Freshwater betta tank set up

Hey there guys, I was wondering what I needed for My Betta tank, I am planning on having a Nerite snail (and maybe some other species), Red Cherry Shrimp (Neocaridina davidi var. red), Amano shrimp, and a Betta fish, havent decided which one although The Candy betta Is a option. Those are just the live things, I will keep you guys updated and tell you later on what Plants I am planning on putting in there tank and show you guys my set up plan..


-MoistSeal

 

I would say yes, they typically do best at a temperature of between 75 and 82. It would likely be hard to keep them there without a heater, unless you're one of those crazy people with your room temperatures in the mid to upper 70's lol. That sounds like a nice tank; just make sure you get a friendly betta. Some of them love to kill shrimp.

 

A factor to keep in mind is the room temperature. If the room is kept warm then you wouldn't necessarily need a heater. What heaters are good for is keeping the temperature stable. Fluctuations aren't so bad as long as they aren't very sudden and rather large.

I'm curious about the temperature myself, it seems to depend on who you ask. We keep ours at around 73-74, while most here would suggest keeping them no less than 78. I'm going to dig deeper into this topic, it's bothered me for some time.
My quick search turned up waters where Bettas are found range from 59f and 105f depending on the season. Whether or not Betta Splendens come from waters that get to the lower end of this range I don't know, and whether or not the domesticated fish can even be considered as the same fish as the wild is another thing altogether.

 

75-82 degrees IMO

 

I would say yes, they typically do best at a temperature of between 75 and 82. It would likely be hard to keep them there without a heater, unless you're one of those crazy people with your room temperatures in the mid to upper 70's lol. That sounds like a nice tank; just make sure you get a friendly betta. Some of them love to kill shrimp.

Yep, I will test him in a single tank with a shrimp for a few days and check out his reaction,but most bettas loveeee the cherry shrimp

 

So this is an update for my Freshwater Betta tank, So something I forgot to mention is that I will also add some tetras, for the plants I will be adding Micro swords, Eriocaulon quinquanqulare, Centrolepis Drummondiana, Pogostemon Helferi, Pygmy chain sword, Glosso, and for the carpet plant on top I would like Azolla. I will also be adding a bunch more things in the tank that include A complete biological filter that I will be making. Also, should I wait for everything to settle before adding snails and fish and shrimp? And if so, how long?

 

Hi there!

There's no harm in setting up your tank with all of the plants, décor, substrate, and equipment. However, when that is done you have to get your tank cycled. There's something called a fish-in cycle and a fishless cycle. I recommend that you read up on both if you're not familiar.

Important Link(s) -

Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle
Fish In Nitrogen Cycle Simplified | Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle Forum | 414083

 

What size is the tank?

Personally I keep my betta tank at 80. A heater is a must to keep stable temp. I also recommend having a back-up plan for your betta if they become aggressive or straight up don't tolerate tank mates. Betta spendins in particular have been purposely bred to be aggressive so it's not as common to find a peaceful one (or one that isn't stressed out by tank mates) as some people think.

To answer your question about how long to wait, it takes 4-6 weeks to fully cycle a tank. I highly recommend clicking on the links Alvinn posted to learn more about the nitrogen cycle. I personally would do a fishless cycle because I'm not sure how shrimp would tolerate a fish-in cycle tbh.

 

What size is the tank?

Personally I keep my betta tank at 80. A heater is a must to keep stable temp. I also recommend having a back-up plan for your betta if they become aggressive or straight up don't tolerate tank mates. Betta spendins in particular have been purposely bred to be aggressive so it's not as common to find a peaceful one (or one that isn't stressed out by tank mates) as some people think.

To answer your question about how long to wait, it takes 4-6 weeks to fully cycle a tank. I highly recommend clicking on the links Alvinn posted to learn more about the nitrogen cycle. I personally would do a fishless cycle because I'm not sure how shrimp would tolerate a fish-in cycle tbh.

I will actually switch most likely the betta out for a pleco, I will be researching what plecos will be good for me, please help me I will have a 10-20 gallon tank keep in mind

I will actually switch most likely the betta out for a pleco, I will be researching what plecos will be good for me, please help me I will have a 10-20 gallon tank keep in mind

I was just wondering though if there is one small enough to not get to big for my tank size, Also, will the pleco eat my shrimp?

