Republic of the Philippines

Department of Science and Technology

Philippine Science High School System
PHILIPPINE SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL – BICOL REGION
CAMPUS
Curriculum and Instruction Division
Tagongtong, Goa, Camarines Sur 4422
http://www.brc.pshs.edu.ph

Pursuit of Truth Passion for Excellence Commitment to Service

Fish Culturing Plan

I.Introduction
Brief Overview
Home fish culturing includes the culturing of fish and or other aquatic organisms within the vicinity of
a household, usually done within a tank or aquarium. This project will be done in fulfillment of the
requirements in Agriculture 2 as well as potential income gain should the project be successful

The culturing of fish allows for their breeding and selling as pet animals for aquariums. With the
proper techniques, experimentation, and materials, unique breeds of fish can be created by combining
pre-existing breeds and diversifying the breeds of fish that can be sold to aquarium owners.

An alternative reason to culture fish is to provide an alternative source of food for both humans and
for pet animals. Depending on the type of the fish, they can be sold commercially or simply consumed
as a source of protein.

II.Species Selection
Chosen Species: Guppy Fish
For this project we have decided to culture P. reticulata, more commonly known as the guppy but they
go by other names such as rainbowfish or millionfish. These fish are widely known for being
freshwater aquarium fish that are easy to culture due to their adaptability.

Starting with their preferred environment, Guppies prefer the following conditions;
● 25°C temperature
● 7 GH (General Hardness)
● 6 KH (Carbonate Hardness)
● 7 pH
● at least 4 other fish companions of the same species
● 2 gallons of water per fish
● 2:1 ratio of female to male fish

Market Demand
In the Philippines, pet stores and ornamental fish breeders often price guppies around 150-200 php
when sold as trios. This is due to both the guppies' prolific breeding but as well as their need for
company and as such should not be sold alone.
III.Setting Up the Facility
Fish Tank Location
The location of the fish tank may affect two water qualities namely; Light and Temperature

Guppies require a proper light cycle similar to what they would experience out in the wild. This is due
to the fact that guppies have a circadian rhythm that must be followed in order to keep them healthy. If
this is not followed it could lead to problems in their development. Thus it may be placed close to a
natural light source like a window. However natural light should be used with caution as it might
affect the overall temperature of the tank, due to this artificial light is often preferred.

In conjunction with natural light affecting temperature, the fish tank’s exposure to the wind and
ambient temperature might affect the tank’s own temperature which would at best stress the fish or at
worst kill the fish outright. As such the fish tank should be properly sheltered from the elements

Tank Water
As mentioned above, Guppies prefer neutral to basic water with high hardness

As much as possible use clean dechlorinated water. This can be achieved by simply using distilled
water or using a dechlorinating kit on tap water. Avoid using water from natural water sources as they
may contain foreign organisms that can cause the fish to get sick.

In the case the water used has low hardness, crushed mineral rich materials can be added. These
materials include but are not limited to coral, seashells, limestone, dolomite, and chemical additives.

Tank Set up
With the above mentioned requirements as well as general fish culturing needs the tank will require
the following devices;

A Water Tank ntessential to culturing fish indoors without a pond

n Aquarium Light if the tank does not use natural lighting.

nsure the guppies have ample amount of light

n Aquarium Heater if the ambient temperature near the tank is too cold. To ensure the
has a constant temperature

A Water Filter rder to clean the tank

An Air Pump if the tank used has little to no surface area. While not necessary, it
s in maintaining water oxygen levels
 Alongside these devices are several decorative items that also have their own function. While these
items are optional they do serve a purpose and provide an aesthetic look to the tank. These items are
the following;

(2) inches worth of vides decoration as well as places for any aquatic plants to. Ensure
trate such as gravel, the substrate are aquarium safe, these can be bought in pet stores
es, or aquarium soil

atic plants such as vides decoration as well as helping with nitrogen cycling, sheltering
Fern or Guppy he fish, maintaining oxygen levels, and feeding herbivorous fish.
s

IV.Water Management
The following guidelines are to be followed in order to maintain the water quality of the aquarium and
prevent the spread of parasites and diseases within the aquarium.

● The water tank should be cleaned once a week

● Ensure that no molds remain within the tank and no possible parasitic plant remains or animal
eggs are left
● Test the water every 2 weeks and adjust as needed
● When changing the water of the aquarium, make sure that the water’s chemical properties are
within the standards of the guppies’ requirements.

V.Feeding and Nutrition

Appropriate Feed
Guppies are omnivorous, as such they can consume both meat and plants, though commercial feeds
are also available. The diet of guppy fry is not much different than an adult guppy diet and as such
they can be fed the same things. Other than commercial feed tailored to guppies the following food is
also commonly accepted;
● Bloodworm
● Brine shrimp
● Cucumber
● Peas
● Lettuce

Feeding Schedule
It is recommended that guppies are fed twice (2) a day, preferably once in the morning and once at
night, if possible with a 12 hour difference. While guppies may appear hungry, do not feed them
outside of scheduled times as it is easy to overfeed them

When feeding, guppies only require pinches or a handful of food. The guppies should be able to finish
eating in about a minute.

