Keeping A Betta

[tropicalfishlady]

Hi.everyone,im preparing a 10 gallon soon to be home to a Crowntail fighter it has sand and real plants and rocks amd pebbles,i like a nature look.
The fluval filter i have in is a great filter and is recommended for small tanks,it does have 3 flows you can pick from,ive moved it to a gentle flow as the other 2 were quite strong.
I altered it to gentle flow as ive read Bettas don't like strong flows.
Will a gentle one be ok with him or is it better to have none,it does have to be filtered i know that.
Plus once my Crowntail has settled in for a while i would like to add a few cory habrosus later on.
Any replies would be greatly appreciated thank you

 

[KryptiCouple]

A gentle flow will be fine. We had an air bubbler in with our betta at first which created a small flow, and now he has a filter that creates a gentle current that he doesn't seem to mind.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

As long as he's not struggling to swim against the current and he has somewhere reasonably still to take a breath at the surface he will be fine.

 

[tropicalfishlady]

A gentle flow will be fine. We had an air bubbler in with our betta at first which created a small flow, and now he has a filter that creates a gentle current that he doesn't seem to mind.

Hi there,many thanks for taking the time to reply,thats good to know

 

[tropicalfishlady]

As long as he's not struggling to swim against the current and he has somewhere reasonably still to take a breath at the surface he will be fine.

Thanks mumma of two,the gentle flow is over one side of tank plus it has a large Java fern in front of filter which takes sum of flow down,im nearly re-cycled now thanks again for taking the.time to reply

 

[brennae]

I have an Aquaclear 30 on my 10g Betta tank. I have the flow set to low and my female Betta does very well. Best wishes with your Betta!

 

[marsh]

I have a sensitive boy, he really hated flow of any kind and would get stripes after a few minutes of my whisper10i in tank filter in his previous 18 gallon. Then he moved to a 29 gallon and I kept the 10i filter running a few hours per day in the big tank with faux plants around the outflow to baffle the flow, working slowly up to 24 hours per day.

I had to watch him and arrange objects until finding a configuration that allowed him to "not drift". If he can float still while observing something he feels happy, if his fins pull him with the current no matter where he goes in the tank I can see him become distressed.

My tank is under-filtered for its size, however I only have one fish a d three snails, but I need to rehome 2 snails soon or put my whisper40i in with some miracle baffle I have yet to fashion. I have about ten plants which I find reduce my nitrates a bit to help with the low filtration for the time being

 

[shellieca]

Hi.everyone,im preparing a 10 gallon soon to be home to a Crowntail fighter it has sand and real plants and rocks amd pebbles,i like a nature look.
The fluval filter i have in is a great filter and is recommended for small tanks,it does have 3 flows you can pick from,ive moved it to a gentle flow as the other 2 were quite strong.
I altered it to gentle flow as ive read Bettas don't like strong flows.
Will a gentle one be ok with him or is it better to have none,it does have to be filtered i know that.
Plus once my Crowntail has settled in for a while i would like to add a few cory habrosus later on.
Any replies would be greatly appreciated thank you

I have 2 males in individual 10g tanks with HOB filters, I actually did the plastic bottle trick to baffle the out flow plus I have live & silk plants & cave structures. You'll want to watch your filter intake arm if there is one because his fins can get sucked in causing damage to them. You'll have to get to know your Betta before adding other fish, some Bettas are fine with them & others not so much. If you do add other fish make sure their not super colorful or have finnage like the Bette, long & flowy that usually doesn't work well. My males each have a Mystery snail sharing their tanks. I would also suggest QTing any new fish so you can make sure they're healthy before putting them with your Betta.

 

[Bbarb27]

I have an aqua clear HOB filter on a 10g betta tank and also use the baffles made from plastic water bottles to reduce the flow. He doesn't seem to mind the slight current from the filter at all.

 

[Maxkolbe]

Use the baffle trick, I leave about a half inch uncovered on the lowest setting with my Fluval C2 and it provides just the right amount of current. I also agree that it depends on the beta regarding tankmates. Mine ate shrimp but is fine with the ember tetras I got. Personally I think that faster fish stand a better chance than slower ones but that's just my thoughts.

 

[Rcguerra]

Very helpful answers. I am in the process of putting together a luxury home for a male betta. All these topics covered here are very helpful.

 

[tropicalfishlady]

I have 2 males in individual 10g tanks with HOB filters, I actually did the plastic bottle trick to baffle the out flow plus I have live & silk plants & cave structures. You'll want to watch your filter intake arm if there is one because his fins can get sucked in causing damage to them. You'll have to get to know your Betta before adding other fish, some Bettas are fine with them & others not so much. If you do add other fish make sure their not super colorful or have finnage like the Bette, long & flowy that usually doesn't work well. My males each have a Mystery snail sharing their tanks. I would also suggest QTing any new fish so you can make sure they're healthy before putting them with your Betta.

Thanks for advice guys,i really appreciate,the only other fish i thought about were cory habrosus,ive read a few times that they should be ok but i get that it maybe depends on the Betta,i would not add anything but the cory's.

