captain_bilbo

I'm thinking of putting a couple ghost shrimp in the tank with my betta. Is that a good or a bad idea?

cherryrose

captain_bilbo

Dinner you say? What about a gold snail?

cherryrose

captain_bilbo

Awesome, I think I'll grab one as I swing by Wally World tonight.

cherryrose

chickadee

Mystery or Apple snails work very well with bettas but be sure your tank has a cover and that you only get one the bettas become very fond of them and they do not multiply on their own but two will make 200 in a hurry and that is too big a biological load for your tank and will make the betta crazy as they will crawl on him.

Rose

captain_bilbo

Yes... I just bought one gold mystery snail, I acclimated him a little to quick maybe( about 45 min) but he's sticking to the filter... probably eating?
Also I spent a buttload of money on aquarium things, including a python hose and a cycle booster just called 'Cycle'. Man... I went nuts, haha. GUTIAR HERO 2 HERE I COME!!!

COBettaCouple

Do you have some algae wafers for your snail? They'd be a good supplement to his diet, especially when there's not much algae for him to eat in the tank. Depending on the Betta liking them or not, you might have to put the wafer right in front of him or even a little under him so he can get a chance to eat it.

captain_bilbo

Good idea... I thought about it last night as I went to buy him, but I never really considered buying them. Would he eat shrimp pellets?

poefox

Also spinach and romaine lettuce--ideally a little wilted--or cucumbers are nice treats for snails. You need a veggie clip ideally for them.

COBettaCouple

I'm not sure on shrimp pellets, but you could try them and see if he likes it. poefox's veggie recommendations are excellent for your snail and hopefully nobody else in the tank will try stealing his veggies.

griffin

are you asking if a snail will eat shrimp pellets? i know mine will. heck, they'd eat anything just about :P

make sure to have good Ca levels so the snail will have a good shell

Asinity

Careful using Cycle, I was originally planning on using it in my tank but I opted against it after some of the warnings I received from people around here about it. Ultimately it boils down to it being nothing more than a money grabber. Are you using a filter in your tank? If not, then I may see the point in using Cycle. If you are using a filter, I wouldn't bother, if the tank is cycled you shouldn't need to worry about the biological filtration so long as you are using the proper filter (Bio-max, or a Bio-wheel for example).

COBettaCouple

Asinity is right - Cycle's a waste of money.. we threw some money down that hole ourselves. What it does is throw your tank into a series of mini-cycles and we've been doing a lot better since we stopped using it.

captain_bilbo

Well, I'll give it a try anyways since it's my larger aquarium that I'm using it in (which has no fish at the moment ). What type would be good for someone as amateur as I am at this to get?

COBettaCouple

If you haven't opened it, you could probably return the cycle & get something else that would be better for your tanks or put it towards the larger aquarium. We went thru half a bottle before realizing how it was affecting our tanks when i tracked the water parameters for a while.

How big is your larger aquarium?

captain_bilbo

The cycle stuff I bought was only 6 bucks, so I don';t feel at a loss.

COBettaCouple

good.. we bought the big bottle of it.

how big is your larger aquarium?

captain_bilbo

10g... I actually think I'm gonna have to use it for my betta for a while and give away my 2.5, cause I just sucked out all the water! 20g here I come!

Phloxface

A product I have tried recently and highly recommend is called "Tidy Tank" made by Kordon. It's much better than Cycle. It's a different kind of bacteria than the nitrifying bacteria that cycles your tank. It's an all natural (no chemicals) product that greatly reduces the sludge and dirt that accumulates in the gravel. You need to add a little every two weeks (or more often if needed) but I have noticed a dramatic difference in the cleanliness of the gravel in my tanks since using it! Another product which does the same thing but made by a different company is called "Liquid Gravel Vac". I've never used it but if it's as good as Tidy Tank then I'd get it.

These aren't products that cycle your tank though, it's a different bacteria that eats dirt and sludge.

COBettaCouple

I like the Kordon products (and want to try Zymbac FW) .. maybe when i order that, i can try the Tidy Tank product. Do you think it would be good in a tank with flat marbles instead of gravel, as all of our Betta tanks are flat marbles and only the platys have gravel now. Does it do anything to break down food or poop or it just goes after dirt/sludge?

Phloxface

It should work with marbles as well as gravel. Whisper's side of the tank was always the filthiest! She is such a messy fish! I would clean it and an hour later would find tons of poop all over her white gravel. Since using Tidy Tank I see very little poop in her tank, the algae growth has slowed down a LOT (could be coincidence but maybe it eats algae too) and the gravel is sparkling white without all that fine cloudy dirt deep in the gravel. It really does help. Would be especially helpful for tanks with a poopy Mystery snail.

COBettaCouple

Cool, sounds like a product we could use. Call Kordon, tell them you made a sale. I hope the DFS site has it, i'll have to check in the morning, because i've never seen it at our petco. where did you buy yours?

Phloxface

I buy all my supplies at the Petsmart nearby or when I have time I go across town to the Big Al's fish store which is a real treat for me! It's like a trip to Sea World! They have a basement FULL of fresh water and exotic marine fish including a large shark tank! The best plants I've ever seen and a large selection of fish supplies! They deal only in fish, not other pets so they are usually more knowledgable. If I just need something quick though I go to Petsmart because it's only 10 minutes away.

captain_bilbo

I've never thought of just using marbles with my betta...

Phloxface

The thing about marbles is, although they look pretty, they have a lot of spaces between them for dirt to build up and get trapped. It can be hard to keep it clean. A medium sized coated smooth gravel is easier to clean.

COBettaCouple

Yea, they're pretty especially with the FL lights, but they are more work to keep clean because of what falls into them, the smaller rounded marbles are better than the big ones though.

griffin

how does the tidy tank stuff work?