In the case of feeding guppy fry, guppy fry needs to be fed six (6) times a day and with finer and
smaller feed.

VI.Health Management
Regular testing of the aquarium water should be observed in order to gauge the pH level, temperature,
ammonia, nitrate, and other chemicals possibly present in the aquarium water. Should any of these
 exceed the limits tolerable by the guppies, appropriate measures will be taken to stabilize the water
such as chemical treatments.

Observation of the physical state of the aquarium and the water should be practiced to identify the
tell-tale signs of diseases or parasites emerging in the aquarium. These signs can range from mold and
stains forming on the glass of the aquarium, strange foreign objects or shapes suspended or floating in
the water, discoloration or deformation of the fishes and the presence of unwanted fauna or flora in the
aquarium environment or on the fishes themselves. As with the chemical state of the aquarium, should
any abnormalities be observed it is best to address the concerns immediately via the use of aquatic
pesticides, mold remover, antiparasitic treatments and medicine for the fishes.

VII.Harvesting and Marketing

The recommended harvesting age of the guppies would be around 2-3 months old when the guppies
are or are starting to sexually mature and reproduce. This is the best time to harvest the guppy as they
are more desirable for buyers who are looking to start their own aquariums as the guppies would be
ready to breed, decreasing the time needed to wait for the population of the guppies to increase.

VIII.Recording Keeping
Throughout the duration of the project, a logbook will be maintained documenting any observations
and actions done relating to the culturing of the chosen fish species including but not limited to: any
changes in the physical condition of the fishes or the tank and equipment, increase in the population of
the fishes, health and behavior of the fishes, type and amount of feeds or supplements administered to
the fishes and the time of administration.

IX.Budget and Resources

Due to provisions from our Agriculture Advisor, the project has in its possession, a 48”x21”x18”
water tank, an air pump, as well as aquarium lights

Setup Cost
In order to accomplish the initial setup of the fish tank the following costs are required;

Definite Requirements

Item nits uantity e per Unit al Price

Guppy Fish c. 3 00 php 0 php

er Filter c. 1 00 php 0 php

hlorination Kit c. 1 00 php 0 php

nite Total Cost 0 php

 Optional* Requirements

Item nits uantity e per Unit al Price

arium Heater c. 1 00 php 0 php

strate g. 4 50 php 0 php

py grass c. 2 50 php 0 php

ed Optional Total Cost 0 php

al Cost 0 php

*Will depend on the available budget and other factors

On-going Cost
In order to maintain the fish tank these re the following costs;

Requirements

Item nits uantity e per Unit al Price

Litmus Strips c. 1 00 php 0 php

monia Testing kit c. 1 00 php 0 php

er Hardness Testing Kit c. 1 50 php 0 php

hed Coral or Shells g. 1 00 php 0 php

Guppy Feed Flakes c. 3 00 php 0 php

arium Thermometer c. 1 00 php 0 php

l 0 php

X.Future Plans and Expansions

Success of the Project
To gauge the commercial success of the project, the project has three (3) milestones
● Breaking Even - The project has gained enough profit to pay off the initial setup cost
● Maintenance - The project is gaining enough to profit to maintain itself
● Expansion - The project has gained enough profit to expand
The initial goal of the project is simply ‘Breaking Even’ but should strive for the other milestones as
well

Expansion of Project
In the case of the project’s success the project may improve its existing set-up through better
equipment and additional items or by expanding the scale of the operation to increase production of
guppies for consumption.
 In expanding the project, it would be better to first improve the existing setup as it would increase the
already existing production, with not much change in upkeep. In the case of the existing setup being
its most efficient, the project can then expand and increase the number of setup tanks

Diversification of Project
It is possible that with a large enough population of guppies and enough resources that we can move to
breeding of more exotic breeds of guppies that are more popular to buyers. Another possibility is
culturing other fish species in separate tanks. Examples of these additional fish, that would not need
dissimilar maintenance to guppies, would be Platies, Swordtails, several species of Shrimp, Mollies,
and much more

XI.Conclusion
Summary & Remarks
This project is being made with the intent to culture Guppy Fish. Guppy fish live in warm hard water
as attributed to their native tropical freshwater habitat, as such the culturing of these fish means
replicating their native habitat.

There are many factors needed in order to simply keep the fish alive, let alone have them thrive. These
factors, as well as the costs, are outlined above. Regardless of these costs and difficulties, those
included in the project are committed to the safe and ethical culturing of these organisms so that they
may not be harmed. We are also committed to the sustainability of this project so that alongside the
culture species, no organisms are harmed in the process.

