Seriously considering a betta sorority tank, any advice

[Cmike15]

My dad had a goldfish when i was growing up but my first fish were Betta's.

I just read someone did 1 male and 4-5 female Betta's. I guess it might work if personalities mesh but i think i'd start with just females. I've seen so many nice looking ones around me. Years ago they seemed less colorful but some rival the males it seems.

 I'd probably in time want to make it a community tank so i'd pick non fin nippers so no rosy barbs. Has anyone had experience on this or is it better to keep it a Betta only tank? 

So, what size tank would be good for 5 females. Maybe a 20 or a 29? 

 

 

i have an extra HOB filter and a sponge filter that i could transfer over if i need a new tank to jumpstart the nitrogen cycle. i'd do proper testing and add in a lot of java moss with some ground plants not adding fish until it's settled. i think i could add in mystery snails to help keep the cycle going until i add the fish in. 

[Theplatymaster]

On 3/19/2023 at 5:46 PM, Cmike15 said:

So, what size tank would be good for 5 females. Maybe a 20 or a 29? 

theoretically in a 29 you could do 5females, but a dither fish, in a jungle setup with LOTS of sight breaks.

but getting this to work well is very difficult.

 

[Cmike15]

On 3/19/2023 at 5:51 PM, Theplatymaster said:

theoretically in a 29 you could do 5females, but a dither fish, in a jungle setup with LOTS of sight breaks.

but getting this to work well is very difficult.

 

I watched KGTropicals setting up betta tanks. I could rewatch some of those for inspiration and safety tips. 

 

Any suggestions on a dither fish? Most of the fish that can be alone i can think of are related to Bettas so a no go, like a honey gourami which is what i thought of first. 

i could go larger, i have a whole wall that i could put a stand on and the floor underneath has beams in my basement so it should be no problem weight wise. I'm trying to ease into actually doing it but my eagerness to plan it out is fully there. 🙂

[Theplatymaster]

On 3/19/2023 at 7:49 PM, Cmike15 said:

Any suggestions on a dither fish? Most of the fish that can be alone i can think of are related to Bettas so a no go, like a honey gourami which is what i thought of first. 

many options work, i like this article.

 

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/dither-fish?_pos=1&_sid=127153899&_ss=r

personally i am a fan of platies, for their fun behaviors and colors.

[Cmike15]

On 3/19/2023 at 8:00 PM, Theplatymaster said:

 

personally i am a fan of platies, for their fun behaviors and colors.

i'm going to look into platies more. I had some years ago when i was in 5th grade so it would be neat to at least research them more. 

 

I think i will avoid planning to add a male Betta. I should just keep the females. 

[Scapexghost]

I dont watch to much of his stuff but the secret history living inside your aquarium has a vid on mixing bettas and it goes a lot into the science of it, so i would give that a watch. There are a lot of factors that go into whether itll work or not, even the color of the bettas. Most betta sororities fail so do all you can to improve your chances.

[Cmike15]

 

On 3/19/2023 at 8:17 PM, Scapexghost said:

I dont watch to much of his stuff but the secret history living inside your aquarium has a vid on mixing bettas and it goes a lot into the science of it, so i would give that a watch. There are a lot of factors that go into whether itll work or not, even the color of the bettas. Most betta sororities fail so do all you can to improve your chances.

I just dialed in my lights figuring out why my fluval 2.0 wasn't as bright as it was supposed to be. I'm probably aiming for a 29 so i'll buy more plants to have a green aquarium and i'll update with pictures of the tanks growth in Journals. 

I've watched that channel, i'll look into it. It makes sense that not all of them will get along.

Maybe a bigger piece of driftwood in the middle and plants on the sides. i haven't tried swords in years. 

[Flumpweesel]

I think there are easier ways of having a colourful tank this could be pricey and heartbreaking challenge 

I had two female betta and the first month they were fine with each other, then they weren't. I divided the tank until they had healed up and then put one in a community tank, but that took a bit of messing about as the first fish I tried hated being in there and I had to swap them around.

You need a contingency plan in case it all goes wrong. I'm not sure and of these Betta sorority tanks last a long time. The 12 month on vids are certainly a scarcity 

 

[Theplatymaster]

On 3/20/2023 at 4:45 AM, Flumpweesel said:

I think there are easier ways of having a colourful tank this could be pricey and heartbreaking challenge 

i do agree with this.

i get tons of color,personality,and activity out of my platy colony, besides for males chasing each other around, no aggression there.

[Cmike15]

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback. This was me probably fighting off impulse buying by talking it out. I'd like to avoid unnecessary heartbreak. I might end up for the next 3 months getting a few more white cloud minnows when i find some and trying to breed some of them. I think it would be fun to try to raise up some fry again. The store only had two when i went a few months ago and no luck finding more for a while.

 

On 3/20/2023 at 5:52 AM, Theplatymaster said:

i do agree with this.

i get tons of color,personality,and activity out of my platy colony, besides for males chasing each other around, no aggression there.

I fully read your username this morning and i had a good laugh discussing platy's. I have added them to my list of fish that seem interesting. They have nice colors. 

I grew up with a community tank i shared with my brothers, i believe we had swordtails, platy's and eventually a few male guppy's.

 

If i still want a betta in a week i have a cycled 10 gallon i set up last year for green water that now has a few neons. I could put a betta in there. 

[Theplatymaster]

On 3/20/2023 at 8:57 AM, Cmike15 said:

If i still want a betta in a week i have a cycled 10 gallon i set up last year for green water that now has a few neons. I could put a betta in there. 

that would work fine.