# setting up for a single betta



## annarism (Aug 9, 2007)

i have been researching and have always wanted a betta i keep finding so much conflicting information that my head now hurts so...............
is there anyone on here who has experience with these and what will i need to setup to ensure longevity and a nice enviroment i plan on using real plants in the aquarium but what is a suitable size for 1 betta and what equipment will i need besides tank and water and gravel lol will i need filter heater air pump etc i have had tropical fish in the past and cold water fish so by no means am i a total novice but i still feel there is more to learn all the time i remember the good old days when i was a kid and my gold fish was in a bowl with gravel and that was it feed it clean it it actually lasted longer than it should of done if only i had known then what i do now he might still be with us


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

Very, very basically....

Heat the tank to around 28c - 29c a little bit higher than an average fish tank. All aquaria need a filter. A very basic air driven filter will suffice. JAD do some good models. Certainly better than the more commonly available Algarde models around. Tank size needs to be around 25 litres or so. Nothing huge. Live plants are great. Something that will give cover is ideal. A lily plant like Nymphae rubra gives good results if you trim it back as and when required. Salvinia species and frogbit will also suffice.

Remember that these fish don't live particularly long. So he may pass away after just 18 months or so.

Ocean Nutrition now do a range of decent Betta products. Adding their Betta SPA to your water will provide ideal water conditions. And their range of Betta food or Betta PRO food is an all in one diet. Using the SPA and PRO food will keep the fish happy and healthy and in good colour.

PM me if you need any info on the stuff mentioned above.


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

I should have said, if you want live plants ensure you have decent lighting and feed regularly with a good quality plant fertiliser. Small betta tanks can look amazing with a bot of thought going into their set up. Adding sumatran driftwood and maybe a carpeting plant etc can give you a stunning small tank. Good luck.


----------



## annarism (Aug 9, 2007)

thanks very much i am putting a lot of thought into it as i really fascinated by them they are stunning i love natural looking tanks with plants and driftwood what would be the best to use as substrate as such as i know gravel is used but is there a sand i want black as i am going for that dark colour and i know they naturally live in paddy fields but i dont like brown stones and would prefer sand but will use a fine gravel if i have to


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

Sand is actually better than gravel for a lot of plants. So this could be a good choice. What kind of plants do you have in mind? I'm just thinking it might be an idea to seed the sand with a plant fertiliser (Such as ON Starter) etc if this is the look you are after?


----------



## Esfa (Apr 15, 2007)

MJ - she should just get plants which will do well with none. its so much easier then messing about with ferts, co2 etc.


----------



## Trillian (Jul 14, 2008)

Bettas are lovely fish and I've had one continuously for the last couple of years. It took me a while to find a good, healthy specimen but I've had the current one for over a year. He's in a 16L tank, filtered and heated to 26C. There's a gravel substrate, a rock cave for him to "sleep" in plus fake plants that he likes to rest on. One of my favourite fish and he has a great personality. :flrt:


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

Esfa said:


> MJ - she should just get plants which will do well with none. its so much easier then messing about with ferts, co2 etc.


It is easier yes. But you're then limited to what species of plant you can keep, meaning the tank may not look as good as it could do. It's really for the poster to decide what plants and look of the tank she wants and for her to go from there.

Low tech tanks are all well and good, but you have so much more potential with ferts and good lighting. IMHO


----------



## Esfa (Apr 15, 2007)

Nahh there's LOADS of choice with low-tec.


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Hi
Pretty much agree with most of whats been said Apart from the bit about Bettas being short-lived at around 18 months. Kept correctly they can live up to 5 years, although 3-4 years is more typical.
We have approx 120 bettas at present, and have been successfully breeding them for a couple of years now 
We have had males that are happy in 5 gallons but freak out in anything bigger, but have had males that prefer bigger tanks. One we have, started in a 6 gallon but sulked, moved to a 3 gallon and he became far happier and flourished
Air driven sponge filters are good, although we have used Interpet pf mini filters with success. The key is to limit the strength of the flow.
Diet wise - Attisons Betta pro is probably the best betta pellet available, although Hikari Betta Gold is good too. Bettas also enjoy Bloodworm, Daphnia and Brineshrimp.
There's plenty of info on the webbie


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

Yeah but loads more than loads when spending a few quid more.


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

andy007 said:


> Hi
> Pretty much agree with most of whats been said Apart from the bit about Bettas being short-lived at around 18 months. There's plenty of info on the webbie


 
I didn't actualy say that they live to 18 months.  They are usually a few months old when you buy them as you'll know and are not know for longevity. Actualy fishbase has them down for only living for a couple of years :-

Betta splendens, Siamese fighting fish : aquarium

Maybe it's the Betta Pro keeping yours alive longer? lol 

I've bred these years ago and will do again when I can source some decent wild stock, and fed the babies on cultured live food. Ocean Nutrition now do their Betta starter product. Have you used it with your babies? If so, what do you make of it?


