Betta Tank Size

[chestnutree]

Hi,

I've just started out and wanted a full community of fish so i didn't originally purchase a betta.

I do however, really really want one! i've seen a tank going cheap that is 31 x 18 x 24cm. Would this be large enough for a betta?

second question, would it be large enough for a female betta and 6 glass catfish?

 

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

Personally I think it'll be a fine size for a betta

 

[chestnutree]

What about with 6 glass catfish also?

 

[MewMew42]

hmm It works out at 4 us gallons, so i think its gonna be a bit cramped as glass cats are very delicate, teh water may not be stable enough for those aswell

how about some pigmy cories? or some shrimp?

=]

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Hi,
Female bettas do great in smaller tanks because they have an easy time gliding around and manuevering. That said, a 4-gallon would be perfect for *just her* because she'll enjoy using up ALL of the tank space. All of my females swim back and forth across the tank and use up every square inch and having other fish in there would make it more difficult for them to each enjoy their water. Also, having other tank buddies may stress your girl out. Even my female in a 10-gallon needed to be alone before her stress lines disappeared.

 

[Honeythorn]

Glass catfish will grow far too large for that tank and it's nowhere near big enough for a group . It's barely (seriously) even big enough for the betta, in fact I'd say it's on the small side really and would reccomend 5 gals +.

If you want Glass cats as well you should look into something around 15 gallons. A female betta and your 6 glass cats would be ok in that.

 

[grumpysteve]

IMO no fish should ever be kept in a tank less than 10G. the glass catfish will need a much bigger tank, they'll need a lot of vegetation, and ideally should be in a big group, 6 is just about ok, 10 would be much better. they grow to around 15cm, so for a small group you'd want at least a 3' tank and plant it heavily. for the betta alone i'd go for a 10G tank at least, and have a shoal of rasbora's in there too and plenty of plants.

i think if you really want either of these fish you should read up on them and suitable tankmates, and decide what you want to do. you could set up a biotope tank with a betta, the glass catfish and some rasbora, or something along those lines. there's a lot of possibilities, you just need to make sure you can cater for all the requirements

 

[GuppyGoddess]

IMO no fish should ever be kept in a tank less than 10G.

A 4-5 gallon for a single betta is FINE!

 

[grumpysteve]

IMO no fish should ever be kept in a tank less than 10G.

A 4-5 gallon for a single betta is FINE!

it's only fine because bettas with fancy fins can't swim properly. the fact is all fish swim, that's what they're designed for. 4 gallons isn't much water at all, especially compared to what they'd have in nature. it's like a prison cell. the only people that keep fish in tanks that small are people that care more about the aesthetics of the tank than their fish's health. people think betta's like small tanks, but you could happily house a single male betta in a 55G tank if you were to bother to put the effort into making it suitable for him. a big tank with plenty of vegetation is much better than a small tank with one or 2 hiding places, but people don't do this because they wouldn't see as much of their pet.
i'm not a fan of fancy betta's though, and to me it seems people care more about having a pretty fish thats easy to see in its small tank than to have a fish that's happily living in what it could consider its natural environment. if people really cared about fish they wouldn't be inbreeding them to look a certain way, to have a certain finage or certain colour. i think nature is much better at deciding what fish should look like, the natural b. splendens is beautiful, i can't see why anyone would mess with how they look.

this is my opinion, and i'm fully aware that a lot of people will probably disagree with me, but i'm entitled to an opinion as much as the next man. personally though, i don't think you can say i'm wrong, especially about tank sizes. there's a huge difference between surviving and thriving

 

[GuppyGoddess]

IMO no fish should ever be kept in a tank less than 10G.

A 4-5 gallon for a single betta is FINE!

it's only fine because bettas with fancy fins can't swim properly. the fact is all fish swim, that's what they're designed for. 4 gallons isn't much water at all, especially compared to what they'd have in nature. it's like a prison cell. the only people that keep fish in tanks that small are people that care more about the aesthetics of the tank than their fish's health. people think betta's like small tanks, but you could happily house a single male betta in a 55G tank if you were to bother to put the effort into making it suitable for him. a big tank with plenty of vegetation is much better than a small tank with one or 2 hiding places, but people don't do this because they wouldn't see as much of their pet.
i'm not a fan of fancy betta's though, and to me it seems people care more about having a pretty fish thats easy to see in its small tank than to have a fish that's happily living in what it could consider its natural environment. if people really cared about fish they wouldn't be inbreeding them to look a certain way, to have a certain finage or certain colour. i think nature is much better at deciding what fish should look like, the natural b. splendens is beautiful, i can't see why anyone would mess with how they look.

this is my opinion, and i'm fully aware that a lot of people will probably disagree with me, but i'm entitled to an opinion as much as the next man. personally though, i don't think you can say i'm wrong, especially about tank sizes. there's a huge difference between surviving and thriving

Yeah, there are a lot of varying opinions on tank size. . .I won't get into that anymore, but do agree with you re: fancy bettas. It's sad to watch them struggle to swim unlike other bettas with simplier fins. That's one reason I enjoy female bettas more. My son wanted a male red betta but I put a female in his tank instead. She's so small and LOVING her tank.

