Guppies...

[keepsfalling]

I've just set up a new tank and am getting it ready for introducing new fish. I'm thinking about having guppies and have been doing a lot of research online..

My problem is that I've come across many mixed opinions.. I have seen numerous times that adding salt to their water is good for them... Most sites that say add salt explain that sea salt is what needs to be used. Obviously not table salt, iodized salt or salt with anti-caking ingredients..

My question is - to those of you who have guppies.. Do you salt or do you not salt!?

Also I have a box of tonic salts that my partner previously bought for fish he used to have; but never used because he wasn't sure whether he trusted it or not

Most sites I've seen say add 1 teaspoon for every (us) gallon, some say more, some say less - however the side of the tonic salts box says add one teaspoon for every 18 litres.. which is about 4.5 (us) gallons (?). I'm quite happy to go and buy Sea Salt but am wondering how much to use or whether I can use tonic salts?

Also, a lot of sites don't even mention adding salt - I'm of the understanding (whether right or wrong?) that salt isn't a necessity to keep guppies but can be advantagous?

Someone please help!!

P.S. - please redirect me if this has already been discussed!

 

[SarahFish]

i used to have lots of guppies some years ago but i have never added salt to them, though in the mollies aquarium i did (about 1 spoon at 4 liters)

mollies require adding salt because of the waters they naturally live in, but it's not the same for guppies...

 

[demonmagus]

don't think guppies need salt at all

 

[n3ont3tra]

Guppies need no salt. believe it or not, I caught some at a place I normally go fishing for Bass. Guppies. About 1 inch long. And I put 'em in a tank (no salt) And they bred. The ones I caught had very little color. But when they bred... ohmygod. They were the prettiest guppies I'd EVER seen. Sadly, they passed away. My cousin who is 2 years old, dumped a whole canister of food in their 15gallon and I didn't learn about it untill it was too late...

 

[keepsfalling]

Wow.. That's pretty awesome! (about catching them and them breeding I mean) I bet your cousin will feel awful in years to come when you tell him/her that story!! The joys of two year olds eh? I bet s/he thought they were helping too!!!

Thanks for your advice guys, settles my mind on that one. It's hard to tell what's true and what's myth when you're reading it off the internet

 

[dwarfgourami]

I believe the facts are more or less as follows:

guppies come from freshwater, not from brackish or saltwater (unlike mollies, where different varieties come from different habitats)

they prefer hard, alkaline water

they can survive low levels of salinity

therefore some breeders prefer to keep them in salted water, to cut down on disease and parasites caused by poor living conditions at the fishfarm- like chicken farmers feed the chickens on antibiotics

Most of us feel it is better to deal with the root of the problem. If guppies are kept in clean water, with room to explore, with good female/male ratios (at least 2-3 females/male, or females only, or males only), and a good varied diet (good quality flake, with regular treats of vegetables and sometimes bloodworm or similar), they should be able to keep healthy anyway. But it is important to be careful when buying guppies: look out for strongly built individuals rather than the prettiest ones, and do not buy from a tank where there are dead or dying fish.

 

[keepsfalling]

Thanks for that dwarfgourami I was wondering whether it may have been something along those lines. You mention keeping all males or all females together. I've been told this can be tricky depending on the amount of fish.
Would anyone say this is the case and how many males would you suggest as a minimum to be kept together happily?

If there are dead/dying fish in a tank I always make sure I stear well clear And the owner of the shop I get most of my fish always gently pokes fun at me for taking about half an hour to decide on which fish is healthiest looking and then making him pick a certain one from a large group!!

 

[dwarfgourami]

All females shouldn't be a problem in any numbers: I have kept pairs of females before, and am in fact doing so now. All males- well, I wouldn't do fewer than 5. Give those sex hormones a chance to spread around.

 

[matchstickgeezer]

I have some Mollies and guppies in my tank and so was advided that the mollies would need the salts to feel comfortable.

I believe this small amount of salt is also okay for guppies, and certainly has done mine no harm.

Hope this helps!

 

[nmonks]

There are several issues here.

My problem is that I've come across many mixed opinions.. I have seen numerous times that adding salt to their water is good for them... Most sites that say add salt explain that sea salt is what needs to be used. Obviously not table salt, iodized salt or salt with anti-caking ingredients.

