This may be off topic, but to me keeping a betta is just like keeping any other fish: 1. regular water change to avoid build up of ammonia, 2. space 9.5 L (or 2.5 gallons) and up is ideal (but smaller containers with religious WC are okay too, depending on the size of bettas) , 3. good quality betta food they're carnivores, they can't eat normal fish food. Fin rot is mainly caused by ammonia build up, can easily be remedied with clean water and aquarium salt if the fin rot is severe. You can also put a piece of ketapang leaf in your betta tank. It'll also be ideal to have a filter, although not necessary, because you can do less frequent water change when the tank is fully cycled. This link is useful : Water change schedule based on water volume . Having a planted tank with or without filtration is beneficial for the bettas in so many ways. Especially the floating plants. My tap water usually has 10 - 20 ppm of nitrates in it but after 3 days, when I tested the water parameters, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates are 0 in my betta containers which are half covered by floating plants.

So good luck

How come? I thought they're simple to keep?

My tank's still new. So far so good.

just a suggestion, maybe can add in the medication for fish that treats for fin rotting? blue colour type? I think that works wonders.... even though this is for the rocks etc...

do remember to make regular water changes too.

Since we're in the topic... Is this fin rot? He was like that when I got him

Sniper: the dorsal fin looks a bit tattered but I can't say for sure. Halfmoon bettas tend to bite their own fins for many reasons, most unknown, sometimes boredom, or stress. The fin in fin rot usually has black or red edges and the egdes itself look frayed. I wouldn't worry about it if you keep a tight schedule on the water change. Monitor the water parameter if you have a test kit. and your plants will help. the floating ones will propagate like crazy with enough light/sunlight.

Thanks Ashraf. Just google, and i hope this option works.



Brown Algae (Diatoms)
Diatom Algae

Brown Algae, or diatoms, often present themselves as a brown, muddy, muck that covers plant leaves and hardscape items. It is rare to be seen in a fully established aquarium.

Causes:
Newly setup tank – Aquariums that have just been setup seem to be prone to diatom algae.
Excess nutrients – Silica in particular appears to be a trigger. Contact your water utility company for a report detailing silica concentrations in your water supply.
Possibly old bulbs – Sometimes, old bulbs can encourage the conditions for diatom algae.

Cure:
Time – Allow it to use up the excess silica, and it will often disappear on its own.
Manual removal – Siphon/scrape diatoms manually for quick removal.
Algae Crew – Otocinclus and Nerite snails are fantastic at clearing a tank of diatoms. They help with other sorts of algae as well.

sos

Thanks for the headsup.

I'm doing ~25% WC per day since its new and remove detritus whenever it appears (reason why I use white gravel).

Been there done that, I even had a ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH tester and everything was normal

Yes, done both the salt and Melafix. Btw, don't get melafix doesn't do anything, in fact it might make it worse lol. It's basically tea tree oil.

How come?

I see my colleague keep them in jars for years also no problem

kytz: It happened to most of my halfmoon bettas. If not fin rot, it's tail biting. I kept them in these 2 gallons plastic containers. I think they were stressed out because like you, I did everything I could, alternate day WC. I bought them all nice and in a few weeks their tails were frayed. So I borrowed my mom's big ceramic containers, about 6 gallons or so, put some ketapang leaves, plenty of floating plants and released them in their respective containers. The next day they were flaring, more active, and their appetite improved tremendously. I do only do weekly 50-60 % WC with them in the containers. 2 months after they were first transferred, their fins were restored although a bit lighter coloured, they grew larger and overall healthier.

I do not know if it's the extra space/volume of water, or the ketapang leaves or the darker environment that makes them healthier and happier (I assume they're happy). I bought those long plastic planters, those Baba brands you find in garden nurseries with stoppered holes at the side and bottom to put the newly bought bettas in. They can also hold like 6 gallons of water. The downside to it is that 1. you can't see them only from the top, 2. those things may be awkward if placed indoors. But my bettas and floating plants love them. Maybe you can give them another try then

PS: Another thing i find weird, maybe if anyone care to explain this is that before this I used my filter, just one of those small Panasonic filter you install in the kitchen sink, definitely not RO water. The thing is for my well filtered planted tanks, my fish and shrimps do fine in them but the bettas in unfiltered containers got quite lethargic. Whereas the betta I have upstairs are doing quite well with normal treated tap water. Maybe it's just coincidence? Maybe there's not much trace elements in the filtered water. Anyway, I've stopped using filtered water for all my tanks. Using the filtered water in the first place was just for my own peace of mind in case I forgot to add Prime.

This post has been edited by NiniWahab: Jan 16 2015, 03:22 PM

So youre saying they prefer to be left alone?

Sniper: Not necessarily, some are sociable than others. One of mine comes to the surface and plays with my fingers every time I feed him. Another one is perfectly happy in the original 2 gallon container. By happy, I mean, he is thriving, active and not sick.

Mine was like lethargic like hell in during the first couple days.

Now when I feed him dried bloodworm, the fella will jump to grab it.

I'm asking cos not sure if I should interact with him so much or not.

They do love their bloodworms Bettas are quite intelligent. It's good that you interact with yours. He'll soon be following your movement the moment you enter the room. Another good reason to put floating plant in your tank is to discourage the betta from jumping out of the tank. They can jump. Mine aren't good jumpers (so far) so I don't have to put a lid on the containers

guys, usually cost how much for a green neon tetra now? My LFS can order for me but cost RM3 per tail. little off topic though, just want to know the rate

Hi, could i get some help identifying these mosses from my friends aquarium? Theres actually 3 different types there.

Thanks heaps

This post has been edited by potatocake: Jan 23 2015, 01:32 PM


Attached thumbnail(s)

Pelia, subwassertang and riccia.

Might be wrong.

Thank you

Hi, anyone here DIY their planted light using LED? where to buy color temp 10k LED here? can anyone suggest to me?

Hi all sifu. Wanna ask about lighting for 2ft 60cm with 120litre . which lighting should I go for ? Led ? T5 ? pL?II'm so confuse. Just started planted tank.