 

[tropicalfishlady]

I have an Aquaclear 30 on my 10g Betta tank. I have the flow set to low and my female Betta does very well. Best wishes with your Betta!

Thanks

 

[tropicalfishlady]

I have a sensitive boy, he really hated flow of any kind and would get stripes after a few minutes of my whisper10i in tank filter in his previous 18 gallon. Then he moved to a 29 gallon and I kept the 10i filter running a few hours per day in the big tank with faux plants around the outflow to baffle the flow, working slowly up to 24 hours per day.

I had to watch him and arrange objects until finding a configuration that allowed him to "not drift". If he can float still while observing something he feels happy, if his fins pull him with the current no matter where he goes in the tank I can see him become distressed.

My tank is under-filtered for its size, however I only have one fish a d three snails, but I need to rehome 2 snails soon or put my whisper40i in with some miracle baffle I have yet to fashion. I have about ten plants which I find reduce my nitrates a bit to help with the low filtration for the time being

Thanks for that,so it maybe depends on the Betta,what do you mean by stripes ?
Doe's that mean he lost his colour ?

 

[tropicalfishlady]

Use the baffle trick, I leave about a half inch uncovered on the lowest setting with my Fluval C2 and it provides just the right amount of current. I also agree that it depends on the beta regarding tankmates. Mine ate shrimp but is fine with the ember tetras I got. Personally I think that faster fish stand a better chance than slower ones but that's just my thoughts.

Cheers thanks,how does this baffle work ?

 

[tropicalfishlady]

Very helpful answers. I am in the process of putting together a luxury home for a male betta. All these topics covered here are very helpful.

Glad they are helping you too,i always try.and research before i get fish ive never had before and the forums on here are really good

 

[marsh]

Thanks for that,so it maybe depends on the Betta,what do you mean by stripes ?
Doe's that mean he lost his colour ?

Yes, my fish Marshall does get paler and shows horizontal stripes when he feels stressed. I first observed this while netting him for 100% WC's.

Here is a photo I found that looks like what I saw, hope it works... or google "horizontal betta stripes"..

My fish was not very healthy and had been undergoing treatments for several issues, so it is fair to assume he was easily stressed in the early weeks and more sensitive than most. He has gotten much tougher and is outgoing in general, not timid.

If it makes any difference to those who are in the market for a Betta, if I could do it over again or when I do, I will absolutely find a betta breeder and totally avoid fish retail stores, and the whole betta-in-a-cup industry. Vote with your dollars, start with a healthy specimen and avoid all the trip-ups that I had to deal with, including a second betta who didn't survive.

I would even try to purchase a Plakat type betta with less finnage, because my betta has bitten his tail at least twice due to the current and his discomfort and that made me incredibly sad! The long fins came from selective breeding and are cumbersome to the otherwise agile predatory breed.

Okay, off my soapbox I go!

 

[tropicalfishlady]

Yes, my fish Marshall does get paler and shows horizontal stripes when he feels stressed. I first observed this while netting him for 100% WC's.

Here is a photo I found that looks like what I saw, hope it works... or google "horizontal betta stripes"..

My fish was not very healthy and had been undergoing treatments for several issues, so it is fair to assume he was easily stressed in the early weeks and more sensitive than most. He has gotten much tougher and is outgoing in general, not timid.

If it makes any difference to those who are in the market for a Betta, if I could do it over again or when I do, I will absolutely find a betta breeder and totally avoid fish retail stores, and the whole betta-in-a-cup industry. Vote with your dollars, start with a healthy specimen and avoid all the trip-ups that I had to deal with, including a second betta who didn't survive.

I would even try to purchase a Plakat type betta with less finnage, because my betta has bitten his tail at least twice due to the current and his discomfort and that made me incredibly sad! The long fins came from selective breeding and are cumbersome to the otherwise agile predatory breed.

Okay, off my soapbox I go!

Ok cheers,i would not buy from them places,i feel so sorry for them in cups oh my god,one fish store i used to go to had Bettas in small compartments and bless them they all looked miserable and ill,ive never been back !!!
Ive found a great place now with 100% healthy specimens of all fish with individual filtered tanks,he puts videos up.of his fish on youtube for buyers to have a look at,his Crowntails are amazing !!! Not in cups or Jars but tanks so i know i will get a healthy Crowntail,he recently got a fantastic review in Practical Fishkeeping !!!!

 

[Maxkolbe]

Cheers thanks,how does this baffle work ?

What you basically do is take a plastic water bottle and cut it in half. Then trim it to the length required and tape it over the flow. The water will hit the baffle and go to the sides so it
Lessens the current.

 

[marsh]

Tripicalfishlady~ nice he sounds like a dedicated breeder!

What you basically do is take a plastic water bottle and cut it in half. Then trim it to the length required and tape it over the flow. The water will hit the baffle and go to the sides so it
Lessens the current.

Would you be able to show us a photo? I am hoping to try this on my whisper40i, but I had been told to use a Solo party cup. I can't quite visualize the set-up with a bottle, is it cut in half vertically or horizontally?