Best temp.?.....

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72F would be the top temp for that crew, although the BN might like it warmer. The platies can hancle that temp or lower, the neons like cool water, and the white clouds definitely like it cooler. All my livebearer tanks are unheated, and range from 66F in the summer to 72F at other times. The advantages of cooler water, other than not having to heat, are higher oxygen content, and less bacteria, especially of the pathogenic kind.
 
The platys would tolerate the cooler water and the white clouds would prefer it, but I wouldn't keep neons in anything lower than the 79-82F range.
 
Holy cow.....we've got acceptable temps from 66-82. That median/average is 74.

Interesting! I keep ours ~75.

CH
 
i heard warmer temps accelerate your fishes lifespan, ive been trying to stay at 76 for mine
 
EdgarMedina1010 said:
DepotFish said:
I agree, you shouldn't mix coldwater clouds and platies with warm water neons
these are at two different tanks...

wasnt stated beforehand. state size of tank, inhabitants and then we can make a better assessment.
 
Voodoo Chilli said:
The platys would tolerate the cooler water and the white clouds would prefer it, but I wouldn't keep neons in anything lower than the 79-82F range.

Since neons will breed at 72F, so, 80F is too warm for them. Perhaps that is why so many people report having problems keeping them alive.
 
The biggest cause of neon tetra death (other than neon tetra disease) is the fish not being properly acclimated to new aquariums. Warm water is hardly to blame for that.

Neons are a tropical fish from the tropical waters of South America. That means warmer water. I know several discus hobbyists who keep neons in their tanks, which run in the 80-86F range; the neons seem rather happy to me. I've kept them in ram tanks running anywhere from 80-83F. No problems there, other than that acclimation trouble at the very beginning.
 
hc8719 said:
i heard warmer temps accelerate your fishes lifespan, ive been trying to stay at 76 for mine

This is a tricky sentence. By accelerate their lifespan do you mean shorten it, or lenghten it?

It is generally considered that higher temperatures (above their optimal which varies fish to fish) will decrease their life expenctancy.

For example, a commonly used treatment for Ich is increasing the tank temps to >86F for a week or 3. While this most likely decreases their life expectancy, you have to take the lesser of 2 evils (possible death or shorter lifespan).
 
Higher temperatures will increase a fish's metabolic rate; this doesn't mean that it decreases the life cycle of a fish- it simply "speeds" things up. They grow at a faster rate, they sexually mature at a faster rate, and ultimately, they'll die at a faster rate. It's rather like burning a candle at both ends.

Of course, you're talking about a significant temperature increase over a prolonged period of time. A couple of degrees higher for a few weeks isn't going to have much effect on the fish's life cycle.
 
Voodoo Chilli said:
Neons are a tropical fish from the tropical waters of South America. That means warmer water. I know several discus hobbyists who keep neons in their tanks, which run in the 80-86F range; the neons seem rather happy to me. I've kept them in ram tanks running anywhere from 80-83F. No problems there, other than that acclimation trouble at the very beginning.
Not all fish from "tropical" SA come from warm waters. The last time I kept neons, they were in an unheated tank, and they did fine. They grew to full size, and flourished. Cardinals, on the other hand, do come from warm waters, and 80F is the right temp for them. There are more than a few fish that come from cooler waters, including many of the coryadoras species. With every degree that the temp goes up in a tank, so does the risk of problems, from low oxygen, to increased bacterial pathogens. IME keeping the fish at the low end of their preferred range leads to fewer problems in the long run. It also saves on energy consumption, and when you have multiple tanks, that is a factor. Five of my tanks are heated, and five aren't. All the tanks with livebearers are unheated, and all fish are flourishing at around 70F, with fluctuations to a low of 66F on hot days, and a high of 73F, on cool days. So, while your experience may differ, the fish in the original post will all do well at lower temps.
 
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