Betta fish community tank (PLEASE READ DESCRIPTION) 20 2

Betta 8 years ago 1,731 views

This is a 5 gallon Fluval Spec tank housing 1 betta, 1 Sunburst Platy, 1 Guppy, 6 Neon Tetras and 4 Ghost Shrimp. They say you need 1 gallon per inch of fish; however, after many years of owning and breeding fish.. that is an actual false misconception. All these fish have been thriving for the last 14 months in this tank. This tank is now at full capacity, but I took the time to monitor and introduce each fishes requirements over a period of time. I personally need my space in life. I live in a family household environment; however, if I was a bachelor, living with one individual who bothered me, I would live a pretty miserable life. With fish living together, there are standard limits such as tank size, fish size/temperament and maintaining the tank accordingly, but, limits can be bent based on your experience and the characteristics of each fish. I could make a duplicate of this tank with half the fish, just to have them all die. (monitoring all fish, and quality of the aquarium is key) It's about quality of life; not quantity. Once again, I've had all these species living in this tank for over a year, living happy and peacefully. Any comments of over crowding is now proven contradictory. Thanks for watching!

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Liam White - 7 years ago

I've been thinking about getting a 5 gallon tank of some kind, but I've been somewhat confused about what fish i can have due to the tank capacity, but this has been a real eye-opener, so many thanks! Of course im not going to crowd my first tank, I'll keep it very simple! But thanks again!

Liam White - 7 years ago

Okay thanks I'll look more into the 10 gallon range, thank you!

Johnny Vo - 7 years ago

Liam White Thanks buddy. In my honest opinion, I would try finding at least a 10 gallon tank. I should have gone bigger, but I liked the look of my tank (which I paid more than double the amount for than I could have, than an even larger tank)

Samantha Day - 7 years ago

beautiful

mared jartinez - 7 years ago

is the betta a male

Johnny Vo - 7 years ago

mared jartinez Hey there. Yes my betta is a male. They tend to be more territorial; however, the neon tetras are too small and fast to bother the betta. My guppy was no issue either, but the orange, sunburst platty wasn't welcomed at all in the beginning. My betta chased it non stop around the tank for 3 days straight until realizing it was no threat.

XCM 720 - 7 years ago

So are the fish still fine in this tank cause I have a 5.5 gallon and I only have two platys ATM and I was thinking about adding some more fish but I not sure how much I should put or if I would overcrowd the tank

Johnny Vo - 7 years ago

Xavier Madera thank you. I tried going for the zen feel. I'll upgrade my tank later on so I can add more fish. Neon tetras are really the fish that make the tank stand out in my opinion. You can add quite a bit and they're very active and stand out.

XCM 720 - 7 years ago

Johnny Vo That's awesome ! I absolutely love how your tank is set up it's actually quite inspiring : )

XCM 720 - 7 years ago

Johnny Vo That's awesome ! I absolutely love how your tank is set up it's actually quite inspiring

Johnny Vo - 7 years ago

Xavier Madera Hey there. All my fish are still fine. The ghost shrimp have vanished though, so I'm assuming they might have been eaten, but I replaced them with snails. The larger plant on the left side of the screen has slumped down, so I'll buy a new one soon. Other than that, the aquarium has been great.

Emily Dean - 7 years ago

The tank is great, but the tetras need more length to school.

Emily Dean - 7 years ago

It's the tetras that need the space IMO, but they aren't going to die from not having the best school. It's not like you are overdoing the bioload, so it shouldn't really hurt them. I've been in the same boat and just upgraded for my harlequin rasboras recently, they just school more effiently, but it's not a huge difference.

Johnny Vo - 7 years ago

Emily Dean the size of my tank is understandably controversial and I do plan on upgrading eventually; however, they've been doing great. When I get the space, I'll most likely buy a 30-50 gallon. This tank has been more of an experiment to observe how well my choice of fish thrive together in a controversial environment.

Michael Grabowski - 8 years ago

Awesome looking tank, love the minimalism of ornaments with focus on plants; just curious as I'm about to set up something similar to what you have and was curious as to your experience with ghost shrimp? I'd like to get up to four, but read somewhere that they can multiply in the hundreds which I definitely do NOT want, is there any way to prevent this (ie: all one gendered shrimp, etc?)
Also, in the vein of "cleaner" tankmates, have you held any combination of plecos, shrimp and/or snails? Or just the ghost shrimp? I'd be interested in keeping all three.
I realize a lot of this information is on the internet but some of it seems to be conflicting and vague, and I prefer to ask from first hand experience, and clearly if your tank can look this good and thriving for 14 months, you must be doing something right!
Cheers!

Emily Dean - 7 years ago

I've had experience with a few species of snails and shrimp, and I would recommend cherry shrimp, ghost shrimp, or nerite snails. The snails do the best job of algae clean up, and nerites don't reproduce in freshwater. Ghost shrimp are cool, but they are hard to see because they are clear, they don't really clean, and if you are breeding fish, they will eat small fry. Cherry shrimp don't eat fry and are slightly smaller, and they also don't really clean. Both types of shrimp reproduce depending on the amount of food given, and both of their fry will be sucked into the filter unless it has a sponge over the intake. Many fish will also eat the shrimp's fry. I vote nerite snail for algae control, they also come in a variety of shell pattern and some even have horns.

Johnny Vo - 8 years ago

Ghost shrimp and snails can live together just fine. You'll never have to worry about the snails.. only the shrimp depending on the fish you buy.

Johnny Vo - 8 years ago

I don't have experience with plecos, but in terms of "cleaner" fish.... I would suggest talking to your local pet store about compatibility, and always opt to buy live plants instead of fake ones. They cost roughly the same with almost zero maintenance, but make your tank much healthier for your fish. Also, add a moss ball. Your aquarium will flourish.

Johnny Vo - 8 years ago

Hey buddy. My experience with ghost shrimp is pretty limited, but from my experience, results may vary. I have heard of aquariums that had ghost shrimps multiply, but for the most part, it's been rare. As of lately, my ghost shrimp have suddenly started to vanish, and I realized that my beta randomly started to eat them for some reason; then my tank water started turning green out of the blue.
I take risks with each of my aquariums. Sometimes my set ups work; sometimes they don't.
I have to warn you that ghost shrimps may fall victim to some fish, such as my beta, but sometimes they may live in harmony; really depends on your fish.
As for snails, you shouldn't have to worry about them. The only difference to my tank is that I've actually replaced my shrimp with snails, as well as replacing my fake plants with real live plants.
My tank is doing much better since the change.

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