----------



## annarism (Aug 9, 2007)

thanks again for all the info my concern with using fertilizer would be how to do it successfully as i have never done it before and i have concerns with me maybe to heavy handed or something and potentially making the water unsafe


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

annarism said:


> thanks again for all the info my concern with using fertilizer would be how to do it successfully as i have never done it before and i have concerns with me maybe to heavy handed or something and potentially making the water unsafe


Go and look into the plans you want in your tank. Then post the names. You may be lucky and end up wanting simple to keep species and thus it won't be a problem. Others may just need the addition of a liquid fertiliser every week or so. Which is dead simple to sort out. If you're worried about it being complicated, stick to easy to keep species. Java fern, Anubius barteri, Cabomba species etc.


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

No worries, just wanted to point out that they can live for quite a few years
Regarding the betta starter food by Ocean Nutrition, our fry wouldn't touch it LOL. We use Freshly hatched brineshrimp, Vinegar eel, and grated frozen bloodworm for the growing babies. Then step them up to larger brineshrimp, crushed betta pellets and small bloodworms.

There is a guy on my betta forum that specialises in Wilds. He has, or can get hold of, most wild types.



MJ75 said:


> I didn't actualy say that they live to 18 months.  They are usually a few months old when you buy them as you'll know and are not know for longevity. Actualy fishbase has them down for only living for a couple of years :-
> 
> Betta splendens, Siamese fighting fish : aquarium
> 
> ...


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

andy007 said:


> There is a guy on my betta forum that specialises in Wilds. He has, or can get hold of, most wild types.


Is his name Keith by any chance? I know a guy on the SF and SVAS forum who has had wilds and wonder if it's him?

MJ


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

MJ75 said:


> Is his name Keith by any chance? I know a guy on the SF and SVAS forum who has had wilds and wonder if it's him?
> 
> MJ


Not the same guy, the guy i know is called Colin: victory:


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

andy007 said:


> Not the same guy, the guy i know is called Colin: victory:


Whereabouts is he based? And does he sell his wilds via courier etc?


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

MJ75 said:


> Whereabouts is he based? And does he sell his wilds via courier etc?


He's based in Scotland and does ship:2thumb: I'll send you some details. He's got Raja's up for sale at the mo and they are beauties
We needed to open a whole new section on our forum just for wilds and he has been a diamond:2thumb:


----------



## Fly Eater (Sep 1, 2009)

I have a fairly shallow 2ft. low tech moderately/heavily planted tank which I set up when I was 9, so its about 5 years old. There is one white T8 tube but nothing too expensive =]. I dose with an aquarium fertiliser and occasionally put new fertilising tabs/sticks in. Here are a few plants that have done really well in this tank:

- Bacopa Monnerii
- Hygrophylia Polysperma
- Echinodorus Tennellus
- Twisted Vallisneria
- Sagittaria Natans
- Java Fern
- Anubias barteri
- Dwarf Hairgrass
- Cryptocoryne Wendtii
- Cabomba Caroliana
- Anubias Nana
- Nymphaea zenkeri

I don't keep bettas, so I'm sorry as I can't help much =[


----------



## MJ75 (Feb 5, 2009)

Fly eater that list is very usefull to people who want to know what plants are easy to keep in low tech tanks. All of the species listed will do fine without lots of lighting and CO2 injection etc.


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

The tanks that I usually see being used for Bettas are quite tall, how would a tank that is 40cm(L)x21cm(H)x20cm(D) be? I know it's the right size (around 17litres) but is it the right height? 

Also, how does the setting up of the initial water go? What do I need to do there? Sand + Dechlorinated Water and test for nil Ammonia, nil Nitrites and low levels of Nitrates? Confusing!


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Hi
The tank works out to approx 4 gallons, so is ok for a single male betta. 

Setting a new tank up is pretty straight forward. Wash the tank out and rinse the substrate. Put the substrate in and slowly start filling with dechlorinated water. Once three quarters full position the heater and filter, but dont switch anything on yet. Continue to fill the tank.

Once full, allow 30 minutes for the heater glass to match the temp of the water before turning it on. They may crack otherwise.

Turn the heater and filter on. Put your plants and decor in making sure that any decor hasn't got rough bits. A male bettas fins can be damaged by rough decor.

