To divide, or not to divide?

Hi!

I have a 7.5gal tank that MalachaI is in now. Being a kid with 3 tanks - my parents have decided that's the limit. At the moment, I have a 47gal community, a 7.5gal Betta tank (For Malachai) and a 3gal Betta tank which is still cycling. (It's been in the shed for years...)

In my 7.5gal, I have a heater, a UGF mad, A MalachaI cool, gravel, some floating live plants that MalachaI loves, and a coconut cave which MalachaI hides in during water changes.

I was wanting to divide this tank using the DIY method we're all familiar with. (In important Betta topics sticky.) I was wandering, what are your views? I really don't want to make MalachaI unhappy by giving him something to defend his territory against, and make his territory much smaller, but I really want another Betta. Can I make the divider opaque? You know, by sciliconing on a black background to the divider. Or do they eventually calm down, and leave the other Betta alone?

Edit: I'm going to replace the UGF for a Fluval 1+ soon.

 

Hi!

I think actually I don't feel so bad about making Malachai's territory smaller... At least then my other Bettas will have it fair!

 

Having it divided would be fine(I think), that is what I did with Charlie and Norma, of course Norma is a female so I don't know if the result will be different with males, using a black backround on one side of the divider would work well, so they wouldn't be able to see each other.

 

Hi!

Will it work without the background though? I really want to be able to see one of my Bettas clearly (The tank is in a corner on my desk. When I sit down, I can only see the side of the tank. When I divide it with an opaque background, I have to look at the front to see my other Betta, and I can't view him from the side.)

 

If you divide a 7.5 gallon that will give each of them less than 4 gallons of space. That is not much room. I would also caution that if you make the divider solid you will need two heaters and two filters as they will not circulate properly. This I do know from personal experience from using Plexiglas for my divider in my 25 gallon tank and it is a horrendous mess. The pressure of the water flow from the intake of the bio-wheel being on one side and the outflow being on the other side made it unstable and I eventually had to just give up on the bio-wheel totally and just go with sponge filters on both sides to keep the divider in place. Then the temperatures were unstable and I needed two heaters to keep both sides of the tank warm enough without getting one of them overheated. The DIY with the craft canvas is the much preferable way to make a divider and yes, they do eventually quit flaring at each other using the craft canvas as it is not so transparent that they really get a good look at each other. In fact I used a piece of it to shut the Plexiglas off from the two I had being able to see each other and it worked just fine. It would have been my choice to begin with but working with a 25 gallon tank I could not get a piece stiff enough to hold that much water weight and so needed the stiffer Plexiglas. Now in the smaller tanks the plastic canvas works great. I used it in one of my 12 gallon tanks with Qwin and Triton when they were together and they never knew that the other one was even on the other side. I never saw either of them flare at the other.

Rose

 

Hi!

If I did it - I would use the method that's in the important Betta topics sticky.

 

My Bettas - latest update!

Hi!

Well, my minI 3gal tank has just cycled. As in my 7.5gal - I have a UGF I don't like using and MalachaI - I decided to move MalachaI to new digs. He has a longer run on his 3gal than the 7.5gal bowfront; and I moved his little coconut cave across to. He also has a small tower which he can hide in. Luckily - the water conditions where exactly the same and I haven't seen stress colours yet! Also, he has finnaly quit flaring at the glass!

My project for this week is to install a Fluval 1+ in my 7.5, and take out the AquaOne UGF that came with the kit. (The tank was my first - and had been running for almost a year heavily overstocked. Beginner mistakes...)

Oh, and mods can you merge this thread into this one: Thanks!

 

My mom, step dad, and my bro all divided a tank. All bettas. They would sometimes flare, but they did good.

 

Maybe you could use plants or a bubble wall to keep them from seeing each other, or at least distracting them enough to minimize the flaring. I have a divided 10 gallon with two girls, one heater and one filter. The craft plastic mesh allows the water to pass through, I tested both sides for quite a while to be certain. It is hard to clean though, and if I pull it out it's horrendous to get back in.

 

Hi!

I think I'll do it - and use the DIY method. Should I give 1 Betta longer than the other? IE can I add 1 Betta, then 2 weeks later stick in the divider and add Betta no.2?

 

I'd probably put the divider and betta number 1 in one side rather than cut his space in half later. Then it won't matter when you add betta #2.

 

It really is better not to cut the betta down after he is used to having the whole tank. If you are going to do it then do it right from the start. You will have a mad fish if you do it after he is used to having the whole tank as his territory. The only way to do it otherwise is to remove him from the tank for a bit and then rearrange everything and then put the divider in and when he goes back in he will think he is in a completely different tank and you MAY get by with it . No promises but you might squeak by with it.

Rose

 

Hi!

My 3gal cycled yesterday - so I put MalachaI in there. I'm switching filters in my 7.5 (No more UGF...:mad to a Fluval 1+ (Mum s convinced it's a waste!) and then sticking in a divider. Betta no.1 will go in whenever I find the colour I'm looking for (Cambodian, or a Blue.)
Then - as soon as I find what I'm looking for Beta no.2 will come in. I'm putting the Blue on the left hand side - Cambodian on the right. I really want a Blue halfmoon... I saw one at the LFS who 'don't reserve'!

 

Hi!

I HATE my new filter! It's around 3 times noisier than my Juwel 180 internal on my 47 gal - it's my smallest and noisiest filter! It's an AquaOne MaxI 101F. I think I might have to get my parents to buy me another Fluval 1+ - I have one in my 3 gal and it does a mint job, and complete silence! Geez, £13 of wasted money... I feel like sueing AquaOne - they say it's a 'quiet' filter on the box.

Oh, and Kat said that you can't divide a Bowfront. Ah - my 7.5 gal is Bowfront. Will it still work?

 

If you make sure that you measure exactly where you want the divider to go instead of at the end of the tank like at the middle of the tank so that you are getting the right measurements for the exact spot where you are making the divider for, why would you not be able to use a divider in the bowfront. It still has a front and a back and can be divided. The only difference is that you cannot use the SIDE of the tank to measure you have to measure the tank at the exact point where the divider will BE. In the middle. Otherwise it will be too narrow.

If you use the method described by one of the members in the stickied topic it will work fine. I have heard one of the other members say to use silicon to put the slider bars in on the front and back and then just put the divider down in the slider bars when the silicon dries. This works well when the tank is empty and before anything has been in the tank. But if you have had water in the tank you have to drain it and let it dry first. If the measurment is too wide fishline can be used to sew two pieces of the canvas together to make a divider wide enough but make sure you leave a bit of an overlap to help hold it upright and give it stability. I bought perforated PVC board from a supply house for a divider that would work well and is quite stiff too and will clean well and is much more sturdy than the plastic canvas but never did use it as I was able to do away with the dividers before I had to use it. But I think it would make an excellent divider and would be absolutely non-toxic.

Rose

 

Hi!

I decided to go for 1 Betta now. I just need to find that Cambodian... In the UK you don't always see Bettas in stores - they keep them in community tank and your lucky to see more than 5 Bettas in the store at once. Now, at least 2 of them will be ripped apart by the Tetras - and almost every single one is red, blue or red and blue. I've only seen a Cambodian once - several months ago... Wish me luck!