Guppies do not need salt. So long as the aquarium has moderately hard water with a pH above 7.0, your guppies should be fine. For guppies alone, salt is just not required.

My question is - to those of you who have guppies.. Do you salt or do you not salt!?

Some people do, but the "tonic salt" sold in aquarium shops is pure snake oil. No freshwater fish needs salt of any kind added to the water. The idea they did goes back to the early days of the hobby, when filtration wasn't as good and water chemistry was less well understood. Salt was thought to help mitigate the problems with nitrite poisoning. In a well-run aquarium, this isn't an issue, so salt is useless.

Also I have a box of tonic salts that my partner previously bought for fish he used to have; but never used because he wasn't sure whether he trusted it or not

Your partner is correct. If you can, return the salt and buy something more useful.

Most sites I've seen say add 1 teaspoon for every (us) gallon, some say more, some say less - however the side of the tonic salts box says add one teaspoon for every 18 litres.. which is about 4.5 (us) gallons (?). I'm quite happy to go and buy Sea Salt but am wondering how much to use or whether I can use tonic salts?

Measuring salt by volume (or weight) is pointless, because salt absorbs moisture from the air. On one day a teaspoonful will be 100% salt, but a week later, only 95% salt and 5% water, and so on. Anyone who recommends measuring salt by weight or volume probably doesn't know what they're talking about, unless they clarify the point by giving you a specific gravity (SG) to aim for. SG is a proxy for salinity, and tells you exactly and precisely how much salt is dissolved in the aquarium water. Mollies, for example, like a salinity of 1.005, i.e., salty water that is 1.005 times more dense that pure water. Seawater has an SG of 1.018-1.025. Anything between about 1.002 and 1.018 is brackish water.

Also, a lot of sites don't even mention adding salt - I'm of the understanding (whether right or wrong?) that salt isn't a necessity to keep guppies but can be advantagous?

As stated: you don't need salt with guppies. Mollies, yes; guppies, no. Platies and swordtails do not need salt, either, and nor do most halfbeaks and goodeids.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[nogsnellin]

I have 2 dalmation mollies + 5 of their fry. My question is if I add salt as i'm supposed to what fish does it restrict me to in future?

 

[Guppyboy_12]

i have guppies, i have salt in their water not alot, but some.
my LFS said that you should put some salt to maintain a healthy aquarium
so yeah i have salt, doesnt really matter weather you have salt or not i guess up to you.

 

[nmonks]

I have 2 dalmation mollies + 5 of their fry. My question is if I add salt as i'm supposed to what fish does it restrict me to in future?

Yes, adding salt restricts your choices. Broadly speaking, livebearers, glassfish, halfbeaks, gobies, and rainbowfish will tolerate small amounts of salt. Tetras, barbs, gouramis, soft water cichlids, and most catfish do not like any salt at all. So, if you want to add things to your molly tank, choose salt-tolerant fish, or better yet, try true brackish water species (there are lots of these, see the Brackish forum elsewhere on this site).

my LFS said that you should put some salt to maintain a healthy aquarium
so yeah i have salt, doesnt really matter weather you have salt or not i guess up to you.

Many of the guys in the local fish shop are among the worst sources of information when it comes to keeping fish. Their prime motive is to sell you fish and stuff (like tonic salt!). Whether the fish is happy and healthy is largely irrelevant to them, and in fact some would love it if fish had a shelf life like groceries, so you had to keep coming back to buy more. This cannot be stated too strongly: guppies do not need salt. Anyone who told you so either doesn't know what they're talking about or else is deliberately trying to mislead you. The one time you would use salt with guppies is if you had soft, acid water. Guppies don't like that, and adding marine salt mix will help, not because of the sodium chloride ("salt") but because of the calcium carbonate and other compounds that will harden the water and raise the pH.

Most choices in keeping fish are not ones where you can get away with things either way. There's usually a right choice and a wrong choice. Yes, you can keep neons and angelfish together, but eventually the neons will be eaten. Yes, you can keep mollies in freshwater, but chances are good that you'll have to deal with fungus and finrot. Yes, you can keep tiger barbs in a community tank, but there's a good chance the barbs will nip the fins of their tankmates.

So what you need to do is forget about what the guys in the LFS say, and do research such that you can make up your own mind. There are good web sites (like this one) as well as lots of really good books (Baensch's Aquarium Atlas is my "bible" when it comes to fishkeeping).

Cheers,

Neale