betta tank mates

[pedapea]

I have a 10 gallon tank sitting on my kitchen counter, with a filter running. No heater. I put Peter in the tank today, and I think he is a bit overwhelmed with all of the space. He was in a 1/2 gallon tank up until this afternoon. There is plants and a hidey log for him in there which he is making use of. What I was wondering if anyone had any ideas what kind of other fishies I could put in the tank with him that wouldn't shred those lovely fins of his. Someone at a pet store suggested neons, even tho they are a tropical fish she said they could probably do quite fine in a room temp. tank. The tank temp. is currently staying at 60F. I used to have neons a long time ago,with other fish, and from what I remember they kind of just stuck to themselves and really didn't bother anyone else in the tank with them. After Peter has been in this larger tank it would seem a shame to have to slide him back into that 1/2 gallon one again. The filter is a bit of a challenge for him tho. Small tank..no water movement. Large tank water movement. MUST...FIGHT...CURRENT.:D I have it set on the lowest for him, too.

Thanx for any suggestions.

[CathyBogart]

I'd put a small heater in the tank and add a few White Clouds (the gold phase of White Cloud is particularly pretty) Most small community fish do well with bettas....I've kept platys, mollies, guppies, corydoras catfish, and several other sp. with them. I DO NOT recommend chinese algae eaters (the long skinny ones), barbs, or larger tetras as they can be fin nibblers. If you prefer to keep it at room temp, go for the White Clouds. They do well at just about any temp. (and they do well with or without a filter)

I'm not fond of Neons because I've found that the crowded conditions they are kept in at most dealers start to breed disease pretty quickly. I'm a big stickler for quarantine tanks when adding new fish, and I know most people aren't, but I would say that if you like neons go for it but quarantine them before you put them in with your betta. :)

[IRescue452]

I think neons would do ok at that temp, maybe raise it to about room temp, and would more than likely stick to themselves. Just remember to quarentine new fish first as we've had too many dying lately on these boards because people put them in right away. We don't need any more space filled in the memorial section.

[pedapea]

Aaarrgh. I was hoping to get away from a filter. Did that route a few years ago, and had nothing but trouble. We have weird wiring in our house, which my husband doesn't seem to be in a hurry to fix, and the power is always going out. Yah. Tell me about it. FIRE. We believe in living dangerously.:eek: :D

You know I have never quarantined fish before. HOw long would you have to quarantine before sliding them into regular tank?

Regarding neons. They are a gorgeous little fish. I know the bigger ones you are talking about. They're called cardinals, I think. And, they are large. No, I just want the little beensy ones. This way I can get a few more fish in the tank. I have a 10 gallon. Rule of thumb, if I'm not mistaken, is 1"/1 gallon?? Would the betta that I have in there already be counted as 1 fish? I was thinking to get a couple neons with some white clouds and maybe a zebra danio or 2. I dunno yet. Maybe just stick with a little herd of 1 species. Like I said I'm not sure what I want to do yet. Later on, it might not be a bad idea to slide a pleco in there.

*Rescue...60 IS my room temp.:D. Yah. Just a bit nippy. Is there an actual number that could be accurately called "room temp" It's usually a bit cool in my house during the winter.

Back to the heater thing. I was thinking. Maybe a heater just for the chilly winter months, and turn it off during the summer, as it does get quite roasty, toasty in here in the summer. Yes, I do have air conditioning, but I rarely use it. Gives us all headaches and sore throats,and anyway, I don't mind the heat. The only time it gets turned on is when the humidity starts reaching into the 80% range. How does that sound? If I went with the heater what would be a good temp to set it at with the type of fish that I had in mind?

[lv4dogs]

Originally posted by pedapea
Aaarrgh. I was hoping to get away from a filter. Did that route a few years ago, and had nothing but trouble.

I thought you already had a filter running in it? Thats what your first post says. Maybe I misunderstood you?

And 60 is too cold even for a betta, I would get a small heater, they are only like $10ish.

[pedapea]

Eeeek. Made a mistake. I guess it would be a plan to read over my post before I press the submit button:D Yes. I do have a filter. What I meant to say was heater. Sorry.

I was going to go for a walk over to wal-mart this morning and check out the heaters. I was there last week, looked at the heaters, but forgot how much they were. I think a small one for my size tank is around $6. I THINK. Oh well. The walk will do me good. It's a lovely day outside. Perfect for shaking up the flubber. I think it's about a mile to the store. No problem. The only problem is that the snow has been melting and then freezing during the night and the sidewalks are a tad on the slippery side. Work them ankle muscles...balance, balance.:D

[IRescue452]

I'd say keep em in a different bowl for at least a week before adding them with your betta. If you want to take your chances go ahead, most people do. My mother lost her 4 year old koi this year because my sister added a goldfish right away and it brought some bacteria from the tanks at walmart. I personally wait until they go a week without any dying before I add fish with my goldfish because I've had her for three years and use her for breeding so she is quite important to me.

[CathyBogart]

Ugh, goldfish tend to be cesspools...poor koi.

