New betta tank

Looking ready for habitation. Very cool!

sharkweek178 said:

Something has been vexing me and I think I figured it out. This tank is in the living room. And sometimes people in the house stay up late. So I've been trying to think of a way to cover the tank at night to there's a period of darkness for the fish to rest. Throwing a towel or blanket over the whole thing doesn't seem like a good idea. I was actually pondering something like cutting out part of a refridgerator box to place over the tank and stand at night. Or making a similarly sized foldable hood for that purpose.
Then a much simpler solution hit me. I put black posterboard on as a black background. I could do the same for the sides. And then I could attach some mini clothespin like clips to the top of the tank and use them to clip a piece of blackout curtain over most of the top and front.

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I recommend using black or whatever color acrylic paint and painting all the sides you want covered. What is nice about acrylic paint is that it is water-based, non-toxic, and can be removed easily in the future. You can use the black cardboard cover for the front at night.

gwand said:

Looking ready for habitation. Very cool!

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Thanks. I still have a few more things to add. I want to add a piece of pvc pipe fitting as a cave. I'll attach Anubias nana petite to the outside of it to make it a little more natural looking. And I want to add some Anubias bartieri coffeefolia to the other rocks in there to give the betta more to explore. Plus some nice broad leaves for him to rest on. I don't like the empty space behind the sponge filter so I'll see if I can get some more moneywort behind that. And maybe a floating betta log for another place for the fish to hide.
I'm thinking another month before I get the fish.

It's getting there. I redid the back wall of plants. Just didn't like how it looked. I'm waiting for the new plants to straighten towards the light now. Added some Anubias barteri coffeefolia, a pieced of driftwood for the fish to hide behind, and a piece of pvc pipe fitting (with some Anubias nana petite attached) to be a cave.



I haven't been too happy with the consistency of the heater so I'm going to replace it. I also need to replace the background. And put something on the sides too. Nothing fancy. Just black poster board. And I'm waiting for some of the other plants to fill in too. Particularly the floating plants (salvinia minima and anacharis). The java moss is still adjusting. I think these will really take off with a fish providing nutrients.
I'm thinking of adding a floating betta log too. The sponge filter in the pic is just a place holder and also to move the water a little. I have another cycling in another tank.

The anubias courtesy of @connorlindeman.
Just if you wanted to see where some of your plants end up.

Looking good! Once that grows in it will look great.

Getting close. I just need a few more Anubias nana petite to fill in some spots on the pvc pipe.
I have a sponge filter cycling in another tank. It seemed like the cycle completed really fast. No reason for it to not go fast. I have they air on the sponge filter turned all the way up for max oxygenation. Temp is at 80. I used Tetra Safe Start and seeded with some sand from an established aquarium. But then I neglected it for a while. Now it's taking forever to reestablish. Been sitting at 1 ppm ammonia for a few days. All I can do is watch and wait.

I replaced the backing and I put it on the sides too. I like the way that looks.

Just got back from the fish store.
First of all, shout out to Elmer's Aquarium in Monroeville, PA near Pittsburgh.

This is their betta display. I love it. None of those tiny cups. I specifically chose to purchase from them because of their humane betta display.

And this is who I brought home.



I'll post more pics later. Since this is his first day, I'm going to keep the lights turned down low.
I named him Indy after yesterday's glorious holiday and because he has red, white and blue on him.
There's some ramshorn snails in the tank. I don't think he likes them too much.

Confirmed. He does not like snails.

These Tanks looks like they all have an individual sponge filter.

Congrats on your choice !!! He's the new boss of the block now !

He's been coloring up today. I'm trying to get a good pic. But the ones I take don't do him justice.

He's coloring up well and exploring his new space.
Since today is his second day, I tested the water. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite and 5 Nitrate. And since that went well, I gave him his first feeding. One small flake, two Bug Bites pellets and a couple of mosquito larvae. Next feeding will be some grindal worms on Tuesday. Bettas are prone to obesity so I want to restrain myself on the feedings.

He gave me a scare yesterday. I fed him some grindal worms. Later on, I saw him face down in the moss carpeting. Turns out, he was fine. He was just rooting around for one of the worms that got away before.