Caryl

Can you be more specific as to what these plecos are? There are a lot of different species out there commonly referred to as plecos. As I think your aquarium is only 70L, it is not suitable for plecos which grow up to 50cm. If you are meaning the bristlenose (Ancistrus) they are a lot smaller. They will survive in cooler water but not necessarily thrive. They may have problems in winter if you have a cold house.

It is good the tank water doesn't look dirty but you can have crystal clear water but still have too many nutrients or some other problem with it. The pH is not as important as the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. A betta will live 2 - 5 years generally and it will be 3 - 12 months at least when you buy it but if you chose the biggest, nicest looking one in the shop tank, it was probably also the oldest so could even be older. Good luck with this betta.

Marou, that list was 2008 so not up to date.

They are not the best tank mates for juvenile guppies as they tend to be stroppy (like quite a few tetras). Try adding a thick wad of Java moss or similar. Fine particles of food will get trapped in it. The fry will be able to swim through it and eat the particles but the larger tetras will not.

A betta likes little current. Just because the fish was found stuck to the filter doesn't mean the filter killed it. Whatever the reason it died, it would eventually end up sucked against the pipe if you had not noticed it earlier. You can put a piece of sponge on the end of it if you like. You can buy sponges that fit over filter pipes anyway as people who breed fish often use sponge filters so the replacement sponges, which you can shove onto the end of various filters, are readily available in pet shops. How long have you had the tank set up and how many fish do you have in it? If not cycled, the fish would have died from poor water conditions. Bettas are not a good addition to a new tank as they prefer a mature set-up.

Looking good. I would try and hide the equipment more if possible though. Can you fit the heaterstat down behind the rock? Could the 4 items stuck on the front be moved to the sides? Once the plants start to grow (assuming they are all live plants) it will look great, especially the log.

Welcome Kathy. There are other guppy fanatics here so hopefully they will let themselves be known to you.

As said all those years ago (I see the previous posts were from 2004!) if the fish seems otherwise happy then don't worry about it. Have you got a photo of it?

For some reason we can never see our pond fish but the oxygen weed (yes, it is one of the noxious ones. Our local waterways are full of it) is flowering. No flowers yesterday, hundreds all over the place today 😊 We will be filling in the pond soon so will have to be careful how we dispose of the oxygen weed. Should be able to sell off all the lilies as they will split into multiple plants. All yellow at the moment as the pink one flowers later. Plenty of snails too!

I have always found the gold Ancistrus less hardy with fewer fry but that might just be mine. We don't have chlorine in the water so i don't know if dechlorinator affects them. I am more inclined to think it is new scales growing under older, damaged ones but don't quote me on that 😉

I doubt it is skin flukes. The fish would be trying to scratch itself on objects all the time. It would be producing excess mucus in an attempt to dislofge the flukes and have reddened skin. Flukes tend to be around the gills. The male could be damaging his skin as he dives in and out of the hole in the brick. The female may have been damaged when in with him and is now shedding old, damaged parts as the new growth comes in. Did you know Ancistrus do not have scales like other fish? They have an exoskeleton. This makes them vulnerable to many antibiotics, salt and other chemicals. Have you been adding anything to the water that would fall into those categories?

Mine sometime look patchy then clear again. Scraping bits off on rocks or other decor? Damage from fights perhaps?

Guppies can change sex but also note male guppies will attempt to mate with anything that moves, from what I have observed, regardless of what sex it is.

I can't advise as I have not used Furan 2. How are the fish reacting and looking today?

A lot depends on your maintenance regime but they can certainly be kept together. In my experience, golden Ancistrus grow more slowly than the common ones and are often a little bit smaller but that might be because my browns are stroppier. If you do weekly water changes and make sure water conditions are excellent then they should be ok if you only have one of each in the tank. Make sure you have some driftwood and hiding places for the Ancistrus. They poo quite a bit so weekly siphoning of the sunstrate will help.