Fluval Spec 2g Planted Betta Tank

[ange062]

Well, time to start up my 3rd tank build thread on plantedtank, though this is finally the first tank I've owned so breaking new ground!!

I've been planning out an epic high-tech ADA cube build and the last tank (a low tech 25g cube) was a good learning piece for that!! On that journey I caught a bug for a betta and haven't been able to kick it, which led me to my 2nd personal tank.

I've got a 28g SPS dominant reef that's been running for over 2-yrs that got me into the hobby. After that built out a 29g planted for my mom thats still runnin strong, and most recently built out the 25g Kessil powered planted cube for a friend. Coming from an SW background the allure has always been bright colored fish and corals. What better substitute than a betta and planted tank!

Ended up going with a Fluval Spec 2g cube (I love cubes btw). Threw in some ADA Amazon substrate, some stones, dwarf hairgrass, and a hand selected (after 2-wks search) crowntail male betta. The lil guy seems totally impressed with his new "large" living quarters.

Here it is not long after setup. Better pics to follow as the tank is still clearing:

[Green_Flash]

Hi, it will look great when the grass grows into a dense carpet. And yes betta's are really awesome fish.

[d2mini]

Cool! And nice Radion over the reef.

[ange062]

Originally Posted by Green_Flash

Hi, it will look great when the grass grows into a dense carpet. And yes betta's are really awesome fish.

Thanks! And yeah, looking forward to some good growth!

Originally Posted by d2mini

Cool! And nice Radion over the reef.

Lol Dennis, I didnt know you were into planted tanks too!

[Smitty06]

I hope you are doing a lot of water changes, or have a bunch of cycled media in the tank because amazonia leeches ammonia like a b****.

[d2mini]

Originally Posted by ange062

Lol Dennis, I didnt know you were into planted tanks too!

LOL, well that remains to be seen. I just started my first planted nano for a Betta over in the Tank Journal section. We'll see how it goes!
And like Smitty says, i have amazonia and have been doing (almost) daily 75% water changes. So far no ammonia is registering.

[ange062]

Careful Dennis, the simple beauty and ease of care on a planted (and low cost relative to SW) becomes very very attractive!! You may end up tearing down that nice new reef of yours...

You found any good FW / planted specialty shops locally? Im so used to my reef ring of shops that I've never really looked. Have found City Pets is pretty good and Houston Aquatics has a nice fish selection (though not very good presentation, lol).

My experience with Amazonia is the same, used it in the 25g cube with no NH3 readings, though I did do daily 50% WC's for 10-days. Will be doing the same with this tank.

[d2mini]

I too have been looking for a decent source. Picked up a couple things at fish gallery today. Most of my other stuff came from city pets and petsmart. Nothing outstanding though. ADG might start bringing in some cool plants for retail sale.
As long as I'm keeping ammonia levels down with water changes, you think the betta will be ok in there? For now he's in a fish bowl.

[ange062]

Originally Posted by d2mini

I too have been looking for a decent source. Picked up a couple things at fish gallery today. Most of my other stuff came from city pets and petsmart. Nothing outstanding though. ADG might start bringing in some cool plants for retail sale.
As long as I'm keeping ammonia levels down with water changes, you think the betta will be ok in there? For now he's in a fish bowl.

Yeah, pretty much the same LFS search results for me... I am going to check out ADG this week though.

And as far as the fish, I dont see how a new tank can be any worse than sitting in an unfiltered bag or cup for weeks at a time. They aren't as sensitive as all the crazy reef fish/corals we are used to dealing with

[ange062]

A better shot of the lil guy, will pull out the real camera once the hairgrass starts to root and spread and there is a little more to show:

[defender.TX]

How does the Betta seem to deal with the flow? When I had a Betta in my Spec he seemed to dislike the flow a lot. I finally bought an extra piece of tubing and cut a few holes in it near the top to slow down the output. He seemed to perk up after that. I've gone back to the stock tubing since I don't have him anymore.

[ange062]

Originally Posted by defender.TX

How does the Betta seem to deal with the flow? When I had a Betta in my Spec he seemed to dislike the flow a lot. I finally bought an extra piece of tubing and cut a few holes in it near the top to slow down the output. He seemed to perk up after that. I've gone back to the stock tubing since I don't have him anymore.

He does seem happier when the pump is off, and when it's on I find he tends to stay in certain areas of the tank that in theory should be the lowest flow or "dead zones". I had been brainstorming on ideas to cut down on the flow, so thanks for the idea

[d2mini]

Hey angelo, what are you feeding this guy? I just have some of those hikari betta pellets but would like to find something better.

For cutting down the flow on my tank, i had a little ball valve laying around in a box from a little Rio pump. I used a small piece of clear tubing to attach it to the output coming out of my tank's filter box. You can clearly see it in my pics... big and ugly. lol

[Jello]

That's a beautiful betta! Where did you find him? I've only seen Betta's like that from shops in Thailand...

[Jaguar]

Stuff some filter floss behind the overflow grate... it helps lessen the flow, plus it helps stop your betta's fins from getting sucked in and torn. Mine LOVES to rest against the grate