The marbled crayfish first showed up in the aquarium hobby in Germany some time in the 90′s. It was called the marmorkreb. This crayfish is not found naturally in the wild. It is a medium size crayfish getting to about 4 or 5 inches and having a brown “marble” appearance. However, it isn’t the size of these creatures that sets them apart. The marbled crayfish is a self cloning crayfish. Each crayfish is female and each one produces offspring identical to the mother. One crayfish can easily provide you with lots and lots of babies.

Taking Care of the Marbled Crayfish

The marbled crayfish is very easy to take care of, but there are still a few things that you need to know to meet it’s needs. The marbled crayfish, like other fish needs to be in clean water. Because it does produce a pretty high amount of waste you will need to do regular water changes and take care not to have it in a tank that is overstocked. You should also have it in a tank with two or three times the recommended filtration. Any exterior filters should have sleeves or other covers over the intake valve in order to prevent it from sucking up the babies. It also needs a well balanced diet that includes both plant matter and food with protein. A high quality food is a really good idea and is something you should consider with all of your fish. If your self cloning crayfish doesn’t get enough protein then she is less likely to have babies. A basic flake or pellet food works as a start, but you can also feed your crayfish live plants, blanched or weighted down vegetables, sea weed, shrimp and other sea food (warmed to room temperature), and worms and larvae (live and frozen).

The Marbled Crayfish and Plants

The marbled crayfish is often sold as one that leaves plants alone. However, they eat a lot of vegetables and because they often end up being in a tank in large numbers this is often untrue. If there is a small amount of crayfish in a tank and they get plenty of food they may leave your plants alone.

The Marbled Crayfish Tankmates

The marbled crayfish is often sold as a crayfish that gets along with everyone else. This too is a little exaggerated. Large crayfish can be territorial and will gladly nip at fish who come into their

Goldfish are probably the most well known type of freshwater fish kept out there. However, most people have no idea how to take care of them and there are a lot of rumors that lead to a lot of dead goldfish. If you are wanting to take care of your goldfish in a way that will lead to a long and healthy life for it then here’s what you need to know!

What is a Goldfish?

The goldfish is a small and colorful carp. It was one of the first fish to be domesticated in Asia. Overtime several breeds have been developed and they come in a lot of different sizes, body shapes, fin locations and shape, and different colors. Known colors include white, yellow, orange, red, brown, black, and blends or mixes of these colors. Varieties include (but are not limited to) black moors, bubble eyes, butterfly tails, celestial eyes, comets, common goldfish, curled-gill goldfish, egg-fish, fantails, imperial goldfish, jinkin goldfish, lionchus, lionheads, meteor goldfish, orandas, pearlscales, pompoms, shubunkins, shukin, tamasabas, tosakins, tyunkins, veiltails, and wakin golfish.

Goldfish Care Starts With a Home

Goldfish care really starts with the home that you choose. Many people think that a goldfish is the only home that your goldfish will ever need. However, a goldfish bowl is very unsuitable for all goldfish and even more unsuitable for some goldfish over others. This is for two reasons. The first is that goldfish are really messy. They produce a lot more waste than many other fish and this makes it impossible to have good water quality in a small tank. Second, most goldfish will get large over time. Some of them even get very large. With this in mind, you should try and provide a home based on the type of goldfish that you have. If you don’t know then it is best to go as big as possible and try to provide at least 10 gallons of water per goldfish. Here are the things you should work on to make sure you provide a good home for your goldfish:

• Tank. The tank should be as large as you can get. You want to make sure it is indeed a tank so that the surface of the water is large enough to accommodate your fish. Most goldfish will grow to at least 6 inches in size.
• Filter. Remember that comment about goldfish producing a lot of waste? This is so true. There are some very messy fish out there and goldfish always fall into this category. You want to get a good filter that is rated at least as high as the number of gallons that your tank is. If possible get a larger one or put two small ones on the tank. It really will help you keep your water quality a lot better if you have more filtration rather than less.
• Air. Your goldfish need a good supply of air. Air is also important for developing a bacteria colony for a healthy tank. (If you want to know why you want bacteria in your fish tank then you should check out the article on The Nitrogen Cycle). This should be provided with an air pump and an air stone.
• Substrate. You can keep your goldfish in a bare bottom tank, but there are a few issues with that. The first is that you will see debris gather up on the floor and even if it isn’t fish poop it will make you think that it is. The second issue is that the substrate is a great place for bacteria to grow. When choosing a substrate you want to make sure that you are choosing one that is too small to eat or too large to fit into the mouth. Layering your substrates can really help. Place a layer of gravel on the bottom and top with sand or larger rocks. Or give it a really layered look and do a layer of gravel, a layer of sand, and a layer of rocks.
• Decorations. When decorating your goldfish tank there are several things to note. The first is that plants are usually eaten by goldfish and should only be added if you are okay with the fish eating them. If you will feel bad that they snacked on them or even ate the whole darn thing in a single day then put it somewhere else. Another thing to keep in mind is that they don’t want a crowded tank. They want an open tank with plenty of room. You will also want to make sure that the decorations aren’t sharp and that there is no possible chance that the decoration can fall on the fish. Other than that you can decorate with a few rocks, a few pieces of wood, or choose one or two of the decorations from the store. Make sure that the fish have lots of room to swim.

Goldfish Water Quality

The number one issue in goldfish care is water quality. Because goldfish are really messy and because fish waste is a toxin you want to make sure that you are doing everything that you can to make sure that your fish have good water quality. This will require that you test it regularly. Here are the things you should do in order to keep your water quality up.

1. Place the tank in an area where it doesn’t get a lot of natural light. The more light the tank gets the more likely it is that it will have algae growing.
2. Be careful how much you feed your goldfish. When feeding goldfish you need to remember a few things which will help you to feed the proper amount. First of all, goldfish will eat forever until they die. So, just because the fish looks like it is hungry in its response to food doesn’t mean that it is. Second, your goldfish’ stomach is only about the size of it’s eye. Therefore it doesn’t need a lot of food. You should feed your fish a small amount twice a day. Over feeding can cause a lot water quality issues. The extra food and extra waste from fish over eating adds to the ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates in the water. These are the wastes that can be toxic to your fish if you aren’t careful. So careful feeding is very important.
3. Do regular water quality tests. You will need water quality test strips or a master water quality test kit to test the water. You want your ammonia levels to be at 0, your nitrite levels to be at 0, and your nitrate levels to be less then 50. These are the numbers that will guide you in your water water changes and even your feedings after the numbers have balanced out after the Nitrogen Cycle is complete.
4. Finally you must give your fish regular water changes. This idea causes a lot of confusion and there is a lot of misinformation available out there on how it should be done. Here’s how the basics work. We will do a more in depth article on water changes later. You should never remove your fish from their tank to do a water change. You should also avoid scrubbing items in the tank. Everything in the aquarium acts as a place to grow beneficial bacteria. When you scrub these items clean you are removing the bacteria and then they will no longer be able to help keep your water clean. Then you remove a portion of the water. You can use a cup, dish, or bowl if you don’t have anything else. However, the best option is to use a gravel vacuum to vacuum out your substrate. You should remove about 25% of your water changes. If your tests show that you have a high amount of ammonia, nitrites, or nitrates then you can give it a larger water change up to about 60%. Afterwards you should fill the tank with water about the same temperature. This water will need to be treated before it meets the fish. You can do this in a separate container and use water conditioner to get rid of the chlorine and other chemicals in the water or you can add it to the tank and then fill the tank with the water. A lightly stocked tank with a good bacteria colony that isn’t over fed can usually go two weeks without being changed and if it is highly stocked then you will need to do it more often.

