Help, Guppy very quiet and swimming in the bottom of the tank

Hello everyone,

My favorite guppy - Saturn went from being very energetic and swimming up and down to being very quiet at the bottom of the tank and it seems he is hiding..

I noticed 2 days ago his fins were nibbled and his appetite was not as good. Today he is quiet and swimming in the bottom of the tank.

I have done a partial water change 4 days ago, and the next one is scheduled in 2 days - even tho I clean everything thoroughly I have a feeling the water quality might not be the best. I am still new to this and trying to understand the test results.
I have treated previously my tank for itch and worms.. and from the worms, i suffered some losses.... mainly my other guppies...
please help...

This is him this morning , during feeding time, he doesn’t even go to eat anymore . He was just resting in the log.

What is the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH of the water?
How long has the tank been set up for?
How often do you clean the filter and how do you clean it?
How much water do you normally change during a water change?
What did/ does his poop look like?

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BASIC FIRST AID FOR FISH
Test the water for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH.

Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. This removes the biofilm on the glass and the biofilm will contain lots of harmful bacteria, fungus, protozoans and various other microscopic life forms.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week or until the problem is identified. The water changes and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in. It also removes a lot of the gunk and this means any medication can work on treating the fish instead of being wasted killing the pathogens in the gunk.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens so any medication (if needed) will work more effectively on the fish.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration to maximise the dissolved oxygen in the water.

With guppies and other common livebearers, you can also add some salt if the water is good.

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SALT
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt), swimming pool salt, or any non iodised salt (sodium chloride) to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

If you only have livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), goldfish or rainbowfish in the tank you can double that dose rate, so you would add 2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres and if there is no improvement after 48 hours, then increase it so there is a total of 4 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, Bettas & gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.

The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria but the higher dose rate (4 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres) will affect some plants and some snails. The lower dose rate (1-2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres) will not affect fish, plants, shrimp or snails.

After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.

If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.

When you first add salt, add the salt to a small bucket of tank water and dissolve the salt. Then slowly pour the salt water into the tank near the filter outlet. Add the salt over a couple of minutes.

Anytime you're having problems in the tank or fish are behaving 'off' do a big 50% water change, don't stick to a schedule where stuff like this is concerned. Often fresh clean water is all that's needed.

We can help you decipher test results if you could let us know what they are? Take a photo with the test tube next to the colour chart if you can and post it here

Hi both,
@CaptainBarnicles and @Colin_T , thank you so much for your help.

I did today a 50% water change (after reading Captain Barnicle's comment) and he seemed a bit better right after but now went back to being quiet.

I will try to be more detailed as possible.

What is the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH of the water?
in the image attached, you can see the values, I don't see ammonia there but I see people asking for it in the forum quite a lot. How can I measure it?
I don't know what to do regarding the PH the last 3 values on the tests are never right (and I test almost every day.) but according to the guy in the Fish shop, that's okay... but somehow I don't believe... also I know water here in the UK is very hard..

How long has the tank been set up for?
I started it mid-March this year.

How often do you clean the filter and how do you clean it?
once every week as advised in the shop together with the rest of the tank/partial water change.
I remove the sponge filter from the back of the tank and try to clean the best I can in the "dirty" that was just removed from the tank. I do the same with the carbon and the other media filter. Basically, i just dip and squeeze.
The carbon I change once per month as advised.
once per month, I remove the pump and heater, and give it a scrub, all using the "dirty" water.
in the new water I add the conditioner, (today because I did 50% clean I added a little bit of the bio boost. (on the bottle it says we can add every week, but on the shop, they said it's not needed anymore. so i'm confused and i am not sure if i did well.

How much water do you normally change during a water change?
usually 25/30%, also as advised in the shop.

What did/ does his poop look like?
I wasn't able to see his poop until today.. thinner than usual and white(ish) as I suspected he has not been eating.

other details:
1 fish tank - 40lt - aqua one
Temperature- 26 celcius / 80 f.
6 platy fish (4 are babies)
6 neon tetra
1 Guppy
some mistery snails... i started to remove few everytime i do partial change, as they seem to reproduce quite fast.
2 moss balls
real plants ( i can't remember the names, but i wrote it on a notebook)

I saw a video that gave me the idea that i was overfeeding becasue the snails were becoming overwhelming, so i reduced their feeding a little bit.

i am not sure if i am doing the correct thing, too much information out there and it gets confusing.

thank you so much for your help and teachings.

