10g tank decoration ideas

[autumm]

I agree w/dougall. IME elodea isn't an easy plant in most tropical tanks. There are a couple kinds, most prefer cool temps. Dying plants can cause water quality problems...& those can cause fish problems...especially in very small tanks, there isn't much "wiggle room"...

As for Japanese style, look up Amano "nature" tanks, that may likely be what you mean. They are works of art! But not necessarily for the long term. He (& his many helpers) created amazing aquascapes, there are videos of them setting them up...& of course the many, many finished products, Wow! These are not really what most of us can do but we can use some of his ideas about perspective, etc. His big thing is trying to recreate a slice of nature; a mountain top, a forest stream bed, etc. RIP Amano! He gave us a new way of thinking about our tanks.

I'm not really a fan of the little white river path of sand to nowhere...it's hard to make it look natural, & more importantly, to stay looking that way for too very long if you are cleaning your tank like I think we should...& you'll only have a 10g right? Hard to have room to do all Amano did in much larger tanks. Start smaller with your goals or just try to grow some plants & fish...& worry about fine tuning it into a "perfect scape"...There is no perfect scape!!! Just Amano-worthy?!?! You need to get photo moment...I want my tanks to look OK, more often, with less work, most of the time...

Yes, I'm lazy! I admit that. I will never have an Amano-worthy tank, that's not 1 of my goals...I want a pretty-ish tank, with plants I can grow without too much effort & fish I find attractive & compatible that I can provide for them without too much work. If they breed it's a bonus...a blessing? ...or maybe a curse...or maybe just snacks?

You need to have realistic objectives. We will help you get there in our different ways.

I'm very happy you have a young betta! You'll have much more time with him than if you got an older but longer finned, larger bodied betta. Younger fish can adapt to water conditions more easily than older fish. They often heal faster from injury. Yes, he may change but that's part of the joy of watching our fish grow up! Embrace the possibilities for him, he's a pretty boy!

im not using sand here, im using aquarium gravel. i was thinking about something different from an amano tank..... i can show you once i get the water changed. i made the mistake of putting my paint set too close and had an accident . currently trying to get my tetras out but they are fast swimmers. im a bit concerned about my betta, i havent been feeding him but he's been crunching on something... i suspect it is either gravelor an aquatic snail shell. it is maybe also (i hope) just food that he doesnt see that drifts down to the bottom. he hasnt been acting up and is still pretty energetic, so i have little reason to believe it isnt the latter.

 

[autumm]

and why does he look like he has swim bladder but in reality he is perfectly fine? he hasnt ben showing any sign of stress.

 

[autumm]

and why does he look like he has swim bladder but in reality he is perfectly fine? he hasnt ben showing any sign of stress.

or have i just been feeding too much and i shouldnt feed him too much brine shrimp tonight?

 

[fishorama]

Yeah, I'm going with you're over reacting a little. Feeding less can be a good thing. No healthy fish will starve in a couple days...or be "cured" in a few days either...Is he eating even a few bites of food? Pooping once in a day or 2 that you can see? I almost never see my fish poo...but I know they do...sigh, It's my dinner time so I'm done talking about fish poo for tonight, lol.

 

[autumm]

my fish will eat anything i feed him (LITERALLY, when i gave him his ping pong ball he tried to eat it first) but i dont see my halfmoon poop, probably because i am away from the tank so much. also why is my tetra not coming up and eating?

 

[dougall]

Bettas will eat snails once they realize they are food.. if the snails are small enough they will crunch the whole thing.

If the acting like he has swim bladder just means he is floating around and not swimming much I would pay attention to water temperature.. it should be high 70s or more.. if it gets too low they get all sorts of lethargic.

 

[autumm]

yeah...

since my heater is in the 10g i have been resorting to the hot water cup method. lol

also why is my tetra so jumpy? does he have ptsd for fish from my betta?

 

[autumm]

Bettas will eat snails once they realize they are food.. if the snails are small enough they will crunch the whole thing.

If the acting like he has swim bladder just means he is floating around and not swimming much I would pay attention to water temperature.. it should be high 70s or more.. if it gets too low they get all sorts of lethargic.

i dont have any snails......they used to live on my elodea and my betta discovered them after the elodea melted. then he ATE the snails.....

 

[fishorama]

After thinking about your betta's "swim bladder" issues...

Could it be he's "swallowing" (while surface breathing) more atmospheric air than he used to? You said he's young, maybe a new different food that sits on the water surface? There are very slow sinking foods that may work for both betta & tetras (tiny pellets?). I can't be more specific as to brands, I mostly keep bottom fish & a few midwater swimmers & have for many years; no surface feeders lately...

I think I said, bettas are 1 of a few fish that can overeat...be aware of that. 2-4 bites of food/day are probably enough unless he's very active. They can get obese...I think partly from boredom, so your ping pong ball idea is a good 1. Did he play with it eventually? Maybe a golf whiffle ball with moss inside? Live plants have micro "goodies" he might like to graze on. I have seen but never tried a floating betta "cave".

 

[autumm]

he is still in a tank by himself because i am worried the tetras may start nipping again. currently he is just resting, but when i first put the ping pong ball in he attacked it. literally. as in tried to bite and eat it.