A new fish person with some questions...

[BlazerBuddy]

Bettas are best kept on their own, they don't need or want tank mates.
And all the other fish mentioned so far need a bigger tank than 10 gallons. A betta on his or her own in a 10 gallon tank would be perfect. If you want other fish, you need another, bigger tank.



I have looked at one of those links, and the information on them on that site is terrible. I don't live in the US but from what I read on here, anything Petsmart says, either the staff in the shop or their website, should not be believed.

This is the best site for researching fish species and their needs

Knowledge Base — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

Going back to Petsmart, the video on the glofish danio page shows someone setting up the tank, adding a bacterial starter then putting fish in the tank. This is not how to set up a tank. It needs to be cycled before any fish are put in a tank - and by cycling, I mean growing 2 colonies of bacteria. Bottled bacteria can speed up a cycle but none of them cycle a tank instantly.

Cycling Your New Fresh Water Tank: Read This First!

Cycling Your First Fresh Water Tank What is Cycling and Why is it Important? Fish waste, and especially fish breathing, plus uneaten food and other organic matter breaking down in a tank all produce Ammonia. This can quickly become toxic to fish if it is allowed to build up to any measurable...

www.fishforums.net

Or get some live plants, especially floating plants, wait until you know they are actively growing then get fish.

Wait so instead of getting bacteria, I can just get live plants and that will cycle the tank? Also, if I have to grow bacteria and or put live plants in there, do I need a heater and filtration system?

 

[Essjay]

Provided there are enough live plants, yes you can use them to cycle a tank. Plants use ammonia as fertiliser and they turn it into protein not nitrite. Bettas like floating plants in their tank and these are fast growing plants which can take up a lot of ammonia. But the odd one or two slow growing plants probably won't be enough. You also need to wait until the plants show obvious signs of growth - the last thing you need is to get a fish too soon, then all the plants die.

You still need a heater as bettas (and the other fish you mention) are tropical fish so they need a water temperature of around 77 deg F.
And you still need a filter to move the water round the tank. With a betta, it needs to have a gentle flow as these fish have big fins and get pushed around if the flow is too great.

 

[Byron]

A new person to the world of fishies. Quick question, can you house these fish with a Half Moon Male Betta Fish? Also, can you house all of these in a 10-gallon tank?

1 Half Moon Male Betta Fish https://www.petsmart.com/fish/live-fish/half-moon-male-betta-fish-28649.html?cgid=300205
A few Neon Tetras https://www.petsmart.com/fish/live-fish/neon-tetra-23507.html?cgid=300205
A few Sunburst Platy https://www.petsmart.com/fish/live-fish/sunburst-platy-15523.html?cgid=300205
A few Glofish Starfire Red Danio https://www.petsmart.com/fish/live-fish/glofish-starfire-red-danio-23512.html?cgid=300205

The answer to both questions here, is no. @Essjay has gone into the reasons, I agree.

 

[Sgooosh]

I don't know if glo fish are nippy, But Black skirts can be nippy and aggressive and I wouldn't keep them with a Betta. You would be better to have a tetra that hangs out more in the bottom of the tank, like Neons or Gold Tetras

i think the glow skirts are born from normal blackskirts
so i would assume it has the same nasty features of them

Provided there are enough live plants, yes you can use them to cycle a tank. Plants use ammonia as fertiliser and they turn it into protein not nitrite. Bettas like floating plants in their tank and these are fast growing plants which can take up a lot of ammonia. But the odd one or two slow growing plants probably won't be enough. You also need to wait until the plants show obvious signs of growth - the last thing you need is to get a fish too soon, then all the plants die.

