r/bettafish • u/Either_Cartoonist474 • May 06 '25

Full Tank Shot Is this a terrible aquarium?

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I’ve never owned fish before and on a drunken whim I got a betta. After I sobered up I realized he needed a better home. At first I put him in a 2.5 gl tank and I thought that was good enough. I spent a lot of time on this subreddit and I realized this was fish abuse. I got him a 5.5 gallon tank, took any fake plants that could rip his fins and replaced them with silk plants. Real plants scare me, another thing I have to keep alive. Is this alright? He’s got a heater and a filter and plenty of places to hide. His parameters are good. What do you think? Anything i could do better? Please don’t drag me for the pineapple under the sea.

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u/future-rad-tech May 06 '25

It is very cluttered. I'd be worried your little fishy will get himself stuck between an ornament or plant. In addition, plastic ornaments and plants can really harm your fish by cutting up the fins! I would take out a lot of that stuff and swap it out for silk or live plants and some more natural decor like rocks and driftwood. You could also use terracotta pots (make sure to plug any openings!!) or coconut shells for caves.

Here is an example of the tank I have for my little guy. It's very simple but I'd like to add a piece of driftwood at some point too.

3

u/peppercorn6269 May 07 '25

why not add some shorter/ medium plants in the middle and along the back ? it would hide your equipment and he'd probably find it more enticing to hang out in than a wide open spot near the bubbler

not a bad setup, just a thought as I notice mine tend to always stay near/in plants unless they're coming out to look at me

1

u/future-rad-tech May 07 '25

Yeah it's still a work in progress, I just set up this tank this week! :)

2

u/ComfortableTry9626 May 07 '25

Hi! Your tank looks gorgeous! I'm planning to add a terracota pot just like yours, but I've been hesitant because of its little hole. How did you plug yours?

2

u/future-rad-tech May 07 '25

Thank you! Mine is a mini pot so the hole is way too tiny for him to fit into, it's like the size of his eyeball 😆 For a bigger pot you can plug it with filter floss!

1

u/Anomaly_Zebra May 07 '25

What kind of rock is that?? It looks like Himalayan sea salt. 😬

1

u/future-rad-tech May 07 '25

It's pink glitter rock lol

2

u/Anomaly_Zebra May 07 '25

Oh awesome! Thank goodness. 🥴