Should I leave my guppy on his own?

[3monkeys3]

I have a very small tank (15 litre), which until recently I had 6 guppies in. They were all very happy and then suddenly we lost 5 of them over the course of a week - it's a bit of a mystery as I test the water weekly, do 10% change weekly, only feed them a tiny amount every other day and there were no signs of illness on the fish (other than their behaviour - hiding, hanging around at the bottom of the tank). The nitrates had gone up a little, but not dangerously. Anyway - I have one surviving fish - he seems to be doing quite well and has been alive for 2 weeks now, since the last fish died. Not sure what to do now - should I leave him by himself for a while longer, or get him a couple of playmates? Is it ok for him to be by himself? I know guppies are community fish, but I don't want to add more if my tank/water is dodgy!

I wouldn't add any more fish to a 15 litre tank, it's far too small to keep any fish in. Personally I would upgrade to a larger tank as soon as possible. 60 litres would be big enough to keep a few guppies in quite happily and it would be easy to look after because the water quality would be more stable.

I had no idea that a 15l tank was no good - it exists, it was sold to me and I was sold fish for it from a reputable aquatics centre, so I assumed it was fine. I don't have much space for a bigger tank (hence buying the small one!) - would welcome advice re how to proceed. I don't feel right about him being on his own - I know from watching them that they like company.

Sadly the law's not much cop when it comes to consumer protection for aquatic stuff- my local garden centre sells large vases as goldfish bowls still. There are no laws, as long as it holds water then the consumer is fair game :(

For a shoal of guppies I wouldn't go any smaller than 60 litres which would be around 24x12 inches. If you don't have that much room then a 45 litre (around 18x12 inches) would be fine for a single male betta. Anything smaller than 45 litres is only OK as a temporary home really.

How much space do you have?

It's on my kitchen work surface and I really need something that fits easily into a corner - I can be a bit flexible and move stuff about, but it is only a small kitchen so it needs to be in proportion iyswim and I still need space for everything else I need to squeeze in! I could potentially do something small on a stand - again it would need to fit a corner. Thank you for your help/advice/

There are lots of small (and when I say small I mean 45-80 litres) tanks on stands around, or you can always get something made by a glazier if you can't find exactly what you need in the shops.

You could get a corner tank? most of my tanks come from the local tip or carboot sales and have never cost me much. I think your only options are to get a bigger tank of re-home your guppy.

Guppies can be a bit tricky to keep even though all the shops say 'they are easy', i often lose 3 or 4 in one week if theres a slight change in the water .

Maybe get rid of the guppy and get a male betta?