Seeking advice for new betta tank, with plants

[eraagne]

Sand is a better substrate overall in my opinion. Good for fish and plants. Plants root better in it and nutrients become more evenly distributed. Any fish with barbels will prefer a soft substrate. It's cleaner and generally cheaper then gravel unless you want colors. Black sand is really cool looking but kinda expensive. Though the caribsea brand required like zero rinsing.

The only downside is that you have to stir it to prevent pockets of dangerous bacteria. Though certain snails will stir it for you. And if you get pool sand or play sand you'll need to rinse very well as well as run a cheap mechanical filter to get rid of the dust. It's destroyed my two tetra whispers. Not much of a loss though in my opinion.

 

[User40]

Thanks again for the helpful comments. After more reading, here is my current plan for setting up a new betta tank with plants. Any additional advice will be appreciated!


Tank Plans:

> 20–gallon glass tank (24” x 12” x 16”)
> Glass cover
> AquaClear 20 hang-on-back filter
> Rena 50-watt heater
> Aquatic Life 2 x 24 W T5 HO for fresh water (6000 K and Roseate lamps)
> Substrate: CaribSea Eco-Complete (black), 20 lbs. [This does not look like it is enough to create a 2”-deep bed. I may put a layer of sand or fine gravel beneath it, or mixed in with it. ]
> Timer

Notes: I opted for a glass tank because I assumed with youngsters helping to scrape algae, an acrylic tank would scratch. In addition, Petsmart had the tank on sale for $20. I chose the AquaClear filter after reading many positive reviews, and I liked the ability to turn its flow down so that the current can be mild. I chose the Rena heater because I liked the warning feature when the temperature goes 5 degrees above or below the set point (people also recommended Jager or MarineLand Visi-Therm stealth). [I may have undersized it.] I chose the lighting because this unit came with the sort of lamps I wanted for plants, and meant I would not have to buy an extra set of lamps to replace the ones coming with the unit. I chose the CaribSea substrate based on a LFS recommendation; I was willing to pay more to avoid rinsing the substrate thoroughly.

I’ll get a timer with a GFIC capability, or I will replace the outlet with a GFIC outlet.

I’ve read that betas can be shocked when the lights come on suddenly. As a result, I may set up a small fixture with a ~12-watt CFL near the tank, and have that light come on 15 minutes before the tank light, and come on for 15 minutes just before the main lights go off. I may also try an LED fixture.


Fish Plans:

3 female betas
5 pygmy cory catfish

There are many different opinions about what tankmates, if any, are suitable for a betta tank. I chose the pygmy cory catfish because they are small (3/4” or less) will tend to stay closer to the bottom of the tank, and may compete less with the bettas for space or food (since I can use sinking pellets to feed the cories), and can help with algae. Otos would have been the second choice.


Plant Plans:

Keep in mind that I am planning for a 20-gallon tank. The tank height is 16”, but once I remove an inch or two for the substrate, and an inch at the top, the height of the water will be about 14” or less. Most guides suggest picking plants for the foreground, middle and background. For this tank, a tall background plant will be around 14”.

I’ve listed ideas for my current starting plan for plants. I am sure I will modify the list once I see what the LFS has in stock. I’ll start with about 6-9 specimens or 3-4 different types of plants, see how they do, and go from there.

Plants for Background:

Vallisneria asiatica var. biwaensis (14”): Said to be good for edges. I will consider V. spiralis, but it may spread too rapidly.
Cabomba caroliniana (20”): Based on my reading, I would not necessarily chosen this plant. The main reason for including this plant is that my child grew it and Elodea in second grade and wants to try one of them in the tank.
Hydrophila polysperma (20”).

Plants for Middle:

Cryptocoryne walkeri var. lutea (5”), C. Albida (10-12") or Vallisnera americana (8”) or Anubias angustifolia ‘Afzeli’ (8")

Plants for Front:

Java moss (Veiscularia dubyana) tied onto purchased driftwood with nylon string, or on a rock
Cryptocornye (There are many short possibilities. I’ll see what the LFS has.)

Later, I will consider adding Echonodorus (sword plant, probably the dwarf variety), and a floating plant.

I bought the Flourish 3-pack starter fertilizer kit as well.


References:

Thanks to eraagne for suggesting Peter Hiscock’s book (“Mini Encyclopedia, Aquarium Plants, Barron’s Press). It is excellent.

John H Tullock ‘s book, Betta: Your Happy Healthy Pet, was quite useful. It was the only betta-specific book I could download to my Kindle, but I am glad I did. I read a few other books available at my library, and Tullock’s was by far the most useful to me. Tullock also provides suggestions about plants.

A LFS gave me a 44-page pamphlet from Hagen called Basic Aquarium Guide. There are some useful opinions about plants there also on pages 33-35.

I have seen reference to bettatalk.com and majesticbettas.com but have not explored those sites.

 

[fishycat]

20 lbs of eco-complete should be plenty. I used a 20 lb bag of sand for my 10g and it's enough for planting (you really only want 1-1.5" max for sand).

Your anubias should also be attached to wood or rock. That's a lot of plants for a 10... not necessarily a bad thing. But the hygro may become too large for your liking (or grow too fast, lol). C. lutea is a good choice, it grows over 5" - mine is about 8", you may want to think about using it more towards the back. A lot of the crypts you see in the store are not full grown. e.g./ c. wendtii gets HUGE but is usually only a few inches tall when sold.

re: pygmy cories. Are these specifically Pygmaeus Corydoras or Habrosus Corydoras or Hastatus Corydoras? All are "dwarf" species. Pygmaeus are more mid-water swimmers, so that's why I had to ask. I have and enjoy habrosus, which mostly stay on the bottom.

3 female bettas may NOT be enough to spread aggression. Generally it's believed that 10g is too small for a sorority. You may get lucky, but you should have a backup plan if someone gets aggressive (second tank). If you can find females that were raised in the same tank, you'll have better luck with them getting along. Honestly I'd go with one male with 5-6 habrosus cories.

 

[User40]

Thanks, fishycat. I have changed the plan to 20-gal not 10-gal as I posted in my original entry. Still, your comment about Hydro is a good one.

How many females to include? is an important question. Your comment about needing more than 3 females to prevent aggression is interesting. I am hearing very different opinions about the minimum number of females. One person suggested I use at least 4, but then I think I am loading up the 2o-gallon tank too much. The load on the tank would be better with just the one male, so I will rethink the plan.

I do plan to use Habrosus Corydoras. A person at a LFS suggested I mix 3 Habrosus Corydoras and 3 Otos. Do you know if they will school together, or is it better to stay with 5-6 cories?

 

[fishycat]

Otos & cories don't school. I would go with at least 6 habrosus, 10 easily in a 20g.

I have a 20H with a male betta, 7-8 neon tetras and a couple endlers w/1 brigg snail. The betta makes a nice centerpiece fish.

You could try 5 females (odd #s are preferred), with the habrosus your stocking should be fine. Just give the girls lots of hiding places & plants to break up line of sight.