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Personally, I let my betta live alone (outside of a few snails that hitchhiked in on plants). Bettas are territorial. They don't get lonely. Just the opposite. It depends on the personality but some bettas might tolerate tank mates. But that's all it is, putting up with. I believe that...

You can mix CaribSea and play sand. I started a tank with CaribSea Sunset Gold and ended up adding Quikrete play sand. It's indistinguishable. They're both a soft sand that's suitable for corys. The biggest difference is the price. IMO, that's the only functional difference. Play sand is...

I wonder if it depends on the species. Most of the stuff I've seen treats them as synonymous but usually use the term pelvic. Maybe it's based on shape. Like the long feeler fins on gourami are called ventral. But the more fan shaped fins on other fish are pelvic. Or maybe function, as in...

Ventral fins.

Congratulations. Beautiful fish.

If you can't get a bigger tank or rehome it, then you're going to need to do a lot of water changes every week.

The bristlenose alone needs to be in a larger tank. They're a very heavy bioload fish.

I've heard good things about them too. But I have enough local places that I can save the mailing costs if I'm just a little patient.

Today is when the local places get in new stock. I'll make some calls. If they have some, I'll do a big water change on the quarantine tank tonight and swing by to get them tomorrow.

Do you have numbers? Terms like "soft" or "hard" can be subjective. What's hard water for humans might not necessarily be so for fish. You can usually find out on your water company website or you can look up your water's hardness online by zip code.

I can't think of a plant. But any decor what has sharp or jagged edges could damage the fins of a betta. So smooth rocks and you want to be careful about the wood you choose.

Given that pygmy corys are pretty small themselves, I thought it might work out.

A while back, I started culturing microworms for my pygmy gouramis. I figured it was a nice small live food for them. But they never really went for the microworms. Or the frozen daphnia I feed sometimes. It's not an issue with appetite. They eat fine when it's their Bug Bites or Omega One...

That's something people don't understand. The fish in stores are stressed and still acclimating to a new environment. The business model depends on a fairly high turnover rate. That's why they can put a bunch of male dwarf gouramis in the same tank at the store. Like you said, once those fish...

It's worse in aquariums. When two territorial fish meet in the wild, they fight and then the weaker one leaves. In an aquarium, the weaker one can't leave so they fight until one dies.

There's a lot of bad information online. Dwarf gouramis aren't good tankmates for other gouramis or anabantoids in general.

The bottle trick works so well that my honey gourami sometimes hangs out directly under the bottle. I spent some time looking for ways to reduce HOB outflow and this one works the best. I was always a little nervous about ideas that blocked the inflow because I think that risks damaging the...

I'm trying this idea. I went to a local hardware store and they didn't have this. At least not in a small enough amount that I was willing to pay for. But there was an arts and craft store right by there. I got some plastic mesh canvas and used that instead. I did notice something. I...

Yes. You don't want a lot of flow in a betta tank. They aren't built for it. You can use a sponge filter. Or one of my favorite tricks is a HOB with a water bottle baffle to diffuse the outflow. I use this in a tank with a honey gourami (who also needs a similarly low flow environment) and...

AP Master Test kit is the best one.

Dan's Fish is pretty great. I had a good experience ordering from them. I've been checking all over. Flip Aquatics currently has some. But these aren't so aquatic that I wouldn't be able to get them locally if I just have a little patience.

I'm replacing my neon tetras that died off with purple harlequin rasboras. The quarantine tank is ready but I'm having a little bit of a difficult time getting a hold of them. One local place had them a couple of weeks ago but I wasn't ready for them yet. I've been calling around and right...

And here's a handy site to do that research on. https://www.seriouslyfish.com/

That's basically who I'm referring to is the commonly available livebearers. Guppies, platies, mollies, swordtails, Endler's livebearers. I actually have a well on my property and I've tested the water. It's off the charts hardness. I could figure how much to mix with my tap water to get to...

I think I have it down with the consistency of the culture. I always have to add more water than the directions say. I'm for just thick enough that it flattens when I tap the cup on the table. I'm going to look for some of that fencing next time I'm at a hardware store. I have to admit that...

It's just as well. My tap water is pretty soft anyways.

Good for you. Giving up tobacco is the best thing you can do to improve your health, your finances, and your quality of life in general. I used to be a heavy smoker. I did the dumbest smoking cessation plan. I switched to chewing tobacco. My logic was that would be easier to quit than...

Livebearers. Don't get me wrong. They're beautiful and fun to watch. I just don't want the hassle of dealing with all the fry. And a single sex tank doesn't appeal to me either. Either all females who aren't as brightly colored or all males who will have to live out their lives in sexual...

Adult brine shrimp aren't particularly nutrient dense. That's the main reason to limit feedings. You could also try frozen daphnia or krill for something with a little more nutritional value.

I say disgusting as if I'm not using my finger to harvest microworms, meticulously sorting mosquito larvae out of gross water, or dealing with grindal worms by hand all the time.

That all looks reusable. Maybe not the lid. I notice that the piece of coffee filter I tape over a hole in the lid gets stained. I use excelsior for perching. I have to get over how disgusting the crashed culture is then I can reuse the cups.

Can you post a picture of one of your bottle cultures? I'd like a better idea of how you do this. And I want an excuse to drink more frappucinos.

Add to this that bettas were used in competitions. So they were bred for aggression for years. I'm having the exact same experience with my betta. He's very active and intelligent. He recognizes me because I feed him. So he swims to the front of the tank when I go near it. He doesn't do...

You don't want to touch your fish. That can mess up their slime coat that protects them from parasites and diseases.

I always figured that eating Grape Nuts cereal is what eating aquarium gravel would be like.

My neon tetras have been dying off. One I knew didn't have much time left. It had a large growth and it was losing its color. The other day I looked in on my tank and immediately saw one of the amano shrimp swimming around carrying the body of this neon. All this is to say that I have no...

I have soft water. What about vice versa, from hard water to soft water? I assume that could be a similar problem. I try to find a balance. I don't want my fish getting blasted with too much light but try to provide an adequate amount for the plants. Most of my other plants grow well...

I get them from Etsy. I usually superglue the rhizome to pebbles. That way I can move them around if I want. Although my most successful ones are glued to a piece of driftwood.

I just don't have any luck with java ferns. I keep reading how hardy and easy they are. But more often than not, mine turn brown and die. It's a little embarrassing because these are supposed to be an easy beginner plant. Is it too much light? Since they're slow growing I don't think it's a...