Can't figure out why my guppies keep dying

[jawvis]

Hello,
Any advice on how to keep guppies alive???
I've tried adding guppies to my cycles tank. I quarantine them for a couple of days with maracyn and general cure before I add them to the main tank. There's a few swordtails, mollies, platies and an angel fish in there. I wanted to add some guppies in there but they keep dying. The picture is one of the most recent that have died.

My tank is a 30 gallon.
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 10-20
PH: 7-8ish
Temp: ~80

 

[Ch4rlie]

Are any of the tankmates, like the mollies or platies chasing or nipping after the guppies long fins?

 

[Kyle E.]

You see how the tail is all torn up?

I would guess that the other fish are killing them. Angelfish and guppies are iffy. It is tricky to keep such big fish with guppies although it can be done. I don't know enough to be much help beyond that and I could be wrong!

 

[jawvis]

Are any of the tankmates, like the mollies or platies chasing or nipping after the guppies long fins?

No they are all peaceful. The guppies when I put them in the tank keep to themselves.

You see how the tail is all torn up?

I would guess that the other fish are killing them. Angelfish and guppies are iffy. It is tricky to keep such big fish with guppies although it can be done. I don't know enough to be much help beyond that and I could be wrong!

Yeah I couldn't tell if it was fin rotting or getting eaten up. It lost a lot of its color before dying. I haven't seen the angelfish attack anyone. I have a very small guppy that's going strong and doesn't seem like its being bothered by the angelfish. In fact that guy loves to bother the swordtails.


I should have mentioned the other guppies that have died looked like the tail was rotting and just sat at the top corner of the tank the second I put them into the main one.

 

[Ch4rlie]

You won’t always see fish nipping at others, this seems to occur more often when it’s night I think.

Guppies sitting at top?

Can you elaborate a little more, perhaps there are more symptoms like gasping, red gills, breathing air from water surface a lot or just lethargy, any details like that may help us.

 

[jawvis]

You won’t always see fish nipping at others, this seems to occur more often when it’s night I think.

Guppies sitting at top?

Can you elaborate a little more, perhaps there are more symptoms like gasping, red gills, breathing air from water surface a lot or just lethargy, any details like that may help us.

not gasping for air I would say more lethargy than anything. They don't move all that much and rarely eat or don't eat a lot.

 

[Ch4rlie]

Ok.

Will need a few details, what are the water parameters?
Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH

If you know it, what is gH / hardness of your water.

Even though these parameters are probably fine since you have angels, mollies and platies etc but still useful to know this so we can do a process of elimination.

 

[jawvis]

Ok.

Will need a few details, what are the water parameters?
Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH

If you know it, what is gH / hardness of your water.

Even though these parameters are probably fine since you have angels, mollies and platies etc but still useful to know this so we can do a process of elimination.

My tank is a 30 gallon.
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 10-20
PH: 7-8ish
GH: I think its around 150? possibly 300? Either hard or very hard.
KH: I believe is around 180?
Temp: ~80

I do water changes every 5-7 days.

 

[Ch4rlie]

As suspected, your water parameters look good and can see no issues aside of gH numbers but as long as it’s moderate to hard water that’s fine for mollies, platies but angels prefer softer water just to let you know.

But as for your guppies dying, are these guppies new from LFS?

And you say you quarantine them in a separate tank, are they behaving fine in the quarantine tank before adding to main tank?

 

[Lunar Jetman]

Just to be clear, you’re keeping guppies at 80 degrees Fahrenheit??

I wouldn’t keep them above 74-75 and preferably much lower as they’re more of a temperate fish. My daughter has them in her tank and as soon as the temperature goes above 79 she starts losing them. We have to try and cool the tank down in the summer..

 

[Ch4rlie]

Did not even notice the temperature, good spot @Lunar Jetman

 

[jawvis]

Yeah I just haven't gotten around to lowering gH or Kh.
I've gotten a set from PetSmart and another set from a local store and neither matter.
Yeah, I quarantine them before hand. They seem fine in there. They have more energy and eating but the most recent ones I got did seem to start to slow down a lot quicker than the older set.

Hmm, interesting I thought even though it was a little higher it would have been fine. Unfortunately, my heater is already set on low and it's still at 80.

 

[Essjay]

Yeah I just haven't gotten around to lowering gH or Kh.

For the swordtails , mollies and guppies, the GH is fine you don't need to lower it.
But angels do need a lower GH, though if you do lower it the livebearers won't be happy.

 

[Lunar Jetman]

I would also imagine the Angelfish isn’t too keen on the guppies either...

 

[Colin_T]

Pictures and video of the live fish?

Is the GH 150ppm or 300ppm, because there's a big difference?

--------------------
You don't want to add anti-biotics to a tank unless the fish have a known bacterial infection that has not responded to normal fish medications. Improper use and mis-use of anti-biotics has lead to drug resistant bacteria that kill people, birds, animals and fish.

--------------------
All new fish should be quarantined for at least 2 (preferably 4) weeks before adding them to an established tank.

If you want to treat them for anything whilst in quarantine, use a fish deworming medication and salt.