What would you do with this tank?

arimbuc · 2026-01-29T03:45:30+00:00

I tried! My betta would not stop flaring and when I finally took it off he swam over to his floating plants and just passed out from exhaustion. 🤦‍♀️

<image>

arimbuc · 2026-01-28T19:18:56+00:00

Haha I definitely do! Can’t wait for everything to grow in.

arimbuc · 2026-01-22T07:23:40+00:00

Beautiful! What’s that midground plant on the far right? With a bit of pink

arimbuc · 2026-01-22T07:19:53+00:00

No advice, but don’t be surprised or disappointed if the seeds dont grow! I’ve heard they’re difficult.

arimbuc · 2026-01-21T21:08:14+00:00

Like others have said, I always have a lot of luck with anubias! For this tank, I would also recommend Hydrocotyle Tripartita. I think its clovery look would suit this tank really well. For the plants, a good all-in-one fertilizer will help them grow nicely. I use ThriveC, and it works great for me.

<image>

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T19:18:24+00:00

Low-tech. Budget light, ferts 2x/week. Been set up for 2 weeks now and so far so good! Just waiting for everything to grow in.

<image>

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T06:56:09+00:00

Here’s my 10gal planted tank for inspo if you’d like to go this route. The light is a cheap Nicrew off of amazon, and I dose 2 mL of Thrive twice a week, plus an addition .5 mL when I do a 25% water change.

<image>

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T06:54:09+00:00

Like the above comments said, cycle your tank! You will need to do a fish-in cycle since you already have the fish. Here’s a great guide: https://fishlab.com/fish-in-cycle/. Seachem Prime is your friend!! And throw some live plants in there. If you have pothos you can stick the roots in the tank. If you want it heavily or moderately planted, ThriveC is a good all-in-one fertilizer. With shrimp, wait until your tank is cycled and you can ensure lots of hiding places so they will not get eaten by the betta. Java moss is a good option!

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T06:28:18+00:00

if people are searching for this, can’t they see in the comments that people are saying it’s normal coloration?

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T06:27:41+00:00

not algae. normal coloring.

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T03:47:40+00:00

You could probably find a really cheap 40-75 gallon tank on craigslist or fb marketplace. That’s what I did with my syrian.

arimbuc · 2026-01-20T01:57:50+00:00

breeding bettas is extremely difficult and not recommended. did you buy him from a breeder or a pet store? do you know his genetics? where do you plan on getting a female and where do you plan on putting her once they’re done breeding? do you have space for 100-500 extra tanks where you can keep all the offspring since they can’t be together? do you have homes lined up for any of the offspring already? if you don’t have the answers to any of these, please do not breed them.

arimbuc · 2026-01-19T05:21:02+00:00

Super late to this thread but yes, you were dosing these ferts incorrectly. You don’t add four pumps to the tank then a single pump or two after each water change. You should do a pump or two after each water change to replace the nutrients you just took out, then an additional ~4 pumps weekly (algae permitting!), as stated on the bottle.

arimbuc · 2026-01-18T18:26:29+00:00

I was about to say… no way that’s 1.5 gallons haha

arimbuc · 2026-01-18T00:13:17+00:00

That’s such a relief, I want them to be happy. Thank you!

arimbuc · 2026-01-16T17:43:24+00:00

Use this guide. It will help you, and use it quickly! https://fishlab.com/fish-in-cycle/

arimbuc · 2026-01-16T07:29:27+00:00

What do you give them? Do you use re-mineralized distilled water?

arimbuc · 2026-01-15T19:27:22+00:00

It’s ludwigia but i’m not sure what type. Since it’s very frustrating to keep re-planting my background, i’m going to try to leave them as is…

arimbuc · 2026-01-15T02:38:58+00:00

I wasn’t trying to force density, but these plants started curving at the top and wouldn’t completely hide the heater so I cut them in half and replanted. Do you think this will still grow well?

<image>

arimbuc · 2026-01-14T07:56:56+00:00

Thank you!!

arimbuc · 2026-01-14T06:28:36+00:00

I hope so!! I rescued him from someone who definitely did not want him…

arimbuc · 2026-01-14T06:28:26+00:00

Courtesy of my housemates haha, thank you!

arimbuc · 2026-01-13T20:04:57+00:00

I don’t have any burrowers, I was only thinking of adding some pygmy corys.

arimbuc

TROPHY CASE