Guppy Breeder + Tank mates?

[Nyghtfire]

ok, i've got a 2foot long, 1 foot deep, 1 foot high, 15 gallon tank, and it's planted with a fair bit of java moss and a few other plants around with some nice caves aswell in the decoration.
i intend to use the guppys as the occasional live feeder to a few of my other fish, but i don't just want to have guppys alone in it, (only going for 4 guppies total by the way)
was wondering whether i'd have any issues with tank mates such as a small bristlenose catfish growout aswell and maybe a snail to help with the clean up a little.
or possibley to help grow out some corydoras.
basically will any of the above fish hamper guppy breeding.
thanks

 

[livebearerfreak]

thats a 20 long, you can grow out a few bristtles nows if you want. get some corys for the 20 long for clean up crew and a few shrimps of your choice.

 

[Nyghtfire]

thanks so much for the reply, i've never thought about keeping shrimp to be honest, there rare as hens teeth around in my area...
and i mean RARE, in 2 years, i've never actually seen one rare, but i can get them from internet order, so will definetly do some research and contemplate.
tanks not much, just sits in a hidden corner of my room for my own pesonal enjoyment, but beautiful in my opinion, just waiting for the fry in it to grow out enough to sell.

 

[Kaosu]

i have an entire army of rams horn snails and 3 ottos in my 10 gallon guppy breeder

only 4 guppies? i would go more for breeding i have 6 females to 2 males getting 50-80 babys per female every month.
youll lose babies to the parents so youll want more than your going to feed...
in a 20 you could put 12 females and 4 males with no problem and you'll have a breeding machine ^_^

 

[Nyghtfire]

haha yeah i could mate, but not breeding for any reason, just for the hell of it, can always use the baby's as special treats for some of my other fish so not worried about what to do with them.

 

[Dark Jester]

2x1x1 sounds like 15g. 20 Longs are 30"x13"x12".

I'd definately put in a few Oto Cats for cleanup. Can't beat a guaranteed 100% vegetarian fish in a fry tank. I'd add some Snails too, MTS probably if it was me, just cause I like sand though. Rams would be good too.

Careful with Shrimp as the guppies may eat them if they're small enough. Cherry Reds would be like candy I think. I'd probably be careful with any fish besides an Oto Cat too. Bristlenose and Corys might munch the occasional fry. Though if you do like Kaosu said and stock with a few more guppies you could probably cope with any potential loss fairly easy.

I'd recommend sponge filters for sure if you don't have them. After watching my convict fry grazing on sponges for the last week I don't think I would even try another type of filter in a tank that is expecting fry.

 

[Nyghtfire]

hmm maybe a few guppies then
still a while before i even but them in, adding an air stone in there before anything, mostly for the little bit of extra oxygen for my plants.
A sponge filter would be interesting, don't think i've used one before, whats the maintenance on them like?

 

[Dark Jester]

A sponge filter would be interesting, don't think i've used one before, whats the maintenance on them like?

Pretty much zero maintenance. You're really not supposed to clean them but maybe twice a year, and even at that you just squeeze them out in a bucket of tank water. They're mostly a bio filter though. They do some mech filtration on smaller free floating particles, but detritus and food particles settle on the bottom. I just go through my tanks with a rigid airline attached to a flex air hose and siphon every few days to pick up the extra stuff. Only takes a few minutes, and it's effectively a water change in a small tank. Siphon out any gunk that's accumulated on the bottom and a gallon of water and top the tank off.

Edit: I should note that if you use them as your only means of Bio filtration, that you have 2 sponges in the tank, and alternate when you do clean them. If you only have 1 and squeeze it out, you'll be severely handicapping your beneficial bacteria which can cause an ammonia spike.

 

[Nyghtfire]

Thanks for the idea Dark Jester, been researching them since my last reply.
in the morning i'm going to buy the materials to make one, and nah it won't be the only means of filtration, but instead of just having an air stone and normal filter, sponge filter should aerate the water enough and the normal in tank filter.
hmm, thanks to this site, i think i've learnt enough to be able to build a plywood tank, and do extremely cheap lighting and filtration with it aswell to boot gotta love it.