I'd really like to keep a single male Betta fish, and understand that this would be ok?

I've done a fair amout of research and bought some books and magazines...but I wondered if anyone could point me in the direction of some good advice/resources.

Not sure what is their ideal tank either...I understand it's fairly small with a large surface area and a fairly gentle filter, but I don't know much about filters.

I looked at Biorbs - Biorb Flow? Biorb Life? Fluval Edge? Fluval Nano? Juwel Vio 40? Random one from PAH with Sponge Bob in? I simply have no idea!

Can anyone give me some advice on what sort of thing that I should be looking for? And places to find accurate information.

Thanks for your time,
Naomi

Hi,

Not sure where the best place other than books and mags is to get info.... the net is great but can be a bit of an overload and not always correct or helpful.

Iv got 4 fighters... ones in a 30ltr fluval standard tank with a fluval 1plus pump, and heater for that size tank. iv another male and female in a divided 60ltr with fluval 2plus on its lowest flow setting and again heater. iv got the pump on the side with the female as she has short fins and seems absolutly fine with the slightly faster water flow, and finally iv got my other male in a 20ltr arcadia tank with a marina whisper 25i, which is a waterfall pump which is really nice. Depending on how much room you have avalible to give to the tank i definatly recon no less than 20ltrs, i know 'they' say fighters can live in tiny bowls but its no life for them. Also trying to cycle and maintain good water quality in a little bowl or tank is really hard and a lot of effort on your part trying to keep up with water changes and cleaning.

The arcadia is a nice modern looking tank and you can do some really nice decor inside to show off the tank and fish, the pump is super quiet... but you do have the sound of the waterfall, which i love. The 30ltr fluval is a good size to have lots of plants in with the fish, and gives lots of options to create a nice interesting set up for the fish... but not a small tank that could fit in a corner or on a sideboard..... the pump's water flow is slow enough to not take out the fish and is again a nice quiet pump. And the bigger tank is a bit of a waste if you only want to keep one fish in it on its own.

Iv not had first hand experiance with bio orbs or fluval edge's. But friends have got them and apparntly they are buggers to clean... also the edge is a little on the small side and one of my friends has had a hard time cycling it. The orbs, in my opinion, are a real waste of the fish.... because of the shape of the tank you loose the fish 'round corners' and then when it gets close up to you its all distorted and i think with such beautiful fish as bettas it seems a shame that you dont get the full impact of the fish. Flat glass all the way.

Be careful when buying pet shop fighters... normally veil tails and normally already a year old (if theyve got nice long fins then they almost certianly are at least 8months) they arnt normal high quality and get sick very quickly.... if you can, id suggest you looked for a breeder near you and paid a little extra to get a nice breed, like a crown tail, butterfly or plakat. (there are heaps more types) you can usually get a fish from breeders at about 3 months old, so you get to enjoy them for nearly all their life.

Also when cycling the tank make sure it is truley cycled and matured as from my experiance these little guys dont like fresh start up, and they arnt as hardy as some people say. They dont handle temperature swings well, and very succeptible to fin rot and fin melt from amonia spikes.

I hope at least some of this helped. Its only from my experiances with betta and my hours of reasearch. But they are amazing little fish and very addictive as they all have such different characters and colours. Its hard to stop at one!

Best of luck!!

Thanks so much - I'll have a look at the tanks and things that you suggested.
Naomi x

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I've got 9 boys, 3 girls, and soon will have 100's of fry.

Tank size for Betta is defiantly controversial among the Betta community, and can vary depending on many different factors. If this is your first fish, I highly suggest no less then 5 gallons (19 liters) and filters are not a necessity as long as water changes are performed routinely.

I defiantly agree with keels about getting a tank that is flat surfaced. Those round bowls and orbs distort the view. Betta's are very socialable despite needing to be housed alone. From my experience, they can recognize different people, and they prefer to be in an area of the house where there's a lot of activity.

