10g tank question

[Luxavior]

Hello!

Today I have set up a 10gallon tank for one lucky male betta at Petco.

I chose to get my betta at Petco because they have dividers between each betta container, and I have seen a few bubble nests in some of the males' containers.

Anyway!
About my tank.

This is the set-up:


So far there are a total of 7 silk plants in the tank, and I might grab one more to hide the betta hammock for a sense of security and privacy (excluding the view from the side of the tank)

The heater is placed behind the plants on the right back corner.
The low-flow filter is in the back left corner above/behind those plants.
The thermometer is in the front left corner away from the heater.

There are a total of 8.5 gallons of water in this tank.


I was wondering, will one male betta in 8.5 gallons of water produce enough ammonia fast enough to keep beneficial bacteria alive and well?

Or should I consider some tank buddies and additional decoration for hiding?


I bought a bottle of bacteria supplement just in case, thinking that if the betta can't produce enough ammonia fast enough to keep the bacteria alive, I'd just add some to the tank whenever the ammonia gets a little bad.

[ChoclateBetta]

I think it will work an apple snail will look good.

[Luxavior]

How do you care for an apple snail?

Using google images, I don't really like how they look.
They kind of creep me out lol

[LadyVictorian]

Nice setup and it looks like you are from my side of the woods. :D Did you happen to be a petco today? I was there for a while talking to a few people around the betta's.

[Luxavior]

Originally Posted by LadyVictorian

Nice setup and it looks like you are from my side of the woods. :D Did you happen to be a petco today? I was there for a while talking to a few people around the betta's.

Hi!
Nah, I was there Saturday picking up the silk plants though.

Did you see how happy some of the bettas look?
Bubble nests in tiny cramped containers!

[LadyVictorian]

I saw some but I mostly noticed the sick betta's and the dead ones and the babies. D: I picked up a baby not long ago, still mad Petco is allowed to sel them that young. I saw even younger ones today and left the store empty handed because I just started crying. Went to a LFS and got an african dwarf frog named Bilbo Frogins to live with Aquarius my adult betta though. He's settled in pretty quickly. I also ordered a tank from petco online today and a heater for whatever sick fish I may pick up next time i go as a rescue.

[Hallyx]

The bacteria colony will grow to match the demands of whatever is living in the tank. One fish doesn't put out much ammonia, so there will be a small colony. But it will be enough.

That tank will be a long time cycling. But one 50% water change per week should be sufficient. Back that up with tests for ammonia and, eventually, nitrite and nitrate.

You have plenty of time to research and choose tankmates. Betta don't really need them; it's up to you.

Some members here have had some luck advancing their cycle by using all the bacterial supplement at once. See what the directions say, then double it.

That's a really nice looking set-up. I like the way you hid the heater and filter. You might get some floating plants to give your fish some shade and security.

[LadyVictorian]

ADF's are great tank mates for betta's. However they are slow and have to be hand feed otherwise the betta will eat all their food, but once they know you feed them they come to you expecting food. Plus they are cool pets. There is a fungus though that they can get from being kept with african clawed frogs which will kill them and though it does not spread to fish you still might want to keep an eye on your frog for three months or buy from a store that does not sell clawed frogs. When I went to petco they didn't have any clawed frogs only African Dwarf Frogs.