# Custom Filtration Idea for 5G Betta Tank



## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Hello Everyone,
I have been eyeing out a betta I recently saw, had no intention of keeping one at all, then I saw one recently and want to setup a tank for it 
I have a 5 Gallon tank that I am resealing one corner on, and I was thinking; 
How to make a custom filter with minimal surface agitation (I was going to use an air-driven sponge)
I have some spare glass pieces that I can cut (not professionally..) to silicone inside the tank.

Initial Idea was making a glass box in one corner, top edges above the water line, similar to a hamburg mattenfilter, just with glass sides and foam on the bottom?
Or have one pane slightly lower than water level to allow some minimal water movement?

Seeing as this will be custom, I can do whatever I like  Just looking for other peoples opinions on this.

I know I could just fill it with cycled water, and do a change every 2 days. Although I do prefer filtered tanks 

Here is a picture of the tank I will be using;








The "box" will most likely go into the corner I am resealing. Why make a silicone mess on 2 corners 

Any ideas/thoughts are greatly appreciated,
Thank you 

(This is a precursor to a custom tank build idea I have aswell.......)


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## Reckon (Jul 25, 2012)

Subscribed I was thinking of the same sized tank for a betta as well


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## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

I use an elite mini in my beta tank... its cheap and adjustable flow rate and has a venturi for airation

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Reckon said:


> Subscribed I was thinking of the same sized tank for a betta as well


Hoping for some awesome ideas from the diy gurus here 



Foxtail said:


> I use an elite mini in my beta tank... its cheap and adjustable flow rate and has a venturi for airation


Thanks, I have that same filter aswell.
The problem here I am trying to solve, is that I want minimal surface agitation, while still providing good filtration (and I don't like the vibration that comes from the elite mini - especially in a 5G tank - also annoyed with how often I have to clean it...)

I was thinking an air driven filter, boxed in by glass in the corner, so only the surface water in the box is agitated, to give the betta a large area of calm surface water.

I have one piece of glass that reaches from the bottom of the tank to the surface level, just need to figure out how to design the other panel (ie, how far off the bottom/below the water level to place it)
I would like water to go in from the bottom, out from the top, without the betta being able to get in the box (perhaps some plastic mesh over the bottom and top opening?)


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Took some Mock-Up photos :bigsmile:

This is the idea; (Only with a taller sponge of this same filter)














This is the glass I will be using; (no need to resize )








Here are the mock-up pics;














There is a small gap under the large pane, that will be part of the "intake". I just need to figure out what material to use as a screen for the intake/output. The top will be left open for ease of maintenance.

Just thought of maybe putting a sliding plastic divider (behind the mesh for the output) to adjust flow.... and adjust for evap levels...
What to use for this.....

Also, advice on clamping/holding the glass, and which pane to silicone first, would be greatly appreciated 
(I will not be doing this today..... Maybe tomorrow...)


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

While looking at my divided guppy tank, I realized I was looking at the material I need for a mesh screen  
Need to find some for cheap, without buying the whole kit...

Now to figure out in which order to silicone everything together, and how much of a gap to leave for the short pane of glass. 
I was thinking of large pane first, then small pane, mesh last. Maybe gap size the same for intake/output (1.75" each), or, output just under 50% intake size (1"out/2.5"in), and a 1/16" gap between glass panels.


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## kacairns (Apr 10, 2012)

Just a quick question, forgive me if I'm not understanding as everyone here is sick or on their way to being sick, you may have said it already but I've got the fog of war going on in my head! You want the incoming to be in the bottom and output on top, how do you plan to do this because the water level inside and outside of the corner will be the same height so without some way to drive the water upwards ie a pump you wont be able to push the water up and out.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Tried to draw a diagram of it, one panel will be above the water level, the other will be below. An air driven sponge filter will be inside to drive water upwards, hopefully drawing water through the gap below both panels of glass.


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## kacairns (Apr 10, 2012)

The way I would assume its going to work is you'll be filtering water inside of the chamber more then pulling water from outside of the chamber. Also the air bubbles will be still breaking at the surface and with the panel designed to be below water level will allow that agitation to continue across the top of the water


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

What I didn't put in the diagram, is the fine plastic mesh I was going to put over the intake/output, to stop surface agitation escaping the box. 

I still think this could work, although thinking about it now, maybe the mesh will just prevent it from working properly.

I don't necessarily want high water turnover, or a lot of water movement in/out of the box, I just want some form of biological/mechanical filtration in the tank (without sending a betta spinning like a top), rather than nothing.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I could also add another small air driven sponge sticking out of the intake, to help draw water into the box....


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## kacairns (Apr 10, 2012)

Ya, the only thing I see with the design that might not add up is how to make sure new water is going into the chamber and old water is going out, with the way the design is now I would think a majority of what your sponge filter would be doing is circulating the water within the chamber you've created and less of a drawing in of water from outside of the chamber. Of course I could be wrong!


