Hey, so I've noticed that a lot of members on here have 10+ bettas and I was wondering how you keep them all. I know each betta should have 5-10 gallons of space which makes it difficult to keep more than a few. A 10 gallon tank costs around $80 once you get the filter, hood, gravel, and decorations which can quickly get expensive when keeping multiple fish.
So how do you guys keep all of your bettas? I doubt you spend over $1000 on cages so there has to be a cheaper way than buying expensive 10 gallon aquariums for each fish. I really love bettas and I want to keep more, but I just can't afford $100 set up per fish.
I keep my long finned males(2) in a 2.5 gallon kritter keepers, they cost me $10 each and I add my live plant clippings to keep their water quality cleaner. My plakat is in a 5 gallon naturally planted tank (NPT) where I don't have a filter. And finally I have a 10 gallon sorority where my 5 girls live in sustainable dissonance; they pick on each other but don't do anything harmful.
My 5 gallon cost me $30 and my 10 gallon costed me $33. Substrate is soil with sand cap so it only cost me $6 for all the tanks. The plants costed me roughly $200 but with each plant they continually grow so I get free plants for each tank and the tanks I plan on getting!
I've spent about $500 total on my fish equipment and most are self sustaining. With a water change every week and paying for electricity for the heaters it is a very minimal cost each month.
I keep two of my males in a divided ten gallon, one in a 5.5 and right now, I've got a rescued female in my hospital tank. If I end up keeping her instead of adopting her out as planned (because I get attached), I'll buy a 20 gallon and divide it 4 ways.
The ten I got during Petco's $ per gallon sale so 10$, the hood was 35$ and the divider was homemade. The 5.5 I got on sale from petsmart for 30$ as a kit. Everything but my live plants was bought on sale. I think I've spent... 300$ all told, not including my fishfaces.
Mine lives in a 2.5 gallon with plants out the ears. He seems to enjoy swimming: through, around, and behind all the plants and gets his exercise when I pull the card between him and his Veil Tail neighbor (Different tanks side by side).
You can keep him in anything larger than 1 gallon. Just make sure you know how often to change the water, it's different for different sized tanks. I find it's easier to divide a 10 gallon tank if you have the space. I have 4 of them. I didn't buy everything all at once. I got the tank, the fish and the heater the first day (oh and some water conditioner and food.) The next week I got a plant, a few caves and a filter.
Now that I think about it, they are expensive but if you just space out what you buy with each paycheck, then you really don't notice how much you spend on the little boogers.
You can keep him in anything larger than 1 gallon. Just make sure you know how often to change the water, it's different for different sized tanks. I find it's easier to divide a 10 gallon tank if you have the space. I have 4 of them. I didn't buy everything all at once. I got the tank, the fish and the heater the first day (oh and some water conditioner and food.) The next week I got a plant, a few caves and a filter.
Now that I think about it, they are expensive but if you just space out what you buy with each paycheck, then you really don't notice how much you spend on the little boogers.
True.
Plus, you can always buy real plants and then, as they grow, sell the cuttings to other fish people :) Makes a little bit of the money back that you spent, anyway!
Check out the eBook Betta Fish Care Made Easy
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