Goldfish Feeding

Feeding your goldfish is really easy to do. However, you should offer them a variety of foods for optimum health. You will want to make sure that you choose a high quality goldfish food. You don’t want to buy the cheapest kind. Instead you want to read the labels and choose the kind that has the most ingredients. Also consider a balanced diet that includes sources of meat as well as vegetable. If what’s listed on the can sounds like it would be a good meal then it probably is. If it is full of chemicals that you just can’t pronounce and so forth it is probably a bad idea. In addition to that you should choose some of these other options to supplement with:

• Live foods: You can supplement your goldfishes diet with worms, daphnia, and other live foods.
• Frozen foods: You can also share frozen brine shrimp, bloodworms, and other frozen foods.
• Freeze dried foods: There are a variety of freeze dried foods such as bloodworms and shrimp.
• Vegetables: Goldfish are omnivores. They will love healthy vegetables with lots of color. They will enjoy carrots, green beans, spinach, and so forth.

Feed a basic dry diet that is supplemented by other foods every now and again and you will have a good, healthy goldfish!

Goldfish care starts with the home that you choose for it. You also need to make sure that it has good quality water and a variety of good foods. If you can provide these three things on a consistent basis then you will be able to have a healthy goldfish and keep it for a long time.

We regularly curl up in bed with a warm blanket and a comfy pillow. We even watch our beloved mammal friends sleep from dogs curled up in doggy beds to cats sleeping on the back of the couch to small animals curled in their bedding. So, it isn’t really surprising that many people find themselves asking, “Do Goldfish Sleep?”

Do Goldfish Sleep?

Yes. That’s definitely the simple answer. While goldfish sleep, it isn’t the same kind of sleep that many mammals are known for. They aren’t curling up with something warm and cuddly. Instead goldfish sleep is very different. Here are some goldfish sleep facts that will give you a good idea of what a sleeping goldfish looks like and how they behave during rest.

• Goldfish sleep with their eyes open.
• They tend to sleep in the dark though they will fall asleep if the light is left on too long. However, they won’t sleep as well.
• Goldfish sleep while holding still. They make small movements to hold themselves up in the water.
  

  Do Goldfish Sleep?

• Goldfish are commonly seen near decorations or near the ground. They are hiding a bit because night time can be a time when they are preyed upon.
• Many goldfish lose some of their coloring while sleeping. This is another measure to help protect them from other fish and animals who would eat them.
• When started from sleep goldfish commonly swim funny and look a little crazy. This panic mode is because they want to find the safest spot in a hurry. They are worried that they are no longer safe when they are woken up in the night.
• Goldfish are more alert than many animals. This instinct comes from the view of a fish that could be eaten.

Goldfish do sleep, but it is a lot different than most other animals. However, it should be noted that you should shut off the lights in the aquarium regularly so that your goldfish can sleep. You want to make sure that they get plenty of rest so that they don’t get ill.

 

Guppies don’t have specific guppy diseases, however there are a number of things that can cause issues in the guppies. You will want to make sure that you are keeping an eye on them and making sure that they stay healthy. The most important thing that you can do for your fish is to make sure that you don’t add new fish (from anywhere) into an established tank. Instead you should have a quarintine tank that you put new fish into and you leave them there for the first few weeks at your house. That will be the best thing for you to do in order to keep your fish healthy. Even with precautions you could find yourself having issues with your fish. Here are some of the guppy diseases and health issues that can arise.

Water Issues

• Water Quality – Guppies are pretty hardy for a fish, however when ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates build up it can and does cause issues. The best thing you can do for your fish is keep an eye on the chemical levels in your fish tank and work your water changes around them to help keep your tank clean and safe for your fish tanks.
• Over Feeding – There are things that will decrease your water quality. One of the biggest ones is over feeding your fish. You will want to make sure that your fish are eating all the food that you give them in a few minutes. The only time food should sit in the tank is if you have bottom feeders such as catfish and snails. It’s best to feed your fish small meals throughout the day when ever possible.
• Decaying Plant Matter – Plants are great in the aquarium. The plants remove negative things in the water and use them to grow. However, when leaves and other plant matter decays it increases the negative things in the tank. Making sure you know what your plants need to survive, giving them good light, and trimming away the parts that are decaying will make a big difference.
• Over Crowding – Over crowding is a very common issue. This increases the ammonia in the fish tank because of the amount of waste and decreases the amount of oxygen available for everyone. Your fish can have issues with ammonia poisoning or carbon dioxide poisoning. The best thing you can do is make sure that you limit the amount of fish in your tank.
• Chemicals – We use a lot of chemicals in our home and these can contaminate our fish tanks. This can include anything that is sprayed into the air or that could fall into the tank. It’s best to make sure that you place your tank in a safe place. You should also make sure that you never spray cleaners on or near your tank. When cleaning the glass you should spray the paper towel with glass cleaner or better yet vinegar water.

Nutrition Issues

Guppies will eat anything that you give them. However, if you give them foods that lack nutrients then they may have issues because of it. The most common one is a bent spine. You can prevent issues if you feed multiple high quality foods. Start with a high quality flake food that contains whole fish meal as well as other good ingredients. Add freeze dried treats, frozen foods, a few vegetables, and even the occasional live food for the best possible results.

Fungus Infections

Fungus is a very common issue in the fish tank. Some types are more common then others. Here are a few that can effect your guppy fish’s health.

• Tail Rot
• Gill Sickness
• Crown Fungus
• Mouth Fungus
• Saprolegnia

Bacteria Infections

• Columnaris – This bacteria causes symptoms similar to saprolegnia. It causes fins and tail to become ragged, makes cotton looking growths in or around mouth, cause ulcers on the skin, and a number of other symptoms. Often the bacteria is present in healthy aquariums and only infect the fish upon stress or wounds. Livebearers commonly get it. Treatment is often confusing because it is similar to other conditions. You should begin with a good water change and vacuuming of the gravel. Remove at least 50% of the water. Lower the temperatures of the tank below 75 degrees and add 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt per 5 gallons of water. From there you should consider treatment options to get your fish as healthy as possible as fast as possible. Often your treatment choices will depend on what is available at the time and the severity of the case. Often the second step in treating columnaris is an antibacterial.
• Bloat
• Air Bladdar Disease
• Gas Bubble Disease
• Tuberculosis

Parasite Infections

• Ich (Ichthyophonus)
• Velvet (Oodinium pilularis)
• Gill Flukes
• Shimmy
• Intestinal Worms
• Fish Lice
• Leeches

Other Issues

• Hydra
• Split Tail
• Tumors
• Dropsy

Insects

• Dragonfly Larvae
• Damselfly Larvae
• Dobson Fly Larvae
• Water Scorpions
• Water Boatmen
• Back Swimmers
• Water Tigers (Whirlgig Beetle Larvae)
• Water Scavenger’s Larvae
• Predacious Diving Beetle Larvae
• Giant Waterbug

Guppy fish are one of the most popular tropical fish in the home aquarium. In expensive fancy guppies can be purchased at pet stores and local fish stores all over starting at low fees. You can find them as low as $2 on up to $8. They come in a wide range of colors and are hardy. Top that off with easy care and it is no wonder that guppies are high on the list of so many aquarium owners.

