i bought a 10gal and a goldie monday, but he died so i redid the tank for my baby guppies. my 29 gal looks so tacky to me so i wanted this one to look better, do you think it's pretty? i can't hardly find the babies anymore though there is either 6 or 7 in there, 9 out of 10 times i count 6, but every once in a while there is a mysterious #7

http://kristysweets.net/temp/tank1.jpg

i have a couple questions too. i read guppies live in temps of 70-80, my room temp is usually between 70-76, it's at 76 now, so do i really need a heater? i have one in there(not plugged in yet), but it just worries me and would rather not have one. they've survived three weeks without, but i think i read babies live in colder temps.

second question, i haven't had any luck with guppies living except for these babies. i really want them to make it cause it think they are the sweetest, but if they don't, is this a good set up for a female betta tank?

wow, love your tank. that's really cool lookin. i wish my tanks were more heavily planted.

i don't know about guppies specifcally, but when i started my first tank, the guy at the pet store said i absolutely had to have a heater in the tank; what if the thermostat in the apt went or something? i think he was just trying to sell a heater but they do help maintain the temperature from taking any dangerous dips.

I agree you should have a heater even if its only at a low setting for any dips there might be. Young fish need a warmer temperature than adults for rapid growth and the warmer the water then they are more likely to eat more.

thanks, i guess i'll plug it in then. i'll wait til morning though so i can keep an eye on it. i keep worring i'm gonna wake up to some boiled fish

My guppies love warm water, like 81 degrees! Anything less and they look like they are shivering in freezing water lol.

Very pretty tank, btw.

thanks, well my babies seem to be happy. they are just the cutest things ever i can't wait to see what they will look like when they get bigger. most of them look black like the mom and have normal looking eyes and the others look like they have no color with all black eyes. it's cute to see them eat. sometimes they catch a flake that didn't get crushed small enough so they swim around with a flake in their mouth

lovely tank! im sure your guppies will like it. very much.

I know isn't it fun watching them grow up! They grow so fast! I also just got my first batch of fry 2 weeks ago. How old are yours? I can't wait till they are big enough to see which ones are boys and which ones are girls. I don't know who the dad was because she was pregnant when I bought her(the mom lol) so it'll be fun to see what colors their fins will be. Good luck!

Thanks Raith

gumbo, mine are 3 weeks and a couple days old. mine was pregnant when i bought her too! she had them the second day i had her. i see some of them are dark like her so maybe they are girls, i'm excited to see what the others look like too. i just hope they make it long enough so i can see them grow up.

Your tank is so pretty! Its so artistically arranged, but still looks very natural; I love it I wish I had the money to do something like that!

thanks kissy! i wish i had the money too, i'm going broke! in early august i had $1,800 saved, now i'm down to $500 of course $450 of that was for a medical bill, the rest was mostly all fishie stuff (i'm also a compulsive spender, lol), but now i'm set up with everything and my fish are happy. i think all the stuff in that tank cost me about 50 or 60, i have another ornament i haven't put in their yet too. it was hollow so i had to fill it up.

Lol I know how you feel I don't think I've spent quite that much (actually I don't know, its all gradual and I refuse to keep track for the sake of the fish) I hope I can find some nice decorations for my goldie tanks soon...not that I've got any money to buy them with right now lol.

lol, well sometimes i go a little nutty when it comes to spending money, but now i've got everything so hopefully i'm done. my goldie tank needs some decoration help, i have some sand castles that are coming in today so i'm hoping that will dress it up. and i still have my five gal up with no fish in it and just some fake plants, i might just get another betta to put in it.

wow!! gogeous tank set up!!

very nice tank

know what you guys mean about money and fishes.... i wonder why i never have money, oh yes, i spend it all on the fish!!!

Thanks

oh yeah loz - every single penny i earn goes on the fish. and im not joking.

Everytime I spend money on fish, my mom she thinks I am spending unnessarily. But my fish relax me when I am watching them. Especially on stressful days. So now I don't tell her I have bought another fish or how much everyday things like water conditioner, filter refills, etc. cost. I just bought 2 female bettas and they are double cost of male bettas, did not tell her how much they were, right I did not tell her I even bought them. . She does not even live with me, worried all the time about money, since I have kids to take care of. They have everything they need, so don't know why she worries about what I spend, I make sure I budget my money.

well unfortunately i still live with my parents, my mom gave me a lecture yesterday morning about my money priorities. then last night i bought 4 bettas! i smuggled in three of them, i wanted to do a female betta tank but the stress was killing me so i separated them all after about an hour. then this morning, i backed into my mom's car so no more fishie money for me

I always think of it this way....I'm just a teenager, and what better cause could the money go to other than saving the lives of animals? That always makes me feel better. Now I'd much rather spend my money of fish supplies than a new pair of jeans. Speaking of which...I only have one pair that doesn't have holes in the butt, croch, leg, or all three x_X

I didn't get into fish until a few yrs ago. I can just imagine being a teenager and trying to talk my mom into stuff for fish, when she is worried about feeding us and all the bills she had to pay. But now that I am a mom, and I am bitten with fish I would save up the money, if my son could not afford it, for what he needed for his fish. My kids have not become obsessive with fish, like me, but if they were, I would make them go to work to support their hobby, and if necessary, make a deal of 50% me and 50% him of his earnings.

Wow you are a supportive mom! Everything fishy comes from my pocket..which really is allowance since I don't have time for a job, but I do earn the money unlike a lot of kids I've known.