A question about soap, and adding old water to new.

[littlesparrow]

Hi all, this is my first post.

My current set up is, alas, just a fish bowl. I know, I know. I do have a small (fluval chi 6.6gallon) tank which is not set up because i live on a VERY small island and have yet to find a table to hold it (that isn't antique and $80.. this is Salt Spring Island, probably the most expensive place to live in British Columbia, Canada )

So I currently have a LARGE bowl, I would say it is at least 3 gallons, if not 4.
It's getting dirty. Too dirty. I do a 10% water change every week (I know, not enough when you don't have filtration, would love suggestions on how to maintain ) but it has really built up I feel like an *** for letting my beloved betta, Jaquen, live in this filth. I want to clean tomorrow. And the word is on the internet, I need to prep my water tonight and let it sit before transferring. I don't own a 'fish only' bucket. I have a 3-cup measuring cup that is fish-only that he hangs out in while i am 'transferring' him. But nothing that could hold 3gallons of water.

My question is, if I grab a metal bowl (which yes, would have been washed with dish soap several days ago.. if it makes any difference, seventh generation 'all natural'ish dish soap ) Could i give it a nice vinegar wash, rinse it REALLY well, and let it dry completely, then prep the water in it without harming my fish?

The water today is increasingly murky and he is more lethargic than I have ever seen... I am really eager to improve his environment, and if i do need a new bucket, I will not be in town for another 5 days (I live on the outskirts of the island and have no vehicle)... afraid that will be too long to humanely wait before cleaning his bowl.


PS QUESTION: Should I add a bit of the old bowls water to the new, to ease the transition from dirty to clean? (Yes, I use water conditioner ect.)


Thank you SO MUCH! Look forward to being a part of this forum.

 

[obedey]

I'd be doing daily water changes without a filter. Get a filter asap.
You can just leave the fish in the bowl and do an 80% water change.
You really need to be doing daily water changes without that filter.

 

[marsh]

I'd be doing daily water changes without a filter. Get a filter asap.
You can just leave the fish in the bowl and do an 80% water change.
You really need to be doing daily water changes without that filter.

I totally agree, leave the fish in and replace most of the water, more than half, daily or each 2 days. Do a 100% change once a week and clean all the interior and decorations thoroughly..

Once you set up and fully cycle a bigger tank you can do weekly 25% changes.

Use temp adjusted water so he won't be shocked, and add the new water in 4-5 increments over an hour.



you mentioned leaving the water out to sit 24 hours, I believe this is no longer needed if you use de-chlorinator aka water conditioner. The old way was to let chlorine evaporate overnight, but these days the water conditioner replaces that step (correct me if I am mistaken)

I wouldn't worry about using your metal bowl but rinse rinse rinse. I worry more about chemicals on my skin than on my tools, but I did also dedicate a bucket to my fish to avoid any contamination from dish soap.

Do you have a spare storage size tupperware container? I used a 20-or-so gallon plastic tub as a fish tank while I set up a filtered tank for my Betta to get him out of the 2 gallon vase he was in originally. This allowed me to keep him in good-enough quality water despite not being able to do daily water changes around my school and work schedules. He still got 50%-75% water changes every 2 days or daily, as I was trying to help him heal his torn fins and was trying to avoid infection.

 

[obedey]

Since there is no filter I would hold off cleaning any decorations until you get one or setup your other tank. May be the only place beneficial bacteria is living.

 

[marsh]

Since there is no filter I would hold off cleaning any decorations until you get one or setup your other tank. May be the only place beneficial bacteria is living.

True I did not consider that there would be any B. B. living on the decorations, good point. I suppose my advice should be rephrased to carefully remove all traces of fish poop from the aquarium that may add to poor water quality.

 

[shellieca]

True I did not consider that there would be any B. B. living on the decorations, good point. I suppose my advice should be rephrased to carefully remove all traces of fish poop from the aquarium that may add to poor water quality.

I agree with what has been said. If you can purchase a syphon vacuum you can easily remove 50% water & vacuum up the poo in the substrate without having to remove him. Some people use a turkey baster to suck up the gunk. One other note, what's the water temp? Bettas should be in water that is 78-80F since they are tropical fish.