This article is meant as an introduction to guppy fish (Poecilia reticulata). Almost every section has a long and detailed article to help you be successful. If you have any further questions feel free to contact me using the contact form and I will do my best to answer your questions and help you out.

What Is a Guppy Fish?

A guppy is a small fish that is very common for beginners. Part of this is that many of them are inexpensive, they are sold in large numbers at fish stores and pet stores, and that the males are brightly colored. They come in every color of the rainbow in a variety of tail shapes. More expensive guppies can also be purchased if higher quality fish and or more impressive fins are desired. In addition to being beautiful and easy to find, they are also very hardy. They can often handle poor water qualities (though it is never a good idea to purposefully keep fish in poor water), they aren’t picky eaters, and they can live for a year or two depending on genetics and how they are kept. Maxing out around 2″ it is often common to find them in smaller tanks as well. Another neat feature of the guppy fish is that it is a livebearer. Females become pregnant, get larger and larger, and then give birth to small, but fully functional little babies.

Quick Guppy Profile

• Scientific Name: Poecilia reticulata
• Care Level: Easy
• Minimum Tank Size: Ideally guppies should be kept in a 20 gallon or larger. However, if you are setting up a small tank a few can be kept in a 10 gallon or larger.
• Water Conditions: 64-82° F with a wide variety of temps allowed you can choose to leave a heater out of the mix as long as the water doesn’t fluxuate wildly between day temps and night temps. KH 10-30 This means that they can handle medium to hard water. They don’t want very hard water, but they will survive in it.  pH 5.5-8.0 They are also able to handle most aquarium pH, but prefer to be on the neutral to alkaline side (above 7).
• Temperament: For the most part guppies are very peaceful. However, they can sometimes nip fins. This makes large fins often unsuitable. Having a larger group of guppies can end this behavior. They are also very good eaters which can make shy fish or those who are picky eaters have too much competition.
• Size: Wild guppies stay small rarely getting larger then 1.5″. Fancy guppies get larger with the females getting about 2″. Some males can look larger then 2″ if their tails are included. While less common some females will grow to 3″.
• Color: Guppies come in every color under the sun. You can find them in a variety of shades including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Some of the most widely available colors are reds and oranges, yellows, and blues.
• Where You Can Get Them: Guppies are commonly sold at pet stores, fish stores, and Walmart. Finding females is not always easy to do though. You can also find them in several locations online or at fish shows and trades.
• Tank Mates: The guppy does well with most peaceful small to medium fish. Fancier guppies may be picked on by more aggressive species or fin nippers.

Guppy Care

Guppies are very easy to care for. They want clean water. They need a few tank decorations and some decent food. If you can meet these things then they will be happy. You should keep a group of at least three and if you are going to have males and females then you should keep at least one female for every male, but it is better if you can keep two females for every male.

How to Breed Guppies

In addition to guppies being easy to care for they are also easy to breed. You will need a male and a female (or more). You need to care for your guppies and make sure that they are fed so that they don’t eat all of their fry (babies). Just add water.

Taking Care of Guppy Fry

Guppy fry are also easy to take care of. They come out large enough to eat crushed and crumbled foods, brine shrimp, and microworms. You can also give them small amounts of golden pearls, spirulina powder, and decapsulated brine shrimp. Many will survive even if not fed differently from the adults. They also need clean water, but no more so then the adults.

Guppy Types

Guppies come in a wide variety of types. You have wild guppies which are small and commonly available with less color then fancy guppies. However, they are neat in their own right. Fancy guppies are available in many colors and tail types as well with the large delta tailed guppy being the most common.

Guppy Tank Mates

Guppies do well with many other small fish including tetras, other livebearers, and bottom dwellers such as corydoras. The biggest thing you need to consider is how much space the tank has. The larger the tank the more tank mates the guppies can have and the more varieties available for a successful community tank.

Buying Guppies

Buying guppies is easy to do because they are readily available. Whenever possible you should seek out those sold by a breeder rather than at the pet store. Often genetics will be better, life spans longer, and the fish are more likely to be healthy. If possible inspect the fish before you buy them for good health and never put them into your tank without quarantining  them unless you have no other fish yet.

Guppy Diseases and Issues

Common guppy diseases and health issues include a variety of fungus, bacteria, and parasites. This can make it complicated to treat sick guppies, but there are some things that you can do to increase your success should your fish develop these issues. You should always make sure that nets and other equipment stay specific to one tank whenever possible so that you don’t move illnesses or other issues from one tank to another.

Guppies are great fish. Many people develop fish habits that only include guppies and find themselves with several tanks full of guppies. These beautiful little fish have something for almost everyone.

Guppies are often sold as community fish because they do fairly well in the aquarium with a wide variety of fishes. While they do some times nip fins this doesn’t happen often if they are well fed. Kept with other peaceful fish then you will have great success with all the members in your community. The first thing that should be noted is that guppies want to be with other guppies. It is best if you keep four or more together. If you are keeping females with the males then you should have twice as many females as males.

Tank Size

The size of your tank is going to greatly depend on the options for guppy tank mates that you may have. If you have a 10 gallon or less then you should only consider snails as possible tank mates. It doesn’t take many guppies to fill up a space that small. If you have a larger tank then you can think about other species. The larger the tank the more options that you have to mix in with your guppies.

Brackish Water
Guppies are one type of fish that do well in a low brackish water environment as well as a freshwater environment. This allows you to use them in a community of peaceful brackish water fishes. There aren’t many peaceful brackish water fish, however you can keep them with the following species with care.

Mollies

• Mollies – Mollies are a brackish water livebearer that are commonly kept in freshwater to marine waters. They can be kept with mollies, but you will have to be careful to make sure that the guppies get food as well because mollies can sometimes get greedy at feeding times.
• Bumblebee gobies – These small black and yellow gobies are adorable, but they aren’t always easy to feed. When keeping them as guppy tank mates you will need to make sure that the gobies are getting enough food.
• Dragon goby – Another goby that is commonly kept is the dragon goby. It is sometimes called a dragonfish or the violet goby as well. In any case, this fish gets large and has a huge mouth, but contrary to common thought it doesn’t eat any fish. It prefers to filter feed by shoveling gravel or sand into its mouth and sifting out organisms and small pieces of plant. You should make sure that they are getting foods on the bottom with the guppy tank mates.
• Knight Goby – The knight goby can be a nice brackish water fish to add. It should be noted that they will readily hunt down fry and juvies. If they aren’t well fed they may also grab smaller males and make them dinner.
• Snails – Many snails can be kept in brackish water. Some nerites can handle full salt water, but most do very well in brackish water including the olive nerite, the clithon corona, and the zebra nerite. Malaysian trumpet snails are great tank cleaners and dig through the substrate to help keep it clean. They can handle full salt water. Pond snails can handle brackish water, but aren’t much to look at. Ramshorn snails can handle some salinity.
• Shrimp – Ghost shrimp is the best brackish shrimp option for keeping with guppies. They are cool to watch though not particularly colorful. Red nosed shrimp are also an option, but they can be hard to find and expensive. They have a coloration similar to the ghost shrimp, but they have a long red nose. Hawaiian opah shrimp are bright red and orange. They are brackish, but only get to about 1/2″ and are likely to be eaten a little at a time by the guppies.

