-things i learned about fishkeeping in five years-
fish tanks are an ecosystem: whether or not you know how to do a water test, diagnose an illness, or even how to start a tank, there are six basic fundamentals that are needed to have a self sustaining fish tank: plants, oxygen, co2, lighting, beneficial bacteria, and nutrients. without a balance of these, the tank can easily become algae ridden, have ammonia spikes, or wilt the plants. one thing that really helped me achieve this balance was floating plants and plant cuttings that took nutrients out of the water, but didn't take out co2 that the aquatic plants needed.
trying again is okay: a lot of times over the past few years since i was inexperienced, i would make a mistake that caused too much algae or caused my plants to wilt. all it took sometimes was some patience and water changes to deal with the effects.
add in things slowly: ammonia spikes are no joke. if you're going to add in animals, make sure to add smaller things, like snails, to start getting nutrients into the plants and the tank established. adding a betta, corys, snails, otos, etc. at once will cause things to die off or get sick. as well as this, taking the time to quarantine fish is a musttttt. no sickness should get into your already established tank, and you can also examine your fish better this way for any injuries, sickness, etc.
more substrate!!: in my experience, adding more substrate than you would think to (about three to five inches) helps keep nutrients in it and allow beneficial bacteria to thrive. it allows your plants to be easily planted (especially stems!!) and grow large root systems that take in sooooo much nutrients. i learned this from MD Fish Tanks on youtube!! his videos are extremely entertaining and educational for anyone looking to get into the hobby.
be careful with co2 booster...: this was my biggest oopsie. even putting the recommended amount, my tank was in shambles. too much algae and caused from fin rot in a previous betta. i wouldn't ever use this product again, especially not on a 10 gallon tank. i'd do more research if you need to get co2 added into the tank. i think properly putting it in instead of using chemicals would be the way to go.
be mindful of where you get your fish: fish stores can be iffy with certain species of fish, specifically chain stores. if you buy from petco or petsmart, be prepared to have genetically bad fish or sick fish. i've personally found that certain colors/types of bettas are more prone to specific things. i'd recommend getting short finned bettas if possible from a local fish store. that really goes for any type of fish. fish that are bred for extreme cosmetics typically don't do as well.
don't smother your tank: i've personally found that the more i touch in my tank and move things around or do constant water changes, the worse. it's much better to try to get everything to balance and keep an eye on it for anything wrong. i really only look at either of my tanks to watch my fish and make sure they're alright. i rarely mess with plants.
filters aren't necessary: i've had filters on my tanks for years and recently took one out of my ten gallon. without this filter, i've been able to have more terrestrial plants, floating plants, shrimp, etc. the key to a no filter tank is many, many plants and a watchful eye. i rarely do water changes on either of my tanks due to the plant:creatures ratio. i really just eyeball this, but someone could probably do the research on that if they desired.