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

This is part of the experiment, can I still filter with low turnover in an isolated section, or will it defeat the purpose of having the filter. 

So I'll be looking around today to see what I can put in the box other than the sponge filter I had in mind, and thinking about how to make this work...


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## kacairns (Apr 10, 2012)

I would suggest seeing if you can find a small pump/low turn over that can be mounted to the top of the sponge filter and have a outlet line from the pump into the take and then have the glass above water line, that would make it so water would be sucked in from the bottom, in through the sponge filter and then push back into the tank.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Sounds like an idea 
Just to be sure, is this what you mean?


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## dabandit1 (Dec 6, 2010)

I did this for a 10g saltie worked great


















Water enters through screen goes down through media and exits via pump you could do something like that on the end of your tank. Any air or water movement on a tank that small will distrupt the surface so Im not sure what your after there.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

----
Edit: re-read post...
If I remove the outer glass panels from your design, and put the mesh on the bottom gaps, with bio-media against the mesh, and a powerhead on the foam, with glass edges above the water level (instead of the pump pointed out into the tank), I think this will work.
----

I'm trying to minimize the amount of surface movement in the part of the tank the fish will be in, while having enough filtration capacity to only do once a week water changes. 

I was thinking the water coming in through the bottom, bringing in crud with it (will be bare-bottom), and water going back into the tank from the top of one panel of glass, through a fine mesh screen, or, most recently, flooding over one panel of glass back into the tank.


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## kacairns (Apr 10, 2012)

Sploosh said:


> Sounds like an idea
> Just to be sure, is this what you mean?
> View attachment 15044


Yes glass would be higher then water line, the pump would suck the water in through the foam filter and output would be up over the top of the of the glass, then you'd have to figure out how to diffuse the outlet from the pump to accomplish what you want, ie flooding over a piece of glass like you last post mentioned, or setting up a spray bar with holes in it so it would be dispersed through the tank instead of at a single point.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Ok, given it some thought and looked through what I have. My old powerhead with spraybar and adjustable flow still works, I could either set up the spraybar outside the box, or remove it and have water flow over the sides of the box. It does do about 60gph at full though, maybe less.

I think the first thing I will try will be the first idea - air driven sponge only with mesh covered gaps on the bottom, mesh covered output with glass below water line (on one panel only).
If it doesn't work, I can always silicone a second piece of glass in place of the mesh for the output, and adapt the powerhead to the sponge.
All I need to purchase is some mesh, and a clamp or two, the rest I already have 
Hopefully I'll be able to test it in a few days to see if it works...


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Just my thoughts here, I too prefer filtered tanks most times, but IMO you really do not need a filter for this. You do not have to do every couple days w/c's If It's just going to be a Betta in there and you intend to do weekly w/cs anyway .....why mess with a having an unsightly filter in such a small tank that will only house one fish that requires little Oxygen in the water? Do 50-85% w/c's weekly, if your using a substrate then make sure to clean the substrate every 2-4 weeks. A few plants (java fern, floating plants ect..) would be very beneficial as well would a piece of driftwood and a small cave. Plants will help with the water plus Betta's like them alot. And the wood and cave will be appreciated as Betta's are quite curious and like to explore. An Indian Almond leaf every few weeks is highly recommended as well.
I used the Elite filter and didn't like it either, but when I did use it I put a piece of sponge over the outlet to reduce the surface movement. Seemed to help alot but still didn't like it. Ended up with one of these: Amazon.com: Red Sea Nano Aquarium Filter: Pet Supplies that I liked quite a bit. The adjustable flow was really nice. I inserted a piece of coarse sponge in the outlet of that and it worked awesome, good filtration and little surface movement. But while having that on one tank and having a 5 gal that didn't have a filter, I noticed the water stayed perfect in that. Since then I have gotten to the point of using no filters on my Betta tanks that are between 3-5 gallons and I have no issues with any of my Bettas or the water quality. Hardly any algae either, if I do it's more due to the lighting. 
A filter will simply give you an opportunity to go longer between w/c's, though you could easily do bi weekly w/c's w/o a filter and still have no issues with water quality ime. 
Half the function of the filter is for aeration and circulation which you seem to be avoiding anyway. The circulation will certainly help maintain a even temp throughout the tank. But I just have mine centered in the tank and it seems to work fine that way. I would recommend giving it a shot w/o the filter, you'll appreciate the extra room in the tank w/o an unsightly filter in it. Been doing it this way for about a year now and my Bettas all seem happy & healthy.