Ideal Tank Mates

When talking about tank mates for certain types of fish you have “ideal tank mates” and “acceptable tank mates”. The idea ones are those that like the same water conditions as the first species. In the case of the guppies they like alkaline waters (more basic in the 7 to 8 pH range) and they prefer harder water. They also want waters in the 72 to 76 degree range. Ideal tank mates are those that like these types of water.

Mystery Snail

• Snails – There are a lot of different snails that you can choose from that like hard water, who like alkaline waters, and that do fine in the medium water temperatures. The snails you can choose from include pond snails (bladder snails), ramshorn snails (not Columbian or Giant ramshorn snails), Malaysian trumpet snails, mystery snails, trapdoor snails (as long as they are legal in your area), apple snails (as long as they are legal in your area), and nerite snails.
• Shrimp – There are two types of freshwater shrimp. Larger freshwater shrimp include the amano shrimp, bamboo shrimp, and viper shrimp. All of these get to two to four inches. This larger size makes them easy to keep with guppies, but you will have to be careful to provide the environment that any filter feeding shrimp need (the bamboo and viper shrimp are filter feeders). Ghost shrimp are a dwarf shrimp, but on the larger size and can be kept in freshwater as well as brackish waters. Finally there are the smaller dwarf shrimps which include the cherry shrimp, green shrimp, blue pearl shrimp, crystal shrimp, and tiger shrimp just to name a few. These species can be kept with guppies, but unless there are a ton of plants the young shrimp will be eaten.
• Crayfish – Most crayfish either eat fish or nip at fins. This is particularly bad with large tailed males. However, there are a few species of dwarf shrimp that get to about 1.5 inches and are safe to be kept with guppies. This includes the CPO (Cambarellus Patzcuarensis orange) which is the easiest to find (at the time of this writing) and is a lovely shade of orange which makes it very attractive as well as fun to watch.
• Frogs – There are two main types of aquatic frogs kept in the aquarium. The first is the African clawed frog which eats anything that it can get in its mouth and grows quite large making guppies a lovely snack. The second is the African dwarf frog which stays little and works well as a guppy tank mate. However, they will happily eat any guppy fry that they can, so if you want to raise guppy fry in the same tank it isn’t likely to work. They also need a tank under 18 inches tall because they breathe from the surface and aren’t great swimmers.


Red Tux Lyretail Swordtail

• Livebearers – There is a lot of arguments about keeping other livebearers with guppies. In the end, my personal opinion is that it works out just fine. The common livebearers include the platy, the molly, and the swordtail. When you keep mollies or swordtails with the guppies you need to make sure that you are watching to make sure that your guppies are getting plenty of food. In other cases, as long as everyone is getting enough food then there won’t be issues. Endler’s livebearer can also be kept with guppies, but it should be noted that the two species readily breed together and will produce hybrids. This is fine if you have a mixed guppy tank and don’t care, but if you are trying to breed a pure strain then it can be an issue.

Now it gets a little complicated. These creatures are those that do well in hard water that is alkaline and in the low to mid 70′s. That doesn’t mean that they are your only options. There are many more choices. Most of the other choices do fine in the temperature range, but ideal conditions are either more acidic or softer water. In any case, they can adapt to mid range water hardness and neutral to slightly alkaline conditions. If you are purchasing them from the Internet you should take a little extra time to make sure that they are well acclimated to your waters.

Acceptable Tank Mates

These fish will adapt to the same conditions that guppies enjoy. It isn’t ideal, but it does work and lots of people have had great success with these types of fish with your guppies.

• Tetras – Most tetras make great guppy tank mates. It’s often best to choose the smaller varieties which tend to be more peaceful. You should always make sure that you have a good sized school so that the tetras stick together and don’t pick on the guppies. I suggest getting eight or more. You do need to make sure that your tank has room for all of the fish you are looking to put into it.
• White Clouds – Another schooling fish that does well with guppies are white clouds. These are actually a minnow and they are interesting to watch. You can also get them in a short finned or a long finned variety.
• Gourami – Larger gourami need plenty of space and they may eat some fry. However, you can keep the dwarf varieties easily even in a smaller tank. The Dwarf gourami, powder blue gourami, honey gourami, or sunset gourami are all good options if you don’t have the space.
• Danios – These sleek fish are super fast and love schooling. You will want to make sure that you are getting a nice sized group to keep them feeling comfortable and chasing each other. You should make sure you have plenty of space for whatever type you choose. There are several options and you can find more than just the pearl danio or the zebra danio that are often common.
• Angelfish – For a much larger fish there are angelfish. They will eat any small guppies they can catch and they need a good sized tank, but they have a graceful presence and are much slower then the guppies. They can be beautiful, but you will need a large tank.
• Barbs – For the most part barbs have a bad name. This is because of the tiger barb which is often a fish that picks on others. You will need a group of them to play with themselves and help them to leave the other fish in the tank alone. The larger the group, the better. However, I recommend skipping the tiger barb and their color varieties altogether.
• Rainbows – There are many different rainbows and most of them get pretty large. However, the smaller varieties can make great fish friends for guppies. They should be kept in small to large schools of like kind. Dwarf rainbows, neon rainbows, threadfin rainbows, and Gertrude’s rainbows are some good examples.
• Rasboras – These small fish are pretty peaceful. They enjoy large groups of their own type. The harliquinn rasbora is perhaps the one that is most readily available at the pet store, but it in itself is a great option with an interesting pattern.
• Dwarf Cichlids – Cichlids as a whole have a pretty big name for being aggressive. However, not all of them are and many fish that do well in community aquariums are overlooked because of the fact that they are cichlids. There are a huge variety of dwarf cichlids. They are not always easy to find and they are sensitive to ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates in the water. Because of their sensitivity a larger tank is often recommended. They are only aggressive when pairing off and breeding. Plenty of hiding spots can help to eliminate this. They may make a snack out of small fry. Popular dwarf cichlids include kribensis, badis, apistogramma, cockatoo dwarf cichlid, and the blue rams.
• Pencilfish –  For some beautiful and interesting looking fish you can choose pencilfish. There are a few different varieties including the three lined pencilfish which is mostly metallic with three black lines and the ruby red pencilfish which is red with gold and black stripes. They are small and interesting. They do require frequent water changes and they need small foods. However, a group of them in a good sized tank can be a great addition as long as you provide plants, driftwood, and or rocks for them to hide in.
• Loaches – Not all loaches are friendly and good for community tanks, but some of them are. They all like to be in groups of three or more. For small tanks you have the kuhli loach which comes in a yellow and brown pattern and black. For larger tanks you can choose the zebra loach or the dojo loach. The zebra loach has a great pattern and while often listed as semi-aggressive I have never seen it with my loaches. The dojo loach is very friendly and ignores everyone in the tank. They can be trained to eat out of your hand and they often act like a puppy dog. Clown loaches get very large and will also work, but should be kept in a very large tank. Often sold as cute little fish in pet store they grow to 12 to 18 inches in the aquarium and are a bulky fish in addition to a long one. Adults should be kept in a 6′ x 2′ x 2′ tank or larger.
• Corydoras – There are a number of commonly sold corydoras that work well with guppies. These fish are sometimes sold as cory cats, cory catfish, or just plain cories. In any case you can find them in several varieties. They should be kept in groups. It’s often argued as to how large of a group you should keep them in. My opinion is that three is the minimum, but more than that is often a good idea.
• Plecos – Plecos are often misunderstood as a group. Most people think of these as algae eaters and sometimes common plecos are sold as such. However, they are scavengers and most don’t eat a lot of algae. You will want to make sure that you are choosing a species that won’t hunt down your fish and that will be of appropriate size for your tank. In tanks 30 gallons or less you should only consider dwarf species such as the rubber lip or the bristlenose. Larger species need a much larger tank and the common pleco can and does get to 18 inches to 2 feet in the home aquarium (and larger elsewhere).
• Glass Catfish – These guys are incredibly adorable with their bones showing. They are schooling fish and need a nice sized group of six or more individuals to feel comfortable. Therefore they should only be kept in larger tanks where there is plenty of room for a three inch schooling fish and his friends.
• Upside Down Catfish – These guys like to be in groups as well and you want to check out what kind you are getting because some species can grow quite large. They prefer to be in a tank with broad leafed plants so that they can rest on the bottom side.
• Otocinclus – This small catfish does a great job eating algae since it is vegetarian. You will need to supplement with vegetarian options such as fresh vegetables and high quality algae wafers. While only about 1″ each they need to be in a group of at least three, but more preferably five. They are also very sensitive to water conditions and need to be placed in a well established, fully cycled, and stable tank.

