New 5.5 gallon tank

[chris127]

I got my betta set up in his new 5.5 gallon paradise tank I put 3 ghost shrimp in there just for my enjoyment. But he seems to be happy as could be!

Oh and the lights just temporary, i have to order the hood.

Excuse the bubbles, i just did a water change

 

[An t-iasg]

That's a great betta tank! I love the aquascaping.

Do you have a heater? A 25-watt heater works very well in a 5.5 gallon tank. Bettas are happy and healthy at a stable temperature of 80 degrees. Of course the temperature will fluctuate a little bit but you should set the heater so that the water temperature remains at 80 degrees or very close to it.

 

[chris127]

i don't have a heater yet but i am going to get one of those 25 watt Jr. heaters from wal-mart. are they safe?

 

[An t-iasg]

I am not familiar with the equipment sold at Walmart. From your description, though, a "Jr." heater reminds me of the little heaters that only raise the temperature a few degrees above ambient room temperature and can't be adjusted. Your best bet would be to go to a place like Petsmart and get a Visitherm Stealth heater:

Marineland Visi-Therm Stealth Submersible Aquarium Heaters - Heating - PetSmart

The website doesn't list the 25-watt heater, but you could see if the store has one. I had a 50-watt Visitherm Stealth heater in a 5.5 gallon tank at one time. It didn't overheat the water, and I used it rather than a 25-watt heater because the room was on the cool side and I wanted to raise the water temperature more than 9-10 degrees above the room temperature. But if you're in a mild climate or your room temperature is pretty comfortable, you'd be better off getting a 25-watt heater.

 

[chris127]

thanks! i'll be getting one soon. also, would a 15 watt incandescent light heat up the water too much? if the water stays at 80* while the light is on and the heater kicks in when its off, would that would work? i'm on a budget so ~$40 for a light/hood isn't possible. heres the hood/light.

 

[chris127]

Rescaped it with plants from my pond (moneywort, some hairgrass looking stuff) and took out the non aquatic plant. i hate petsmart for selling that crap!!

my betta must think its permanent sunrise lol

 

[An t-iasg]

Incandescent lights do raise the water temperature, and I wouldn't be surprised if it raised the temperature closer to 85 degrees. When the light turns off, that is a big temperature swing for the fish, even if your heater is set to 80 degrees. I had a hood like the one you linked and it came with normal output tube fluorescent lighting. That would be a better option for keeping the temperature stable, but you would be limited to low-light plants - crypts, java ferns, anubias. The moneywort probably wouldn't make it under the fluorescent lighting that this hood comes with. I have heard of putting compact fluorescent screw-in bulbs into the incandescent hood. I'm not sure what wattage you would want - probably no more than the equivalent of 25 incandescent watts, since that's what the hood instructions say is the maximum wattage you can use. You would also have to make sure the bulbs physically fit in the hood.

 

[chris127]

i know the moneywort doesn't thrive but it does grow. i've had it in my 20g with less than 1wpg and it is getting taller and doesn't look like its in distress. I could get some of the twisty florescent bulbs from home depot and put them in that hood? the twisty bulb in the lamp doesn't get too hot.

 

[An t-iasg]

That's good that your moneywort will continue to grow under low lighting. That's one of my favorite plants and I never could get it to grow in low light.

CF bulb packages will say something similar to "9W emits light equivalent to a 40W incandescent". I don't know if you'd find a bulb at the Home Depot that is low enough in wattage for your hood. You would need a 4-watt CF bulb. A-Shape: Light Bulbs Etc, Inc.

Some bulbs may also say on the packaging not to use them in an enclosed fixture, due to heat buildup, so you'd have to watch out for that.

 

[chris127]

sweet info thanks i love this forum!

ill be going out to Lowes whenever the hood gets here so i can check out the lights.

one more thing, how long till i can get 2 otto cats? my LFS is having a 2 for 1 on any fish less than $2 and idk how long thats gonna last. i could supplement with algae wafers till the algae builds up.

 

[An t-iasg]

How long has it been since you set this tank up and added the betta? Has the tank cycled? With live plants, you may not see a cycle - meaning you may not register ammonia or nitrites on your test kits since the live plants will take in the ammonia. The tank will still build up beneficial bacteria but it could still take a few weeks to a month to do so. With the added bioload that two otos would place on the small tank, I would feel better waiting a month or so to make sure the tank is ready for the additional bioload, and then when you add the otos, remember to do frequent water testing to ensure that you're not experiencing a mini-cycle.

 

[chris127]

its been set up for about a week (just put the shrimp and betta in today) but i pulled the filter from another tank that i just sold. that tank was running for about 2 months and the bio-fiber has a huge bacteria colony on it. also, the gravel is from my 2 gallon that i moved the betta from and some from my 20. i took some of the established gravel and replaced it with new. So i guess the only uncycled part is the glass?

 

[An t-iasg]

It does sound like you have enough of an established bacteria colony, so you could add the otos. However, the otos should go into a QT tank first for two to three weeks and not the betta/shrimp tank at first. Also keep in mind that the established bacteria colony can begin to die off if it has a lesser bioload (the betta and shrimp) than it sustained before. The bacteria will begin to die off as the smaller bioload can't sustain all of the bacteria. But when you add the otos the colony should quickly reproduce. Just do your water testing and changes when necessary to avoid climbing ammonia levels if you do get a mini-cycle.

 

[chris127]

alright sounds good thanks for all the great info youve given me!!

 

[chris127]

took out the other non-aquatic plant that lame-o petsmart sold me and replaced it with a crypt. also tied some baby moneywort to the driftwood

Side view

 

[An t-iasg]

That's a nice-looking tank!

 

[chris127]

Thanks! i wanna do a similar setup for an indian dwarf puffer, theyre so cool. i wish i had more tank space

 

[marchmaxima]

that's a lovely looking tank and you have a very pretty-looking betta boy in there.

 

[chris127]

thanks hes camera shy though...

 

[chris127]

I went fishing today and saw some driftwood that couldnt be passed up, so I did a total rescape of my tank. I arranged it about 10 times and finally found one I liked. comments and suggestions are welcome!

is that plant in the back hornwort? its another that i pulled from my pond.

top view of driftwood/rock formation