You still need a heater as bettas (and the other fish you mention) are tropical fish so they need a water temperature of around 77 deg F.
And you still need a filter to move the water round the tank. With a betta, it needs to have a gentle flow as these fish have big fins and get pushed around if the flow is too great.

this is "risky"
but get some duckweed from lfs,
they clean the ammonia quick!!
they made my water pristine for a long time and i had to wait for nitrates....
just remove all of it and put it in a mini container if you will ever need it again

any other bigger floaters work fine, like red roots.
maybe water lettuce, provides shelter!

make sure you get a calm mannered betta, they will not fight the other fish that way

 

[BlazerBuddy]

i think the glow skirts are born from normal blackskirts
so i would assume it has the same nasty features of them

this is "risky"
but get some duckweed from lfs,
they clean the ammonia quick!!
they made my water pristine for a long time and i had to wait for nitrates....
just remove all of it and put it in a mini container if you will ever need it again

any other bigger floaters work fine, like red roots.
maybe water lettuce, provides shelter!

make sure you get a calm mannered betta, they will not fight the other fish that way

So what ur saying is that ammonia is bad for plants/animals?

 

[Byron]

Ammonia is toxic to all life forms which is why we need some means of removing it in the aquarium. Fish produce it continually through respiration, and the decomposition of organics in the substrate (and wherever else) produce it. Nitrifying bacteria deal with it (the "cycle" issue), but live plants do as well. Plants need nitrogen, and the majority of aquatic plants we use in the aquarium take nitrogen up as ammonia/ammonium. The fast-growing species--and here floating plants are best--do this quite remarkably rapidly; it is next to impossible to have so much ammonia produced naturally that it would harm the plants, provided you have enough fast-growing plants.. They use the ammonia/ammonium for internal processes and one benefit here is that nitrite (another toxic form of nitrogen) is not produced as it is by ammonia-oxidizing bacteria.

 

[BlazerBuddy]

Ammonia is toxic to all life forms which is why we need some means of removing it in the aquarium. Fish produce it continually through respiration, and the decomposition of organics in the substrate (and wherever else) produce it. Nitrifying bacteria deal with it (the "cycle" issue), but live plants do as well. Plants need nitrogen, and the majority of aquatic plants we use in the aquarium take nitrogen up as ammonia/ammonium. The fast-growing species--and here floating plants are best--do this quite remarkably rapidly; it is next to impossible to have so much ammonia produced naturally that it would harm the plants, provided you have enough fast-growing plants.. They use the ammonia/ammonium for internal processes and one benefit here is that nitrite (another toxic form of nitrogen) is not produced as it is by ammonia-oxidizing bacteria.

Okay I see, so if I want to first start by putting plants in my aquarium, how would I do that? Would I have to put tap water in and then run test strips for phm, ammonia, etc...

 

[Essjay]

When you set up the tank, you would put the plants in the substrate (gravel, sand, whatever you want to use on the bottom of the tank); anubias has been mentioned and this should be attached to decor (wood, rocks or plastic decor); floating plants are just floated on the surface of the water. You use tap water but add water conditioner to remove the chlorine or chloramine which water providers add to the water to kill germs to make it safe for us to drink. Fish don't like chlorine/chloramine either.

Then wait until you know the plants are thriving.


The testers are for after you get fish - and liquid ones are better than strips. The 5 or 6 in one strips don't contain ammonia either. Once the fish is in the tank, the ammonia and nitrite testers will tell you if the plants are removing all the ammonia made by the fish.

 

[BlazerBuddy]

When you set up the tank, you would put the plants in the substrate (gravel, sand, whatever you want to use on the bottom of the tank); anubias has been mentioned and this should be attached to decor (wood, rocks or plastic decor); floating plants are just floated on the surface of the water. You use tap water but add water conditioner to remove the chlorine or chloramine which water providers add to the water to kill germs to make it safe for us to drink. Fish don't like chlorine/chloramine either.

Then wait until you know the plants are thriving.


The testers are for after you get fish - and liquid ones are better than strips. The 5 or 6 in one strips don't contain ammonia either. Once the fish is in the tank, the ammonia and nitrite testers will tell you if the plants are removing all the ammonia made by the fish.

Okay, but is there a way to speed up the Nitrogen cycle? I read somewhere that wants you to put tap water in an aquarium, there are no good bacteria and that it takes months for good bacteria to build up.

 

[Essjay]

If you have enough plants you don't need bacteria, the plants will take up ammonia from the fish faster than bacteria can. When there are enough plants, a few bacteria will grow in the background, but nearly as many as in a tank with fake plants.

