02/06/13
TotM JUNE 2013
This month's Tank of the Month belongs to Ness Flett.
Inhabitants:- * 1 Male Halfmoon Betta splendens (fighting fish)
How big is your tank?
This little tank is 9 litres.
What equipment are you using (filtration, lighting, heater, CO2 gear etc)?
There is no inbuilt filter with this tank, so regular water changes are a must. Splendens are tropical, so I have a little 25 watt heater in to keep temp at a stable 27 degrees.
The lighting on the tank is minimal, as I have low-light plants, a little T8 is sufficient for good growth.
What aquascaping have you done (gravel, plants, corals, etc)?
I use these little tanks as displays, as there is constant water changes, I have found bare-bottom tanks much easier to deal with. The hardscape consists of river rocks and the small piece of goldvine driftwood creates the shape.
Plants are Javafern, Anubias and Abubias Nana (There is some Anubias Petite in there too).
How much time do you spend maintaining your tank per week?
Around 20 mins weekly to test and change the water, I do 80% changes every weekend.
What is your maintenance routine (water changes, chemical additions etc)?
It’s probably a bit of over-kill but these are my breeding stock so I like to ensure the water is as best it can be, I do a 80% change weekly.
Fighters love Indian Almond Leaf which is has proven anti-bacterial qualities – I use this in every water change (you can add extract) I just place ¼ of a leaf in the little tank.
Along with some Carbonate hardness buffer (7), Dechlorinator, Pinch of aquarium salt, and bettafix if the fish is looking a little poorly.
What do you feed your fish?
As much live food as I can, Live blackworm have the most protein of available foods, failing this I like to have them on frozen or pellet food occasionally.
Tell us some interesting/unique about your tank?
As these tanks are designed for displaying all of my breeding stock, I have really enjoyed scaping each one so they all look healthy and happy. My display tanks are in our lounge room, next to the Television & I have often been caught sitting staring at what looks like the TV turned off – But I love watching them all when I un-card the tanks and see the males flaring at each other.
***
If you'd like to be our next Tank of the Month winner, please email photos or youtube videos with a brief description of your tank, and the species being kept to online@coburgaquarium.com.au. The winner receives a $50 gift voucher that can be spent in-store or on-line. Good luck!