Fish keeping has very few hard core rules. There is a lot of disagreement among hobbiest, fish keepers, and even fish breeders. You can try out other fish combinations, but in most cases if you can meet the needs of each type of fish you put into the tank you will have success. These fish can be kept as guppy tank mates as long as there is space for everyone and you are working to meet everyone’s needs.

Guppies come in a wide variety of types, colors, and fin shapes. This is due in part to different wild populations having different looks and even more to selective breeding which has produced many different types of guppies. Understanding some of the types can help you to make decisions about the guppies you want to own. It should be noted that all guppies can interbreed, so if you buy more than one type and include males and females then you will have them crossbreed which can produce some funny looking guppies.

Wild Guppies
Wild guppies refer to those that are collected in the wild. It also includes guppies that have a very wild form. In most cases females will be gray or gold bodied and the tails will have very little color if any. Males may have beautiful colors, but they are going to be small. In most cases they will have a small rounded tail that will not be large. In some cases there are some unusual populations that produce tails of interesting shape such as the swordtails and spadetails.

Fancy Guppies
The most popular type of guppy on the market is the fancy guppy. This term is used for any guppy that doesn’t have a wild body type or color. Fancy guppies are larger, have large tails or unusual tail shapes, and are often bolder in color. Fancy guppies are the only variety available at pet stores and local fish stores. This is because the fancy guppies are more desirable to most guppy keepers.

Guppy Varieties
There are a lot of different options when it comes to guppy varieties. Common varieties include different colors, different patterns, and different tail shapes. However, it doesn’t even stop there. You can find some guppies with special fins and even real read eyed albinos in several different colors, patterns, and tail shapes!

• Fancy Guppy Colors – There are a huge variety of fancy guppy colors. It is easy to find a blue guppy or a red guppy, however the choice definitely don’t end there. Shades of blue, red, and yellow are available everywhere. You can also find black, grays, purples, pinks, greens, and oranges. Many guppies have more than one color on them, but there are some that are all one color.
• Fancy Guppy Patterns – Even more complicated then guppy colors are guppy patterns. The biggest issue is that some people use one variety of names and other people use other names. You will find half black or tuxedo guppies which has a dark colored body. A cobra or snakeskin has a pattern along it’s body. Grass guppies have a spotted tail with small dots that look like grass seeds. These dots don’t touch each other. Mosaic patterned guppies are similar, but the dots touch each other for a mosaic pattern. Metal and platinum guppies or metal head guppies have a metallic color on the front half of their body. This could be silvery colored, gold, or platinum. Other patterns include glass, leopard, and lace guppies. The biggest issue is that there is no hard standard for any of these patterns.
• Fancy Tail Guppies – Tails come in a lot of shapes and sizes. Following the chart you have: A- Flag Tail, B- Delta Tail, C- Fan Tail, D- Veil Tail, E- Double Swordtail, F- Top Swordtail, G- Bottom Swordtail, H- Lyre Tail, I- Spade Tail, J- Spear Tail, K- Round Tail or Wild Tail, and L- Pin Tail.
• Specialized Fins – There are also a couple of common specialized fins. You can find a large or long dorsal fin on a wide variety of colored guppies and patterned guppies. This is the fin on the top of the fish and it can get very large. Another specialized fin is the ribbon fin. These are long fins on the bottom of the fish. They dangle like ribbons and are very beautiful. Finally a guppy with a cool looking tail is the swallow tail or swallow finned guppy. They will have a ragged looking tail with a variety of swoops in it.
• RREA – Finally you have the RREA. This stands for real read eyed albinos. They come in a huge variety of colors, patterns, and tail shapes. Often their colors are paler then the same color variety without the albino gene. As their name suggests they have red eyes.

Show Guppies

Show guppies aren’t really a different type of guppy. In fact, they are just fancy guppies at their best. However, most show guppies go way beyond anything seen at the store. Only the best guppies make it into shows. These guppies will cost significantly more than other types of guppies no matter what color you are choosing, what tail shape, or what pattern.

Feeder Guppies
I can’t really end a post on guppy types without mentioning feeder guppies. Depending on where you live you may be able to find feeder guppies. Often these are mixed guppies with crazy genetics. Some include wild guppies and some even include Endler blood. Most of them are pretty light or ugly, but you should know that they are out there. You can purchase them for your guppy tank, but there are prettier guppies out there.

Guppies are beautiful. One of the things that excites so many guppy keepers is the amazing variety of guppies available. From cute, wild guppies to stunning large finned fancy guppies there are choices for everyone. You can find a tail that meets your tastes and a color that excites you.

