# How many fish in a 6 gallon?



## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

I'm buying a Fluval Edge with a Betta. Can I add like 4-5 neon tetras with it as well?


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## Zefrik (Oct 23, 2011)

That might be a little tight. You could probably do it a little more easily if you got the 12 gallon fluval edge.


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

i wouldn't add the tetras at all with a betta. they get freaked out a lot of times by schooling species, they're really not a community fish. would be different if it were a female betta.

but above poster is right, 6 gallons is too small, and neons will suffer in a group of only four or five.


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## s_s (Feb 15, 2012)

Tetras will need more swim space than that. Maybe Celestial pearl danios if you can find them?


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

s_s said:


> Tetras will need more swim space than that. Maybe Celestial pearl danios if you can find them?


i'd be scared of buying something cool like CPDs only to have them torn to shreds by an aggressive male betta...


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## reignOfFred (Jun 7, 2010)

honestly the way my CPD's get around my 29 gallon I would be very hesitant to put them in a 6 gallon at all, but regardless of that opinion, I would think that their activity in such a closed space would stress the betta out. the betta, without a doubt, would be much happier not having to share such a limited amount of space with other fish.


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

reignOfFred said:


> honestly the way my CPD's get around my 29 gallon I would be very hesitant to put them in a 6 gallon at all, but regardless of that opinion, I would think that their activity in such a closed space would stress the betta out. the betta, without a doubt, would be much happier not having to share such a limited amount of space with other fish.


couldn't have said it better myself...
if you NEED tankmates, then i'd first test the betta with some ghost shrimp or possibly RCS if you have them available cheap to see if it's aggressive, and then maybe you could move to like...yellow neos or something slightly more expensive/eye-pleasing (not that cherries aren't great).


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## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

Really? So I'm going to buy an expensive beautiful fishtank and only be able to have 1 fish in there? I don't want any disgusting snails crawling around. Giving a betta an entire 6 gallons to himself, he'll be bored out of his mind!


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## wendyjo (Feb 20, 2009)

Why would he be bored? He'll have a nice large are to patrol and will probably be very happy. 

It may be an expensive tank, but it's not large enough for what you want to do.


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## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

Would a heater be necessary for the Edge? Betta's are cold-blooded so why would they need warm water. It's 82 degrees in my room at the moment- do I still need one?


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## mmccarthy781 (Jul 7, 2011)

Ideally you should have a heater. Cold blooded means that the organism can't maintain their own body temperature and depends on the environment for warmth, it isn't related to the ideal temperature for the species. Bettas are tropical fish and need warm water.


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

Masterbetta said:


> Would a heater be necessary for the Edge? Betta's are cold-blooded so why would they need warm water. It's 82 degrees in my room at the moment- do I still need one?


i think you're really confused about what "cold-blooded" means. it doesn't mean their blood is cold, it means that their body temperature is determined by their surroundings. their blood needs to be warm just like ours, they're tropical fish. it might be 82 degrees in your room right now, but it won't always be, will it? when it gets cooler, you'll need one. right now, probably not so much.

incidentally, about the betta being "lonely"...they're solitary fish, even in the wild. they don't socialize except for killing each other and mating (which sometimes includes killing each other); they're perfectly happy by themselves. probably more-so than having to share with tankmates.


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## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

Sharks are also cold-blooded and live in the freezing ocean. 

My only concern about the tank is Betta's need to come up for air and this tank is filled to the brim with a small opening at the top.


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## aznartist34 (Nov 19, 2010)

Certain species of sharks evolve to survive their environment, such as cooler waters. Betas are from tropical waters so they require warm water. Your cold blooded thinking is right out wrong


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

Masterbetta said:


> Sharks are also cold-blooded and live in the freezing ocean.
> 
> My only concern about the tank is Betta's need to come up for air and this tank is filled to the brim with a small opening at the top.


so are rattlesnakes, sidewinders, leopard geckos, gila monsters and many other lizard and snake species that live in deserts and would die if you put them in cold places. 

it doesn't HAVE to be filled to the brim, does it? why not leave a half inch or so unfilled?


