Deac

I had a betta fish in my 100ltr planted community tank - but had to separate him as I caught him nipping the honey gourami. My last betta was obviously more peaceful as he behaved well with all the fish in there.
Anyways, he's in a temporary 2 gallon tank for now, and I've just bought a 43 gallon bookshelf tank with artificial decor, which I'm cycling now.
I transferred some of the water and filter media and three zebra danios out of my planted tank to give it a head start, but will monitor the readings until it's cycled properly.

Question1. I don't want my betta to be lonely when I transfer him, so what are the best tankmates for him?

Question 2. The pH reading is too high for my liking (7.8). My planted tank reads 6.8 - 7.0 but that's because of teh CO2 and plants in there, I guess. My tap water is 7.8 also. How do i bring this doen without putting real plants in there?

Lucy

I'm sorry your betta was nipping at your gourami.
Most bettas do fine without tank mates. Since yours has shown he nips, he'd be better off without tank mates and you can shower him with attention. They prefer that anyway. lol

Personally, I'd leave the pH alone. If you really want to bring it down, you can add driftwood. But really most fish can adapt fine to most pH's.

Tony G.

great info lucy gave you above. Also, your tank is 43 gallons? IMO thats too much for a betta

MissMTS

I would keep your betta in the 2 gallon, and use the 46 gallon for other fish. Bettas don't usually mix well with other fish, and honestly, they are happier by themselves. I agree with Lucy, don't mess with the pH. My water is 7.8 as well and I have never had problems.

Deac

Thanks everyone for the super-quick responses.

Firsly, I goofed...I meant 43 LITREs not gallons . I think that's about 13 US gallons. (Even my first and main planted tank is not as big as 43 gallons (I wish!!). Being a Brit, i try to steer clear of gallons because for some maniac reason - we & the Americans can't agree on what a gallon amounts to. I know.....I should stick to my principles and kept on thinking in litres.

The shape of the tank is long and shallow - 29" x 9" x 8" (L X W X H). I was actually thinking of putting a mess divider half way at some stage and introducing another betta on the otehr side. I saw this on a forum (can't remember where) so that's what gave me the idea.

Regarding the Ph.........Much appreciated advice. I can stop fussing about that now

Lucy

Th?

Deac

sorry Lucy, I accidentally hit the enter button

Lucy

No problem, I thought maybe it was text speak for something!

Dividing a tank for 2 bettas is a good idea. Here's Shawnies instructions:
Dividing a tank for bettas..fun and low cost