It is really easy to learn how to breed guppies. Some people will tell you that there is no knowledge that you need to know in order to breed guppies. The saying for guppy breeding is to add water, a male, and a female and babies are bound to happen. This isn’t far off either. None the less there are things that you can do in order to get the females to be more productive, to have fry survive, and to keep your breeding guppies and the guppy fry alive and thriving. You will need to start with good guppy fish care and from there build on it. There are two options for easy guppy breeding. The first option is to buy a male and female of the same strain and then maintain it by breeding the two together. The second is to mix guppies at random and see what happens. This can lead to beautiful and or unusual fish. To work toward creating a fish with a certain look and then to work toward the offspring of that fish maintaining the look often requires an understanding of genetics, a fair amount of tank space, and patience.

Equipment Needed for Guppy Fish Breeding

You don’t need a lot of fancy equipment in order to successfully breed guppy fish. You can place a male and a female into a small tank in order to breed however you will need at least ten gallons in order to raise fry. This is the minimum amount of space you should have, but you should know that it will quickly get full of fry. You should also have a filter. An over the back filter can suck fry up so the best choice is one that works inside the tank like a sponge filter or box filter. These will help keep the tank clean without putting fry or youngsters at risk. Other than that you should have places for the fry to have if adults are kept with fry and you need water conditioner and fish food.

Gender
The first thing that you need to do for guppy fish breeding is to make sure that you have a male and a female. In most cases it is best to have two or more females for each male. This will reduce the stress that the females can feel because the males will chase them (a lot).

• Male Guppies – A guppy male is usually more colorful than the females. In some cases this isn’t true because some breeders have produced females that look as stunning as males. However, these aren’t readily available. So, you will want to look for the most colorful of the fish. Next you should look under the guppy. The male guppy’s anal fin is pointed and sticks back toward the tail. This anal fin is bonded together into a gonopodium which will deliver the males sperm packets into the female. Males will chase the females around and flip the gonopodium around to insert it into the female. This gonopodium is common in livebearers, even those that don’t have as distinguishing color differences. In the picture on the right you will see a flame delta tailed male with his gonopodium circled to show you want you should look for in the male guppy.
• Female Guppies – Female guppies are often less colorful. Many have a gray or gold colored body and a colored tail. However, this alone can’t be used as a standard for telling a male guppy from a female guppy because there are females that look as good as or better then many males. While the anal fin on the male guppy is pointed toward his tail, the anal fin of a female is large and triangular shaped. Females are often rounded in the body as well and they will get large after they are mature and pregnant. On the right is a female with her anal fin circled as well for comparison purposes.
  

  Female Guppy

In most cases the location that you purchase guppies from will be able to help you pick out a male and a female. However, it should be noted that many pet stores and local fish stores don’t always sell both the males and females. It is often a lot easier to get males then it is females. This is mostly due to the fact that males sell a lot better than females, but it is also because on a farm you can use all the females with only a few males.

Guppy Breeding

Some fish will require specific water conditions, special foods, or other conditioning parimeters to be met in order to get them to breed (or spawn). However, the guppy isn’t one of them. For guppy breeding to take place you should stick a male and a female in the tank. You can keep them both there for the time being or you can give the male a few days with the female and then remove him. This will really depend on how you want to handle breeding and how you want to handle the guppy fry (babies).

Guppy Eggs

Do guppies lay eggs? Nope!

Most people think of fish laying eggs and then leaving them there or eating them. However, there are lots of different kinds of parents and lots of different methods that fish use to bring babies into this world. The guppy belongs to a group called livebearers. This means that they actually give birth to live babies.

Guppy Gestation

Guppy mating is done by the guppy male sticking his gonopodium into the female. It is tube like in structure and is used for passing sperm packets or balls into the female. The sperm is used to fertilize eggs within the female guppy’s body. The babies or guppy fry develop inside the female. The gestation period of the guppy is 21 to 30 days with it being most common for birth to happen around 24 to 28 days. Young females give birth to a smaller number of fry than older ones. It is not uncommon for a young mother to produce 2 to 10 babies and it is not uncommon for larger, older females to produce 30 to 60 offspring.

The Gravid Spot

When talking about guppy pregnancy and guppy gestation a lot of people start talking about the gravid spot. This is a spot on the back of a female guppies belly. As the guppy gets older and more pregnant the spot gets larger and it moves toward the back of the fish. Many breeders use the location of this spot in order to know when she is getting close to giving birth. I have never been able to do this. In gray bodied females the gravid spot is a dark color, usually black. In gold bodied females it is a gold or pink in color. This picture is a pink gravid spot on a gold bodied female. As the babies develop you may see their eyes in the gravid spot. Pregnant guppies can get very large toward the end of their pregnancy.

Guppy Birth

When guppies give birth they act a lot like other species who give birth. This includes panting, wiggling, sometimes they will lay on the bottom, others will suspend themselves in the plants, and still others will float. The babies will drop out in little balls and quickly unfold and dart away. They are born fully ready to swim and capable of eating. However, it usually takes a few hours before they are good at either. A guppy giving birth can take several hours in order to drop all of her fry.

Keeping Guppy Fry Alive

Most guppies will happily catch and eat all the guppy fry that they can. This can give on a challenge for keeping them alive and growing. There are two main options that breeders will use in order to keep babies live.

• Plants. The first option for keeping guppy fry is to have a lot of plants. There are lots of great options for hiding fry. While this can work with plastic plants, the best choice is live aquarium plants. You can choose guppy grass or other floating plants, mosses, or bunch plants for lots of places for the guppy fry to hide. Some may still get eaten by the parents, but a large number of them will make it. In addition, to saving many of the fry you will also teach the parents to leave the babies alone. As they get larger they will come out of hiding and be chased by the parents. They will be too fast or too large for the parents to eat and eventually the parents will just get to where they will leave the babies alone. You should make sure that you are feeding everyone a few times a day to keep both the parents and the babies full.
• Breeding traps, nets, and boxes. There are several devices that are used for keeping livebearers alive. These are often called breeding traps, nets, or boxes. Breeding traps and boxes are usually made of plastic and designed to keep the mother in one area and have the fry drop into a separate location. Some of them are designed to have the fry drop into their own tank. A breeding net is made of plastic and netting and usually holds the mother while she gives birth to the fry. Then you scoop the mother out and leave the fry in there to get a little larger. This method will require you to make a decision about when to put the mother into the trap or net (not something I am particularly good at), but it will keep more of the fry alive. The pregnant guppy fish needs to be moved to the trap, net, or box. In most cases you need to be careful because stress can cost some guppies to give birth prematurely. This results in eggs and partially mature babies to be stillborn.

Guppy Fry Care

Guppy fry are very easy to take care of. They are born large enough to consume small foods including microworms, baby brine shrimp, and ground fish foods. They will consume small pieces of the parents foods, but it is often best to give small foods as well in order to make sure that they are getting plenty of foods. The fry need clean water and will grow faster with regular water changes. In most cases it will take three to four months for the fry to become sexually mature, but they will continue to grow until around 8 months of age.

While guppy fish breeding is easy to do there are some things that you can do to make it more productive. Here are a few tips that will help you enjoy the process and get more guppy fry out of the process.

