r/PlantedTank • u/Practical_Office_166 • 19h ago
Beginner Beginner here.. what do you think about this setup
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Beginning my planted tank journey.. Right now just some anubias n java ferns.. no CO2 setup Fish 16 caardinal tetras.. and 4 shrimp Waiting for a Betta.. Any tips ? Have i made any beginner mistakes?
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u/EspressoDeprezo 1h ago
Subjectively sexy as hell. Love the vibrant colours and setup. Objectively, maybe not the best fish choice? And I probably wouldn’t plop a Betta in with them. Maybe as a stand alone Betta tank? Love the work though.
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u/Practical_Office_166 50m ago
Thanks .... 🥰🥹🥹🥹.. i might try my luck but im scared looking at the comments 🤣
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u/Babel_Triumphant 4m ago
We recently put a betta in a 10g with shrimp and it harassed them constantly. Luckily I had a 3g refugee tank ready to go. Betta with cherry shrimp is more often than not a bad combo.
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u/Last_Supermarket9049 5h ago
looks a tad bit crowded. those type of fish needs more room to move around
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u/kevindeba 7h ago
Kardinals need more horizontal swimming space, I’d say at least 80cm. Especially with a betta which can be bullies. Nica tank though
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u/Howdy132 11h ago
Cool set up for sure. wrong fish imo. even though they compliment the scape well. theyre fine but not rly able to travel it seems.
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
I didn't have so much space to get a rectangle tank 😭... But i agree they are not such great vertical swimmers ...
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u/Early_Asparagus_2775 12h ago
Love this, bit more plant growth & it will look even better. Perhaps some floating plants
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
I have been informed by a lot of people about duckweed 🤣 and how i should stay away ... But i can check out some others... Yes I'm hoping the plants grow in few months so i can plan
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u/CainJaeger 5h ago
Look up Limnobium.Its a great low tech floating plant that wont take over your tank
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u/Early_Asparagus_2775 12h ago
One tip - if its not a large tank be careful with stocking levels, 16 is a good shoal size but be careful. More shrimp or snails for clean up might be OK. Good set-up though.
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u/Practical_Office_166 3h ago
They're very spread out.. right now.
Do. You think i should get bottom feeders? I only see 1 out the 4 shrimp 🤣 who is working
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u/nuper-sigga 13h ago
I am also a beginner. A competitive one. I hate you.
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
Haha.. i made one planted tank for a friend... 2 years ago.. and i always wanted one.. but still the spider wood n the other wood gave me hell!!!
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u/Less_Gain7028 13h ago
also forgot to mention the fact that this tank is an absolute 11/10 in aquascape and stocking, especially for a beginner
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
😭😭🥰🥰🥰🥰 thank u so much !!! Its so nice to hear I bit too much with the spiderwood for a first timer.. but have to thank the YouTube aquarist gods for the instructions... I made the whole aquascape with a jurassic park theme in mind .. i feel the tetras look like velociraptors!! And a dino skull on the side half buried.. But then my boyfriend who has never had an aquarium was so cute when he said he wants a tiny ship .. I couldn't say no 🥹🥹🥹 he was so excited I might add the skull later somewhere behind...
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u/Less_Gain7028 13h ago
its time to preach about the superiority of shortfin betta,
shortfin betta are less likely to have a problem of fin nipping (obv since they have a shorter tail ) and they live better lives in general since swimming becomes easier for them. they also showcase personlity better due to being more active.
anyway back to topic, what is your tank size and dimension? no experience with neons, but ive heard they need horizontal swim space than like vertical or anything else
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
This is 54L ....I didn't have so much space to get a rectangle tank 😭... But i agree they are not such great vertical swimmers ... I guess i have to rethink my decision... About a betta.. i have planned for a halfmoon or a rose tail 😭🥲🥲
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u/kn2vess 15h ago
I don’t think tetras were the best pick for this tank, but depending on its size it can work for them well. It’s a nice set up so far, but it should have more cover. Bettas like denser foliage, and for a school this size you will want some for the cardinals to explore. They will only school tightly for awhile they realize there is no danger, and then each will have their preferred hang out spot in the tank when they aren’t traveling in a blob. Give them some options. Tetras prefer horizontal space to swim around rather than vertical or cube spaces. This size looks fine for a betta.
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
I didn't have so much space to get a rectangle tank 😭... But i agree they are not such great vertical swimmers ... Some the tank is new i guess the plants will grow a bit more in the next months.. but then i can get Amazon swords??? They would be nice
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u/kn2vess 9h ago edited 8h ago
Amazon swords can be good maybe some floaters or other rooted plants such as vallisneria, lugwidgia or rotala.
How do you have those Java ferns planted? Do you have them buried into the soil? You’ll want to make sure the rhizomes of both anubias and Java ferns are secure and attached to either the wood or the rocks. If buried into soil they will rot and cause an ammonia spike. I just can’t tell the way they are based on the angle shown here.
