Filters and fry

[LD_Sorel]

This morning I noticed I have atleast 3 guppy fry hiding amognst the plants...
Anyone have suggestions on how to keep them from getting sucked into the filter system?
I turned the filter down lower than usual but it makes me nervous...lol...i don't want to lose my first fry to the filter monster!!
Also I am glad to report my betta and the other guppies seem to not be interested in eating them...but we will see....Mom is still very preggo so I expect more to be on the way. :)

So yes, any suggestions would be great, especially about the filter-monster!
:)


Thanks!!
Lauren

[Chrona]

Pantyhose around the filter intake will work fine.

[cocoa_pleco]

like chrona said, or a sponge

[LD_Sorel]

Thanks guys....
I don't wear pantyhose.....maybe I can sneak over to my Mum's and steal some of hers, she has loads! HAHA
Or perhaps make a trip to the local Zellers.

Thanks again....can't wait to see how many fellers there are when I get home from work!! :)

[Severus]

Or even invest in a fry net. That way they will also be safe from predation

[Abbeys_Mom]

Cutting a sponge works best. Panty hose will stop them from being sucked in, but won't stop them from getting stuck to it.

[Livebearer]

Congrat's on the fry!

Cut an 'X' about 3/4 of the way down through the middle of an Aquaclear sponge, slip it up over the uptake tube. You can also use Fluval Foam Sleeve Inserts to save yourself the cutting.

Remember that it will act as a prefilter though, requiring frequent cleaning. On the other hand, the food sticks to it so the fish have a chance to pick it off before it dirties your HOB filter. :)

[LD_Sorel]

Thanks guys!

I set up a little 5 gallon tank for them....they are so cute. I happened to notice 3 more yesterday night so I added them into it as well.

One guy is yellow tinted, the rest are rather murky coloured.

[Willyleigh]

Thanks guys!

I set up a little 5 gallon tank for them....they are so cute. I happened to notice 3 more yesterday night so I added them into it as well.

One guy is yellow tinted, the rest are rather murky coloured.
They should gain their colours when they get older (5-6 weeks) but it may be if they are a cross between fancy guppies they could end up brown.

[gm72]

Would the brown color be a result of...what? Just genetics? I would think the fry would be a combination of colors from the parents? Sorry to jump in here, but I have recently been breeding fancy guppies and am just curious.

[Lady Hobbs]

Right now I have a piece of gauze tied around my uplift tube. I'm expectly a spawn myself. The babies don't like the turbulance in the water, either, so as Abbeys_Mom posted, a sponge filter is really the best way to fly.

[Faith_at_Large]

I don't have fry but I started with some pretty small Zebra Danios that had trouble with my filter intake (back mounted power filter). I started wrapping a Fluval 2Plus Water Polishing pad around the intake and securing it with the elastics that petstores use to secure the top end of bags you buy fish in. The pads do need to be replaced fairly often (about weekly if you have algae), as previously mentioned they also serve as a prefilter and pick up a lot of gunk. Some here have suggested that these can be washed and re-used. I could not do that for a long time because of a serious algae issue, but now that this is becoming less of an issue, I was able to wash and re-use my last pad. But I am still watching to see if it is working well.

The pads work great and no more fish have had any problems with my filter. Further, the pads do act as a prefilter and no not impede the water going into my powerfilter - until they get really gummed up.

[Willyleigh]

Would the brown color be a result of...what? Just genetics? I would think the fry would be a combination of colors from the parents? Sorry to jump in here, but I have recently been breeding fancy guppies and am just curious.

The specific colours have been bred into the guppies by selective breeding from the natural brown colour, they breed similar colours together to get the green or red colour genes present in each colour strain of the fish.

If you cross breed them the two colours may both be present or it may go back to the original colour, just look at feeder guppies they are all brown.

[troy]

Use a sponge filter.