Betta's need to have a heater unless you live in an area of the world that maintains constant heat especially during night times. While bettas can tolerate temperatures between 74-86 F (23-30 C), their ideal temperature is between 78-80 F (25-26 C).

If you have any more specific questions feel free to PM me and I can suggest a few Betta specific forums to check out if you'd like.

What about substrate for these little guys, im very keen on sand (Only got goldfish so never used sand) will aquarium sand be OK?

And I am thinking of getting a few shrimp first but again seems to be contraversal in the betta forums. What do you think? And what experiences have you had with shrimp and bettas.

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Doglets: Teal, Dylan and Buster

Ponies: Toffee, Samba and Jake

Guinea wiggles: Hector, Herbert and Humphrey

Fishes: Bess, Gerald, Barney and Claus

Hi,
I've got a little aqua start 320 that my son gave me. It comes with filter and heater. He gave me an air stone for bubbles.

It's quite a small tank so doesnt take up much room but big enough to be a focal point.

The only downside was being small, it took forever to cycle. Altho my being a novice probably didnt help.

I've got an otto (2 died) a white cloud, gertrude blue eye, 2 Pristilla Tetra and 2 Black Phantom Tetra. My Betta boy fits in great with these and gets on well with them all. However he didnt get on with my Cory and chastised it to death. I've got planted bog wood that the Cory liked to hide under - Bertie (my grand daughter named him) wanted that spot for his. I made more hiding spots but he claimed them all and I found the Cory dead one morning.

I've just bought a bamboo shrimp and he's accepted that fine but I imagine the smaller varieties would probably be eaten.

I keep the bubbles gentle and on one side. The filter half in and half out of the water and it all works v well.

He's a v interesting little character and definately recognises different people. I have to take care when feeding as he will sit back and let the tetra have it all. Unless it's bloodworms, then they dont get a look in.

I definitely think they would be better with company but I would probably let the Betta be the last edition. I think it's better to add them to the community rather than try to add the community afterwards.

Sorry, I've waffled a bit but they are great fun.

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"Life is mostly froth and bubble, Two things stand like stone,
Kindness in another’s trouble, Courage in your own”

@toffee44

Sand is a wonderful substrate for Betta's. As long as it is for freshwater use, any aquarium sand can be used. (I've even heard stories of people using pool filter sand and having it work well for them) Also, I find that sand is a lot easier to clean, because the fish waste will sit on top of the sand, so it's easy to remove all of it from the tank when cleaning. Just remember to lightly poke the sand to release any pockets of nitrate air, as sometimes pockets of air will collect under the surface. The only downside of having sand as a substrate is that natural plants can not grow in it because sand compacts over time, and plant roots will have a difficult time growing out under the sand.

Shrimps are for the most part ok to have with bettas. Red Cherry Shrimp and Ghost shrimp are the most popular. Bettas might snack on shrimps, which shouldn't be a problem for Betta unless he starts becoming bloated, or ignoring his food and just hunts the shrimps instead. Every Betta has their own personality and aggression levels. Some prefer to live alone, some enjoy the company of tank mates. =)

@Mum2Heidi

I'm sorry to hear that your Betta killed your cory. It does take a lot of patience finding the right tank mates. Octo's are awesome to be in a community tank, but they are very sensitive to being in captivity and die a lot. They also school, so they are best in odd numbers and in groups of 5 or more.

Out of curiosity, what size tank do you have for your community? and how heavily is it planted? I wouldn't recommend introducing a male Betta into a community unless it is at least 10 gallons (38 liters), with a lot of hidey holes and planted with top and medium level plants (for mid level or bottom fish to run away and hide). Personally I've had more success allowing the Betta to be in the tank first, then slowly introducing tank mates. I see Betta's as the king of the tank, as his territory is the whole tank. =D

Tetra's and Cory are generally good tank mates, but every Betta has his own preference and tolerance level as well.

Thanks for all your help everyone!
Naomi

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