrow.

Answer
Hi Cathie,
Dont give up yet!

It is quite unusual for a tank to continuously be unstable. And by unstable I mean problems with water pollution getting outta control due to a very weak beneficial bacteria population. For the aquarium to be setup for over year it should be well established actually... unless there is something that is wiping out the populations. Medications and excessive chemical usage may be to blame. Of course stocking the tank too soon while in its early stages can cause an uproar of pollution problems.

The more biological filter media you have the better. Your tank filtration sounds just fine and should work out quite well for your goldfish. As long as its providing surface agitation to enable oxygen to enter in the water you will be fine.

You may be surprised to hear that I keep a 55 gallon goldfish tank with several young and old gold fish. I run a large cascade hang on the back type power filter rated for up to 75 gallons with just the two cartridges that are made for that filter. The aquarium is lined with a moderate level of fine grained gravel. I do at least 50 percent water changes once a week plus filter rinsing and gravel vacuuming.

The problem sometimes with undergravel filters is the plate sitting underneath the gravel can become full of waste and dirt. This won't be as likely a problem if you run a tube down the 'bubble tube' to siphon underneath the plate a bit or run a powerhead on the bubble tube which circulates the water better.
   
An aquarium like yours should really be giving you no trouble with its stability.

It would be ideal if you could have your own test kits for your aquarium. All you need are tests for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. And remember that these levels should be as follows - ammonia- 0 nitrite -0 nitrate- 20 or less. Its easy to test your tanks water and will really help you gain a better understanding of what is going on in your tank.

Testing at least twice a week until you are sure conditions are stable would be best and then when you are sure your tank is stable you can cut back to maybe testing once a month or so.
It's a bit difficult to say what exactly maybe wrong. Without a lot of background info on the aquarium or the fish you tried to keep in the past. My best advice would be to try not to worry so much. As long as you're doing water changes regularly, at least once a week. And your fish are swimming and eating, and do not show stress symptoms like clamped fins, refusing to eat or showing listless behavior.

It would help greatly to know your tanks ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels so I can get a better grip on what's going on with this tank.

Feel free to keep me updated on it. I definitely want to help you solve this issue.  
Aquariums are meant to be enjoyed and there's no reason why it should be a hassle. : -)

I hope this helps!
Best of luck!
Susan~