Karen - Betta talk :)

[Tide In Mind Out]

If any of you decide you want to filter your little betta tanks, this is an incredibly cheap & efficient way to do so!

Lee's Discard-A-Filters or Penn Plax Small World Filters. I've used these for years and they work great, are very small, and create more of a gentle "blub blub" than an actual current in the water.

They are meant to be disposable and therefore are somewhat expensive if you keep replacing the whole filter (bout $3.50 a pop). Which is what I've been doing. UNTIL TODAY.

I had read about this before but didn't actually try it til today. The front grate is glued on, but with some care you can easily pop the grate right off without breaking it, and that leaves you with a filter that you can refill with carbon over and over again. And as for the sponge, just rinse it with tank water when it needs cleaning. To reattach the grate when you refill the filter, you can just wrap a rubber band around the top and around the bottom. I've looked into it and normal tan colored rubber bands seem to pose no chemical threat to fish water.

 

[Morganna]

I love your new tanks Cara. At first glance I had no idea you made the tops for it, I think it looks great. They will be very happy there! <3

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

Thanks! Albert seems to have settled down so I guess he's happier. I haven't seen him going for his tail quite as much, and no more of his tail has gone missing for two days now

 

[JenniferGentle]

Wow those tanks look great Cara, and I agree I'm sure they are so happy

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

Thank ya. Today I shall entertain myself by making another pair of lids without the cutout for the filter, for when I start using the Lee's filters again cuz they go completely under the water.

 

[Iris]

Aye, aquatics is addictive :Smug:

True. It is.


You did a great job with those tank lids, Cara. Looks solid. Why do you use silk plants?
Betta's are great and not hard to breed. I've had some nests in former tanks.
Nothing ever hatched, a school of Sumatra barb hunted the nests as soon as they found out the Betta's had spawned.
Only couple ever capable of defending their nest against these bullies, were my Purple cichlids.
Agressive mofo's when they have a nest and they are excellent parents.

Oh and Cawa, Is the fin still split?
Perhaps it's no fin problem at all ...

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

Thanks. I use silk plants because I definitely don't want to use plastic, and I'm not ready to try and use live plants. I've never done it before, so at some point I'd maybe like to start a tank for plants only and get used to caring for live plants before I put them in with a fish.

Marie's split fin is totally healed

Now Albert Fish is the one giving me trouble. He bit a good chunk of his tail off, but thankfully that's already starting to grow back.

 

[Lord Foul]

I'd like to do an all invertebrates tank someday. Fish don't really do it for me but snails and crabs and such are cool.

 

[Prog_Please]

Wow! I never knew people got this excited about fish. Now after reading all these posts, I'm really excited about fish >.< . Maybe I'll have to find my old fish tank from when I was a kid and get a puffer. I miss my red-tailed black shark; I thought having a shark was the coolest thing ever. Actually, thinking about it some more, I should probably get something easy since my roommates might try to do something stupid. Once I graduate though...

 

[Lordlucid]

Thanks. I use silk plants because I definitely don't want to use plastic, and I'm not ready to try and use live plants. I've never done it before, so at some point I'd maybe like to start a tank for plants only and get used to caring for live plants before I put them in with a fish.

Marie's split fin is totally healed

Now Albert Fish is the one giving me trouble. He bit a good chunk of his tail off, but thankfully that's already starting to grow back.

Real plants are easy, I prefer them to fake. However, when they start to die you need to clean out the dead leaves and such. Other than that, its pretty much plant it... and forget it.

 

[Chromatose]

Are there plants that can root in gravel, or some kind of little dirt cups so one wouldn't need to uproot all the substrate and fill in a layer of dirt?

 

[Iris]

Thanks.
Marie's split fin is totally healed

That's good news! You're a good fish' mama!

Don't worry about Albert Fish, if you can keep the PH between 6.8-7.5 and feed them living food once in a while, your betta will do fine and heal quickly. They love Red musquito larvae, btw.

Are there plants that can root in gravel, or some kind of little dirt cups so one wouldn't need to uproot all the substrate and fill in a layer of dirt?

