Tank setup
Guppies are small, but they are active and they breed quickly. A tank of at least 40 litres is a good start for a small group, and bigger is always easier to keep stable.
- Use a gentle filter — a sponge filter is ideal, because strong currents tire out long-finned males.
- Add a heater if your room drops below 22 °C.
- Live plants such as Java moss, hornwort or vallisneria give fry a place to hide and help keep water clean.
- Cycle the tank for 3–4 weeks before adding fish, so beneficial bacteria can grow.
- Keep a lid on the tank — guppies can jump.
Water parameters
Guppies are hardy, but stable water is the secret to strong colour and long fins.
| Parameter | Recommended |
|---|---|
| Temperature | 22–28 °C (24–26 °C is ideal) |
| pH | 7.0–8.0 |
| Hardness (GH) | 8–12 dGH (medium-hard water) |
| Ammonia / Nitrite | 0 ppm |
| Nitrate | Below 20–40 ppm |
| Water change | 20–30 % every week |
Always treat tap water with a water conditioner to remove chlorine before adding it to the tank.
Feeding
Feed 2–3 small meals a day — only as much as your guppies finish in about 2 minutes. Overfeeding is the most common cause of dirty water.
- A good-quality flake or micro-pellet food as the main diet.
- Live or frozen foods such as baby brine shrimp, daphnia or bloodworms a few times a week for colour and condition.
- Fry need very fine food (crushed flakes, baby brine shrimp) 4–5 times a day.
Tank mates
Guppies are peaceful. Good tank mates include corydoras, small rasboras, otocinclus, mollies, platies and shrimp. Avoid fin-nippers such as tiger barbs and large fish that may eat guppies.
Keep more females than males — around two or three females per male — so the females are not chased all the time.
Breeding guppies
Guppies are livebearers: females give birth to free-swimming fry, usually every 4–5 weeks. A pregnant female has a dark “gravid spot” near her tail and a rounder belly.
- Give plenty of plants or a breeding box so fry can hide from adults.
- Feed fry fine food several times a day for fast, healthy growth.
- Separate males and females at about 4–6 weeks old if you want to control which fish breed.
- To keep a strain pure, only breed fish of the same strain together.
Acclimatising new guppies
Moving to a new tank is stressful. Take your time on the first day:
- Switch off the tank light.
- Float the closed bag in your tank for 15–20 minutes so the temperature matches.
- Open the bag and add a small cup of tank water every 5 minutes, for 20–30 minutes.
- Gently net the guppies into the tank. Don’t pour the bag water into your aquarium.
- Don’t feed until the next day, and keep the lights low for the first evening.
Signs of a healthy guppy
- Swims actively and eats eagerly.
- Fins are open and spread, not clamped against the body.
- Bright colour and clear eyes, with no white spots, fuzz or torn fins.
- Breathing is calm, not gasping at the surface.
Have a question we haven’t answered? Contact NGF Guppy Farm — we’re happy to help, or browse our fancy guppy strains.