Hello! I'm not exactly a beginner, as I've been keeping fish on/off for many years but I'm getting back into the hobby. Right now I have a 5.5g tank with 1 male Betta Splendens, and 2 GloFish Danios. The tank is currently cycling. I also have 2 java fern plants (I /think/ that's what they are) and 6 lucky bamboo stalks. This is my first time doing a live planted tank, and I'm very excited about. The Betta seems very happy, but the danios seem bored or lonely. I know they're schooling fish, and have had success with them in a small tank previously. Would it be a good idea to add a couple more danios, or should I try something like black tetras or rasboras? The light on the tank is a white LED light, and I was wondering what other kind of live plants I could put in there. I also plan on getting some driftwood and large rocks. Attached is my setup.
5 Gallon Live Aquarium
- Thread starter NullEntropy
- Start date
Welcome aboard!
I personally wouldn't put more than a single male betta in a 5g tank. I would think that danios would be happier in a group larger than two, but because of such a small tank, wouldn't add anymore.
Honestly, I'd re-home the 2 glowfish and keep the betta. What do you have for lighting in your tank given you want it to be planted? Proper lighting is just part of the fun...
I personally wouldn't put more than a single male betta in a 5g tank. I would think that danios would be happier in a group larger than two, but because of such a small tank, wouldn't add anymore.
Honestly, I'd re-home the 2 glowfish and keep the betta. What do you have for lighting in your tank given you want it to be planted? Proper lighting is just part of the fun...
Thanks for the welcome! I did end up taking the Danios back, and I ended up with 6 Neon Tetras (One black Neon and 5 Normal) as well as 2 ghost shrimp. I am not sure what kind of lighting to get for the plants. Right now I just have crappy LED lights and I know that won't work well. What do you suggest?
I love LED lighting for lighting up the tank, but to get an LED fixture that will support plants is a different animal. There's a bunch of factors such as enough of a PAR level and proper color-temperature range.
You could get a glass versa-top and top it with this fixture fitted with a ~10watt, 6500K compact fluorescent lamp: Amazon.com: Perfect-A-Strip Incandescent Light, Black, 12 1/2": Pet Supplies. Problem is, versa top, strip light and lamp, you're talking like $60+ total.
You could also use clip on and desk lamps fitted with a 6500K plant CFL. Something like these.. you can get them at home/hardware stores: http://i21.geccdn.net/site/images/n-picgroup/BYP_SL-310B4.jpg
'Course you could always go natural, relying on lighting from a window + low light plants like Java Fern.
You could get a glass versa-top and top it with this fixture fitted with a ~10watt, 6500K compact fluorescent lamp: Amazon.com: Perfect-A-Strip Incandescent Light, Black, 12 1/2": Pet Supplies. Problem is, versa top, strip light and lamp, you're talking like $60+ total.
You could also use clip on and desk lamps fitted with a 6500K plant CFL. Something like these.. you can get them at home/hardware stores: http://i21.geccdn.net/site/images/n-picgroup/BYP_SL-310B4.jpg
'Course you could always go natural, relying on lighting from a window + low light plants like Java Fern.
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We pretty much keep the blinds closed because of not wanting neighbors looking in, and so it'd be difficult to use natural light. I could do a versatop and then a regular light fixture with a CFL, right? The plants I have right now are Java Fern, Anubias Nana, Amazon Sword, and Lucky Bamboo (Don't worry, the leaves are not submerged). AFAIK these are all low-light plants, right?