Platy Care

[Antoniakr]

Hello everyone. I've been wanting platys for a while now. 

i'm wanting a quite easy fish, not a fussy one that needs a lot of attention and needs perfect water conditions

Are platys quite a hardy-type fish? because i wont be able to afford keeping water conditions spot on all the time

 

[hobby5]

I would say this is not the right approach. If you know you cannot care well for your fish don't get them.

 

[kahira]

yeah if you can't (or don't want to) provide adequate care and making sure to keep water conditions pristine... fish aren't for you. Even if you have the hardiest of the hardiest fish you still need to provide proper care. That includes water changes once a week minimum, food, filter cleaning once every few months, and much more...
 
Every animal, be it fish, mammal, reptilian... when you take it into your home and place it under your care you need to be responsible for it 100% and you need to bow to it's every wish. This is something I support quite strongly... and I don't want to sound rude, not my intention, but I am going to tell you the truth of it. -nodnod-

 

[Ninjouzata]

Definitely agree with what the others have said.
 
What do you mean exactly by you can't afford to keep the water conditions spot on? Perhaps there is a misunderstanding in what you need to do?

 

[Antoniakr]

I haven't got an aquarium yet. im just worried about having to keep Amonia, nitrate Etc all spot on constantly. because i live with my mum, and i don't have a job. and if i cant afford to pay for everything i wont be able to get the fish. 

I never said i wouldn't do water changes or clean the filter? that doesn't involve money... The only thing im worried about is having to pay for test kits and water treatments. The fact i want fish is to be able to look after them and give them a happy life, i want it to be perfect for them.

I just want a hobby, because im not very happy atm but fish make me happy, and ive become obsessed lately and ive been researching 24/7

What i mean is does it matter if ammonia and all the other levels go up or down a bit? can platys cope with that?

 

[Ninjouzata]

You'll need a test kit and a bottle of ammonia to cycle the tank using the article at the top of the page. And dechlorinator, which depending on what brand you buy, can last quite a while.
After the tank is cycled the only thing you should normally need to worry about is feeding them and cleaning the tank each week.
 
So a decent bit of money at the start, but afterwards not all that bad. I of course have no idea how much you're able to spend, but perhaps you could save up for a little while to get what you need?
 
I don't feel comfortable commenting on if the platys can cope with that, have not researched the effects of ammonia on fish like some people have. I'd just rather the fish not have to deal with it at all.

 

[Antoniakr]

I feel like everyone hates me now. im willing to spend around £130, my tank is £59 and it comes with a load of things already. that leaves me with £71. obviously i dont know how much money i will get for my 18th(next month) so it all depends on that, but im wanting to start cycling my tank soon as possible really. im going to use My college Bursary for the tank Haha

 

[Ninjouzata]

Ooh no don't feel that way! No one hates you. We can come off a little strongly and I apologize for that, just everyone wants the absolute best for your fish
I understand about wanting to go ahead and get it and start cycling. We have a tank but cannot start cycling til it can be moved..need some strong guys.
Hopefully someone with more experience can help with the platies, in the mean time, patience is key in this hobby ^^

 

[daizeUK]

What you want should definitely be achievable within your budget. We might be able to help advise you on what you really need and cut the costs on things you don't need. Are you buying your tank brand new or second hand?

Most importantly, are you intending to cycle with or without fish? You seem keen on breeding platies; fry are far more sensitive to ammonia than adults so water quality is even more important. The correct thing to do is fishless cycle with a bottle of ammonia and test kits, as Ninjouzata said. If you purchase from Amazon this will cost you £4-5 for the ammonia and about £8.50 each for an ammonia and nitrite test kit delivered, although for few quid extra you can buy the API master test kit but that's not absolutely necessary.

 

[kahira]

aaah i see. Heh, from your original post it sounded like you didn't have an intention of 'doing things' I guess you could say. P: Yeah everyone will recommend the fishless cycling, and there are plenty of threads about it that you can read up on. Platies are a hardy fish, but of course that doesn't mean they should be left to deal with ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate spikes. I personally don't care for livebearers because if you can't sex them you'll get overrun by fry reaaal quickly, though if you really want them, by all means go ahead.

 
I've read that as platies get older though they need brackish water. P:

 

[daizeUK]

Platies don't need brackish water - you might be confusing with mollies but both are fine in freshwater.

 

[Antoniakr]

Thank you I knowi want to make sure the platies have a good life so i will save all my money just for them, i wanted something that cost £400 really badly but i love fish more that i'd give any of my money towards the fish, so ive decided to save as much money as i can to get the Platys. Sexing Platys is actually pretty easy, i am also going to use tank dividers to separate male and female fry. Breeding them is one thing i am very excited about. i want to test out with Colour variations  

I have also heard platies like brackish water, i think they can live in either, but i've known them as a fresh water tropical fish

Thanks

 

[Lillefishy]

In your other thread you say the tank you're getting is 10 gallon, in a tank that small you really don't want your platys to breed.
One female can produce in excess of 30 fry every 4/5 weeks, your tank won't be big enough to grow on fry until they're big enough to go to the Lfs & tbh a lot of Lfs won't take them anyway as they're so plentiful.
If you're set on having platys I would get males only, as has been said they do not need brackish water.

 

[Antoniakr]

Im buying a huge cheap Tank for the fry, i just don't have room for 2 of the tanks, ive said this on many other posts. and im going to put a tank divider in the middle of the tank, to seperate the male and females, i'm not keeping the fry with the parents. i heard 10 gallons was fine for 3 platys but then i heard its not, so im going to get them a bigger one, if i can find one to fit on my table, biggest in length will have to be 50cm otherwise it wont fit. im trying to find tall bigger tanks.