Betta in a 5g tank?

Is it OK to put a betta in a 5 gallon tank by himself?

 

Yes, certainly! Just make sure it has a filter and heater (25 watt) to keep temp at 80-82F Make sure to read the article on this site (maybe someone else her can post the link?) about cycling the tank and the Betta care guide. Let us know if you have any questions.

 

Samson is in a 5 and he loves it in there. He's super active and explores the tank all day.

 

Bettas love being in five gallon tanks. As Phloxface said, the water needs to be warm and filtered. I keep all my tanks at 80 degrees.

Here is the link that Phloxface referred to.


CherryRose

 

It is amazing how much more of a bettas personality shows when they are in a larger tank. My Kyler is in a 5 gallon and although he is being treated for fin rot, he's been doing very well and has always been a very active (and hungry) little guy.

 

I agree completely! Samson was cool, but he just became awsome when he moved into his 5 gallon tank. He moves around a lot, and follows me when I'm near the tank. If I can finally find where my digital camera went during the move, I'm going to try and finally get a good picture of him!

 

I have just realised that my tank is about 4 gallons - would this still be OK?

 

I have just realised that my tank is about 4 gallons - would this still be OK?

Yes, he's still got room to move and with a nice big leaved plant to sleep on and a smooth decoration or 2 to swim around or through, he should be happy. You could also give him a ping pong ball to play with and add an air stone to help put more oxygen in his water.

 

The tank I'm keeping my newest female in is also four gallons. It's fine as long as you filter and heat it.

 

I will tell you right now - invest in silk plants. Plastic are cheap, but they can and likely will cut your betta. I suspect that is where Kyler got his fin rot from, his tail looked cut and then it started decaying. Ever since I removed the plastics and medicated him he's started to look better and it looks like it's halted.

But definitely consider this when buying decor for the tank.

 

I will tell you right now - invest in silk plants. Plastic are cheap, but they can and likely will cut your betta. I suspect that is where Kyler got his fin rot from, his tail looked cut and then it started decaying. Ever since I removed the plastics and medicated him he's started to look better and it looks like it's halted.
But definitely consider this when buying decor for the tank.

I'd agree with that.. we went the plastic route & tried getting ones that seemed safe, but ended up wasting enough money to buy some nice silk ones. If you go with live ones, make 100% sure you trust the seller to be supplying you with snail-free plants and that the leaves of the plant will be soft for your Betta.

 

Thanks for your replies, could I add a catfish or oto with him so he isn't on his own or would it be too much?

 

Four gallons isn't really big enough for cories and Otos plus they need to be in groups of at least 3 to be happy. The Betta will be just fine and happy alone in the tank. They are not used to sharing so you don't need to worry about him getting lonely.

 

Thanks for your replies, could I add a catfish or oto with him so he isn't on his own or would it be too much?

Yea, you'd really not have room for a catfish or oto.. You could maybe put a mystery snail in there with him, but like Phloxface says he won't get lonely without it.

 

I think you'd be fine with just one oto (assuming they get along). but otos do like to be in groups of at least 3

from my experience, mystery snails make way more waste than even multiple otos do. I have 3 otos, and they make nowhere near the amount of waste even one mystery snail made. I think one or two mystery snails is about all a 4 gallon could reasonably hold with regard to waste.

 

I don't think a snail should be in a 4 gallon tank. I had one in a 10 gallon and it produced so much waste it raised the nitrate levels very high. The Betta is better off all alone.

 

I have 2 small Ottos with my betta-- he is the boss of the tank and the ottos just stay out of his sight, but all inhabitants seem happy. I have an evil snail infestation too-- I'm working on fixing that.

 

The official word that I heard is to have 2 otos in a 5 gallon as there is not enough food for more than that but if you intend to do continual feeding of algae wafers I suppose there would be room for 3. When mine were in 5 gallon tanks they had either 2 or 3 but the 2's actually worked better.

Rose