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## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

The unique aspect of the tank is that you can see the fish and view it from all angles as if you were underwater. Hopefully my Betta is smart enough to find the opening. 

One last thing, the tank comes with a small bottle of "beneficial bacteria." So if I dump it in the water and wait for a while it'll eventually be cycled and I can put fish in? Can I also borrow a cup of dirty water from a friend's established tank and pour that in instead?


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## reignOfFred (Jun 7, 2010)

Betta, like most fish, are somewhat adaptable and have a reasonable tolerance range. the tank does not HAVE to be 82, and a betta will do well at 75 too.

But a heater is about more than heating the tank, it is also about providing stability. While a fish can handle a range of temperatures, a constantly fluctuating temperature will certainly affect the fish. After all you have invested already, spending a bit more on a heater is a safe and worthwhile addition to the setup. If you leave out a bowl of water, what is the temp of it in the morning? Midday? Night? Winter, if you have one? A/C? maybe you really do not need a heater, but take it all into consideration at least.

And really, you can't compare vastly different species just because they are both cold blooded. I am warm blooded. So is a polar bear. how long will I last lying in the arctic snow?


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## reignOfFred (Jun 7, 2010)

The bacteria booster works with ammonia - if you just dump it in and let it sit, nothing will happen. the idea is to add the bacteria and fish together so the bacteria has something to feed on. these products are actually nitrobacters, not bacteria - they merely promote bacteria growth but the tank still needs to cycle.

Adding dirty water doesn't accomplish anything worthwhile, as bacteria adheres to surfaces in the tank, like filter media and gravel rather than being free-floating. Now, if you were to put some of your friends filter media into your own filter, it would make a huge difference because then you would literally be adding healthy living bacteria directly, and with just a betta in the tank would likely cycle it practically instantly.


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## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

reignOfFred said:


> The bacteria booster works with ammonia - if you just dump it in and let it sit, nothing will happen. the idea is to add the bacteria and fish together so the bacteria has something to feed on. these products are actually nitrobacters, not bacteria - they merely promote bacteria growth but the tank still needs to cycle.
> 
> Adding dirty water doesn't accomplish anything worthwhile, as bacteria adheres to surfaces in the tank, like filter media and gravel rather than being free-floating. Now, if you were to put some of your friends filter media into your own filter, it would make a huge difference because then you would literally be adding healthy living bacteria directly, and with just a betta in the tank would likely cycle it practically instantly.


Oh, so take the water from my friend's filter and pour it into my own filter and it will instantly be cycled? Sweet. I watched this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9E21dIdJLbs&feature=related
and the dude just straight up poured it into the other tank.


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

Masterbetta said:


> Oh, so take the water from my friend's filter and pour it into my own filter and it will instantly be cycled? Sweet. I watched this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9E21dIdJLbs&feature=related
> and the dude just straight up poured it into the other tank.


well...no. beneficial bacteria doesn't really live in the water. it's mostly on the surfaces in the tank. if you don't have the betta now, you should do a fishless cycle...search it on this forum.

EDIT: the person you quoted said filter *media*, not filter *water*. the media is the stuff you put in the filter, like a sponge or filter floss or bio-balls. that's where a lot of the bacteria lives, as well as on the gravel. there's also no guarantee that the tank will be INSTANTLY cycled by this method, but it should be at least partially cycled. don't do this until you have the betta or can feed the tank (a pinch of fish food a day works) to get ammonia in there, or the bacteria will die and your efforts will be for naught.


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## s_s (Feb 15, 2012)

Masterbetta said:


> Really? So I'm going to buy an expensive beautiful fishtank and only be able to have 1 fish in there?


Dude, this isn't furniture. If you're not looking for a hobby, go buy one of those freaking waterfall paintings you can find in Chinese restaurants and call it a day. 

