Water Changes

[Chris206]

Hi

A while ago I had a guppy die for no apparent reason. My water was fine (took sample to my local shop for testing). There was also no sign of disease.

The LFS said that perhaps I was changing my water too frequently, stating that this could have been the cause. They then suggested that I do it once a month instead of weekly as i had been! I found this a huge contradiction to what I have previously read.

Your thoughts please

Chris

 

[AdAndrews]

guppies are fairly weak fish, it is not normal for me to loose approx half of the guppy stock that i buy, due to inbreeding really...

Water testing isnt reliable, imo you cant do any harm with a water change, just dont clean the gravel, glass or any decor, the bacteria lives on these and in the filter, so you wont be loosing any by changing the water.

 

[Gilli]

The fish shop is talking rubbish. A 25% weekely water change is essential to good fish health. Whilst doing your water change you should also do a good gravel vac. Not only are you removing poo and uneaten rotting food you are also replacing lost minerals etc in the water, and it will not affect your good bacteria levels.

Dont rely on the fish shop to test your water - apart from obviously not knowing what they are talking about they may do this with the testing strips which are not accurate.

As a fish keeper you should own your own liquid water testing kit which is an essential part of fish keeping otherwise you have no idea of the state of your water. Apart from using mine if any fish are not acting normally I also test mine on a weekly basis and that way I spot any problems before they get out of hand.

As AsAndrews said the turnover in guppies is very high - they do die at the drop of a hat and for no apparent reason.

 

[OldMan47]

Your LFS told you your water is fine but what are its characteristics? As an example, guppies do better in water that is somewhat hard, high in pH and cooler than in a typical tropical setup. At a pH of 7.5, 22 to 24C and a hardness of over 6 degrees, the so called inbred trash guppies will thrive and reproduce. In typical tetra water, the kind your LFS probably advises for a community tank, they will waste away and you will have losses. My water is quite hard at over 10 degrees and has a tap pH of around 7.8. I can't seem to kill guppies no matter how crowded they become in my tank. My little 10 gallon, 38 litres, tank got a single pair about 8 months ago from a typical chain store. I recently sold two batches of adults from that tank that included about 8 to 10 fish each. The second batch were sold to a club member who had bought the first net full from me at a club auction and he was impressed with their robust good health. I know he has access to the same LFS where I got mine but my water made these fish seem so much batter than the imports at the store. After selling off the second net full of adults, the tank still looks like this.