My betta...

[Rocky998]

eco complete is far too rough for corydoras
it's the same size as the smooth gravel that you find in big-box stores (which i wouldn't use for corys either), only with sharp edges.

Thank you for your response. Better to know now than after wasting money...

 

[Rocky998]

Don't use either, both are a waste of money. I was talked into using Flourite in my 70g some years back, and it nearly killed my cories within a matter of days. I moved them to a tank with play sand and fortunately they recovered, though one panda still has a third of its lower mouth missing, but it did heal. After a further two years, the plant growth was disappointing and I tore the tank down and dumped the Flourite in a corner of the back garden. Plants will grow just as well in inert play sand, with substrate fertilizer tabs for large plants.

Ok thank you. I will do that.

 

[hansgruber7]

You can keep some bettas in a community tank successfully, but in my experience they do better and it's easier to manage if you keep them alone. When I tried the community tank in a 20G, it was surprisingly difficult to navigate feeding. Bettas will overeat and get sick if you're not careful. There's also more nipping and stress for the betta than you may realize. It was way better for me all around when I moved my betta to a 5G by himself and added a few fish to my 20G.

 

[Rocky998]

You can keep some bettas in a community tank successfully, but in my experience they do better and it's easier to manage if you keep them alone. When I tried the community tank in a 20G, it was surprisingly difficult to navigate feeding. Bettas will overeat and get sick if you're not careful. There's also more nipping and stress for the betta than you may realize. It was way better for me all around when I moved my betta to a 5G by himself and added a few fish to my 20G.

Out of curiosity... What fish did you have in your 20g?

 

[Heather7465]

I disagree that ALL Betta's are solitary fish, but in saying that you might end up with an aggressive Betta that is not ideal for a community tank. Have a back up plan, incase you need to relocate that fish if it shows signs of aggression/stress. I've always had my male Betta's in their own aquarium, until recently with a female Betta. She lived peacefully with my panda corydoras who never got in her way. They swim in the bottom portion of the aquarium and she had the middle/top all to herself. Problems arose when I added a fish who swims in her territory middle & top portion of the aquarium. On top of that my aquarium size did not give adequate amount space for hiding and territory spaces to be established. I had to relocate her to another family's aquarium. So make sure you have a BACK UP PLAN, incase the betta does not like being in a community environment.

 

[hansgruber7]

Out of curiosity... What fish did you have in your 20g?

I had Celestial Pearl Danios and Kuhli Loaches. They all got along fine with the betta, but feeding was difficult. The betta kept pigging out or not getting anything. Also, the CPDs were super shy with the betta, but once I moved him to the 5G and added some more, they became much bolder and were more fun. The betta also seemed happier in the 5G. In my experience they don't do as well in deep tanks because they hang out near the surface.

 

[Rocky998]

I had Celestial Pearl Danios and Kuhli Loaches. They all got along fine with the betta, but feeding was difficult. The betta kept pigging out or not getting anything. Also, the CPDs were super shy with the betta, but once I moved him to the 5G and added some more, they became much bolder and were more fun. The betta also seemed happier in the 5G. In my experience they don't do as well in deep tanks because they hang out near the surface.

Ok. Thank you for telling me about that. I'm thinking after I use my 10 gallon tank for a confinement tank I will use it as a betta tank or gourami tank.