• Feed your guppies a variety of foods. It is true that your guppies will breed even if you feed them the cheapest and least nutritional food possible. However, if you feed a wide variety of foods and if those foods are of very good nutrition then it is more likely that females will produce larger and healthier batches of fry. Good food can and should include a high quality flake or pelleted food. You can also supplement with frozen foods, freeze dried treats, and vegetables.
• Feeding more than once a day is good for your adults and your fry. It is best to feed three to five times a day. Feed only as much as your fish will consume in two to three minutes unless you have a lot of bottom feeders (snails, catfish, plecos, loaches, corydoras, shrimp, catfish, ect). This will make sure everyone is getting enough food and it will make sure that fry have full bellies all the time which will help with growth.
• Guppies can survive in a wide range of water conditions and often make it through nitrogen cycles, high levels in ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. They will do a lot better in clean water and they are also more likely to breed more profusely.
• Be willing to try different methods. You may find that you don’t need all the fry to survive and growing everyone out in the tank is the easiest thing that you can do. Or you may find that you want or need more fry and you want to catch your females and use breeder boxes, traps, or nets.

Things You Should Know About Guppy Fish Breeding

Guppy breeding is easy. It can be done by anyone whether you have one tank or more than one tank. You can breed guppies whether you spend $2 at the pet store or $50 on a high quality show guppy. You can have beautiful guppies as well. However, knowing these things will make it easier.

• Female guppies differ from humans in many ways. One of them is their ability to store sperm. They can store sperm for up to a year and become pregnant when their are no males in sight and when they haven’t been with a male in a long time.
• Those same amazing storing females can also get pregnant more than once in a row without the male present.
• You females can’t get pregnant until they are mature. However, they can store sperm. This would allow a young female to get pregnant in a couple of months from the sperm she stored as a young juvenile.
• Young males can impregnate their sisters and mother (or aunts or any other females in the tank) starting at a pretty young age. Most of the time you can tell they are male because they get colored up first, but every now and again you will have a male who is active before he becomes real colorful. If you are wanting to separate the males for the most control over breeding you should check your young fish twice a day. Look for characteristics of the males including their colors, but also check the anal fin and look for it becoming pointed.

Guppy breeding is easy. However, there are things that you can do to make your guppy program work the way you want and to have more fry survive. You can quickly have a full tank! In fact, it isn’t uncommon to feel overwhelmed by fry. With that in mind, you should have a plan for dealing with the guppies you don’t want. Other than that, you can have the fun of expecting the babies and if you are lucky watch them be born. You can enjoy watching the fry grow and develop.

Guppy fish care is easier than many fish. They can handle a wide variety of water conditions, can consume a wide range of foods, and they don’t require much of anything special. This is part about what makes them easy for the beginner. The one exception is show guppies which may be weaker and may need special requirements in order to thrive. For the absolute best guppy care you can give here are some suggestions and help.

Equipment
Many people will tell you that you need a lot of equipment in order to have guppies. However, that isn’t really true. You need a tank of at least ten gallons (though ten gallons won’t hold many guppies). You will want a filter and some sort of air for the best results. So, an over the back filter will work for both or you could choose a box or sponge filter that will also provide both. You don’t need a hood or even a light. If you want to keep live plants then you will need a light. Otherwise the light is just to make it easier for you to see. The good news is that guppy care doesn’t require a lot of equipment.

Water Perimeters
Guppies aren’t really picky when it comes to water perimeters and this makes it easy. They do well in most tap water. They like a pH from around 6.8 to 7.6 though the basic side of that is better (above 7.0). They also thrive in water that is medium hard to hard. This can be really good if you don’t have a water softener and you have hard water. Many recommend that you put aquarium salt in with guppies. Guppies can do well with a little salt and even to brackish waters. However, if you are adding other creatures or fish you will want to make sure that they too do okay with salt added to their water.

Tank Decorations
Many of the tank decorations that people choose are for their own benefit. This is fine, but there are a lot of advantages for choosing some tank decorations with the idea of making the fish that they own more comfortable. Here are some suggestions to help you:

• Substrate: Many people don’t use substrate of any sort in the bottom of guppy tanks because it can make things easier for breeding purposes. However, a good substrate can help you with your water care because it gives bacteria another place to grow. You can pick any color, size, or type that you want.
• Plants: While I have become a huge fan of live plants and there are a lot of options that don’t require a lot of work, it doesn’t matter if you choose live plants or plastic ones. It only matters that you give the guppies plants to swim through. This will make them feel a little more comfortable. If you want to keep babies alive with their parents you should make some densely planted areas for the guppy fry (babies) to hide in.
• Hiding Places: One reason that people like guppies is that they don’t do a lot of hiding. However, giving them rocks, driftwood, clay structures, or other structures you can give them a feeling of comfort. You really do want to make this a home for them. The good news is that you can choose a piece of driftwood or a rock if natural is your taste or you can buy a sunken treasure chest or windmill. In either case your personal taste can be used to decorate the tank.

What Do Guppies Eat?

Guppies are omnivores and will eat almost anything that you feed them. This can make it easy to find foods for them, but if you want to provide the best nutrition here are some suggestions:

• Flakes. Guppies aren’t picky and they will eat any type of flake food. However, most flake foods on the market aren’t designed with optimum nutrition in mind. Instead they are made to feed fish as cheap as possible so that the company makes a product while selling you a $3 container of food. It’s better if you are willing to spend a little more. In which case you should read the container and look for ingredients such as whole fish meal (this contains all the fish and not just the parts left over after feeding people), whole shrimp, whole krill, brine shrimp, plankton, kelp, spirulina, and real vegetables (potato starch doesn’t count). It isn’t likely that you will find food with that entire list, but the more that you find on the list the better.
• Freeze Dried. In addition to flakes it is a good idea to offer freeze dried treats. Some popular options include bloodworms, brine shrimp, and tubifex worms. These are good for your fish, but they aren’t complete nutrition so you should only feed them every now and again.
• Frozen and Live Foods. Guppies will also enjoy frozen and live foods. There are a lot of different options out there, but anything that will fit in their mouth or can be bitten are enjoyed. Frozen options include bloodworms, brine shrimp, brine shrimp with spirulina (healthier and more complete), and krill are good options. Live food options include confused flour beetles and their larvae, grindal worms, white worms, brine shrimp, daphnia (smaller varieties), and fruit flies. These aren’t complete lists, but they can get you started.
• Vegetables. Some fish are heavy vegetable eaters. Guppies aren’t usually one of them, but they do enjoy and benefit from the occasional fresh vegetable. Some vegetables that are enjoyed include zucchini, carrots, cucumber, green beans, shelled peas, spinach, and kelp (commonly available in dried form at the Asian market). You can use canned varieties or quickly boil them to make the sink. You can also use a vegetable clip or weight it down. You should remove the uneaten vegetables in 24 hours so that they don’t make a mess in your water. Your guppies may take some time getting used to being fed fresh vegetables, but it is likely that they will come to enjoy  them as much as my fish.

Water Changes

You can have a tank that is well filtered with tons of plants and only a few fish or creatures that doesn’t need regular water changes. However, in most cases we like way more fish then we can have in order to keep the water chemistry right. So, you should do a 25% water change once a week as regular guppy care. This will help to keep your water at it’s proper water quality and will help your guppies thrive.

