Is Betta Alright In This Tank

[jakeroberts]

hi my name is jake im new to fish keeping and i am just wondering if a betta would be alright in a 11 litre tank by itselfs and if it is wat sort of plants or things could i put in there and would i have to use a filter,light and heater.

jake roberts

 

[Arimus]

11l is only 2.4 imp. gallons... which is abit small - 5gl is more suitable for a betta.

It comes down to whether you want him to just survive in which case 2gl will do or to thrive in which case 5 will do...

(I'm going to get a 5gl tank just for a betta on pay day )

 

[loggerbomb]

If you are going to use that size of container, don't put too much in there with the poor guy. It might seem like a lot of space when it is empty, but once you put in some rocks, a plant and if you really feel you need a heater and filter, there goes even more room.

I'm with Arimus on the fact that bigger is definitely better.

You would only need a heater if the room temperature was cold, bettas like the water warm.
You wouldn't really need a filter for the smaller tank your considering, but might be a good idea to use a small one when you go up to 5gal+. If you do go for the smaller container, you should be changing the water once a week.

If you were thinking of adding fish buddies to the betta, I'd say no, not until you get some experience with the betta itself. As a general rule they usually don't play well with others. Especially in close quarters.

 

[OohFeeshy]

In the opinion of most betta keepers, it's fine- don't forget, Arimus, that most people (or indeed, the standard measurement here) use US gallons.

 

[Arimus]

Ah

Really ought to stick with litres then -- atleast 1 litre is 1 litre which ever side of the pond we're on...

 

[dsingleton]

In the opinion of most betta keepers, it's fine- don't forget, Arimus, that most people (or indeed, the standard measurement here) use US gallons.

According to Google . . .

2 Imperial gallons = 2.40190083 US gallons

From my experience of what other people have said, anything over 2 us gallons is fine for a Betta, though bigger tanks are obviously going to make them happier. and take note of what loggerbomb said about the amoutn of water in the tank after your decorations. Be wary of how many you are putting in there!

 

[lljdma06]

11 liters is fine for a betta, especially if you add live plants. What sort of setup do you have? Can you give me the wattage of your light? Tell me about your substrate. Keeping a planted tank is not as difficult as one thinks, and IMO is one of the best environments for a betta. In addition, a 2.5g planted, with places to explore and leaves to rest on is better than a 5g with nothing. But, a 5g planted is even better! I think that there are many examples of bettas thriving in tanks less than 5g. It is all in the care the fish receives.

llj

 

[jakeroberts]

11 liters is fine for a betta, especially if you add live plants. What sort of setup do you have? Can you give me the wattage of your light? Tell me about your substrate. Keeping a planted tank is not as difficult as one thinks, and IMO is one of the best environments for a betta. In addition, a 2.5g planted, with places to explore and leaves to rest on is better than a 5g with nothing. But, a 5g planted is even better! I think that there are many examples of bettas thriving in tanks less than 5g. It is all in the care the fish receives.

llj

right now i dont have any sort of light for it and i will probaly use fine rocks or mabysand im a bit tight on budget cause im only 12. would a bedside table lamp work or would it make the tank to hot.

 

[zoekin8yg]

A lamp isnt ideal, what is the usual air temp in the room? It might not be too bad as you are in australia

 

[gpgscott]

Bettas like warmth they will survive at temps below 80f but they are less active and interesting. You didn't mention filtration they don't like the water to be stirred up a lot a small intank filter would word well. Good Luck! Scott

 

[lljdma06]

Bettas like warmth they will survive at temps below 80f but they are less active and interesting. You didn't mention filtration they don't like the water to be stirred up a lot a small intank filter would word well. Good Luck! Scott

There are quite a few nano HOB filters that feature adjustable flow-control. These filters allow the fish to have more swimming space than the small intank filters and offer superiour filtration. A betta can live and thrive in an unheated system. All of mine do, but my home ambiant temperature is at 76 degrees F, and my fish are quite active, even with the cold front we had in South FL recently. If your home is consistantly warm then a heater, IMO, is not absolutely necessary.

I actually have a desktop lamp fitted with a 13W Compact fluorescent bulb over a 2.5g planted tank right now. The lamp was inexpensive at around $15 US dollars. They can probably be found in your local office supply store where you live. I grow plants successfully in this tank. CF bulbs give off a lot less heat and it just may be a matter of screwing in a CF to replace the standard bulb. The spiral CFs are usually 11W, which is ok for growing some things, simple things. Grow plants then on the side where the most light shines through. A journal of the tank is in my signature. It housed a betta for awhile until my dwarf platies decided to have little babies. The betta is now in another tank and this one has fry. I grow clumps of moss in my other betta tanks using only natural sunlight. Filtered sunlight or a nice Northern window is best. A Southern window will be way too hot.