Help

[Sorceress]

need advice on betta and any fish i can put with him and plants

have one gallon currently getting 5.5 gallon tomorrow currently have two white clouds

1 gallon tank has ug filter
new 5.5 gallon will have inside tank filter and 19 watt 18,ooo k florescent bulb and heater

[Fivestar68]

HI, 2 of my tanks are 5gal and this is how I have them set-up. Filter, heater, live plants, rocks, a piece of bog wood, thermometer and a ceramic ornament. As for fish w/ my Betta I have 2 neons and a Otocinclus Cats, or Dwarf Sucking Catfish Otocinclus affinis are good algae eaters though they mainly deal with algae in its beginning stages when it is very short. So this is a great little algae eater if you are gonna have live plants or have your tank anywhere near sunlight. Remember to condition the water with declorinator and I like to use Stress Zyme to help speed up the biological filter. Please let the new tank cycle atleast 24hrs before adding fish. That shoud do it. If I missed anything we have some great Betta mind here and they will imput anything I have missed. Goodluck and go have fun with your Betta!

[Sorceress]

thanks and i am adding things as i get the money for the plants and new fish the betta will be last to be put in tank as i has googled several sites and they say bettas are territorial and should be added last is this true so i should move the white clouds to the new tank till i have the filter set up and running for 24 hours? sorry about not mentioning the white clouds

[BettaLu&Meg]

Also although its is ideal to keep bettas with 2 gallons per water. per fish that size for that matter, Being on top and cleaning the tanks the right way will decrease your chance of overpopulation diseases. Fivestar and myself are the chairmen for Betta addiction anonymous and well we clean out our bettas more than ourselves... probably! lol , as i was saying if you stay on top of your cleaning and get algea eaters, the conditioners and make sure everything ok in your tank everyday you should be ok. Heres a compatability chart to get you started on what fish you'd like and whats compatable.
Oh and one more thing Also WATCH YOUR BETTAS with new tank mates, Each betta has there own personalilty, as some of us know, and they wont get along with other fish, as other bettas do. One might like tetras, and the next betta might like the company at all. so keep an eye on your little guy when introducing another buddy!

[bettalvr]

Hi Sorceress! First, welcome to this forum. If you are really interested in doing what is best for your bettas, this is the place to be. You will have the opportunity to learn lots!

Just as a suggestion, since you are setting up a new tank, read FishMomma's link about the Nitrogen Cycle in new setups. Good luck with everything!

Also, use the fish compatibility chart that Luis suggested as a guide keeping in mind that none of this is set in stone and for some strange reason, many fish 'forget' to read the compatibility chart and don't follow the rules! Darn fish, think they just wanna see if we're paying attention!!

[Sorceress]

thanks am researching before i get the betta am on a limited buget and even tho i do have that one gallon i would like to use it mainly for when the fish get sick right now i just have the two cheap white clouds the betta will be the last fish to the mix so does this sound right 5 white clouds and alge eater and some plants plus the decoration i got is that ok for a 5.5 gallon oh forgot to add that the light is a 19 watt 18000k bulb and it is a striped down eclipse tank ie it only comes with light

[Oscar Betta]

welcome to the forum! and good choice with putting whiteclouds with bettas, they make good tankmates. like bettalvr said read some links in bettalu&meg's and fish momma's signituare. i am saying this because im not that great with tank stuff lol

[Oscar Betta]

why is my ativity rate dropping when i post coments! grrr

[Sorceress]

k thanks any advice on plants

[bettalvr]

I kinda like the Java moss and ferns. Just gotta keep a close watch on the moss or it will take over everything in the tank. First time I got it (of course, not knowing any better and before internet) I got quite a large amount, planted it all in my tank, and before long I had a whole Java Moss MESS.