I killed my dalamtian mollies by bringing home a pair of dwarf corydoras catfish. :(

[pedapea]

Well, came back from walmart and I guess I made another oopsy about something. I guess I was looking at something else for the $6. Just bought a small heater for up to 10 gallons. Price..$18.16

Forgot to ask...what temp. should I set this heater to make everyone comfy?

Not saying that I will get any fish from walmart, but they did have neons and white clouds. I think they would make a good combo. So, what do you think? 5 neons and 5 white clouds...or would that be too many with my betta already in the tank?

[pedapea]

This is going to sound like a totally retarded question, BUT does it make any dang difference where you put the heater in the tank?? I have the filter bubbling away at one end, so I put it at the other end almost in the corner.

[micki76]

Originally posted by pedapea
Forgot to ask...what temp. should I set this heater to make everyone comfy?

Not saying that I will get any fish from walmart, but they did have neons and white clouds. I think they would make a good combo. So, what do you think? 5 neons and 5 white clouds...or would that be too many with my betta already in the tank?

I have Neons and a betta in one tank and keep it around 75f. Bettas like 70-75f and Neons like 75-80f, 75f is a good temp.

I think 5 neons and 5 white clouds plus a male betta would probably be too much for your tank.

[CathyBogart]

I think the two small schools plus a betta would be a good number, so long as you are good about changing some of the water every week. It's not going to be crowded, but some chemicals are going to build up a little faster so water changes will be more important. :)

75 would be a good comfortable temperature for all of those fishies.

[pedapea]

Ok. No problem. What number would you suggest going in there?

Another heater question. I plugged in the heater. Set it for 65F. That's the lowest it will go. I didn't want to shock my little guy, all of a sudden, seeing as he has been in water that has always hovered around 60F. I figured I would go up gradually. So, here's what happened. The thermometer in the tank says 60, heater is set for 65, light on heater goes on for like 5 minutes and shuts off, and I see there is some condensation inside the heater. Should I fire that back to the store and exchange it?

[micki76]

Originally posted by pedapea
Ok. No problem. What number would you suggest going in there?

Another heater question. I plugged in the heater. Set it for 65F. That's the lowest it will go. I didn't want to shock my little guy, all of a sudden, seeing as he has been in water that has always hovered around 60F. I figured I would go up gradually. So, here's what happened. The thermometer in the tank says 60, heater is set for 65, light on heater goes on for like 5 minutes and shuts off, and I see there is some condensation inside the heater. Should I fire that back to the store and exchange it?

Maybe do 3 of each? That way you'd have approximately 6 inches of school fish, plus your betta. It would keep your tank healthier and still give the fish enough to school together. I doubt the neons would get over an inch each, but I know white clouds can get to 1.5 inches.

I've never had a heater get condensation inside, but it may not be unusual, I just may have never noticed. It it in the water too deep? If it were me, I'd say better safe than sorry and go exhange it.

Hope that helps!

[pedapea]

Well, as the heater has been on the condensation has disappeared. If I took it back to the store and mentioned that there was condensation inside, they would ask me where, and of course there would be none. At this point I think they would tell me to take it back home.

I have the heater set at 70F, but the thermometer in the tank says that it is only 60F. I phoned a fish store here and the guy says that tank thermometers are usually always wrong, and that I should go by what the heater says. Over the course of the afternoon I was slowly turning it up, the light would go on for the little bit that I did turn it up, stay that way for a while then shut off. And, like I said the thermometer is still at 60F. Can someone comment on this situation I have here. Thanx a bunch.:D

[Uabassoon]

Seeing as how no matter what your thermometer reads 60 degrees I would check to see if it really is working. Stick it in stick it in room temp water and check the temp, then test it with hot water. LOL if it still reads 60 then it's time for a new thermometer!

[micki76]

What type of thermometer do you have? Is it the floating kind? Or the kind in a metal/plastic holder?

I had one in a metal holder once that broke at the top. The actual thermometer slid down, so it was telling me that my tank was only about 65 f (the numbers were on the metal), when in reality it was about 95f. :( I cooked all my fish. :( I was devestated when I discovered the problem.

[pedapea]

It's one of those round glass ones, that suction cups to the inside of the tank. It's a bigger version of the thermometer that your mom used to take your temp with, under your tongue. I think there is something wrong with it. I can feel the water getting nice and warm, but the red line has not changed postition since the water was cold to the touch. At 72, tho, Peter is zooming all over the tank. Probably too excited that he's actually warm.

Is there a better place in the tank to stick the thermometer. I had it almost in a corner, but I would think that because it's a corner it would fool the heater into thinking that the whole tank is warm. Maybe a centre position would be better.

Holy crap. I'm starting to sound just a bit weird here:eek: Worrying about heater placement. MUST....GET....LIFE. :rolleyes: :D

Thanx for putting up with all my tedious questions.

[CathyBogart]

Questions are good, they keep us sharp and get you information!

I'm not sure about your question though...maybe put it in a bowl of warm water to make sure it's working, and if it is, put it more towards the middle of the tank?