 

I will actually switch most likely the betta out for a pleco, I will be researching what plecos will be good for me, please help me I will have a 10-20 gallon tank keep in mind

There are 2 pleco species that I know can go in a 20 gallon. They will be cramped and do petter in a 20 long but the clown pleco and the dwarf snowball pleco. None can go in a 10 gallon happily permanently. I still don’t suggest it for a 20 because they poop so much.

 

If you want a pleco for this tank, a clown is probably your best option. There is, however, a drawback. Clown plecos are often extremely reclusive, and spotting them isn't a super common occurrence. If you're ok with that, then go ahead and get one, but if you're looking for a display fish, you'll definitely want to go for something else.

There is a fish which looks similar to plecos, but stays small and spends more time in the open: the hillstream loach. These fish prefer to be in groups of 5+, and need plenty of biofilm to feed on. If you get some of these, make sure your tank is mature. They have lots of personality, and are really fun to keep. They can live fairly peacefully with shrimp, and don't tend to bully anyone (other than each other lol).

They're a cool water fish, so that is something to keep in mind. I've heard of some people keeping them all the way up to 80 degrees, but this drastically reduces their lifespan. For me, they've always done best in the high 60's or low 70's, though they're pretty flexible when it comes to temperature.

If you're interested in switching to a cool water tank, there are a number of fish you can keep in a 20g. White Cloud Mountain minnows, least killifish, bloodfin tetras, neon tetras (make sure to go with ones from a good breeder, the ones from pet stores generally have issues due to poor genetics), galaxy rasboras (also known as celestial pearl danios or CPDs), and a huge number of different danio species and varieties all do well in cool water, and could likely share a tank with hillstream loaches.

There are also some barbs that thrive in cool water, but I'm not sure how well they would do in a 20g. Gold and cherry barbs are both fairly small, so you could possibly do a school of one of those.

Anyway, doing an unheated tank would allow you to have something like a pleco, but smaller and not as poopy.

 

oh, I love candy bettas, they prety
seriously, you cant really do shrimp, bettas love hunting them, its like a pastime, its something you could do as a treat of to entertain them. the safest shrimp is ghost shrimp, bettas cant really see them, and don't care much for them. bettas need to be a 75-84, and like slightly acidic water

and plecos, for a 10g you need something small, like a dwarf pleco, there are some that get under 4in but they are harder to find, dwarf snowballs are common and small and prety. If you dont mind the extra money try a zebra pleco, they are shy, but so so gorgus. some plecos wont eat shrimp, you can usually find like a top 5 list on google.
plecos water conditions are different depending on the species that websight will tell you generalised info on them like water parameters, size, diet, and a little more

 

seriously, you cant really do shrimp, bettas love hunting them, its like a pastime, its something you could do as a treat of to entertain them. the safest shrimp is ghost shrimp, bettas cant really see them, and don't care much for them.

That's not entirely true. Some bettas viciously attack shrimp, like you describe here, but not all. About half of all bettas I've ever kept were fine with cherry & blue dream shrimp. If proper cover, like java moss, is provided for the babies, the betta won't be able to find all of them.

As for adults, again, it depends on the betta. I've only ever had a handful of bettas that attacked adult shrimp. Most just ignored them. You always have to make sure it's a peaceful betta before you introduce shrimp, but it's not at all impossible to keep them together. Some shrimp will inevitably die, even with a mostly peaceful betta, but it isn't always a massacre.

I do agree about the ghost shrimp though, Amano and ghost shrimp are probably the best candidates for a betta tank.

 

I was basing this off of personal experience. I've had a betta that actively hunted when they were alone, couldn't even keep ghost shrimp with him, but my current idk, they may get into his favorite spot to sit(under/ on top a anubias leaf)

 

I was basing this off of personal experience. I've had a betta that actively hunted when they were alone, couldn't even keep ghost shrimp with him, but my current idk, they may get into his favorite spot to sit(under/ on top a anubias leaf)

Yeah, sounds like you ended up with one of the more predatory individuals. I can't even keep snails with one of my current guys! He sucks them right out of their shells.