# Info Please



## Donovan Streeter (Aug 24, 2015)

My Gran Daughter is wanting to start a little Betta tank, what is the smallest recommended for this endeavor, and what other equip will i need. *c/p*


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## BabyGirl77 (Jul 24, 2015)

A 5 gallon aquarium is your best bet, as it holds a cycle better than anything smaller. You will need gravel, decorations, heater. You should get the kit, because it will be cheaper than getting all the equipment. Then with the kit all you need to get is the gravel, decorations, and heater. Set it up and let it cycle for a day before putting the betta in it. After a day, put betta in the tank, tank will still be cycling, but the betta will be fine. You just will have to watch the water parameters so they don't get out of whack and do your water changes as needed to keep ammonia and nitrite in check. Oh get a liquid test kit, it is worth the money. Test your water every few days to make sure the ammonia and nitrite hasn't spiked. I have done this, but I fed my 5.5 gallon tank some bacteria from my other tank and it cycled in 3 weeks. A normal cycle takes about 6-8 weeks. Read up on the nitrogen cycle. No matter what anyone tells you, an aquarium always cycles. When you have 0ppm ammonia and nitrites, check for nitrates, if you have some nitrates, your tank is cycled.

What I did with my 5.5 gallon tank and it cycled in 3 weeks..............
1) set it up, put 3 decorations in it from my 55 gallon tank
2) put water conditioner in it
3) let it run for a day
4) put betta in it
5) let it cycle with betta
6) checked my ammonia and nitrites
7) did one water change
8) checked ammonia, nitrite
9) had 0ppm ammonia and nitrite, checked nitrate
10) had 20ppm nitrate
11) tank cycled

Remember it takes 6-8 weeks for a tank to completely cycle. I did it in 3 weeks because I had some decorations which had some good bacteria still on them. It can be done in less time, but don't do this if you don't have another established tank that you can feed good bacteria to the 5 gallon tank.


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## big b (Jun 28, 2014)

Ok Blue moon lets not over whelm Donovan. I myself think that a 10 gallon is best to start off with, mostly because it has a little bit of room for error. It has a little more bit of room for error then a 5 gallon does and it is more stable. Also I think you should invest in one of these https://www.google.com/shopping/pro...&ved=0CJIBELkkahUKEwiX4Yap_cLHAhUHEJIKHZYYDYU It will make it a whole lot easier determining when the cycle is done.


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