opaque-ish tank dividers?

Hi All,
About 2 weeks ago, I put dividers in two 5.5 gal tanks, that now house 2 Bettas each. They all seem to be doing OK, I have placed the plants so that they cover about 1/2 of the dividers to give the boys some peace and so that they can't see each other as much... However, I have noticed that two of the boys that are "neighbors" tails have gotten much shorter, due, I think, to them biting their own tails (which has never happend before)... Although I haven't actually seen any of them biting their own tail.

The divders in their currently are the clear kind with the littel holes in them for water flow. Does anyone know of dividers that are more opaque/ colored so that it is more difficult for the boys to see each other? Thanks!

http/search.ebay.com/white-plexiglass_W0...rectZ1QQfromZR8

If you are worried about the shiny/mirror effect you can take small grit sandpaper and rough the surface up on both sides (wash off real good afterwards of course) so that there is no reflection before adding it, then drill several small holes for water flow.

You can also do a DIY divider with plastic craft canvas. I've done this and it works wonders. You can get a giant sheet at WalMart for just over a dollar, the silicone at WalMart for a couple bucks [as long as it's pure silicone], and then the plastic report covers with grip strips for a couple bucks.

Cut the grip strips [2 of them] to the height you need to fit comfortably in your tank. Silicone the strips to the tank, running a bead along the grips and then securing them. Let it cure for 24 hours. Then you can cut your craft canvas to slip inside the grips. Slide it in, decorate with gravel and plants and such, add water and fish, and voila!

I'm attaching a picture of mine before I added gravel and such so you can see what it looks like. My two boys in there flare at each other maybe 4 times a day total.. the rest of the time they're busy building bubblenests or investigating the tank.

very creative!!!
i'll have to remember that for my next tank...hmmm...MTS!
lucky for me my 2 boys are okay with the clear divider, they really only flare at each other at dinner time!!!

I used an opaque divider in a 5 gallon tank, but the betta's could actualyl see each other, though not clealry. They would still flare at each other. Maybe you can just cover your existing divider with aquarium paper or something.

I just took another picture to show you of how it can look when finished.

If you look closely [forgiving my crappy cam lol] you'll see how disinterested the boys appear to be in each other. They can't see each other properly through the divider, so it's pretty good.

The only thing is you have to completely tear down your tank to do it. You could keep each betta in a bucket for the 24 hours it takes to cure, along with the gravel, and run the filter on one of the buckets. That way you shouldn't have to re-cycle, but I could be wrong on that.

Finished product:

Thanks for all your replies. When I put in the clear dividers, I siliconed in the holders. The boys do seem to be doing better the more time they are in there together, so we'll see how it goes... if I have to, I will rough up the dividers with the sandpaper like suggested to "cloud" their view of each other...