Sailfin Mollies General

[Angus]

I have a 54 liter tank which I am going to fit with an undergravel or
an internal power filter, how many sailfins would I be able to keep and
do I need to use salt?

Thanks

[Gill Passman]

Angus wrote:
> I have a 54 liter tank which I am going to fit with an undergravel or
> an internal power filter, how many sailfins would I be able to keep and
> do I need to use salt?
>
> Thanks
>
I would go for an internal power filter....you can get problems with
undergravel mainly relating to the build up of mulm (waste) underneath
along with problems with plants if you plant the tank - I've never tried
one myself but the general concensus is not to use one....

If you are keeping just Sailfin Mollies then they are naturally brackish
fish so salt would be good and from what I've heard/read they do better
with salt than without (and that is not to say that they don't do fine
without it). Indeed, Mollies are sometimes used to cycle a sal****er tank.

A word of caution, however, is that most LFS keep their mollies in
freshwater so if you did opt for the brackish option then you would
need to acclimatize the fish to the salt....if they do keep them in
brackish then the opposite applies.....

Gill

[Angus]

Gill Passman wrote:
> Angus wrote:
> > I have a 54 liter tank which I am going to fit with an undergravel or
> > an internal power filter, how many sailfins would I be able to keep and
> > do I need to use salt?
> >
> > Thanks
> >
> I would go for an internal power filter....you can get problems with
> undergravel mainly relating to the build up of mulm (waste) underneath
> along with problems with plants if you plant the tank - I've never tried
> one myself but the general concensus is not to use one....
>
> If you are keeping just Sailfin Mollies then they are naturally brackish
> fish so salt would be good and from what I've heard/read they do better
> with salt than without (and that is not to say that they don't do fine
> without it). Indeed, Mollies are sometimes used to cycle a sal****er tank.
>
> A word of caution, however, is that most LFS keep their mollies in
> freshwater so if you did opt for the brackish option then you would
> need to acclimatize the fish to the salt....if they do keep them in
> brackish then the opposite applies.....
>
> Gill

Thanks!

[carlrs]

Gill Passman wrote:
> Angus wrote:
> > I have a 54 liter tank which I am going to fit with an undergravel or
> > an internal power filter, how many sailfins would I be able to keep and
> > do I need to use salt?
> >
> > Thanks
> >
> I would go for an internal power filter....you can get problems with
> undergravel mainly relating to the build up of mulm (waste) underneath
> along with problems with plants if you plant the tank - I've never tried
> one myself but the general concensus is not to use one....
>
> If you are keeping just Sailfin Mollies then they are naturally brackish
> fish so salt would be good and from what I've heard/read they do better
> with salt than without (and that is not to say that they don't do fine
> without it). Indeed, Mollies are sometimes used to cycle a sal****er tank.
>
> A word of caution, however, is that most LFS keep their mollies in
> freshwater so if you did opt for the brackish option then you would
> need to acclimatize the fish to the salt....if they do keep them in
> brackish then the opposite applies.....
>
> Gill

In addition to what Gill stated an additional Sponge Filter would
compliment an internal filter well. The Internal Filter will provide
good cross circulation while a Sponge Filter (connected to an air pump)
will provide good vertical circulation and excellent bio filtration. By
having two filters of any type you also provide redundancy in case one
filter stops working.

As for the Sailfin Mollies, I would recommend one tablespoons of pure
salt (non -iodized) per 20 liters (5 gallons); you can increase this if
no other fish are present. Also kH is important for mollies I recommend
160 + ppm for mollies. Aragonite in a filter bag or Wonder Shells can
help with this.

Sailfin can grow large (as livebearers go, I have had specimens grow to
4 inches +), with this in mind I would recommend 3 for a 54 liter tank.

Carl
For more kH information:
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/AquariumKH.html

[swarvegorilla]

"Angus" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>I have a 54 liter tank which I am going to fit with an undergravel or
> an internal power filter, how many sailfins would I be able to keep and
> do I need to use salt?
>
> Thanks
>

Mollies get a lot larger than most live bearers. For a tank around that
size, 2 foot..... I would go with a trio to begin with.
1 male plus 2 females will produce lots of babies in no time!! Because
mollies do get large avoid the urge to get lots at first.
Out number boys with girls.
Use a calcium carbonate substrate, by that I mean use
shellgrit/marble/limestone/coral for your gravel.
A simple air powered sponge filter will be more than enuf just get a good
sized one.
These filters once cycled are more than enuf and none of the hassle of
regular tank overhauls that UGF require.
They are also 'soft' filters and won't harm the small baby mollies or the
nice fluffy plants that work best for hiding the babys.
As far as adding salt, this does impact on the plants you can keep.
As an extreme case I keep many of my mollies in full marine, I find not only
do they do VERY well, when they do breed (little bit less frequent) fry
survival is very high.
I reccomend buying a small bag of marine salt, you only need a small amount
but it will help the fish.
While mollies can go from full fresh to full marine water relatively quickly
the filter bacteria are much less adaptable
brackish tanks take longer than marine tanks to cycle!!!!!!!!
So if you find a salt balance try and keep it!
I like to have mine salty enuf to use a protien skimmer but no more
I am a fish gear slut tho, so ya prob don't need to go that far.

As another choice petshops can often order 'pairs' from wholesalers.
these cost more but are generally worth it
Don't believe that mollies are easy either
males can go rogue, they can get constipated if not given vege/algae matter
and females get dead young inside them if temps drop to suddenly
But I like them
Just remember.... they get big!!!