Variatus platy temperature outside

[Kristinn]

Hello guys n gals. I am planning on putting my variatus platies outside for the first time this summer. I am a heavy listener of the aquarium coop podcast and a video watcher and I remember @Cory talking about how cold these guys can go about a hundred times but I can't for the life of me remember how cold that was. I live in Iceland so this cold tolerance information is of great importance to me. Is there anyone who remembers or knows this information?

Thank you.

[Cory]

With first year fish. Meaning they have only lived in aquariums prior. I was able to get them to about 58ish, before I got scared and brought them in. I think they can go lower especially after the fry have been raised outdoors for a generation or two.

[Kristinn]

On 4/6/2022 at 6:03 PM, Cory said:

With first year fish. Meaning they have only lived in aquariums prior. I was able to get them to about 58ish, before I got scared and brought them in. I think they can go lower especially after the fry have been raised outdoors for a generation or two.

Thank you sir for a quick and informative reply! 

[Kristinn]

Hey I have some more thoughts now that I have put some water in my tub and have started slowly getting it ready (squeezing a dirty sponge in it, pumping fertilizer, putting in plants and snails). I was hoping that you @Cory or anyone else with summer tubbing experience would have some suggestions for me. 

The thing is that I also have some red cherry shrimp that I was planning on putting outside as well. But, I am wondering if there is any benefit to putting them outside? And would it be better to have them in a sepperate tub or in with the platies? I would love to get some pros and cons on those options. Mostly wondering if they will breed any more outside than they would in my tank, or grow up with better coloring, etc...

Another thing, are there any pros and cons to leaving water in the tubs between summers? This is my second summer doing this and at the end of last summer I emptied my tub completely, just wondering if there is any benefit to not doing that. Keep in mind that I live in Iceland and the water would most likely freeze solid at some point during winter.

[Cory]

As for using the water year after year. I do this. Typically I'll do a largish water change by cleaning a sponge filter, netting out gunk build up. Then top it off again. This allows it to be well seasoned.

 

As for shrimp outside. I find cherry shrimp to get much brighter red when exposed to sunlight. Mixing them with the platies you can try. if you have a ton of plants it might work well. Otherwise I'd do a separate pond for them. I've had cherry shrimp make it through with a couple inches of ice on the pond before.

[Kristinn]

Thank you @Cory, I will most likely go with a separate pond since I just got offered a second large tub for free. Im going to not empty the tub this year as well, It will be interesting to see the how it looks after winter. 

Also, do you have sponge filters or some method of filtration or water movement in all of your tubs? Last year I went with no filtration or water movement at all, just plants.

[Cory]

I personally always use a sponge filter. I'm not sure it's 100% needed but I feel better having it on the hottest days and such.

[Torrey]

On 4/25/2022 at 7:39 PM, Kristinn said:

Thank you @Cory, I will most likely go with a separate pond since I just got offered a second large tub for free. Im going to not empty the tub this year as well, It will be interesting to see the how it looks after winter. 

Also, do you have sponge filters or some method of filtration or water movement in all of your tubs? Last year I went with no filtration or water movement at all, just plants.

Having lived at a higher altitude than Cory in Washington state, my one concern about leaving water in over the winter in Iceland, is the durability of the container.

We never had problems with our stock tanks pressure cracking... but a few other tubs developed ice expansion cracks the winter we spent 2 weeks with a high of -22 C. Water expands instead of contracting when it becomes a solid, and Rubbermaid stock tanks are built with expansion capabilities... metal and plastic ones are not☹️

I second Cory: Shrimp and fish both develop more beautiful colors with natural sunlight!

[Kristinn]

Thank you for that info @Torrey. I am not worried about that in my case, I have a massive insulated container built for fisheries and freezing temperatures. That is however indeed a very good thing to keep in mind.

[Torrey]

On 4/26/2022 at 10:51 AM, Kristinn said:

Thank you for that info @Torrey. I am not worried about that in my case, I have a massive insulated container built for fisheries and freezing temperatures. That is however indeed a very good thing to keep in mind.

you are welcome! 

No need for anyone else to learn by firsthand experience, lol

[Kristinn]

I have some more thoughts. Does anyone know if keeping the fish outside makes them susceptible to parasites? As in, you have a parasite free fish that you put outside for the summer and it has parasites when you bring it back inside.

[sumplkrum]

On 5/4/2022 at 9:03 AM, Kristinn said:

I have some more thoughts. Does anyone know if keeping the fish outside makes them susceptible to parasites? As in, you have a parasite free fish that you put outside for the summer and it has parasites when you bring it back inside.

Having fish outside they are much closer to nature, so there is a possibility. Birds and other wildlife might transfer something when they come to drink. An undesirable insect might make it's way into the tub. Like a garden, it's only a semi-controlled environment.

That being said, fish come from nature and they certainly won't die at the drop of a hat. The common parasites we see in the aquarium hobby aren't going to flood your tubs.

It would be reasonable that when you bring the fish back inside, you keep them in their own tank for observation before adding them back into your communities. Personally, I wouldn't bother using meds unless there's an actual noticeable problem that needs to be addressed. Meds themselves are a stressor that your fish don't necessarily need.