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## AdobeOtoCat (Dec 10, 2011)

I would have to agree as well. The sponge filter seems too big inside the five gal. If youre just housing one betta, then it will be fine w.o a filter. Why dont you use a tetra whisper filter that is also air driven. Theyre relatively small and produce minimal water flow. The air pump that comes with it is also pretty quiet. I wanted to do a ada 5 gal betta tank before and thought about drilling the bottom for a miniature canister filter with inline heater. So there will be virtually nothing to see in the tank but the fish and aquascape. A tank that small. You will start to notice all the big and bulky stuff as time goes by. Im already starting to get a bit exhaused looking at the 3/4" bulkheads in my 17 gal reef tank. 

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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Thank you for the advice, lots to think about...
Partly doing this to ensure this tank won't leak again, to practice siliconing glass, and to try out the filter box idea I had, seeing as I have most of the pieces to do it. I can always swap out this tank with the 5g I just bought to replace it, if I decide to go filter-less for the betta.
I actually don't mind looking at the filters too much, they are highly visible in all my tanks. The reason for the air driven filter is not for water oxygenation, but for water circulation. I have noticed how well it works in one of my guppy tanks having only air driven filters. 
I do realize I am reducing the effect of the filter drastically, however, I feel it would be good to have some current in the tank, even if it's just slight.

Another option is for me to raise the "box" off the bottom by 1.5-2", to make a cave underneath (would be a glass bottom). There will still be room for the sponge and gaps between panels for the intake. 
Is there any reason for me to put a glass shelf on the back glass for the betta to rest on? I have a piece that would be suitable just for this...

Final tank scape/design will (might) be bare bottom with floating plants (java/christmas moss, hornwort), maybe a couple pygmy swords or an anubias in small clay pots if I can find some... Sponge filter and 10w heater in the "box". Will be adding almond leaf to the water, and plan on doing 40% weekly water changes, keeping it around 7.0pH. 
If I make the cave under the "box", I may just use substrate... Not sure about that yet.
No light on this tank, depending on placement it should receive plenty of ambient light from the tanks right beside it.
Considering a black background if it gets stressed by the fish in the other tank.

Measurements for the tank/box;
Tank is 15-5/8"x7-3/4"x9.5" (inner dimensions), Box is approx 6"x5.5"x(9.5"or7.5") (outer dimensions)
Swimming space for fish would be;
one space of 9-5/8"x7-3/4"x9.5", one space of 6"x2-1/4"x9.5", (and possibly one space of 6"x5.5"x2" under box)


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I have decided now, to make the box with a glass bottom approx 2.5" off the bottom of the tank. 
Will have a 1" gap on the bottom of both side panes for the "intake" (with small glass braces connecting to bottom glass on the inside corner), and a 1.5" gap on the top of 1 pane for the "output". Bottom gaps will be covered with #10 plastic mesh, output with #14. 
I am also going to go ahead and put a glass shelf on the back wall of the tank, maybe with an upright piece on the side closest to the box output (will round both corners first). It'll either be a resting shelf, or a plant shelf.




















Most difficult part will be siliconing the bottom glass to the tank, without making a mess.


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## dabandit1 (Dec 6, 2010)

I understand the urge to diy lol. Im curious why you would intake from the bottom? skimming the surface is where its at your surface will haze as the polutants rise to the surface it will also help with the oxygen exchange in the tank if water longevity is what your after. Im sure your way will work too but you might want to give more thought as to the advantages of surface skimming. Good luck,now lets see some progress pics


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I'm not too worried about surface pollutants, as I will be doing weekly, or bi-weekly water changes. Also I have not had a problem with that on any of my other tanks thus far....
I located the intakes/output at bottom/top to maximize efficiency of the air-driven filter. If I switch to a powerhead, the box design will still allow me to "skim" the surface, by switching intake/outputs. All I would have to cut out would be the mesh screens.
I would have some progress pics, If I didn't leave the main pane of glass behind when I smoothed out the edges... doh
Shortened a spare piece of glass to use as a 3/4 lid/box cover.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

I recently got a 5.5 gallon with a light and a glass top with a Elite 50W heater.
I put a Betta in this tank, without anying but the heater and a therometer.
I change his water every few days. He must be happy because he is very active swimming around making lots of air bubbles on the surface all the time.
If you want to make a filter I think anything is fine as long as you keep up with your water change.
For me, a filter just means one more item to clean and maintain; I think my betta is fine without one anyway with regular water change. Just my opinion.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I do appreciate everybody's opinions on this 

I would prefer to setup my 20G, nicely planted/scaped for the betta, although I can't do that until I'm done with the guppy breeding experiment....
For now, a miniature scaped tank will have to do.

... I have decided to do a substrate bottom, still going to use mini plant pots though - substrate won't be deep enough for an anubias...

Tomorrow is the day for siliconing the first pane (bottom one)... good luck to me making 2 smooth beads 6" in with only 2.5" of space for my hand.... and no clamps....


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Glass pieces were resized and edges sanded today. Went alright, I'm quite happy with the result. 







