Ok need some betta help

[Sadielynn]

Ok all I am more into the salt water end of things , but the other half wanted a betta ... So alas I got him a betta the betta died today after being with us for 5 years
He was heart broken The fish has been through alot and alot of it was ignorance on our part ... I quickly learned that we needed to do right by him and soon followed our own advice
Now here is whre I need some imput He thinks it was the water that killed him he wants to use tap I say no way I have an RO/DI and he is not that much more to do an extra gallon or 2
For years I was using the distilled water for him but since I got an ro/di unit I want to know will this effect him negativly ? What are some tips for another betta down the line ?
PS I cleaned everything in bleach and rinsed for over 45 minutes and soaked in dechlorinator and rinsed again ....just incase there was a disease

 

[Zagz]

Sadie that betta outlived most. Their lifespan is usually about 3 years. Tell your better half the water was obviously just fine. Sorry for your loss but that betta live a very long and happy life obviously.

 

[bluerose]

Agree with Zagz.

Anyway, I use tap. (Not particularly nice tap either-- I won't drink it unless it's been through a Brita filter.)

Got a betta, shrimp, tetras and cories. Lots of plants. No issues. My plants are actually growing like crazy... fish are happy and bright.

 

[Sadielynn]

Thanks Zagz , bluerose I am still in shock that we lost him after 5 years .. He just went what appeared peacefully ..
I guess I just want clearance to use ro/di is it safe he says it will strip too much out ?

I am not into the planted end tho they are georgous! But Time, and money will not allow the set up so we use plastic plants

 

[jsoong]

If you are doing betta & shrimp, I would think that tap is the way to go. You do need some minerals in the water .... carbonates/bicarbonates to buffer the pH & Ca/Mg for the shrimp's shell growth. If you were to use RO you would need to add back some of the minerals with a (FW) salt mix.

And 5 years is a long time for a betta so whatever you did before must be OK!

 

[OldMan]

RO/DI is too pure for a betta or most other fish unless you reconstitute it with minerals.

 

[Sadielynn]

So I did kill his fish I had been using spring water for a small time then mostly distilled and then to RO/DI over the last 10 days
What about a 50/50 mix 50 % tap and 50% RO/DI
I wanna do right by the next one

 

[Zagz]

No Sadie, old age killed the fish. As mentioned most bettas that live to 3 years are considered old. One that has made it to 5 is considered ancient!

 

[Sadielynn]

No Sadie, old age killed the fish. As mentioned most bettas that live to 3 years are considered old. One that has made it to 5 is considered ancient!

I sure hope so I just was surprsied that he died with in a few hours ...
I always told the other half that tap was bad (cause with salt it is ) So if we can do just tap I will make sure to do a bottle water up and a few drops of dechlorinator and let it set over nite ? Will that do ?

 

[Sahabo]

The dechlorinator should work instantly in the tap water...no need to let it set.

I'm sure your betta had a happy life with your family...

 

[Zagz]

Agreed I change my bettas water with dechlorinator and tap instantly.

 

[aveldina]

Zagz, what dechlorinator are you using for your betta water?

 

[OldMan]

The most commonly used dechlorinator on most forums is Prime but there are lots of good dechlorinators.

 

[aveldina]

Right on, that's what I was wondering. I've just switched to using prime after finding out my water has ~.25ppm ammonia in it and aquaplus doesn't remove ammonia at all. The only thing I find hard is figuring out the right amount to use when I'm mixing it into 12L buckets..

 

[bluerose]

Extra dechlor isn't a problem-- Prime can be dosed up to 5x for in-tank ammonia removal, so err on the side of extra.

 

[OldMan]

A 12 litre bucket is about 0.3 ml of Prime. I got a medicine dosing dropper at Walmart for no charge in their pharmacy and use that to measure it out.

 

[Zagz]

I use Prime on all my tanks.