I recommend getting the API Liquid Master test kit. It's a bit pricey but has over 800 tests and is super accurate. Strips like that aren't usually accurate. Once you get the API test kit, white tests ammonia, you can give us the accurate perameters.

Guppies like to be in groups, they don't quite school but they are very social fish.

40 liters is about 10 gallons, and IMO your tank is a little overstocked. Platys will breed like crazy, I suggest getting rid of the platys or neon tetras and get a few more guppies.

As for your guppy being sick, I don't know much about sick fish and how to identify and treat them but white stringy poop generally means the fish is sick.

There's no ammonia test on the strips but the other results are fine. You will need to get a separate ammonia test kit if you want to monitor it. They are available from pet shops and are liquid test kits.

You want ammonia and nitrite on 0ppm at all times.
You want nitrate as close to 0ppm as possible and under 20ppm at all times.

The pH is above 7.0 and that is fine for guppies and platies.
The total hardness is a bit low, they prefer it around 150-200ppm.
Carbonate hardness is fine and will stop the pH from dropping.

The filter cleaning is fine but you don't have to do it every week. I usually recommend doing it once or twice a month.

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The following link has info on fish doing stringy white poop. You can treat him if you like but it will probably be cheaper to replace the fish if he dies. However, if he does die, don't add any new fish for a month. Let the tank settle down and make sure no other fish get sick. If everyone is healthy for a month, then get another fish if you want to. I would try a few more water changes before adding any medications.

BettaFishGirl said:

I recommend getting the API Liquid Master test kit. It's a bit pricey but has over 800 tests and is super accurate. Strips like that aren't usually accurate. Once you get the API test kit, white tests ammonia, you can give us the accurate perameters.

Guppies like to be in groups, they don't quite school but they are very social fish.

40 liters is about 10 gallons, and IMO your tank is a little overstocked. Platys will breed like crazy, I suggest getting rid of the platys or neon tetras and get a few more guppies.

As for your guppy being sick, I don't know much about sick fish and how to identify and treat them but white stringy poop generally means the fish is sick.

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Thank you .
all the help is very much appreciated.

At the pet shop, they said I could have up to 20 small fish in my tank... the baby platy, to be honest, they don't live much as they are a snack for their mum.... in your opinion how many I should have?
If the baby platys would survive, my idea was to take them back to the fish shop.

20 small fish is really pushing it for a 10 gallon (40 liters). Even with true nano fish like chili rasboras, you should really only have up to 15. I would take the platys back to the shop and get a few more guppies. If you get, say, 2 more females they will breed like crazy, but the guppies and tetras will probably eat the babies, but som might survive. Some pet stores will take guppies if you want to get females. You can get male guppies too though, say 3 more. They will most likely chase each other, they don't usually nip but sometimes it can happen.

Colin_T said:

There's no ammonia test on the strips but the other results are fine. You will need to get a separate ammonia test kit if you want to monitor it. They are available from pet shops and are liquid test kits.

You want ammonia and nitrite on 0ppm at all times.
You want nitrate as close to 0ppm as possible and under 20ppm at all times.

The pH is above 7.0 and that is fine for guppies and platies.
The total hardness is a bit low, they prefer it around 150-200ppm.
Carbonate hardness is fine and will stop the pH from dropping.

The filter cleaning is fine but you don't have to do it every week. I usually recommend doing it once or twice a month.

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The following link has info on fish doing stringy white poop. You can treat him if you like but it will probably be cheaper to replace the fish if he dies. However, if he does die, don't add any new fish for a month. Let the tank settle down and make sure no other fish get sick. If everyone is healthy for a month, then get another fish if you want to. I would try a few more water changes before adding any medications.

What to do if your fish has Stringy White Poop.

