# How long should I acclimate guppies?



## YMS_1975

I want to get & breed feeder guppies, fatten them up as much as possible and then feed them to my turtles.

I was advised I have to acclimate the guppies to the water in the tank. My question is, is there some sort of a guide that will help me understand the proper method & the duration for this?

I know I'd have to test the waters pH (which I've never done before, so I guess I'll have to purchase some kit), but a good starting point would be greatly appreciated.


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## pyrrolin

acclimate from what water to what water? Guppies are pretty tough, personally I would just let the bag from the store sit in the tank for 20 min for temp adjustment and then toss them in.


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## Mlevi

Here's what I do...

1> Float the container the guppies come in, in your tank for about 10 mins, to equalize the temperature of the water the fish came from, with that of your tank.

2> add some water (about 10% or so of the container size)from your tank to the container the fish came in.

Repeat this at about 5-10 min interval until there's roughly 50% 'old' water and 50% 'tank' water in the container.

3> Net the fish from the container and put them into your tank, trying to make sure, as much as possible, that the water in the container does not enter your tank. (you don't want anything in the water from wherever you got the fish, to enter your tank and create problems).

4> Discard the container water.

I do this even when I'm moving my guppies from one tank to another, as all my tanks have different characteristics, in terms of water chemical properties. Just a personal preference o' mine. Doesn't take much time as I'm usually putterin' with somethin' or the other around my tanks in between anyways.


Al.


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## YMS_1975

*Here's my plan....*

I bought 10 feeder guppies & 1 pleco (for my guppy breeder tank; 13.7 Gallons). From what I understand, these two will get along (is that correct)??? I added a capful of Seachem Prime to help the water be more bearable. For their acclimation, I let the bag sit in the tank for 15 minutes. Then I added a cup of water to the bag, waited for another 10 minutes. Then I emptied them into the tank. They seem to be doing ok, but it's only been like an hour so....time will tell.

I also bought a bubble-eyed goldfish, he's in a small fish bowl; added a half a cap of Prime, but noticed he'll move around a bit, but then he'll just sit at the bottom of the bowl. I acclimated him in his bowl for like 15 minutes. The guy at the LFS told me not to mix their water with his bowl water as their levels were high. He advised, just to let the bag sit in the bowl, and then scoop him out with my hands and put him in the bowl.

I did that, but he's sitting at the bottom of the bowl (for the most part). He's made a few short movements, but nothing big. Should I be concerned?


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## malajulinka

If the guy at the LFS told you it was okay to keep a goldfish in a bowl, then you need to find a new LFS. That's like keeping a cat in an aquarium...


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## pyrrolin

goldfish need more water for their size than normal fish. They also get to about 6 inches long.

I have a 37 gallon tall tank in my sons room and it is full with about 5 goldfish and a bristlenose pleco.

A single goldfish will need at the bare minimum a 10 gallon tank, but I recommend larger.

They also need a filter system of some type for the biological cycle.

I have a betta and he is housed in a nicely decorated 5.5 gallon tank and is very happy

the guppies and pleco will get along just fine. Generally speaking, plecos are good with almost anything. But what type of pleco? some get a foot long and require a very large tank, 75 gallon plus.

If you want to breed guppies, I recommend having plants for the fry to hide in.


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## YMS_1975

*Good to know*

Thanks for the heads up about the fish bowl. I'll get him a small aquarium later today.
One question though; can my bubble eye get along with my pleco and guppies?
I'm thinking about putting all of them together.


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## malajulinka

I'm sure you'll find people who've had success otherwise, but in general goldfish prefer colder temperatures than tropical species like guppies.


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## BJJBlackbelt

I have a Black Moor in a 29 Gallon Community that is kept at 72 degrees. Mostly tetra's, danios and dwarf pleco's. Fish that tend to like it a bit cooler anyways.

18 months in, very stable and the black moor is still very black and very happy.