Keeping Your Guppies Healthy

In most cases you only need clean water, a few plants or decorations, and some good food. In most cases you will keep your guppies healthy by doing your regular water changes on top of some good food. However, there are times when your guppies may come across diseases, parasites, or they may get sick. The good news is if and when your fish get sick there are things you can do. Check out guppy diseases and illnesses for more information.

Guppy fish care is easy. You need to make sure that you are taking care of them with great food and frequent water changes. That’s really all it takes to have great looking fish!

Part of being good at taking care of your aquarium is knowing what is going on in your water. Because the processes that happen there aren’t ones that you can see, a good water test kit is how you will be able to know what your fish are swimming in. The water test kit will allow you to know the pH of the water, the ammonia levels, the nitrite levels, and the nitrate levels. By knowing what these values are you will be able to keep your water and aquarium healthy. There are a number of test kits and test strips out there. The test strips are faster and easier to use, but a liquid test kit will give you more accurate results. The API Freshwater Master Test Kit will provide you with all that you need to test your water and make sure that it is healthy.

What Is The API Freshwater Master Test Kit?

The Freshwater master test kit is a liquid water test kit that tests water for the pH and various impurities. It will test for each of the harmful elements that can be found in your water and allow you to make adjustments and changes accordingly. The kit comes with 1 bottle of chemical for standard pH, one for high pH, two for ammonia, one for nirites, and two for nitrates. In addition to the seven bottles of chemicals you will get four glass tubes, four rubber caps, a plastic tray to hold it all, a color chart to compare the results with, and an instructional booklet.

pH Test

The first part of your freshwater master test kit is the pH test. There are two different tests available. The first is a standard test and shows pH any between 6.0 and 7.6. For anyone who has fish with acidic water needs or who are using water softener water or RO water you will be using this chemical to find out what your pH is. If you have a high pH then you will need the high range pH test which shows 7.4 to 8.8. In general this is a test that doesn’t have to be done as often as often as the others. As a whole if you don’t make any changes and the fish appear to be just fine then it isn’t likely that your pH has changed. However, using different filter medium, adding rocks or gravel, driftwood, or other objects which may change the pH then you should monitor the water for changes for a couple of weeks afterward.

To test your pH you will need to fill one of the test tubes with 5 mL of water. This will be up to the conveinent fill line. Next you will need to add 3 drops of pH test solution if you are testing in the regular range or 5 drops of test solution if you are using the high range pH solution. If you aren’t sure what to use then you can start with the regular. If it is darker than what the color chart shows then you can re-test using the high range solution. Once you have added your solution you will cap it and shake it for about five seconds. Wait 5 minutes and then read the results by comparing it to color chart.

Ammonia Test

Ammonia ends up in the water from fish and other creature waste, from food that isn’t eaten, and from decaying plant and animal matter. In a healthy tank the bacteria in the bio filter will consume the ammonia. Once balanced it usually continues to consume the ammonia at the proper ratio. However, adding more fish, doing water changes, temperature changes, and lots of cleaning can increase the ammonia or decrease the number of bacteria. It’s always a good idea to take regular tests to find out where you are at. It’s also a good idea to test for ammonia and other harmful chemicals when fish look ill, die, or something looks or smells off.

Using the API Freshwater Master Test Kit you will fill one of the glass test tubes to the line. This is 5 mL of water. You will then add 8 drops from the ammonia bottle number one and 8 drops from the ammonia bottle number two. Put the cap on it and give it a good shake for five seconds. After five minutes you will want to compare the water color to the color chart.

Nitrite Test

After the ammonia is consumed by the bacteria it is broken down into nitrites. This is the next step in the nitrogen cycle and a good thing. However, nitrites aren’t good for your fish either. So, another type of bacteria consumes the nitrites. If the biological filter in your tank is doing a good job and there isn’t too much ammonia being added to your tank through the fish, plants, and food then the nitrite levels will be at 0. Testing for them allows you to know the health of your tank and will allow you to take precautions if you have issues with your nitrites.

Using the API Freshwater Master Test Kit you will fill your test tube as with the other tests. Then add 5 drops of liquid from the nirite test. Put the cap on the top and give it a good shake. Give it five minutes and then compare it to the chart.

Nitrate Test

The final thing that you will test for is the nitrates. This is the final chemical that is part of the nitrogen test. The bacteria break the nitrites into nitrates. Nitrates are much less harmful for the fish than either ammonia and nitrites. Live plants will use nitrates to grow, but otherwise it stays in the water. This is the biggest thing that you will want to remove when doing water changes. Testing your water regularly will alert you of when you need to do water changes more often or for when things are looking good and you can miss.

To test for nitrates you will need to add 10 drops from the first bottle and 10 drops from the second bottle to your 5 mL of water. Cap it and shake it well. Wait five minutes and then check the colors to find out how you are doing.

Tips For Being Successful With the API Freshwater Master Test Kit

It isn’t hard to test your water using this liquid test kit. However, there are a few things that you should do to make it as accurate as possible and some things that will make your life easier.

• It’s always a good idea to wash your hands. It isn’t likely that skipping that will make it so that you will contaminate the sample, but just to be sure you should thoroughly wash.
• Make sure the test tubes are thoroughly rinsed. This is very important if you are testing in previously used test tubes.
• Using a pipette can make it easier for you to put in 5 mL of water without going over. It can also make it easier to remove a small amount from the test tube should you go over.
• You should put the cap on tightly. However, there is an air hole in the top of the cap to allow proper air into the test tube for the completion of the test. You should not put your finger over the hole while shaking. The test solution needs the air to complete the test. Shaking gently will make it so that you don’t have fluid coming out the hole.
• Keep an eye on the time. It is easy to forget and end up coming back to it long after five minutes.
• Write down the results. They will stick with you longer and you can compare them over time.
• Finally, you should make sure that you wash your hands really well afterward. The chemicals that are used for the test solution are dangerous and you don’t want them on your hands.

Color Chart

If you don’t have the color chart it can be frustrating. You can use an online color chart to compare to, but remember that different monitors often display different colors. It will give you a good idea though. Here is a guideline to help you out when you are trying to read the tests without a color chart.

• pH. The standard pH test starts out with yellow at 6.0 and turns aqua toward blue. The scale ends in a sky blue at 7.6. If it is darker than that then the high range pH test should be used.
• High Range pH. This test starts in a light brown color at 7.4 and turns rust colored, then reddish, and finally purple at 8.8.
• Ammonia. Ammonia starts out yellow at 0 and moves into pale shades of green on into bright green. The brighter and greener it is the worse off your tank is with the darkest shade of green being 8 ppm.
• Nitrite (NO2). Nitrite starts out as a pale blue at 0 and moves into a periwinkle color on into shades of purple. Again the brighter and deeper the color the worse off the tank is. If it is really deep purple then it is in the 5 ppm range.
• Nitrate (NO3). The test for nitrates starts out yellow and turns orange and then red. The deepest color is a bright burgundy color at 160 ppm.

Having and using a freshwater water test kit is the first thing that you should do in order to keep your water quality good. There are test strips and easy solutions, but they don’t compare in reliability to a liquid kit such as the API Freshwater Master Test Kit. This is an easy to use kit that will help you in maintaining a great tank.