 

[Curiosity101]

I would always that with the correct maintenance/set-up you 'could' house a betta in something as small as 1g.
But you do need to be dedicated and/or well practised in maintaining tanks to stand a chance of keeping it healthy.

However my opinion is that it is selfish to force the fish to live in such a small container. I don't think it's ethical.
They may not have particularly developed brains but I would always say they need at least 4x their length (including tail) of tank lengh and they need plenty of things to interact with such as plants, cave, ornaments etc.
Oh and just to add I'd never keep a betta in anything less than 5g. I figure if you're going to keep a fish alone then you do have to drawn a line somewhere. I'm sure the fish would love a 55gal to itself, but I'd never see it and would be paying alot of money for what would practically just be a big tank of water. 5gal with lots to do seems like a compromise that works for both of us.

The argument of 'Oh well they come in little cups at the store' does make me very angry though. 1. The cups are temporary and 2. If you kept a puppy in a tiny box till you sold it, then just kept it in a puppy crate aftewards. Then you really wouldn't get away with the excuse 'oh well it's in a better environment now so thats ok'. If people want to keep a fish in 1g then fine...it can be done. But that certainly is a poor excuse.

 

[Tolak]

How many, many times we go back & forth with this one. People doing the proper maintenance & such easily keep a single betta in a gallon or two of water. Bettas in the wild live in this immense thing called a rice paddy. My question is this; how large of a heavily planted tank would you need to keep 2, 3, or 4 male b. splendens? Figuring out an average on this, and using simple division would give you the optimal territory needed for a single specimen.

Anyone who has been here for any amount of time realizes how opinionated members are where tank size for a single b. splendens is concerned, and they are entitled to this opinion. Realize it is only that, an opinion, until someone takes the time to do some hands on research concluding with repeatable results.

 

[Honeythorn]

Well since the majority of us do not live in or near Thailand, we use basic logic and ethical reasoning.

Do I want a ridiculous little box that fits on my nice IKEA desk, just because it fits there , and I can pick it up and pour water out down the plughole to do a water change, and the fish can "survive" in it if I do water changes often enough,

OR

Do I want a tank that provides the fish with a decent and realistic amount of swimming space ( if that fish were wild and had territory to protect and live in ) , still fits on an average desk never mind a host of other places in even a small house, has a bigger amount of water which is easier to keep stable and is LESS work on that account, and can more easily fit commonly available filters and heaters.....




Not a hard descision for someone who cares about the animal's long term housing and lifestyle. Plus it's cheap to do. Do remember that when we usually debate tank sizes, we are NOT talking breeders with fish houses, we are talking the average home/apartment ect. There is no concievable reason for tiny tanks in such places. Space can almost always be made even in a small home ( I live in a bog standard UK council house so I should know ) .

 

[OohFeeshy]

Territory size isn't exactly a wonderful factor to take into account... Taking a wild fish, what does it need? Food, primarily. The size of the territory a fish has is directly dependent on the amount of food available in it. A betta doesn't have, say, a 2ftx2ft territory because that's the amount of 'space' it needs. That's the area which essentially combines minimum effort with maximum food. There's a balance between energy expended and energy taken in- if the space is small, you're using less energy but getting less. Bigger and you're getting more but using more.

So where does that leave us? Well, consider that our bettas have all the food they want supplied directly to them, for starters.

 

[lljdma06]

Hi,

I've just started out and wanted a full community of fish so i didn't originally purchase a betta.

I do however, really really want one! i've seen a tank going cheap that is 31 x 18 x 24cm. Would this be large enough for a betta?

second question, would it be large enough for a female betta and 6 glass catfish?

Yes, it is large enough for a betta.

No, it is not large enough for a female betta and 6 glass catfish. Like someone else said before, Glass catfish are rather delicate, and will get too large for the size tank you are asking about. They also like being in groups, as you already know. Larger tanks are better suited for them.

Good luck with your betta, should you decide to get him/her.