I haven’t kept fish since I was a kid and, in all honesty, I did not care for them well. I want to do things right this time, but I feel pretty lost even after looking through several care guides.
My plan is to have a 5 gallon with live plants (Java ferns and java moss), a filter, heater and a light with a timer. I’m going to run the tank without a fish for at least a month until I get comfortable with caring for the plants.
Is there anything else I need to consider with this plan?
Once I get a betta added, how much more work and time should I expect the fish to add?
Do they need to be fed at the same time every day or can I feed it in the morning if I’m going to be out until late?
I plan to move sometime in the next few years, how difficult would it be to move the fish with me?
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Posted by Top-Feature9570
4 Comments
I have a five gallon and I vacuum and do a one gallon water change every two weeks. I top it off pretty frequently and clean some algae here and there in between. The hardest part was cycling it but now that it’s cycled and the plants are thriving (most, an algea outbreak got my banana plants) it’s just maintenance.
When I had a Betta in there, I fed him whenever I felt like it (daily, though, unless I was away for a day). They don’t eat on a schedule in the wild. 🙂 Now I have some little feeder guppies and I feed them daily as well. Different times a day.
I have (5) 5.5 gallon tanks with one betta in each (and some snails) and they aren’t difficult to manage in my opinion. I have 8 tanks in total (2 10s and a 20) and all of them have Fluval Stratum and live plants, I don’t use any plastics. You have the right idea going with live plants and all that jazz, definitely need a heater, light, and filter (I use both sponge filters and hang on the back) your betta might appreciate the sponge filter more to keep the water flow down.
I would say you can probably handle a water change once every 1-2 weeks or so and topping off the tanks when needed, my advice would be to not overfeed once you get the fish that will help keep it cleaner get some snails if you would like, and don’t do too much to the tank initially, let the betta get used to it and just let it run until you see any sort of problem like a dying plant too much food that might need to be siphoned out, kind of just keep an eye on it and make sure you check your water parameters as well, I’m sure I’m missing some stuff but this sub is great for advice and tips
The bigger the planted tank, the harder to mess up in terms of maintenance, so less work. Think about a 10gal or even a 20
Remember to cycle the tank