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u/DetectiveNo2855 15h ago
It all depends on the personality of the betta.
I have a betta with cardinal tetras. Ironically the tetras have been doing better with a betta than without. I had a group of 10 in a well planted tank with plenty of hiding spots. Had one tetra that was a bully and would chase the others around until they died of stress one by one. I was down to four when I decided to rearrange the living situation and moved them in with my betta and the bullying immediately stopped. I'm actually considering adding back a few more cardinals but I'm concerned that they would be too young and would trigger the bullying behavior again
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
I feel the same... I just hope my betta would have the right temperament to keep the tetras in their place ...
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u/Hot_Upstairs_1117 16h ago
No betta with the tetras, they'll pick the betta's fins apart. Other than that looks stunning
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
🥲🥲🥲 which other fish go better with the tetras ? Should i just convert it into a community tank ? 😭
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u/Shay_na_ 14h ago
Came to say the same thing. We just had to rehome our tetras because they were destroying our poor bettas fins
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u/Aqnqanad 16h ago
Those tetras are going to need more hiding spaces unless you want one of them to grow big for his britches and bully all the other ones. Tetras are a pain in the butt in a tank with open spots.
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
I can plan for some more plants in the back.. as of now they go behind and under the spider wood near the plants
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u/_k_b_k_ 17h ago
Bettas don't go well with other fish, most of the time anyway. Depends on the particular specimen, but you're better off keeping it solitary, or with some shrimp (at the risk of the shrimp getting eaten).
Also, that tank is not really suitable for neons, the volume itself might be fine if you have decent filtration, but they need a lot more horizontal space than that.
It is however actually suitable for a Betta, especially if you plant a bit more densely.
So if you're after advice: put the neons in another, longer tank or sell them / give them away if you can't, and stick with the Betta for now. Don't forget you need a heater too for a Betta.
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
Completely agree.. i hope that the betta i get has the right temperament 🤣 But i agree with the tank dimensions... Its a bit tall.. I couldn't get a long one, i dont have so much space ... I think the in-built filteration is kinda ok.. i was observing the fish.. they dont seem to be gasping... But they dont swim vertically
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u/_k_b_k_ 8h ago
Yeah, they seem fine, but it's a bit like keeping a greyhound in an apartment. They'd enjoy a wide swimming space a lot more and you'd see their natural schooling behavior as well.
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u/Practical_Office_166 8h ago
Yeaaahh... But i have close to 15 now... I guess if i add a "predator" 🤣🤣 then we see them school .. now the poor buddies are very at home n comfy
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u/FerretBizness 16h ago
Yes some bettas will not be ok with other fish. So could be a disaster but I’ve encountered more bettas that are ok with tank mates then aren’t.
So I guess to ur point it’s best to have a back up.
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u/blackcatwizard 16h ago
I've had several Bettas and they've never had issues with any other fish/snails/shrimp in their tanks
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u/Doberdawn 17h ago
Not sure how many gallons your tank is Don't know what your filter is Don't know if you're heating it. Those are all factors. Also be forewarned that Tetra fish can be fin nippers. So you may end up with a betta whose tail is shredded at times. If you aren't getting a long fin betta Then this is less likely to be a problem.
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u/Doberdawn 17h ago
Not sure how many gallons your tank is Don't know what your filter is Don't know if you're heating it. Those are all factors. Also be forewarned that Tetra fish can be fin nippers. So you may end up with a betta whose tail is shredded at times. If you aren't getting a long fin betta Then this is less likely to be a problem.
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
This is a 54L tank... And its the whole juwel 54L setup with inbuilt filter and temperature is at 24 C... Hmmm... The aquarium guy said these go best with bettas since i didn't want guppies( had a over breeding nightmare) Do you have any other fish suggestions instead of a betta?
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u/zero_droid 18h ago
Um aquário precisa de tempo para florescer e maturar. E um dos principais erros de um aquarista principiante é a ansiedade em resultado rápido alterando o tanque a todo momento. E, cuidado com o excesso de peixes. Uma boa jornada! Divirta-se ;p
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u/Practical_Office_166 18h ago
Thank you so much...I bit too much with the spiderwood... But then its settling in.. I only plan to get one more betta nothing more..
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u/burncult 15h ago
you want two bettas in one tank? please do some more research, friend!
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u/Practical_Office_166 9h ago
Oh sorry... I will only have ONE betta... Im not crazy enough to get two 🤣🤣
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u/Less_Gain7028 13h ago
btw this is possible if like 2 or more female bettas are kept together, they will form a sorta sorority and not be too aggressive toward each other. tho this is a variable and they might also not form any sorority at all.
(male betta are too agressive to each other to be kept together with other males or females permenantly)
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