Create a Balanced Ecosystem with the Penn-Plax Aquaponic Betta Fish Tank: Healthy Habitat for Fish and Plants

LottieDaLottieDa: I have a peace lily that is a drama queen about water. So I took her out of her soil, rinsed her roots super good, and plunked her down in this container with a betta fish. They both seem very happy. Wish I'd done it sooner.

United States on Oct 03, 2023

marsha alndomarsha alndo: Cute, didn’t like that it was somewhat thin plastic, but small Betta ok not big, water changes often, heated needed for bettas. Added that and put plants in. Tucked a light underneath.

United States on Sep 15, 2023

Karen PepeKaren Pepe: I have two of these and the kids love watching the roots grow and the betas enjoy them too. The 1.4 gallon doesn't have much room once decoration, heater, and filter are added but the fish don't seem to mind. I have had to cut the roots back of the pothos (green plant) as they grow very fast. The Chinese evergreen (pink plant) roots have barely grown in the past 5 months so the plant chosen makes a difference if you're trying to watch the growth over a small period of time- like in a science class.

Some of the clay beads are very small and fall through the holes of the top. It is also very hard to clean the top from algae once the plant is rooted. Since the tank is curved typical algae scrubbers do not work- you'll need to use a brush or do a complete clean each time. I do have 2 snails in the tank to help with anlage. The ecosystem is not self cleaning and you will still need to feed the fish as well.

United States on Sep 06, 2023

Cher: Like the tank but could use an improvement. I used clear glass plant pebbles for the substrate and I put a round battery powered/remote control kitchen light that I bought at Lowes under the base. shines up nicely from the bottom and doesn't get hot. Shows off the Betta very well. just an idea...

United States on Jul 14, 2023

Alexis Coomer: This was very big. And there’s like no in between sizes for this. It’s too big to use as a centerpiece for my coffee table but I really do like the design and my mother really likes it so I gave it to her for Mother’s Day.

United States on Mar 01, 2023

Jesse rossJesse ross: Parfait pour les poisson et pour les plantes .

Canada on Aug 23, 2021

RachaelRachael: Really great option for aquaponics with a betta fish. With my setup, I decided to propogate Thai basil, which is a cool way to grow a plant if you don't want to buy one raised in a pot.

The actual tank is quite aesthetically pleasing as compared with other options out there and just fits a fish of this size. Don't go for the smaller option, it's simply too tiny!

I also wouldn't keep anything other than a betta in these conditions too because they're one of the only types with a labyrinth organ.

The plant needed a bit of light so I added a moss covered coconut shell for my fish to hide in. (And before I get any critiques, I live in the tropics so my setup does not require a heater!)

Only thing I'd note is it was affordable when I bought it but the price seems to have increased a lot since.

Singapore on Jun 11, 2020

MsC: This kit is wonderful. I have the larger tank. It needs a plant and some fish, along with a weekly water change and some fish food. As a pet-keeping set-up it is delightfully simple.

I do have a warning however: the plant must have its roots in the tank water, and preparing the plant for that job is fiddley because there is a narrow grid to pull the roots through. It is also easy while you are changing the water to lift the plant roots out of the grid by mistake and damage its roots.

I think the plant holder needs re-designing. There should be a way to fix the plant in place.

United Kingdom on Jan 13, 2020

Sébastien CayerSébastien Cayer: Beautiful aquarium. My betta has been living in it for 4 months already. I do a 100% water change every week/2 week. Be careful to keep the tank in a warm room away from windows. There is not way the water is gonna be hot enough near a window. Bettas are tropical fish that require water of at least 70-75

Feed the fish as the betta won't eat the plant roots. The roots of the house plant grew so much. Be careful to remove all the dirt from the houseplant before plating it. i did not do it and i end up with dirt at the bottom of the tank

Canada on Dec 05, 2019

Colette C.: It works! 1.4 Gallon is probably the minimum I would go for a fish bowl. Else it gets too crowded in there. We put a betta in there and because it is winter we add in a water heater and it's working great! Currently we have some green onions growing on top to test out the system. We will switch it out soon. But both plant and fish are very happy.

Canada on Feb 22, 2019