Guppies Dying off one by one

[emiglio]

Hello All,
So I recently got into the aquarium hobby, starting first with a 5 gallon tank with a male betta and have recently started a 10 gallon planted tank with guppies. I have cycled the tank, took about two months, and have started adding fish about a week ago. I started off adding 6 male guppies and let them get used to the tank. The guppies all seemed pretty lively and were eating well, so i decided to add two more male guppies to the tank. its been about a week since the new additions and i have started to lose a few of the guppies. I have had a guppy die every few days, and have lost three total. they seem to be dying off in order from smallest to largest, which leads me to believe the issue may be bullying from the larger guppies. the day before they die, they start swimming near the top of the tank and segregate themselves from the other fish. the five guppies i have left have all been very lively and are eating well. I have checked the water parameters after any fish deaths and have had no ammonia or nitrite, and under 20 ppm for nitrate. I have typically been doing about 30% water change every week. Just thought id put my situation out there to see if anyone had any advice. Is it likely a bullying issue, and if so how should i remedy this, add more places to hide?. Is the water quality bad? should i be doing more frequent water changes?

 

[Smcoyle87]

When they swim to the top and segregate themselves, what do they look like? Is there discoloration and that sort of thing?

 

[emiglio]

I havent noticed any discoloration, but i have noticed that they are generally unresponsive when the segregate. they wont eat any food, even if it is right in front of them, and will generally just swim in place.

 

[Smcoyle87]

What has been happening, any updates? Sorry i couldnt be of anymore help. Its just so vague

 

[FreshwaterFishJunkie]

Let me ask some simple questions so we can asses the situation

What kind of filtration do you currently have for the 10 gallon tank?
How often are you doing water changes and gravel vacing?
Have you used a test kit to check your water parameters?
Did you know male guppies tend to nip the tails of other male guppies? So give them plenty of hiding space to relax and not be so stressed.

 

[librarygirl]

Your parameters look fine; nitrates are growing on borderline levels so I'd up the water changes to 50% per week. Also 8 guppies in a 10 gal is overstocked; a 10 gal tank isn't very large. It's possible the guppies feel cramped and are bullying each other to maintain territories. I'd stop adding fish and see how they do from here on out and make sure there are plenty of hiding places.

Also what filter are you using? Is there enough surface agitation for oxygen exchange? Are you using an air stone? If they are gasping at the surface it's also possible the tank is lacking oxygen.

 

[emiglio]

I have 2 aquaclear 20s in the tank for filtration
I do a water change every week, about 50%, or whenever i see the nitrates creeping up.
I have the API master kit and have been testing the water every few days, the readings are typically 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite and the nitrate creeps up slowly over the course of the week.
The tank is fairly well planted, a few amazon swords and other leafy plants and i have a little cave in there as well.
I also have an bubble wall in the back of the tank for agitation.

I have done a water change and am changing the water whenever the nitrates get up to 10 ppm.

The five guppies still in the tank seem to be doing fine, they play around all day and are eating regularly.

From what im seeing, I figure the deaths were most likely due to the bigger guppies picking on the little ones and just stressing them out. the ones left are all about the same size and seem to be getting along.

I am thinking about getting a few other fish for the tank in about a week, assuming the guppies are all still doing fine.
any suggestions?

 

[FreshwaterFishJunkie]

By the way how are the plants in your tank doing? With the HOB filters are you running carbon? Plants should almost never be in a tank with carbon or they will lose nutrients. Also the tank is overstocked for sure so I would do something to increase the beneficial bacteria surface area like maybe with a fluidized filter.

 

[Matt68005]

something i must say, coz nobody ever said it to me until i learned the hard way, "Antibiotics" once you get that and cycling understood, you have learned.