Short, consistent maintenance beats rare “deep cleans”. Guppies thrive when the tank stays predictable: stable temperature, steady oxygen, and waste kept in check. This routine is designed to take about 10 minutes once you have a rhythm.
1) Test first (1–2 minutes)
Quick test priorities: ammonia and nitrite should be 0. Nitrate helps you understand long-term load. Testing before you change water tells you what the tank was doing, not what you just fixed.
2) Water change (5 minutes)
Do a 20–30% change. Match temperature, dechlorinate, and vacuum light debris (don’t obsessively strip the substrate). If you see waste pockets under decor or dense plants, target those spots.
3) Filter glance (1 minute)
Check that flow hasn’t dropped and intakes aren’t blocked. If you use a sponge filter, squeeze/rinse it in old tank water only when flow drops. Never rinse bio media under tap water.
4) Plant tidy (1 minute)
Remove decaying leaves and trim anything blocking flow. Healthy plants improve stability, but rotting plant mass becomes waste, so a quick tidy matters.
5) Gear check (1 minute)
- heater light cycles as normal
- thermometer looks stable
- airflow/surface agitation is strong
Why this works
This routine prevents the common “slow creep” problems: nitrates rising, detritus pockets growing, oxygen dropping as filters clog, and fish slowly clamping fins. Small consistent actions keep the tank stable and make guppy keeping easy.
If you ever see sudden stress after maintenance, look at what changed: temperature mismatch, dechlorinator missed, or too much filter cleaning at once. A calm, repeatable routine is the best long-term “treatment” you can give guppies.