I once set up a quarantine tank for some new fish. This tank was just 6.5 gallons. I took two large water sprite plants from my main tank - I used these as floating plants - and when I bought the fish I also bought 2 bunches of anacharis and left the stems floating. I tested every day for ammonia and nitrite and never saw a trace of them. I should add that I put 12 kuhli loaches in the quarantine tank. These added up to a lot more than 1 betta.

 

[BlazerBuddy]

If you have enough plants you don't need bacteria, the plants will take up ammonia from the fish faster than bacteria can. When there are enough plants, a few bacteria will grow in the background, but nearly as many as in a tank with fake plants.

I once set up a quarantine tank for some new fish. This tank was just 6.5 gallons. I took two large water sprite plants from my main tank - I used these as floating plants - and when I bought the fish I also bought 2 bunches of anacharis and left the stems floating. I tested every day for ammonia and nitrite and never saw a trace of them. I should add that I put 12 kuhli loaches in the quarantine tank. These added up to a lot more than 1 betta.

Okay, combining what you have said and what an article I just read said, these seem to be the steps.
1. Add rocks, plants, and substrate.
2. Use a water conditioner to take out Chlorine.
3. Add a water heater, water filter, and air pump to help speed up bacteria growth.
4. Add Tetra Safe Start to the water to introduce bacteria and make the water tank ready for fish in a matter of days.
5. Introduce Ammonium and use a test strip to see if it is gone in a day.

BTW the article I was using will be linked below.

Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle and Fishless Cycling - Pets Keepers Guide

Aquarium nitrogen cycle is the process of ammonia being converted to nitrate in a fish tank. Fishless cycling is the best way to prepare for it.

petskeepersguide.com

 

[Byron]

Okay, combining what you have said and what an article I just read said, these seem to be the steps.
1. Add rocks, plants, and substrate.
2. Use a water conditioner to take out Chlorine.
3. Add a water heater, water filter, and air pump to help speed up bacteria growth.
4. Add Tetra Safe Start to the water to introduce bacteria and make the water tank ready for fish in a matter of days.
5. Introduce Ammonium and use a test strip to see if it is gone in a day.

BTW the article I was using will be linked below.

Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle and Fishless Cycling - Pets Keepers Guide

Aquarium nitrogen cycle is the process of ammonia being converted to nitrate in a fish tank. Fishless cycling is the best way to prepare for it.

petskeepersguide.com

I would not add any "ammonia" as you run the risk of killing the plants. Forget the article, and follow @Essjay's advice. You do not need to be adding bacteria, this only competes with the plants and you want to establish the plants early. Make sure you have some floating plants. Fish can then be added once the plants are showing growth (rather than dying off).

 

[Essjay]

You do not need to add ammonia if you use live plants. That's only for cycling without live plants.
You do not need to add bottled bacteria if you have live plants.

Don't use a test strip for anything. Buy liquid testers, the kind with test tubes.

Edit - Byron posted as I was typing.

 

[BlazerBuddy]

I would not add any "ammonia" as you run the risk of killing the plants. Forget the article, and follow @Essjay's advice. You do not need to be adding bacteria, this only competes with the plants and you want to establish the plants early. Make sure you have some floating plants. Fish can then be added once the plants are showing growth (rather than dying off).

Okay, but will it take several weeks to startup? Also, if I test the ph with a liquid tester and it's the wrong value, will I have to buy something to change it?

 

[BlazerBuddy]

When you set up the tank, you would put the plants in the substrate (gravel, sand, whatever you want to use on the bottom of the tank); anubias has been mentioned and this should be attached to decor (wood, rocks or plastic decor); floating plants are just floated on the surface of the water. You use tap water but add water conditioner to remove the chlorine or chloramine which water providers add to the water to kill germs to make it safe for us to drink. Fish don't like chlorine/chloramine either.

Then wait until you know the plants are thriving.


The testers are for after you get fish - and liquid ones are better than strips. The 5 or 6 in one strips don't contain ammonia either. Once the fish is in the tank, the ammonia and nitrite testers will tell you if the plants are removing all the ammonia made by the fish.

Will the plants automatically fix the ph lvl? Do I need to buy plant fertilizer?