So my girlfriend and I are moving in together, we both have male bettas living in 5.5 gallon tanks. We are going to be getting a 25 gallon and splitting it into two 12.5 gallons for them to live in. I want to look at tankmates for them but I'm not sure what. I am also looking to be planting both sides of the tank. If anyone can be able to give me ideas on suitable tankmates for the size, and what types of plants make for good water please let me know!
That's really sweet that you two will be dividing a tank together. For plants, you're going to want fast-growing plants as they do the most to keep water quality good. Anarcharis and hornwort are great. Floating plants like duckweed and water sprite are great and will provide your fish with shade and cover. Dwarf sword plants will also do well. Anubias and java fern don't grow fast, but their large leaves provide great resting places for bettas. Moss balls are also neat, but they aren't fast-growers; they are mostly just for the novelty. With these plants, you should be able to fill up a your tank.
For tank mates, shrimp or cories would be best. A divided 25 gal isn't going to provide much swimming room for schooling fish like tetra and rasbora.
If I may suggest, a 20 gal long would be a better idea than a 25 gallon. Yes there are less gallons, but a 20 gal long is longer than a 25 gallon and will give your fish more room to move. In a longer tank you will also be able to fit more plants.
I really appreciate the advice on the plants! However we're quite limited on what we can do about the tank. We're purchasing it from a local classified which is coming with a lot of accessories for 50$ which really fits our budget. If I looked at getting another tank from the local stores it'd be too expensive with the additions we're planning as well.
I have some hornwort in my 5.5 right now and he seems to enjoy swimming through it.
Wow. A 25 gal tank for $50? I don't blame you for taking that over going to local stores. Does it come with a filter? Have you looked into cycling your tank?
My tank is cycled, I've had him for a couple months now. Yes it comes with a filter, we also both have filters that we can supplement with, we will be using both of our heaters in the water so that it's not just one doing all the work. But in terms of cycling the new tank, I'll be doing my best to seed it with all the substrate, and ornaments from my current tank. If you have any tips on other ways to seed it with the filter media I'd appreciate it :P
The entire setup is a 25 gal, 31.5" long, 12"deep, 16" high. It has a hood with a built in light. Comes with its own filter and cartridges and some ornaments.
Depending on what the light in the hood is, you might need to get a bulb (they run about $15). In order to get good growth and keep water quality good, you'll need a bulb with the kelvin temperature between 5000 and 7000. The bulb that comes with the hood might be good, but you'll have to check and see. Since money is tight, I would wait and see what you get.
It sounds like you've got seeding down! With enough live plants you might never see a spike in ammonia! If you and your girlfriend have the same type of substrate dump it all in there (and the gunk that comes with it, too). If you don't have the same type of substrate and the appearance matters, take a mesh bag, put your substrate in it, and hang it over the side of the tank for 2 to 3 weeks.
Also, I think I have some really good news for you. I don't think your tank is 25 gallons. I think it's a 29 gallon. The dimensions you gave me match my 29 gallon. Congrats!!
Wow that's great! xD I'm quite happy to hear about that! We both have gravel and we'll be putting the ornaments/substrate from our respective tanks on each of the fishe's respective sides. My betta's quite an aggressive and a bit of a bully, he likes to nip at my fingers and make me think he's going to bite me and won't. The other is a very timid and very piggy fish, if she even goes near the food container he goes nuts.
I'm really happy to hear about it being a 29 gallon, I already have hornwort growing in my 5.5 so I'll be buying some more, and most likely some amazon sword or another broad-leafed plant. Do you think given my dimentions, could you give me an idea of how much I could plant the tank with certain combinations?
Amazon sword might get a bit big for a 29 gal (especially one on each side). A dwarf sword would work, tho. I've seen pictures of regular swords getting so large they block out light to the plants below. Just google them. The root systems on those things are HUGE!
For aquascaping recommendations, basically you want short plants like anubias and carpet plants like crypts in the front and taller plants like anarcharis, hornwort, and pennywort in the back. This gives your tank the appearance of depth. A piece of driftwood would also be an interesting addition. You'll probably be able to fit between 5 and 7 species of plants in your tank. I only do really easy plants like anubias and swords. There are a lot of other (but more sensitive) species of plants you can experiment with. OFL and Mo are very experienced with plants. I'm just a fish person
Okay! I thank you for your information! Another question I'd like to ask is how should I go dividing the tank? I've never done it before so I am very confused on how to do it.
Craft mesh and report binders siliconed to the tank is how most people on here do it I believe. There should be a sticky somewhere.
For plants replace the bulb, you can't actually tell of a bulb is giving out the proper light for plants if it is used, new you know it is good. Good plants for you would be anarcharis, ludwigia, rotala, wisteria, Crypts, Anubias, java fern, and for a broad leaded plant most hygrophilas work awesome. I forgot the name, I have it written done, but some leaves get around 2 inches across while others grow a tad smaller.
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