Yes, that's possible. If you don't use a culture medium, you can fertilize the plants locally.
I use these:

Little clay balls, which you can put underneat and next to the roots of the plant, into the gravel.
If you do that every 12 months, your plants can do fine in gravel. The balls slowly 'melt' and will eventually dissolve.
Because it becomes liquid, fine gravel is recommended to keep the clay down. In case of large gravel, a liquid plant fertilizer would do the trick.
Some liquid fertilizers aren't friendly for crustaceans, snails and fragile fishies, but most are suitable for aquatic life.
I don't want to take any risk , so i only use the clay balls in combination with this CO2 'mushroom':

And if planting is too much work or annoying when you're cleaning the tank, epiphytes are the way! (and these are good plants to begin with)
Anubias and Java Fern don't like their roots into the gravel but grow on stones, driftwood or any other kind of decoration. They do need some help in the beginning, i use stones or little plastic straps, to keep the plants on it's place. When the plant grows, the rhizomes will rank and grow on the substrate. The straps can be removed later. Great decoration plants. They do like liquid fertilizers and CO2 (makes them grow good and the leaves stay deep green) but they can also survive without those circumstances.

 

[Dead_Lioness]

Are there plants that can root in gravel, or some kind of little dirt cups so one wouldn't need to uproot all the substrate and fill in a layer of dirt?

Yes, most plants, if given the fertilizer and water change every week will root in gravel.
Make sure however that your gravel is at least 2+ inch deep.
When you plant a plant: be careful with the roots: make sure they are not damaged when placing them in your tank- aquatic plants' roots are extremely delicate.
Also: don't vacuum it for a long time- let bacteria and 'waste' collect there,
the 'browner' the better because it's good for the plants.

ahhh circle of life !


Get swords, or any kind of ferns: they are great for 'new tanks'
but make sure to buy 'pure' aquatic plants, as most pet stores sell 'tropical' plants as 'aquatic'

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

I'll stick with silk plants for now because I sard going that far. I don't think my fish will mind too much

 

[Dead_Lioness]

Derick: the best tip about plants though,
*if* you want a true planted tank, is to know the water type of your area... Get the kit that tests for pH, Alkalinity, Nitrate, Nitrite, Nitrogen, and Hardness(....and if you find one with Iron, and Coppe test - the better)
I don't know the kind of 'water' in TX, but for example- the water in Arlington is considered 'hard' - meaning low PH ad high alkalinity - so I buy my plants accordingly: I try to aim for plants that thrive in low PH water... makes sense?
and my tank is BLOOMING!
That information is usually online at your local water company's website...
check it out.

 

[Dead_Lioness]

I'll stick with silk plants for now because I sard going that far. I don't think my fish will mind too much

yeah with bettas it might be a hassle, but with you puffers, I'd highly recommend it

 

[Dead_Lioness]

Derick: the best tip about plants though,
*if* you want a true planted tank, is to know the water type of your area... Get the kit that tests for pH, Alkalinity, Nitrate, Nitrite, Nitrogen, and Hardness(....and if you find one with Iron, and Coppe test - the better)
I don't know the kind of 'water' in TX, but for example- the water in Arlington is considered 'hard' - meaning low PH ad high alkalinity - so I buy my plants accordingly: I try to aim for plants that thrive in low PH water... makes sense?
and my tank is BLOOMING!
That information is usually online at your local water company's website...
check it out.

ADD:
Also: you can order awesome aquatic plants from online... I used to do that- and the shipments are always top notch!

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

Oh my, I have a super cute video of Albert Fish coming up, if Youtube would stop being 'tarded.

 

[Lordlucid]

Derick: the best tip about plants though,
*if* you want a true planted tank, is to know the water type of your area... Get the kit that tests for pH, Alkalinity, Nitrate, Nitrite, Nitrogen, and Hardness(....and if you find one with Iron, and Coppe test - the better)
I don't know the kind of 'water' in TX, but for example- the water in Arlington is considered 'hard' - meaning low PH ad high alkalinity - so I buy my plants accordingly: I try to aim for plants that thrive in low PH water... makes sense?
and my tank is BLOOMING!
That information is usually online at your local water company's website...
check it out.

Generally you want to check the water regardless of the area, so in my opinon there is no need to waste time with going online and checking the water quality in your area, cause you're probably going to have to change the PH anyway for the type of fish you get. If you buy the kit it will pretty much tell you all you need to know about changing the water and leveling out the PH. Some people don't ever change the PH. I know when I first had gotten a fishtank I didn't and my fish did fine. Derick, mostly all plants will take root and getting fertilzer will help them to grow And generally fish add their own fertilizer. So you might not ever have to go that far especially if you're going to add only a few plants for astetic reasons. Mostly its up to you what you want to do.

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

Oh my, I have a super cute video of Albert Fish coming up, if Youtube would stop being 'tarded.

Watch the cuteness!


Still haven't seen him biting in a few days and the tail is looking better *crosses fingers*