The amount of contempt you continue to pour on our hobby is unflattering.


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## CatB (Jan 29, 2012)

s_s said:


> Dude, this isn't furniture. If you're not looking for a hobby, go buy one of those freaking waterfall paintings you can find in Chinese restaurants and call it a day.
> 
> The amount of contempt you continue to pour on our hobby is unflattering.


good call. these are living creatures, i mean...how would you like it if a giant took you and put you in a closet for decoration? and then he was like "you mean i can only have one? no, i want five more!" and then you had five other people in the same closet with you? not fun, right? same concept.


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## Zefrik (Oct 23, 2011)

I really think this masterbetta is just a troll. How many of these threads has he posted now that seem to go know where. Really I am almost starting to wonder if he is just trying to get people going. I would just stop even replying to his threads. I am sorry but from what I have seen so far I don't feel as though masterbetta is being serious. I mean his name kind of seems to give it away as well.


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## wendyjo (Feb 20, 2009)

I've heard bad things about bettas not being able to find the opening to get air in those tanks.

I agree with others - it sounds like you are more interested in the tank than in the fish. Why not just make it a planted tank with no fish? Or a plant and shrimp tank? I don't think you're ready to have any fish - you don't understand what cold blooded means, you don't realize that a betta is a tropical fish that needs warm temps, you don't know what cycling a tank means or how it's done - why do you even want a fish? It's a living creature, you know - not just a decoration to make your room look cool.


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## Masterbetta (May 10, 2012)

Zefrik said:


> I really think this masterbetta is just a troll. How many of these threads has he posted now that seem to go know where. Really I am almost starting to wonder if he is just trying to get people going. I would just stop even replying to his threads. I am sorry but from what I have seen so far I don't feel as though masterbetta is being serious. I mean his name kind of seems to give it away as well.


Hey, I'm learning okay? If I didn't care about the fish I would've bought the 1.5 gallon I was eyeing a few weeks ago and threw him in there, but instead I'm spending all this money on a 6 gallon + food/equipment so he can be happy. That's why I'm researching and asking for help- otherwise I wouldn't even bother coming on here. Is it so wrong to ask questions, I thought that's what this forum was for; sharing knowledge with people with the same hobby. And about the name, it's just a play-on-words. It's funny, have a sense of humor.

ANYWAYS, the person in the video squeezed the water from the filter sponge into a cup and poured it directly into the water of the new tank. Now if I soaked my sponge with water from my friends' dad's sponge and placed it into my filter, throw in a few betta pellets and some bacteria booster, will it eventually cycle?


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## wendyjo (Feb 20, 2009)

He was squeezing out the bacteria - the goop in the filter sponge - not really the water. That's known as "filter squeezings". You don't care about the water per se, you want the concentrated brown goopy stuff that you can squeeze out the filter. 

Then yes, if you have a source of ammonia, it will cycle. You'll need to continue to add ammonia of some sort (pure ammonia, or food which will produce ammonia as it breaks down) until it cycles. You'll need a drop test kit for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate in order to determine when the cycle has completed.


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## reignOfFred (Jun 7, 2010)

Not as effective as actually using the media, but will help to some degree.



> will it eventually cycle?


With a source of ammonia a tank will cycle even if you add nothing else at all - it is a question of how quickly you want it done.


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## fusiongt (Nov 7, 2011)

Less is more in this case... I rather have 1 fish with enough room to swim rather than 6 fishes without enough room. Go with 1 beta


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## shinycard255 (Sep 15, 2011)

Zefrik said:


> I really think this masterbetta is just a troll. How many of these threads has he posted now that seem to go know where. Really I am almost starting to wonder if he is just trying to get people going. I would just stop even replying to his threads. I am sorry but from what I have seen so far I don't feel as though masterbetta is being serious. I mean his name kind of seems to give it away as well.


+1 to a troll

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