Tank is masked now, just need to lay down a nice silicone bead....


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Managed to get a good bead of silicone down, and it worked quite well seeing as I had no clamps appropriate for holding this piece....













Tomorrow will be the front pane, followed by the side pane. Depending on how that goes, I may add the 2 supports aswell. 
Then I will be leak testing... although with all the silicone I put down, it probably isn't necessary


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Now stuck with whether to have a 1" or 1.5" output..... 
Cut 2 pieces of glass so I could do either, thought it would be easier to decide 
Really it just means how much leniency do I want for water level fluctuations... Maybe it's just too late/early.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I thought the bottom pane was going to be the hardest.... Turns out the front pane is going to be a real pain 
Only 2" of space on the frontside (for my hand), plus the tank rim to deal with, absolutely no way to use any clamps I have, and only one edge is being siliconed.... 
I may just make some sort of "web" out of masking tape to hold it in place....

Any thoughts??

I will wait an hour before attempting it.... In case anyone has any better ideas to hold it.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Well here I go, I'll post a photo of the "web" once I have the bead down....

Edit:
Added photos :bigsmile:



















The web seems to be holding it straight, easy to adjust too.
Went better than I thought it would, now the patience thing... Don't touch it!  Lol


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

....and here it is this morning. 













Looks fairly straight...

Now that the 2 panes are in place, I re-measured everything (as my initial rough measurements were a little bit off). 
Intakes are just over 3/4" each, output is 1.5" below estimated water level. I was going to have slightly bigger intakes by 1/2" total, though I siliconed the bottom pane higher off the bottom than originally planned. (2-3/4" instead of 2-1/2")
Support pieces aren't necessary, and with the smaller intake sizes, I may not use them (bottom pane easily supports my tape measure without shifting).


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Got the side pane in place, funny how the next piece is always the hardest one.... 
No tape trickery this time, just my tape measure as a weight. Still something to do with tape though...




















Only problem with this pane, is I took too long to smooth the bead, it had already started to skin when I pulled the last piece of tape off. 
Putting another bead over after it cures anyway, which will cover up the corner that got pulled.

Almost Halfway there.......


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Glass for the box is all siliconed in place, decorative beads done, still another 48 hours cure time (minimum) before water.
Shelf is in place, adding side piece next, then mesh screens to the box.
I have changed my mind (once again), I will be using #10 mesh on one intake, #7 black mesh on the front intake (to allow shrimp fry to move in/out of the box). Definitely not using the "support braces" I cut for the corner, will make the intake area too small. (also will be too much of a pain to silicone without making a mess of what I have already done...)





















"Concept" sketch to reality... 














I might be having a little too much fun with this...


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## dabandit1 (Dec 6, 2010)

Looks good,I would love to see the equipment in place I cant get my head around what its going to acomplish at this point...how does it ''filter''?


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Once the silicone is cured enough to touch, I will be taking pics with the equipment in place (your just ahead of me by about 10hours )
Here's a paint edit of how (I think) the box will "filter", just picture 3 different sizes of mesh screen over the intakes/output..







I may also put some ceramic bio-media in the box behind the intake screens, not sure yet.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Cut out the black mesh, masked it all up, looked at it sitting in place, doesn't look right.
I'm going to use the "braces" in the front corner of the box like I originally planned, it'll give the corner a much cleaner look, and seal the edge between the 2 sizes of mesh (without the "braces" there would be a blob of silicone in the corner, or a 1/4" gap between screens).
I'm not losing too much of the intake opening, about 1-7/16"x7/8".


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Here's a couple pics of the filter & heater in the box














Managed to get the corner pieces in place without smearing silicone everywhere. 




















The mesh is going to be a bit trickier, see how it goes tomorrow.


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Mesh is now in place, proved to be the most difficult, mainly due to how I decided to silicone it in.
I have left a 1/8" gap between the mesh screen and the glass "walls" for the box.













Just one small piece of glass left to silicone, and finishing beads on the mesh.
Then...I can fill it with water (after 48 hour sit)


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

Siliconing is finally complete 
Last update post here, all further posts will be here














I used all 3 sizes of mesh I had, also left a 1/8" gap between the intake mesh and the glass side panes, and a small hole in the output mesh (in case the mesh restricts water outflow too much)
Adding mesh to the 3/4 top to make a full cover with air flow.
Decided to use a 50w Jager heater instead of the 10w (so I can adjust temp)
After a scrub down and leak test, will be adding cycled water and cycled sponge to the tank.


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## 118869 (Apr 24, 2012)

hey just curious where you get that mesh from thanks


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## Sploosh (Nov 19, 2012)

I got it from Michaels craft store, as suggested in this thread  http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/diy-area-18/tank-divider-bettas-6292/
Decent colours/sizes to choose from, cheap enough too


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