Planted Betta Tanks Build

[gab_attack]

So I finally tore down the two 5.5 gallon tanks I've had since my last Betta died, and I spent the majority of the day rescaping them and adding more live plants.

For now I only have the hard scape and what plants I kept from before, two small swords, an anubias, and some species of crypt.

Figured I'd start this out with the specs and some before and after pics, then I'll just update with new additions and the questions that I will definitely have.

So we've got:
-Top Fin 5.5 gallon tanks
-Finnex Fugeray Lights
-Aqueon Quietflow Internal Filters
-Two random heaters I had lying around
-Seiryu stone and driftwood
-Osmocote plus root tabs
-A mix of Flourish,Excel,and Leafzone for ferts

And for the before and after:

 

[gab_attack]

Still deciding on what other plants to add right now. I was thinking lobelia cardinalis, pogostemon helferi, and staurogyne repens. Any opinions on their difficulty? I was thinking maybe to carpet the staurogyne repens but not sure if I have enough lighting for it to do well without co2

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[ImACoolguy]

I've never had good luck with Pogostemon Helferi. Good luck with it


Caleb

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[Fresh2o]

Downoi can be a challenge and it may take a while to become established.
I've had good luck with star repens under a Finnex FugeRay with DIY CO2. If you don't want to go the CO2 route, then you can use Seachem Excel, API CO2 Booster, or Metricide 14.
Ludwidgia sp red is an easy to grow plant that does not require a lot of pampering to get that red look.
Blyxa japonica is another not difficult to grow plant that should fit nicely in that tank as a background plant.


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[gab_attack]

Tested the water parameters today and noticed something weird. Since I completely cleaned out both tanks and replaced the filters, I assumed I'd be starting the cycle all over again. Only thing is while my one tank is acting normal (ammonia hasn't changed in the day and a half it's been in there) the other tank seems close to being done cycling?

I tested last night and noticed that the ammonia had dropped, but there was no sign of nitrites or nitrates, so I dosed back up to 2ppm.

Then today I go to test again and...

Ammonia dropped and both nitrites and nitrates are showing. It's a new test kit so I'm a little confused, but I guess I'll just keep an eye on it.

 

[dcutl002]

I have great results with downoi, but I have medium high light and ample CO2.

 

[Stelt]

I would put a taller plant all the ones you are talking about are short. Maybe some Wisteria, Ludwiga, or an amazon sword? My 2 cents...

 

[gab_attack]

Thanks for the input! Yeah I actually decided to just grab some of the cardinal plant instead, and am gonna be adding some ludwigia to one of the tanks. They both have some sort of sword in them already, though I'm gonna replace the one with ludwigia and keep the other. I'm also getting some blyxa for both, trying to attempt to hide the heaters, or at least keep the eye away from them.

 

[gab_attack]

Update time!

Still cycling though it seems close to done, both tanks can go through 2ppm of ammonia in about 24 hours, so just waiting on the nitrite levels to drop consistently.

Just got some plants yesterday from radmax and deelee though, and spent this morning putting everything in during water changes! They look great so far.

Most of the plants (blyxa, ar, frogbit, and some cardinal plant) went into just the one tank, though I tossed one of the larger bunches of blyxa into the other. Still trying to figure out what I want to do with my one tank, while the other seems just about done layout wise, lol.

Anyway here are some pics I took just after the lights came on, pee frogbit since. I did most of the planting in the dark corner of my room, so I might go back in there tomorrow and spread some of the clumped parts out a bit.

 

[gab_attack]

Quick update to the thread, just a top view shot of the one tank that I really liked. Planning on dwarf sag and star repens, then maybe some AR mini and also looking for a red plant to replace the sword that's currently hiding behind the dw.

 

[ImACoolguy]

Lookin good!!


Caleb

Sent via TARDIS

 

[gab_attack]

Thanks!

Mini, picture-less update!

The plants are all doing well, even my swords are starting to perk up even though they didn't look to be doing too well when I first added them, though I'm thinking of replacing them with something else in the future.

Also been looking around at co2 systems recently! I know I'm starting to lean towards it for my one tank, since I want some more carpeting/compact growth with some of the plants. My problem is that I'm not very good at building/stuff like that, so I'm shying away from DIY, but I also don't have a bunch of money to spend on an expensive system for one, maybe two 5 gallon tanks.

Through some quick searching I found this:

Pet Supplies : Aquariums : Fluval Mini Pressurized 20g-CO2 Kit - 0.7 ounces : Amazon.com

and was wondering if anyone could verify that it's a good deal? I know I'd have to buy some small extra stuff like a bubble counter/check valve, but it'd still be about half the cost of the larger system, and much cheaper than any of the bigger/nicer CO2 systems I've seen around. I also read that I can use slightly larger CO2 canisters than the stock one with no problem, so it'd be cheaper to replace CO2 as well?

Just looking for opinions on whether it's worth it or not, as I'd like to upgrade to CO2 but without breaking the bank or trying to be handy when I'm very clearly not. X/

 

[gab_attack]

Small update this time. A few slight changes happening. On the empty tank, the lobelia is growing great and it seems the AR is even starting to perk up. I added some narrow leaf luwigia and moved the two stems of blyxa from the other tank over since it wasn't doing as well, also added some kind of of marsilea species I believe (four leaf clover), and am gonna let the roots establish for a bit before trimming it down. I also am planning on adding some more AR since my local pet smart started carrying it!

Quick pic of the other tank that houses sledgehammer as well. I tossed in some java fern and a red rubin sword I believe and well as some willow moss. This tank is having some trouble with algae as well, so I was gonna give it a good scrub down and rescape a bit when I get some time in the next couple days.