Greetings,
I'm setting up a 29 gallon tank for my betta and I need to know if its ok to put the following items in it. This is a wooden box with metal hinges and some metal collectors coins...I'm not sure what sort of metal its made of. Is its ok for me to use white sand in this tank rather than the normal gravel?
Thank you in advance,
Authorious
Freshwater tank questions: Thanks in advance
15 posts • Page 1 of 2
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Okiimiru - Posts: 275
- Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm
No metal long term in the aquarium.
Yes to the sand. You can use a variety of different substrates in aquariums. Pea gravel, sand, soil capped with gravel, kitty litter (the kind with no chemicals added, just pure ground clay), and Fluorite(TM) all work well.
Yes to the sand. You can use a variety of different substrates in aquariums. Pea gravel, sand, soil capped with gravel, kitty litter (the kind with no chemicals added, just pure ground clay), and Fluorite(TM) all work well.
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Authorious - Posts: 7
- Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2012 8:48 pm
OK, thanks a lot. I'll find something else to do with this box then lol. I intend to put my betta with 7 tetras. Hope it turns out well.
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Okiimiru - Posts: 275
- Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm
Tetras in general are fin nippers. Keep an eye on your betta to make sure it's not being bullied. You might want to be prepared to set up a separate tank for the betta if it gets picked on too much and its fins get torn.
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Authorious - Posts: 7
- Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2012 8:48 pm
If thats the case with the Tetras then I won't bother with the purchase...fish are very limited here on this island (freshwater). I'm not sure what other fish I can get. I've looked at the charts on this site and I don't have many options in terms of types of fish for sale. Does anyone know of anyplace online where I can purchase fish and have them shipped to the caribbean?
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Okiimiru - Posts: 275
- Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm
Tetras can make good tank mates for bettas. It's just that some species are nippy. If you keep them in a school of 6 or more, they tend to enjoy nipping one another more than nipping on the betta. The problem usually only arises when you have only one or two tetras and a betta; the tetras will try to play with the betta because they don't have enough of their own kind, and the play will hurt the betta. Get lots of tetras and you won't have that problem.
As far as online vendors go, you can try liveaquaria.com, thatpetplace.com, and aquabid.com.
Your local pet store probably carries platies (Xiphophorus maculatus). Platies would be a good match for a betta. They're small enough for your size tank, they won't hurt the betta, and they come in a variety of colors.
As far as online vendors go, you can try liveaquaria.com, thatpetplace.com, and aquabid.com.
Your local pet store probably carries platies (Xiphophorus maculatus). Platies would be a good match for a betta. They're small enough for your size tank, they won't hurt the betta, and they come in a variety of colors.
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Authorious - Posts: 7
- Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2012 8:48 pm
O so thats how it is. Alright 7 tetras with the betta in the 29 gal tank should work out fine. Seeing that there are no plants for sale here for the tank I will be using all plastic plants. Given that, will i still have to let the new tank run for two weeks before putting fish in?
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Okiimiru - Posts: 275
- Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 10:19 pm
"Seeing that there are no plants for sale here"
Where? There are plants for sale on all three of the websites I listed. There are also probably wild plants where you are that you could collect. My personal favorite plant, Hemianthus callitrichoides, comes from Cuba. Not sure what island you're on, but there are a lot of good plant species in the caribbean.
"...will i still have to let the new tank run for two weeks before putting fish in?"
Two weeks is not long enough. Look at slide 8 of this powerpoint presentation:
http://www.ag.auburn.edu/~davisda/class ... Design.pdf
It takes 35 days for an unseeded tank to get a high enough population of nitrosomonas and nitrospira bacteria to immediately process the ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate. Add fish flakes to the fish tank every day as if you were feeding fish, and measure the concentration of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Your tank is ready for fish after the ammonia and nitrite have risen and fallen back down to 0 ppm.
More information: http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/articles_5 ... rticle.htm
Even with 7 tetras there's still a slight risk that they'll nip the betta. There are many species of tetra, and behavior may vary. Just keep an eye on the betta and make sure he feels comfortable swimming out in the open. If his tail gets ripped or if he hides all the time, you might want to separate them.
I've kept bettas with lots of species, so from personal experience I can tell you the betta is usually fine. It helps to have a cave available for him to be able to flee to when he's feeling picked on. It's also better to feed the fish multiple times per day so that the tetras aren't hungrily eating the betta's fins.
It'll probably work out; it's just something I wanted you to know that you should look out for. Bettas are always slandered as vicious fighting fish, but usually if there's a problem it's that they're being picked on. That can surprise people.
Where? There are plants for sale on all three of the websites I listed. There are also probably wild plants where you are that you could collect. My personal favorite plant, Hemianthus callitrichoides, comes from Cuba. Not sure what island you're on, but there are a lot of good plant species in the caribbean.
"...will i still have to let the new tank run for two weeks before putting fish in?"
Two weeks is not long enough. Look at slide 8 of this powerpoint presentation:
http://www.ag.auburn.edu/~davisda/class ... Design.pdf
It takes 35 days for an unseeded tank to get a high enough population of nitrosomonas and nitrospira bacteria to immediately process the ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate. Add fish flakes to the fish tank every day as if you were feeding fish, and measure the concentration of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Your tank is ready for fish after the ammonia and nitrite have risen and fallen back down to 0 ppm.
More information: http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/articles_5 ... rticle.htm
Even with 7 tetras there's still a slight risk that they'll nip the betta. There are many species of tetra, and behavior may vary. Just keep an eye on the betta and make sure he feels comfortable swimming out in the open. If his tail gets ripped or if he hides all the time, you might want to separate them.
I've kept bettas with lots of species, so from personal experience I can tell you the betta is usually fine. It helps to have a cave available for him to be able to flee to when he's feeling picked on. It's also better to feed the fish multiple times per day so that the tetras aren't hungrily eating the betta's fins.
It'll probably work out; it's just something I wanted you to know that you should look out for. Bettas are always slandered as vicious fighting fish, but usually if there's a problem it's that they're being picked on. That can surprise people.
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Authorious - Posts: 7
- Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2012 8:48 pm
I'm on a little island near Puerto Rico....shipping stuff to a british location like this is crazy. I talked to some people at Customs today and it was not nice. I'm going to have to make do with what I can find here. None of the 2 and a half pet stores here have any live plants. I went to flower shops and plant shops but they don't have anyting that grows underwater. Sucks. The pet stores got Ammonia test kits but nothing to test nitrite. I'm going to place an order for API Freshwater Nitrite Test Kit on Amazon...should be a couple weeks before it gets here. Can I just use the Ammonia kit to test the tank during the fishless cycle?
