help me in deciding my new community tank..

[Bettafan]

After realising(and saving up the money for a new tank) my betta was to cramed for his 1g tank and the live plants and snail, i found a 10g tank with everything include(hood with incandesent lights, flakes, water treatment, bacteria for maturing water quickly, heater,and net) i got exited and set it up and let it cycle for 3 hrs. (not realizing from the exitement it was to soon) I proceeded to put my betta in with out proper procedures and as assumed it passed. I have gotten a new yellow HM betta from petsmart (only 6.99) and have it in the 10g aquarium along with my snail and soon to be changed live plants (as they are also dying from idk what)... i got the new tank because i wanted to have a betta community tank in my dorm(no more than 10g).. now that i have everything set and ready i was planing to stock my tank but i have heard to many thing and would like to know how many of what can i put in along with my snail and betta...I have in mind the following fish
-Neon tertras
-White cloud
-Zebra danio
i want to know how many can i put in along with the betta in my new 10 g tank as well as how often can i put the (how much time till i can put them) on 9-26-11 will be 2 weeks of the tank being set with my betta
plz help since yahoo could not

[ZenosX]

I'm not an expert on aquariums, but i would suggest putting in your new plants and letting it cycle for a couple more weeks before adding more fish. As to what you can put in there it depends on what the sex of your betta is. Don't quote me on this but im pretty sure male betta dont get along with any other kind of fish. Especially in such a small space. As far as a female betta goes, it depends on her personality. Some kill other fish, some don't. I have heard neon tetras get along with most female betta. You only have room for one of those kinds of fish, if that.

[Kehy]

It's more the personality of the betta, rather than the sex. There are apparently some incredibly easygoing male bettas and apparently some bloodthirsty females. That being said, get to know your fish before you try anything. If you have an aggressive betta, it would take a pretty large tank for anything else to avoid him. That being said, it is possible to have tankmakes in a 10 gallon.

Don't go for flashy, nippy, your hyperactive fish like guppies or danios, and especially not tiger barbs. White clouds and neons are what I'm guessing would be the best bet, IF your tank is properly cycled, which can take about 3-8 weeks. (Please read up on that if you haven't already.) Neons can be a bit fragile, which is why I emphasize the cycling first, and cycling can be hard on all fish. For the time being, I suggest letting your tank cycle with just the betta, and make any changes to the plants before you add any other fish. Take the time to read up on bettas and any other fish you might consider. Learn first, experiment second.

Oh, and good luck with your tank

[Bettafan]

I have read alot on it (to the point my friends call me obssesed) and i did find that betta can be with fish... thank you for the cycling tip i did not know that thats why i was waiting two week i used Nutrafin cycle to help establich essensial bacteria in my tank and a dechlorinizer to get the chemical ballanced. thank you for telling me about the plants i did not know that. so the fish should go afterwards.....my main concern is the stocking i dont know how to do that how many whitecloud and tertas can i put in...

[majerah1]

What type of plants do you have?Some plants require higher light,a plant specific substrate and CO2 injected.

For tank mates,neons will fare well with most bettas,but you need to have a good filter.I really dont suggest anything more for a ten gallon,I consider them quarantine and breeder tanks,lol.You dont want nippy fishes,as a halfmoons finnage will weigh him down and he could be bullied.but for how many neons,you can do about five,seven if the tank is heavily planted and over filteredbut absolutly no more than that.

however,if you plant pretty well,and have a good filter the neons will do ok,ONCE the tank is cycled.White clouds are great fishes but they need more room(trust me I have a 29 and they are all over it,lol)and they are cold water so they would not really fare well with a betta.The betta and neons will do great in about 84 degrees while the whiteclouds shouldnt be above 75.

Also,I am not sure if you have experience with halfmoons,but be aware some have tailbiting issues and are prone to finrot so keep the water nice and clean.The neons should keep him occupied enough to not bite but just be on the lookout for it.Also this is why I suggested live plants as it will help keep him happier and healthier.

[Bettafan]

yeha the pants are new right now i have the ones from my 1g tank but they are getting acclimated to the new tank and lok a little sluggish and are short do to the little room the had in my 1 g tank(where they looked huge) but yeah i was aware of the tail bitting... im supposed to go shoping for plants on the 9-26-11 2-3 buying bunched anacharis, 1-2 vals to mix with my plastic one, some small swords and an amazon that is said to be ancorh ontop of the substrate as well as plant food... ty for the advice in fo the fish im getting tetras people keep telling me that they would be over stocked in my 10g tank with 6-7 and the betta, so i was leaning on white cloud but yeah they were cold water my 10g stays at a 78-79 degrees with the heater on its not to hot not to cold and my room is at 75 so it cant get lower... yeah i have ton of test strips for the water cuality and a local pet store does it for free in case i run out.... so just to be streight 6-7 neons are good with the mentioned plants betta and mystery snail(might get rid of an buy a cherry shrimp)

[majerah1]

The shrimp will most likely be food,so I would not add any of those.Also,you didnt mention the filter you are using?Thats very important,because depending on it,you will indeed be overstocked,even with the plants.The plants will just help keep things in safe levels and the fish a place to hide.The filter however is what holds the bacteria used to convert the ammonia.If the filter is too small it cannot handle the fish load.

[Bettafan]

the filter is a Marina slim filter s15 power filter with 3 filter pads thats my filter is that of... and for the plants should i add sand to my gravel or more gravel i have an inch or so of gravel for the plants... what can i use as a cleaner i dont want an algea eater they are bad and get to big and dont clean to well and ad to much bioload... what is recomended for a ten g tank cleaner if not shrimp

[majerah1]

Snails could function as a cleaner,but only the one will fit.

The filter would work,but I suggest only five neons as its still pushing the limit.you will have to keep up on weekly changes so be sure to remember that.When cleaning it,rinse the filter pads in old tank water you are removing(just swish it around to get the loose stuff off)and put it back in.After a few weeks the carbon should be changed.This will keep the fish happy.

As for the substrate,you can add a little sand but remember the more substrate you add the more water is displaced so this will take your gallonage down a little.An inch is usually ok for some plants but things like deep rooters such as amazon swords will want a little more.Thats not saying it wont grow but it will grow slower.I would add no more than a half inch of the sand.

[Bettafan]

ok so five neons, snail, the plants and around 1/2 in on the plants would be best.. along side the constant weekly 10% to 20% water changes and cleaning the filter constantly in old tank water, thank you so much for your hel u have been the only one to answere it all like i asked...also what type of light would be good( i have incandesent 20wat x2 but it heats the tank too much)