Now, leaving a tank like this will not mature/cycle the filter. Any water tests done at this stage are pointless. The only water stat you're interested in at this stage is temperature. Should be approx 28c. The filter needs food in the form of ammonia to get the cycle started. There are many ways of maturing the filter, and I have various techniques described on my webby. Here's the link to the page - Betta Information | Cycling Your Filter

Once you have a basic understanding of the nitrogen cycle, its pretty easy to grasp really.


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Oh, forgot to mention that Interpet do a small internal filter called the "mini PF", which would be ideal.


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

Thanks for the good bed time reading, cleared a few questions I had 

What heater would you suggest?


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Skunk said:


> Thanks for the good bed time reading, cleared a few questions I had
> 
> What heater would you suggest?


For that size tank a 25w will be fine. Visatherm and Deltatherm do 25w heaters, but I would avoid using the Hagen Elite ones. I know plenty of people that have had these go wrong and cook the fish, including me:devil: The thermostat bit obviously stuck on and overnight wiped out my female betta tank:devil:


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

Eep! Well, I'm going to my local famous aquatics shop, Frisby's, to check out their setups, fishes and get even more advice!
Thanks for all your help, dreamt about the lil guys last night!


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

Ok, just got back from Frisby's, he was helpful as always, and was very pleased that I'm going to be keeping just one on his own, and said how well he'll thrive being alone 

This is the kit I got, all came to £23, which is pretty good I believe!

JAD Super Biochemical Sponge Filter SF-102 £6 - The tube that leads up from it sticks out of the top of my tank, as it's longer than it is tall. I asked if it would be ok, to cut the tube down if it didnt fit, but would it be ok to remove it all together? He says it's there to cause a small current to allow water to filter through.










JAD Airpump SC-3500 £8 Seems good to me
A few valves and some air tube stuff  £1. 

Safe Guard Aquarium Water Treatment to dechlorinate the tap water (treats upto 900 litres) £3

BacterLife £2.45

Some Water from one of their tanks (Free)

Some tropical Fish Food £1

All seems good to me, apart from the filter tube :\ Didn't get a heater as the smallest he had was 50w and was physically to big for my tank.


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

The sponge filter will be good:2thumb:

I presume Bacterlife says its some kind of filter cycling agent? If so, be prepared for it not to work. 

Water actual holds very little beneficial bacteria in it, so wont do much to help really. Once you have it all set-up with the heater, see if he'll give you a small piece of filter media from one of his filters:2thumb: Just use an elastic band to hold it around the new sponge filter. After a couple of weeks beneficial bacteria would have started growing on your new sponge.


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

Great  Well, I just got back, decided to get live plants, which are pictured below, he said there would be no need for CO2, also, having a bit of trouble with the valves, truly don't have a clue!

So, the two plants that I got. Can anyone name them?



















The two valves that I have (i have the air tube also and the filter and the pump, so?) 










Also, I got a heater, it's the Interpet Delta Therm 25Watt and cost me £11.99 Also, the pump that I got is very loud and vibrates all over the place, what can I do?


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Top plant looks like a type of cambomba, not sure about the other.

The two valves you have - the see through plastic one is a non-return valve. Basically this stops the tank back syphoning in the event of a power cut. Have a short piece of airline from the pump and then add the non-return valve. It should have an arrow showing the direction. Have the arrow pointing away from the pump.

The other is a check valve. Again it needs to be inline, so you can turn the bit on the top to alter the amount of airflow. 

So from the pump - short piece of airline - non-return valve - airline - check valve - airline - filter.


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

Thanks for the help  Managed to get the valves working properly, and it's bubbling away nicely  but the pump is still very loud! Would it be dangerous to put a cloth under it to quieten it? I know it does make it quieter, but would it be a fire risk?

Here is my set up 





































What snails would you suggest? And should I wait for the same kind of conditions right for fish before I introduce them? And would you suggest I use more plants? It does look bare


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Hi
I find placing the pump on a piece of polystyrene works well:2thumb:

I'd hang on a bit before adding snails, but Nerites are pretty cool.

As for decor, how about a coconut cave? Ours love em:2thumb: Also, Java fern and Java moss are good in low light conditions.


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

Awesome! Thanks for the help, also, the impatience of wanting the tank to be ready isn't too bad! Sure in a week it'll be awful XD Was told I can get a few "puffy whites" earlier than putting my betta in, I think thats what he called them.


----------



## andy007 (May 13, 2008)

Puffy Whites? I have no idea what they are:lol2:


----------



## Skunk (Apr 11, 2010)

I'm guessing that they're some kind of hardier fish that don't nip betta fins, and help with ammonia build up?


----------

