# Betta male + Rasbora in a 10g?



## Lefitte (Oct 2, 2013)

I'm thinking of possibly adding some future tankmates for my betta male Kirei. Within the next year, I also plan to get a 20g set up [1 dwarf gourami, 6 black skirt tetras, 6 or so kuhli loaches]. According to AQAdvisor [using it as a base, not a rule], I could stock the 20g with 6 Harlequin Rasbora too, with a 30g filter, but I'm liking the idea of a couple more kuhli instead. However I would still like some rasbora so I've been tossing around the idea of adding them to my 10g betta tank. Here are the parameters currently:

Originally planned to be a temporary tank, then used as a hospital/quarantine tank for the 20g but that's changed so it currently has extremely minimal decor.
Still working on cycle.
Last check before water change on 11-13 using APIs Master Liquid Test Kit.
pH: 7.4
Ammonia: 0.25
Nitrites: 0.25
Nitrates: 40ppm
Temp: 80*
Heater: Yes
Filter: Tetra Whisper EX30
Water changes: After the last testing, I've decided to up the water changes to at least 30% per week. By adding more fish, I'm think 50% per week would be sufficient.
I haven't had the hardness or alkalinity tested for this tank but I hope to test that today. My other betta tank tested at 120 mg/L alkalinity and 150mg/L hardness last time I got it tested. 

My pH is a little high for rasbora who prefer 5.0-7.0 however I do plan to get some driftwood which is supposed to help bring the pH down a little so I'm thinking that might help. I will also be planting the tank fairly well with a few plants that grow fast and that I can later harvest to help fill up my 20g. 

I've had my betta Kirei since October 20 and he's shown no signs of illness and has been settling in really well. He's very active and flares quite a bit. My tank plans will take place over the next year so this is not something that will happen any time soon. I also need a quarantine tank set up and my 10g fully cycled before I can even think about bringing home any new tankmates. I've heard that harlequin rasbora do well as betta tankmates, I'm not sure how he will do with tankmates though as I've never tried it. I plan to have a lot of plants and hiding spots before adding any. I currently have a marimo moss ball in the tank and an Amazon Compacta on quarantine which I'll be adding to that tank instead of replacing it in my 2.5g betta tank where it was before. 

All of the fish I've chosen share similar diets, I haven't figured out exactly what I want to feed them yet but it will be varied between tropical pellets, freezedried [I'd like to move into frozen] bloodworms, and sinking algae wafers. I have to look into the specific diets a little more. 

Would my set up work for a male betta and six harlequin rasbora? If the rasbora end up breeding, would it be okay if the betta ate some of the fry? I'm not looking to purposely breed any fish but I understand that it does happen and harlequin rasbora are hard to sex so it would be hard to tell what genders I was buying. Are there any plants that I could grow to help both species feel comfortable? 

Thanks for the help!


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## Lefitte (Oct 2, 2013)

I got my water tested for hardness and alkalinity tonight.
Hardness: 75 mg/L
Alkalinity: 80 mg/L

Much much lower than my 2.5g tested at before. I'm a little suspicious of the results because of that. Looking at a report for our city's water from 2012, it says we have an average of 270ppm [I use tap exclusively] for Hardness. With a range of 77-380 ppm. Hmmm.


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## Eric Suen (Nov 16, 2013)

Hey there! sounds like you've got yourself an awesome set up! 

I wouldn't be too worried about the rasbora breeding, but if they do, java ferns and african bolbitis ferns are pretty easy to take care of and can provide good cover. You can also look into growing some java moss or other types of moss, those are easy to care for as well.


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## Bombalurina (Oct 10, 2011)

Hey Lefitte - I'd PM Hallyx and ask her to take a peek at this thread. She knows heaps about hardness, pH and what fish can take what.


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## Lefitte (Oct 2, 2013)

I took your suggestion about the pm and I'd also like to clarify a couple things from the first post.

I'm talking about my 10g here which currently houses a single male betta. It has a Tetra Whisper EX20 filter, not 30, that was a typo hah.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Rasboros and Betta can get along as long as your Betta isn't a skittish or nervous type. Double check me in "fishprofiles" on this forum (find it on the forum home page) Freshwater Fish Profiles. Rasboros, like most schooling fish, like to be in schools of _at least_ 6 members. In a 10g with a Betta, that's maxed out. (You'd better hope the Betta eats the fry or you'll wind up with an overstocked setup.) The same can be said for Kuhli loaches. In a 20g, they'd all be fine. That's a good combo. Again, research beyond this post. 

That last water test reading is medium hard medium alkalinity and medium (7.4) pH. Thos other numbers from earlier seem high. You water provider is inconsistent. A KH range of 77-380 is borderline irresponsible. I think that's for the lawyers benefit. Mostly your water sounds fine. It's good you know so much about it. Most don't.

Driftwood and IAL and or peat will reduce your pH somewhat (how much depends on hardness KH). But I wouldn't worry about it. Domestically bred fish are pretty resilient.

What are you using as an ammonia source for your nitrogen cycle? If there are fish in there, I'd suggest that water testing determine your water change interval. For fish-in cycling, it is recommended to do a 50% pwc whenever the ammonia rises >0.25ppm. Same for nitrite. Don't worry about nitrate; if you're changing enough water to attenuate ammonia/nitrite, the nitrate will never be a problem.


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## Lefitte (Oct 2, 2013)

Eric: Thank you! I'm hoping that the rasbora don't breed but those are some of the plants that I'm considering planting anyway. I'm mostly concerned if eating the fry would be okay or not. I can't imagine why they wouldn't be okay to eat, it's natural, but you never know!

Hallyx: My betta who would be their tankmate is definitely not skittish or nervous. He's actually quite hyper and I'm a little concerned about him being too aggressive more than anything. He has a few hiding spots in his sparsely decorated tank, however he likes to try and take on the cats when they pass by instead of hide haha. 

I'm hoping the rasbora do not breed, however, if they do [and they aren't all eaten hah] then I can separate them and hopefully find new homes for them but I wouldn't keep them in that tank, for sure. 

I wouldn't be surprised if my water provider was inconsistent. We've always said that we have hard water so high readings are no surprise to me. I've had PetSmart test my water three times now [I have my own kit but it doesn't do hardness and alkalinity]. Two of the tests read high [I'll have to find the other paper but it was similar] and those two tests came from my first betta's tank. The 10g houses only another betta and that tank read low. Thanks though, I'm trying to do things right especially since my first betta [not the would-be tankmate!] is very sickly so I have to be very careful with him.

For ammonia, I'm using my betta. Not the way I would've liked to do it but well.. I kind of fell in love with him and was lucky that he was still there when I went to get the would-be quarantine tank for the 20g. Instead, that would-be quarantine tank became his new home and I have to get another quarantine tank instead haha. I really should be testing a little more than I am. I've been caught up with daily 100% water changes for my sick boy.

Thanks for all the input everyone!


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

If your Petco uses strips to test hardness, you only have an approximation of what it really is. Just as for ammonia, liquid tests are the more accurate way to test.


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## Lefitte (Oct 2, 2013)

They do use test strips unfortunately. However I have APIs Liquid Test Kit so as long as I do them right (for example, not counting ten drops when I'm supposed to be doing 8 drops... twice!) Its pretty accurate for everything else =)


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