Hi! Excited new guppy owner:)

[georgelam]

Hi everyone,

Im George, i just set up my tank with a three male guppys in a one foot nano tank. I would appreciate any advice i can get.
There's currently no filter or plants. Planning to get a HOB filter and some female guppies.
If anyone have extra guppies to donate that would be great

see u guys around!

[tetrakid]

Hi everyone,

Im George, i just set up my tank with a three male guppys in a one foot nano tank. I would appreciate any advice i can get.
There's currently no filter or plants. Planning to get a HOB filter and some female guppies.
If anyone have extra guppies to donate that would be great

see u guys around!

Hi George, welcome here.
Guppies are good fish to start the hobby with. Why not you go buy a packet of mixed guppies (feeder fish) from the lfs? Every lfs sell such packets, very economical and good. Great for starters. Some come with beautiful specimens too.

[KilliNewbie]

I'd prefer starting with culls of other people first ~

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[georgelam]

Hi tetrakid,
Thanks for the idea. I'll wait a few more days before adding more fishes. Currently 2 of the males are always at the bottom and they don't swim much. the last one is more active and eats well. Is is normal for them to rest at the bottom? They seem really bored what can i do?

[georgelam]

Hi,
what do you mean by culls of other people? guppies from other guppy owners?

[KilliNewbie]

Yea. Culls are fries that are *rejected* from the owners as bad quality fish

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[Whitechicks7]

Hi tetrakid,
Thanks for the idea. I'll wait a few more days before adding more fishes. Currently 2 of the males are always at the bottom and they don't swim much. the last one is more active and eats well. Is is normal for them to rest at the bottom? They seem really bored what can i do?

Welcome george ,
IMO the reason why they are not moving much might be because there is no filter / air exchange in the water .
They can live in stagnant water but best to provide some aeration or filtration in the water .

Ps: guppies breed like bunnies. Be prepared haha.

Enjoy the hobby!

[vannel]

Just a note.. Fancy guppy strains should not be kept in a tank with regular filters. Air driven ones are better because the guppy do not need to fight against strong currents. Also, there is lesser risk of fin damage.

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[georgelam]

Okay thanks for the information. I'll get a filter soon. I hope my guppies survive.


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[GHD97]

With a one ft nano tank, there isn't really much space for an air driven sponge filter...maybe get a small low-powered HOB filter would be good add a sponge on the intake tube for additional filtration and fry/fin protection

[KilliNewbie]

Get dolphins hof. Ask for small one

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[georgelam]

Okay. So I got a small HOF. I think it was aleas. But unfortunately one of my guppies died. So I'm left with 2. What should I do? One of them don't look too healthy and isn't swimming much.


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[georgelam]

Just to add that the water I use to change is left overnight and treated with anti chlorine and aquarium salt. Should I add more guppies?


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[GHD97]

I suggest you set up your filter, do water changes of 20% for a week for your tank to cycle. After a month then add new fish. Read up on the threads for cycling a tank and the nitrogen cycle

There's plenty all over the net

And...guppies do not really require aquarium salt...I think...someone correct me if I'm wrong a little is fine...but do not add too much...maybe a pinch or half a teaspoon for the tank would be fine. Unless you're creating a certain water condition

[tetrakid]

Just to add that the water I use to change is left overnight and treated with anti chlorine and aquarium salt. Should I add more guppies?
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Fish dying is the commonest happening for beginners. Even very experienced aquarists experience it too, with much heartache. I suggest you don't use any chemical until you are able to keep your fish alive for one year at least to gain experience.

[GHD97]

Oh and once you install a filter, anti chlorine and anti chloramines chemicals will be necessary these were added into tap water to kill micro organisms and would kill off the beneficial bacteria in the filter that keeps our water clean and natural Fish do not take chlorine and chloramines well as Tetrakid has said, chemicals do not belong in our fish tanks

Every fish keeper has learnt his knowledge from experience and has had countless fish die. Do not be discouraged Guppies are usually viewed by LFS as low value fish...so they may not be well cared for and could already be sick before they were bought Treat every death as experience, learn from mistakes and enjoy the hobby^^( or obsession for some of us)

[Urban Aquaria]

Install the filter, run it 24/7 and let the tank go through the cycling process... only keep max 3-4 guppies in that size of tank (guppies are not exactly small fishes, don't add anymore and increase bio-load), feed very lightly and do regular water changes.

Not necessary to add aquarium salt, just use anti-chlorine water treatment during water changes is enough.

[georgelam]

Thanks for all the information and encouragement. I'm just going to monitor it. The filter is up and running. I'm interested to get some fry and raise. I'll keep reading the forum to get more info.


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[vannel]

I'm still going to recommend you swap to a sponge filter. There are very small ones available and those are generally good enough. Regular HOB/external filters will cause the fish distress. Fancy guppy strains have been bred for countless generations and their fins are not well adapted for rigorous currents. Even with a sponge filter, moderate flow is enough.

As with any fish, antichlorine and antichloramine solutions are required (unless you age and bubble your water way in advance). Additionally, guppy are suited to a slightly higher pH level ( 7-8 ). Use sodium bicarbonate to achieve optimum pH.

Aquarium salt should only be used for treatment of disease.

I have to reiterate.. Seriously, the vast majority of guppy breeders use some form of air driven sponge filter. I would rather leave my tank with only an air tube for aeration then to use a HOB (which is often too strong for a 1ft tank anyway). Manually siphon the crap at the bottom.

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[KilliNewbie]

But he's using it for keeping as a pet, not breeder. Anyways if u block the flow with plants like twisted vallis, it's okay

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