My Second Tank

[777james777]

Hello all. I have a thriving 160 litre community tank which Iv had for a couple of years. I’m looking to very shortly get a second tank, specifically for a betta and some shrimps. I have a few questions upfront before I go ahead.

1. Do I need to do the water cycle like I did with my 160 litre community tank, or does only one betta not produce enough waste?

2. What’s the best size tank for a betta (in litres)
I don’t want a tiny tank as I can’t help but think they are cruel. I was thinking around the 24 litre mark?

3. Do they prefer taller tanks or the standard length wise tanks

Any tips or hints welcome

 

[fishorama]

I'm not sure of standard tank sizes where you are & I apologize for my lack of metric skills, lol. I'll try. 50 litres or more might be a nice size. Bettas like to swim, often near the surface but pick at the bottom & cruise along the tank length. & that size will allow for more options in the future. I would not go with less than a foot tall (30cm) & 60 cm long.

What sort of filter are you thinking of using? Hang on backs are my favorites. You can use some of the filter media from your big tank or run the new filter on the old tank for several weeks to seed it with beneficial bacteria. But both the shrimp & betta need to go in a cycled tank, so test at first to make sure all is ok. A sponge filter is ok too but in US, internal filters aren't "usual". They take up too much space in a small tank.

You'll want to have places for the shrimp to hide, some bettas will hunt them. Wood or rock will work. I'm assuming neocaridina shrimp like red cherries or another color, that's the only kind I've kept. Stick to just 1 color or as they breed the babies eventually will turn back into natural brown, not as pretty. Start with say, 8-10 shrimp. Males are less colorful but, of course, you want some of each Shrimp should reproduce to enough to make up for any betta shrimplet snacks.

I'm big into live plants. If you haven't tried any, now is a good time! Shrimp like to graze on & hide in them & bettas may like to rest on them. Easy 1s are anubias, probably "nana" would work well in a smaller tank. Moss, meh, not for me, & java ferns will get too tall. All of those will grow in almost any light & don't need fertilizers. None of those are planted in the substrate but attached to wood or rocks. Think about it! There are more plants that might work depending on your lighting & desire. We can discuss it later

Don't forget bettas will likely need a heater, they like it fairly warm, say 77-79F (calculating, 25-27 C). That's fine for shrimp too.

I'm sure you'll have more questions & others will help too.

 

[777james777]

I'm not sure of standard tank sizes where you are & I apologize for my lack of metric skills, lol. I'll try. 50 litres or more might be a nice size. Bettas like to swim, often near the surface but pick at the bottom & cruise along the tank length. & that size will allow for more options in the future. I would not go with less than a foot tall (30cm) & 60 cm long.

What sort of filter are you thinking of using? Hang on backs are my favorites. You can use some of the filter media from your big tank or run the new filter on the old tank for several weeks to seed it with beneficial bacteria. But both the shrimp & betta need to go in a cycled tank, so test at first to make sure all is ok. A sponge filter is ok too but in US, internal filters aren't "usual". They take up too much space in a small tank.

You'll want to have places for the shrimp to hide, some bettas will hunt them. Wood or rock will work. I'm assuming neocaridina shrimp like red cherries or another color, that's the only kind I've kept. Stick to just 1 color or as they breed the babies eventually will turn back into natural brown, not as pretty. Start with say, 8-10 shrimp. Males are less colorful but, of course, you want some of each Shrimp should reproduce to enough to make up for any betta shrimplet snacks.

I'm big into live plants. If you haven't tried any, now is a good time! Shrimp like to graze on & hide in them & bettas may like to rest on them. Easy 1s are anubias, probably "nana" would work well in a smaller tank. Moss, meh, not for me, & java ferns will get too tall. All of those will grow in almost any light & don't need fertilizers. None of those are planted in the substrate but attached to wood or rocks. Think about it! There are more plants that might work depending on your lighting & desire. We can discuss it later

Don't forget bettas will likely need a heater, they like it fairly warm, say 77-79F (calculating, 25-27 C). That's fine for shrimp too.

I'm sure you'll have more questions & others will help too.

Thanks for the info…

I never thought of that… yes it will be an internal pump. So if I bought a new pump and added it to my current 160 litre tank for a few weeks would this be enough to then just use on my new tank without having to do the water cycle? @Essjay was an enormous help last time. Hopefully she would know!