XII.Report and Documentation

Week 1 (December 11 - 17, 2023)
During this time our group was planning on how to procure the items needed. We settled on whatever
items we could collect without spending money we would try to collect this week. What we tried to
collect was 2 inches worth of substrate, namely gravel picked up from the SRF.

During this endeavor we tried to collect rocks with as little moss as possible as there might be the
possibility of them carrying unwanted items into the fish tank. In addition we didn’t know what would
happen if we put moss underwater. Once the rocks were collected we handpicked any debris off of
them and doused them with boiling water until we thought they were clean enough. Repeat this
process nearly every afternoon for the rest of the week.

The necessary items needed for setting up the tank were finally procured December 17, 2023. It was
decided that due to there being a near a week long break somewhat soon, that it might not be a good
time for keeping fish.

The items obtained were the following;

● Filter
● Heater
● Crushed Eggshell
● Aquarium Plants
○ Guppy Grass
○ Water Lettuce
○ Dwarf Sagittaria
○ Amazon Sword
○ Pearl Weed
○ Scarlet Temple
○ Amazon Frogbit

The price of all of these items amounted to 1170 PHP or an individual contribution of 570 PHP. The
filter was the most expensive piece of equipment, but we did get many more aquatic plants than
planned for a cheaper price, at least 14 plants.

Week 2 (December 18 - 24 2023)

This week (specifically December 18, 2024) we were able to set up the tank with a proper filter in
order to let the tap water in the tank cycle as well as to keep the procured aquatic plants alive

The following day we were able to take a picture for documentation

It was December 20, 2023 when we finally finished setting up the fish tank with all of the necessary
electronics and gadgets
Week 3 (January 01 - 07, 2023)
The week-long Christmas break has ended. Upon inspection of the tank, it was covered in brown algae
and smelled of the sea. We also observed during this time that the tank was filled with aquatic snails
which would eat up some of the algae on the surface of the tank, though evidently the algae grew
faster. We decided that this week we are changing the water.

We manually removed the water using a mix of scooping the water out and siphoning it out. We then
scrubbed the insides of the tank using a sponge.
After everything was cleaned we even added crushed eggshells to the tank to increase the water
hardness, as prescribed in our fish culturing plan. The following week we were planning to bring in
the fish

Week 5 (January 08 - 14, 2023)

On January 14, 2024, we acquired Guppy fish, nine (9) of them, as planned. In theory we filled the
tank with around 60 gallons of water which could hold 30 guppy fish but since the group is on a
budget continue with nine (9). These fish were worth a combined value of 300 pesos, 100 pesos for
each trio of fish. Similar to what was found online, they sold guppy fish in trios of two (2) females and
one (1) male. This is to reduce the risk of male fish killing each other.

We also bought a dechlorinator in case our fish tank had too much chlorine. While acclimating the fish
we added the dechlorinator and then finally added the fish.

For the day that we got the fish and for the rest of the fish’s life, they were and will be be fed at the
earliest time we can, usually at the start of class (7:40 AM), and at the latest time we can, which is
usually at the end of class (4:00 PM). The lights were and will be kept on for the majority of the day
and are then turned off right before night
Week 6 (January 15 - 21, 2023)
Nothing different has happened from the tank. The fish are alive, the tank is relatively clean, there are
many snails, and most of the plants are fine. The only strange thing is that the floating plants are dying
off. This is probably due to insects nibbling on them. We’ve tried keeping the lights off so that insects
don’t enter the room with the fish tanks. the plants get damaged regardless

Week 7 (January 22 - 28, 2023)

There are many things to report for this week.

We have found guppy fry in the tank. With an initial count of around six (6) of them but we are not
entirely sure as they are tiny. They would usually be found either on the surface of the water, on the
bottom of the tank or in one of the many corners. They like hiding

The snail population has gotten even more numerous. In fact, some of the oldest snails are about the
same size as the guppies. They have not posed any threat or problem to the tank’s ecosystem so we
have not removed any of them. Though we have accidentally killed some of the smaller snails due to
how tiny they are

The floater plants are even worse off this week. There are less than last week and those that survived
don’t look healthy. We have tried our best to keep them alive like but it seems we just have to hope
they live
Finally there are mosquito nymphs in the tank. We suspect it's due to us turning off the light in the
tanks at night. Due to this we have tried to keep the lights off at night. This doesn’t seem to affect the
health of the guppies as much as online resources have suggested, and it has decreased the amount of
mosquitoes.

In order to prepare for the coming weeks we have decided to buy more fish feed which combined with
other expenses, namely the dechlorinator, amounted to 510 PHP or a contribution of 170 PHP for each
group member.

In conclusion the project is sustainable as long as feed is provided, and it is possible to expand as the
fish have shown signs of successful breeding.