10 gallon betta community tank?

[Byron]

Wow I reared a whopper in a much smaller tank of a goldfish, but had to rehouse in a larger tank a good few years ago though!

I’m confused!

When most of us here (all of us I believe) recommend tank sizes, we are thinking of what the fish will need at maturity. We are thinking of a fish's development which continues throughout its life, both externally (the physical size) and internal organ development--and unfortunately these two can proceed independently if something is wrong with the tank size or water quality or both, resulting in stunted fish. We are also thinking of the necessary numbers for fish that need a shoal or group. All of this determines the minimum tank size for the fish to be healthy and develop properly and live to its expected normal lifespan. And it is not our individual opinion; rather we use scientific evidence which is the most accurate data, available on reliable sites like Seriously Fish.

Fish that do not receive sufficient space right from day 1 will be more likely to have developmental issues that weaken its physiology, add stress that weakens the immune system, and inevitably result in a shorter lifespan even if the fish manages to avoid health issues that might well have killed it along the way.

It is quite possible to impair a fish's development early on simply by expecting it to manage in what the fish finds too small a space. This is why keeping potentially large fish in small tanks "as they grow a bit" is frowned upon by ichthyologists and responsible aquarists. This simply does not work well, if at all, ever.

A scientific study a few years ago was the first to document what many have said for decades about tank size and numbers. Fish in too small a space or in insufficient numbers had increased aggression; normally peaceful species like neon tetra became aggressive, while normally semi-aggressive species like angelfish became terrors. This is because the fish has no other means to "fight back," unless it just withdraws, gives up, and weakens rapidly. Only today I was reading an article in the New York Times setting out the thinking that fish can experience depression from their environment. This is something many guessed, and many scoffed at, but we are beginning to find out it is more true than not. And depression of course causes more stress, and stress is the direct cause of 95% of all fish disease.

The blue citation in my signature block is relevant here. As is Dr. Loiselle's in green for that matter.

 

[Byron]

I’m a bit unsure on which dividers to use for the tank to house two Bettas though and am a bit concerned with the shirt lifespans of these small fish too tbh, I’ve been told Betta 3 years and tetras only a year!

Here we have more inaccurate information being disseminated [not by you, I mean wherever you saw this]. While it is true that smaller fish species tend to have shorter lives than larger species, due to factors that affect their physiology and metabolism, the numbers are misleading. Tetras should live far longer than a year. As one example, I have two Loreto Tetra left from a group of nine that I acquired in 2008. I've never added more because no one here carries them; these were a wild import from Peru direct to one local store. My Ember Tetras, one of the smallest tetra species, have been with me for five or six years now. The Boraras dwarf rasbora species I mentioned have relatively short lives, being one of the smallest cyprinid species, but I have had B.maculatus for six years and B. brigittae for four years.I have lost a few along the way, that happens; we cannot expect every single fish to live to their full lifespan, when we realize they have heart problems, cancer, liver ailments, etc just as we do, and genetics plays a part in this. Considering what these fish went through being captured, stored, shipped, dumped in store tanks with totally inappropriate parameters, etc...it is a real wonder any of them survive at all.

This too points up the need for suitable fish species in any given tank. In small tanks fish will not live their normal lifespan.

 

[NickAu]

I’ve been told Betta 3 years

Well cared for Bettas can live up to 10 years.

Bettas are soft water fish and do not do as well in hard water.

 

[SeanTrollope]

Wow sorry to just but in but a 10 gal is perfect for dwarf puffers.

Sent from my SM-G570F using Tapatalk

 

[NickAu]

I’m a bit unsure on which dividers to use for the tank to house two Bettas

Check this out.

http://www.fishforums.net/threads/crowntail-duo.445636/

That is a perfectly divided tank, and I am sure LyraGuppi will be more than willing to help you out

 

[Essjay]

Just to backtrack a bit (and for future reference)

Thanks for that guys!

Water parameters btw:

Ph: 7.5
Hardness: 33mg/L calcium

If the "calcium" is actually calcium carbonate, that is the GH and at 33 mg/l (= ppm, and equates to just under 2 dH) that is very soft, so fish like I suggested previously will work well.

The KH is likely similarly low, so the pH in an established tank will likely lower, which is better.

Hardness as mg/l calcium is not the same as ppm. UK water companies often give hardness in this unit. Mine (Northumbrian Water) gives it as 34 mg/l calcium, but they also have a "convert to alternate measurements" and that gives me -
34 mg/l as calcium; 85 mg/l as calcium carbonate; 4.76 deg German, and also deg Clarke and deg French.

At 85 ppm/4.76 dH, my water is softish and BettaMan's is almost identical to mine.

 

[BettaMan2000]

Many thanks guys!