[pedapea]

oh, aaaarrrgghh. *Note to self. Must read over what I type before I send it. It seems that a lot of the time when I am answering here, the kids are behind me screaming and fighting and tattling, and I'm usually telling them to get lost as I am trying to write an understandable reply. I guess it isn't working. :eek:

Correction. When I wrote.."is there a better place to stick the thermometer" it should have said..."is there a better place to stick the heater?" Yeesh. Ok. That's it. From now on, I will be the proof reader extraordinaire. This is getting embarrassing.

I hope this now makes sense. aarrgghh:rolleyes:

[CathyBogart]

LoL, no biggie! Yuo should see some of the things I was writing in class today, I was combining the lecture with my daydreams. -_- I'm glad I like anthropology, because I'm going to have to read that chapter in the textbook again!

[pedapea]

Here's a good question for ya. How come in the morning the water temp. feels different than during the rest of the day? I have the heater (not thermometer:D ) set for 72 right now...I'll inch it up to 75 later on...last nite before I went to bed when I put my finger in the water it felt nice and toasty to the touch, but this morning when I got up and felt the water it felt chilly to the touch. The heater, as far as I noticed while I was in the kitchen making brekkie and lunches for the kids, clicked on only once for a couple of seconds then turned off...which tells me that the water temp. IS 72 even tho it doesn't FEEL like it did at the same temp last nite. Makes sense??

*I hear ya about the notes and the daydreams, tho this is a bit different...not as relaxing as daydreams tho. I had to write a note to one of the kids teachers one morning...all the while trying to do this with the herd, as usual, scrapping around me as loud as humanly possible, and with me telling them to go somewhere else and kill each other I'm trying to write a note to the teacher. Wouldn't you know it, after these distractions I address the letter "Dear Linda" aaaaaaahhhhh HER NAME IS BRENDA.:eek: :eek: I wonder how dumb she thought I was. I've only known her for, like, 13 years. rrrrrrrrr

**Proofread by me, more than once. Now I'm getting paranoid over how I'm wording my notes here.:D

[lv4dogs]

I keep my tank about 76.
I have one male betta, an african dwarf frog, 2 male guppies & 2 baby plecos (which will be removed when they get bigger).

[pedapea]

Froggies. Cute. I love the little frogs. My kids were asking if they could put a frog in the tank. I said no, seeing as it's only a 10 gallon, with the 1 betta in there, plus the soon to be 3 neons and 3 white clouds, and quite possibly in the future, a pleco for bottom maintenance. I think it would be a tad crowded with a froggie added to the clan.

Those plecos sure do get big. I've had them before, years ago, when the tank was set up. As you can tell it's been broken out of storage. Mine never did get that huge. Do they work the same as some other fish.."only get as large as the tank they are in" or do they grow out of tanks. I remember seeing one somewhere else, can't remember where it was as it was a few years back, but holy crap was it huge. You could have had filet o pleco, for like 2 ppl. :D When it came towards you, you could almost hear the Jaws theme song playing in the background.:D

[PJ's Mom]

Originally posted by pedapea
Do they work the same as some other fish.."only get as large as the tank they are in" or do they grow out of tanks.

:eek:

That's probably the biggest fairy tale in the fish world. Fish don't stop growing when they reach the size of their tank. No no no...

That's one of the reasons so many Oscars find their way into pet stores...people don't know what they're getting themselves into when they buy that cute, little begging fishie. :D They grow into cute begging monsters. ;)

I have two common plecos. One is around 10" and the other is a whopping 18" long. There are other plecos that don't grow up to be anywhere near that length. :)

[pedapea]

Most excellent. I have learned something new today. What's even better, when I hear that statement being made by someone else, I can correct that erroneous belief. So I guess when I saw the shark sized one before, that's like a normal growing pleco. Cool.

Are there other fish that do the job of the pleco, that don't grow as monstrous? I only have the one tank, and I don't really want to get 2. Space as well as coin is a concern at my house. I would really hate to have a fish outgrow my tank, and then have to decide what to do with him.

Eighteen inches. HOLY CRAP!! da dun..da dun..dun dun dun dundundun dada daaaa, dada daaaaa :D

[lv4dogs]

Frogs are really good at cleaning the bottom of the tank like a pleco, just not the sides.
African dwarf frogs stay very small too and are usually out of the way anyways.
You have to be careful as a lot of pet stores mis-label them as a clawed frog or vice-versa.
Here's a site on how to tell the difference:
http://allaboutfrogs.org/info/species/clawedordwarf.html

The clawed frogs will actually eat the africans and a lot of other small fish. And they get much larger.

They do have fish that are similar to the plecos, but I'm not sure on their size or compatability with a betta.
BUT a lot of pet stores offer a return policy for when the pleco outgrows your tank. IF I don't have a bigger tank by then & I can't find a home for them I am returning them to my pet store when they get too big, and trade for smaller ones again.
And they do "kind of" grow to their environment but they will still be too big for a small tank once full grown.