How do I keep my planted tank healthy without any fish?

[QuietBloom]

Hi all! I have a 5 gallon tank planted with java plants, java moss and anacharis. My betta is currently in a hospital tank being treated for fin rot, and I want to keep his big tank healthy until I can return him to it. But I am totally clueless as to how. The plants still look healthy and happy without him, but I don't want to lose the beneficial bacteria while the tank is fishless, so I can return him to a healthy tank. Should I keep the heater and filter going? What else would be helpful?

Thank you!

 

[Coursair]

Hi all! I have a 5 gallon tank planted with java plants, java moss and anacharis. My betta is currently in a hospital tank being treated for fin rot, and I want to keep his big tank healthy until I can return him to it. But I am totally clueless as to how. The plants still look healthy and happy without him, but I don't want to lose the beneficial bacteria while the tank is fishless, so I can return him to a healthy tank. Should I keep the heater and filter going? What else would be helpful?

Thank you!

Keep it all going. You can add fish food. You can add Ferts for the plants. Flourish comprehensive is good.

Test your water to see what's happening.

Fin Rot is often a sign of poor water quality. Check for Ammonia. Are you doing weekly partial water changes ? A tank can look great and still be unhealthy.

 

[QuietBloom]

Thanks for your reply

I started everything back up again, and I will put a bit of fish food in there. I am going to get some kind of water testing kit today. Honestly, I think one of the problems was the filter. No matter how I tried to baffle the flow, it was likely too strong for him. He is a particularly large fined double tail. I was always careful to keep up with at least 25% water changes weekly and use Prime. He previously had some plastic plants that might have torn his fins, and I think when I switched him to the large tank, that and the stress of the filter caused the fin rot to really set in. I had previously tried to cure it with aquarium salt and heat, but I really need to get a heater where I can set the temperature accurately (no heat settings on current one) and I think that will help.

 

[librarygirl]

So what tank is the betta in now? Since it's the only fish in the tank you could ideally keep him in there and treat in his tank. Fin rot is usually a sign of poor water quality; is the tank cycled? What are the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate readings? Clean water through frequent water changes and some aquarium salt should help heal him.

 

[jetajockey]

Hi all! I have a 5 gallon tank planted with java plants, java moss and anacharis. My betta is currently in a hospital tank being treated for fin rot, and I want to keep his big tank healthy until I can return him to it. But I am totally clueless as to how. The plants still look healthy and happy without him, but I don't want to lose the beneficial bacteria while the tank is fishless, so I can return him to a healthy tank. Should I keep the heater and filter going? What else would be helpful?

Thank you!

I wouldn't bother with the heater , the filter, eh, if you don't have any fish in there it's not really essential, just make sure the water doesn't get a film on it. With those plants listed you most likely won't have to do much to keep them happy, they are pretty low demand.

 

[QuietBloom]

Thanks everyone.

I haven't wanted to treat him in his tank, because I didn't want to crash the cycle (yes, it is cycled)/good bacteria.

I don't think water quality is the problem, as he has the 5 gallon tank that I did regular water changes for, and was very diligent about it. I was given some test strips and the water tested perfect at the time I started treating him for the fin rot. I will test it again before I return him to it. I have created a pretty good baffle for the filter in the hopes that I can keep the water flow to within his tolerance level. I will likely turn it off altogether once I return him to his tank, as his fins continue to heal. I realize at that point I will need to be extra careful about water quality.

3 days into the antibiotic treatment, and I can already see lots of new fin growth, so that makes me happy.

 

[Coursair]

I started everything back up again, and I will put a bit of fish food in there. I am going to get some kind of water testing kit today. Honestly, I think one of the problems was the filter. No matter how I tried to baffle the flow, it was likely too strong for him. He is a particularly large fined double tail. I was always careful to keep up with at least 25% water changes weekly and use Prime. He previously had some plastic plants that might have torn his fins, and I think when I switched him to the large tank, that and the stress of the filter caused the fin rot to really set in. I had previously tried to cure it with aquarium salt and heat, but I really need to get a heater where I can set the temperature accurately (no heat settings on current one) and I think that will help.

I know some members on here posted a DIY baffle for filters on Betta tanks. I've used AquaClears since you can turn them down.
My current Betta is a HMPK so no long fins. My last one was in a 10g with a canister filter.