Keeping My Bettas In Empty Tanks

[Just_Another_One]

I've got 2 male bettas. One in a 6 gallon heated/filtered and the other in a 5 gallon heated/filtered

I've tried live plants in both of them but they didn't do well even with flourescent lighting and they made a huge mess in the tanks.

I have silk plants in them right now but it makes the tank really ugly and I hate them. I only like live plants in my tanks but in these small tanks it makes too much mess.

Am I an evil person for considering keeping them in bare tanks?? They both sleep up on the heater brackets so they will still have their resting spots.

 

[Netty]

We have quite a few bare bottomed tanks which are much easier to keep clean. It would be nicer for them to have some things to swim around and explore though. You can get some really nice looking silk plants in various colours or what about some java moss or fern tied onto some coconut shell or bogwood.

 

[Honeythorn]

Bare tanks are rather stressful for a permanent home , and these fish do like places to hide and shrubbery to swim through. An empty tank doesn't provide the fish with much to do or interact with.


What plants did you try? Low light plants should not make a mess of the tank. Moss balls don't require any work at all, just chuck them in and leave them. Java moss can be tied to wood or slate and left to grow. You'd only need to trim it occasionally.

Surely even a java moss covered coconut cave is easy enough to manage?

EDIT- Plus, even if your tanks are bare bottomed, Java moss, Moss balls and Java fern can all still be used, The moss and fern can be tied to rocks or wood, and the mossballs don't require substrate either

 

[newfishy]

a few clean teracotta pots make nice little clean caves, a few places to hide and sit makes a huge difference. in my holding/qt/growout tanks thats all thats in them.