Fish do a stringy white poop for several reasons. 1) Internal Bacterial Infections causes the fish to stop eating, swell up like a balloon, breath heavily at the surface or near a filter outlet, do stringy white poop, and die within 24-48 hours of showing these symptoms. This cannot normally be...

www.fishforums.net

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Thank you, your answers are very helpful. i will buy the ammonia test kit, as it seems to be very much needed.

i treated my tank before for worms, as some of the guppies and platies that are now dead but the others apart from this guppy, are fine and look healthy. but the treatment killed my shrimps .

As much as it saddens me to see Saturn (guppy) suffering i dont think there is much i can do at this point.

i will also read with more attention the first aid basic treatment as i think few bits seemed confusing and probably will come back with loads of questions.
The guys that work at my usual fish shop seem to be very knowlegeble but that Im realising that might not be true

I know with this hobby, fatalities are normal in the beggining because there is so much to learn. but hopefully i will be better at this soon these little guys definetely deserve...

how many fishes should i keep in a 40l tank? because at the shop they said 20 small ones, but from previous comments the 11 i have are already too many.

thank you again!

BettaFishGirl said:

20 small fish is really pushing it for a 10 gallon (40 liters). Even with true nano fish like chili rasboras, you should really only have up to 15. I would take the platys back to the shop and get a few more guppies. If you get, say, 2 more females they will breed like crazy, but the guppies and tetras will probably eat the babies, but som might survive. Some pet stores will take guppies if you want to get females. You can get male guppies too though, say 3 more. They will most likely chase each other, they don't usually nip but sometimes it can happen.

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thank you.
yeah Guppys and Platys reproduce like crazy, and both eat their babies, so im no't sure if i will have 6 platys for much long, as 4 are babies!
However, if my Guppy survives i will find him some mates, and probably i will buy a new bigger tank soon, as for what i understant its easier to maintain.

thank you

Billokas said:

how many fishes should i keep in a 40l tank? because at the shop they said 20 small ones, but from previous comments the 11 i have are already too many.

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What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?
What fish did you want to keep?

If you have livebearers like guppies and platies, you only want a few adult fish because they breed and the babies take up space as they grow. Under good conditions one female guppy could produce several hundred babies in 6 months.

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If the water is good and he has been treated for worms, add some salt and see how he does with salt in the tank for 2 weeks. Use 1 heaped tablespoon of salt per 20 litres (5 gallons) of water. If there's no improvement after 48 hours, add another heaped tablespoon of salt per 20 litres (a total of 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

If there's no improvement after a week of salt, post more pictures and maybe add a video.

Colin_T said:

What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?
What fish did you want to keep?

If you have livebearers like guppies and platies, you only want a few adult fish because they breed and the babies take up space as they grow. Under good conditions one female guppy could produce several hundred babies in 6 months.

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If the water is good and he has been treated for worms, add some salt and see how he does with salt in the tank for 2 weeks. Use 1 heaped tablespoon of salt per 20 litres (5 gallons) of water. If there's no improvement after 48 hours, add another heaped tablespoon of salt per 20 litres (a total of 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

If there's no improvement after a week of salt, post more pictures and maybe add a video.

Click to expand...

my tank is a cube, 35x35x35.
I would love to have guppies, but i only have one at the moment, and not in good shape they are so beautiful and entertaining. I had 6 in the beginning and all of them were males so no reproduction issues. In a future tank, i would love to have pea puffers.
When my boyfriend brought the platies home I thought of giving the babies away but the truth is... not many survive... we have 4 babies at the moment that seem to be surviving and hopefully.

It's so hard to decide which ones to keep .
thanks for the help.
I will buy the salt.

Ive never kept platies as I prefer guppies. I call them mini Betta fish because they have long fins, eat like pigs, and are full of personality. If you have an LFS they tend to take much better care of their fish than the big box stores so if you give the platies away and can't find a person a LFS will be good.

If you buy the salt make sure you don't have any shrimp or snails of any kinds, salt is toxic to them.

shrimp and snails are fine with salt as long as you don't overdose.

In a 35cm cube tank, you can't have too many fish because there isn't a lot of surface area (length x width). Maybe 3 or 4 male guppies and some shrimp or snails and that would do it. You would have to watch the guppies and if any get bashed, remove them.

If the tank was 60cm long x 30 wide you would have a lot more options.