Now in a 76-78 degree tank, I doubt it would work.


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## YMS_1975

*Hmmmm*

Well all but 4 of my 20 guppies & my pleco have died. 
I don't get it. I used Prime water conditioner, the water & the filter are clean, I acclimated the guppies & the pleco.

Arrrggghhhhh. You know, I never had this problem with feeder goldfish (way back in the day) and back then, I always used regular tap water. Why is it so hard now? I don't get it; I honestly don't.

I didn't know squat then (as I was using regular tap water) but now that I'm more aware (or so I think I am), they're dying???

Blimey.


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## Jackson

How long has the tank been running? How did you cycle it? What's the temp of the tank? What type of filtration are you using? When you say your filter is clean what exactly does that mean?

You need to provide more details about the tank. 

Prime is just a water conditioner. I hate that stuff to be honest the powder form safe is much better. It doesn't smell like a septic tank. That alone is gold in my eyes. 

I'll just guess that your tank hasn't been cycled properly and that's why your fish died. 
Example one dies and starts to rot you see it take it out your tank spikes you don't know this next one dies and so on and so on until they're all dead. Remember this is just a guess. 

Usually those mutant feeders can live through a lot and if your pleco was a bushy nose or common pleco who can both handle some harsh conditions have died you did something wrong. 
I'm not being rude just straight forward.


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## pyrrolin

+1 sounds like you didnt cycle, "clean" can be a very bad thing

Right beside me I have a 5.5 gallon tank with a betta in it. It looks nice. But if you look closely, you can see the driftwood is half covered in algae, there is some algae on the gravel, everything is covered in a slime if you were to touch it.

This is a healthy tank with a very happy fish


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## Ryan.Wilton

Well as far as I know he said 13.7gallons. That could've been a system shock regardless of cycling or not, he added 21 fish... As mentioned, never "clean" an aquarium to the fullest. You want some filth. Do you have a heater in the tank?

Also, give that poor goldfish a bigger tank... he's not gunna be very happy for very long in an unfiltered bowl.


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## YMS_1975

*...*



Jackson said:


> How long has the tank been running? How did you cycle it? What's the temp of the tank? What type of filtration are you using? When you say your filter is clean what exactly does that mean?
> 
> You need to provide more details about the tank.
> 
> Prime is just a water conditioner. I hate that stuff to be honest the powder form safe is much better. It doesn't smell like a septic tank. That alone is gold in my eyes.
> 
> I'll just guess that your tank hasn't been cycled properly and that's why your fish died.
> Example one dies and starts to rot you see it take it out your tank spikes you don't know this next one dies and so on and so on until they're all dead. Remember this is just a guess.
> 
> Usually those mutant feeders can live through a lot and if your pleco was a bushy nose or common pleco who can both handle some harsh conditions have died you did something wrong.
> I'm not being rude just straight forward.


No no, I didn't take it as you being rude at all. I welcome your suggestions (and feedback). To be honest, I don't think I did "cycle" the tank. I was reading up on cycling and wasn't sure how to cultivate the necessary bacteria in the tank.

The temperature of the tank is : 20 degrees celcius.

I'm using an Aquaclear 70 filter, with white filter floss wrapped around the inlet tube (to prevent guppies from being sucked into the tube which has happened btw). When I say my tank/filter is "clean", I mean that the water looks clear to the naked eye.

Hope I provided enough details to get me headed in the right direction. BTW, I still have 4 remaining guppies. I will be buying a water test kit because obviously something is not right here.


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## malajulinka

Read this. Then read it again. Then go get your test kit, then read it again. And since you're now doing a fish-in cycle, go read this and follow the instructions. I *thought* I understood the nitrogen cycle, until I had an experience very close to yours - no immediate losses, but some very sick fishes whose lifespans ended up greatly diminished in the end. Now you know for next time. It happens to almost everyone. Good luck with your remaining guppies!


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