New Betta Aquarium

[NatureGirl]

Hi, all! I'm considering getting a 5 gallon tank for my betta, Skeye because she didn't work out in my community tank with the other female bettas. Right now she's in a pitiful 2-2.5 gallon holding tank with a filter but no heater, and I want to get her out of there as quickly as possible! I'm kind of on a budget, but I still want her to have a comfortable home. As mentioned above, I'm looking at 5-gallon aquariums, but there seem to be many different kinds. I'm hoping to heavily plant the tank, so whatever I get will need strong lighting... I was wondering if anyone here has some sort of 5-gal. tank package that works well for them. And if not package, what style tank works best for you with heaters, filters, lights, etc?

 

[stevenht]

I kept one in a 5.5 gallon that was heavily planted. Some of them come with covers with built in light fixtures. Either LED or Fluro. Since it's a shallow tank, getting high lighting shouldn't be a problem. I would watch out because too much lighting and not enough co2 and ferts and you're in for an algae outbreak. High light tanks require extensive care and upkeep to maintain the appeal without getting an algae bloom. Also, high light setups are expensive and you'll need pressurized co2 to grow high light plants.

Not saying it's not possible but you said you were on a budget and in all likelihood you'll be spending a lot of money on replacing plants that die off than you'll realize. Not only that, you'll also have to replace co2 tanks. Just some things to think about before you jump into it.

 

[NatureGirl]

Hmmm... Thanks for bringing that up, Steven. I hadn't thought about the fact that lack of depth means more light. And Like you said, I'd probably just end up with a GIANT algae bloom if I got really strong lighting, as I don't use any form of CO2 or ferts.

 

[Fresh2o]

Guppy grass grows well in my low light no fert shrimp tanks. Does not need substrate (though it sends out roots). Just kinds of sits there and grows. Various mosses and subwassertang do not require much care and can tolerate lower light.

 

[Bdonaldson]

PetSmart has some really nice 5 gallon tanks with lights and filter included. I would stick with low light plants like java fern and anubias. Good luck. Look forward to seeing it all come together.