Moving betta to a new tank- HELP PLEASE!

[bettagirl03]

So I currently have my betta fish Rainbow in a one gallon, unheated, unfiltered, tank. After much convincing, my parents are letting me upgrade to a 5.5 gallon tank. It comes with a filter, though I think the filter is too strong for a senior betta such as himself, can I just cut a bit of aquarium safe sponge and put it over the output valve? I am going to get an aqueon mini heater, will that be good enough for him? I am wondering the best way to move him into his new tank- can I move him into a plastic bag, let it float for 20 minutes, then poke a small hole in the bag and poke a new hole every few minutes until I think he is ready? If the water comes from the same source as his old tank and I use the same de-clorinator will I have to worry about changes in ph? And instead of taking a month to cycle the tank, can I let everything run for 24 hours, then add tetra safe start, wait 2-3 days, than add my betta? Will a 20% weekly water change be good?

Sorry about the tons of questions, thanks to everybody who answers!

 

[Fishperson]

Yes you can put the aquarium safe sponge, as long as you are sure it is fine for aquariums

How much watts does that heater have?

Yes you can do what you said, but I recommend drip acclimating, the opposite of what you said, where you put him in a bag and add water from the tank until it the bag is full, then take out some water from the bag and add more water from the tank, etc., until it is done. And if the water is from the same source it should be fine.

You can add SafeStart after 24 hours if you want, but I recommend against bacteria-in-a-bottle products. Cycling, in my opinion is more reliable, and some times those products do funny things to the water. I wouldn't risk using SafeStart, but that is just my opinion.

Hope this helps, and to aquarium advice!

 

[librarygirl]

The heater should be fine but read the label and see what it says as far as temperature; some of the pre-set heaters are set to either 75 or 78; for a betta you'd want 78 at least. I'd look into finding a small adjustable heater, so you can manually fix the temp. Also get an in-tank thermometer, like this, to double-check the temp in the tank.

Does the bowl he's in now have any sort of gravel or decoration or anything? If so, move it over to the new tank, that might help bring in some bacteria at least. Products like safe-start are hit and miss. You can try it, but don't rely on it. When you move the fish, treat it as a fish-in cycle: test water daily and do extra water changes as needed if ammonia or/and nitrate get over .25. Here's a link for you: I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice

 

[bettagirl03]

Yes you can put the aquarium safe sponge, as long as you are sure it is fine for aquariums

How much watts does that heater have?

Yes you can do what you said, but I recommend drip acclimating, the opposite of what you said, where you put him in a bag and add water from the tank until it the bag is full, then take out some water from the bag and add more water from the tank, etc., until it is done. And if the water is from the same source it should be fine.

You can add SafeStart after 24 hours if you want, but I recommend against bacteria-in-a-bottle products. Cycling, in my opinion is more reliable, and some times those products do funny things to the water. I wouldn't risk using SafeStart, but that is just my opinion.

Hope this helps, and to aquarium advice![/The heater is 10 watts and it says in it's description that it's good for up to 5 gallons.]

 

[Fishperson]

Ok, ten watts is much lower than recommended. I like the rule, ~5 watts per gallon. You should have at least a 20 watt heater, but 10 will be fine, just it will take very long to heat up the water. It is really your decision on the SafeStart, but I would do research on what other people say about it.

 

[bettagirl03]

The heater should be fine but read the label and see what it says as far as temperature; some of the pre-set heaters are set to either 75 or 78; for a betta you'd want 78 at least. I'd look into finding a small adjustable heater, so you can manually fix the temp. Also get an in-tank thermometer, like this, to double-check the temp in the tank.

Does the bowl he's in now have any sort of gravel or decoration or anything? If so, move it over to the new tank, that might help bring in some bacteria at least. Products like safe-start are hit and miss. You can try it, but don't rely on it. When you move the fish, treat it as a fish-in cycle: test water daily and do extra water changes as needed if ammonia or/and nitrate get over .25. Here's a link for you: I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice

I'll check online to see if the heater is adjustable- I'm not quite sure.
What is a good, inexpensive test kit to get? I've read that a lot are unreliable.
Will a live plant help the cycle, or do I need to wait until after the tank is cycled to put plants in? I'm planning on putting some anubis in the tank.

Thanks for your help so far!

 

[bettagirl03]

Ok, ten watts is much lower than recommended. I like the rule, ~5 watts per gallon. You should have at least a 20 watt heater, but 10 will be fine, just it will take very long to heat up the water. It is really your decision on the SafeStart, but I would do research on what other people say about it.

Ok, I think I'll look for a 20 watt heater.
Thanks!

 

[librarygirl]

API freshwater master kit.
You can put plants in anytime.

 

[bettagirl03]

Yes you can put the aquarium safe sponge, as long as you are sure it is fine for aquariums

How much watts does that heater have?

Yes you can do what you said, but I recommend drip acclimating, the opposite of what you said, where you put him in a bag and add water from the tank until it the bag is full, then take out some water from the bag and add more water from the tank, etc., until it is done. And if the water is from the same source it should be fine.

You can add SafeStart after 24 hours if you want, but I recommend against bacteria-in-a-bottle products. Cycling, in my opinion is more reliable, and some times those products do funny things to the water. I wouldn't risk using SafeStart, but that is just my opinion.

Hope this helps, and to aquarium advice!

How often would you reccomend changing the water once the tank is established? Would 20% weekly be good?

 

[bettagirl03]

Ok, ten watts is much lower than recommended. I like the rule, ~5 watts per gallon. You should have at least a 20 watt heater, but 10 will be fine, just it will take very long to heat up the water. It is really your decision on the SafeStart, but I would do research on what other people say about it.

I couldn't find a 20 at petsmart (it's the only pet/fish store close to my house and I don't like ordering online, but I found a 25 watt- would that be perfect or would it overheat a tank that small?

 

[librarygirl]

Should be fine, just use an in-tank thermometer to double-check the water's temp.

 

[Fishperson]

Oh no, that is fine. I just meant 20 to say at least. You could have a 100 watt heater, and it wouldn't overheat the tank, but it would heat it up very fast. A 10 watt would work, but it would take about a day to increase the temp 1 degree, and 25 would be more accurate. I think the 10 was made for a 1-3 gallon betta bowl.

 

[bettagirl03]

Thanks you two so much for your help- Rainbow is now happily swimming in his new tank!

 

[Rcguerra]

Pictures!!

 

[Jeanette527]

I just wanted to comment on the filter. My filter that came with the 4 gal augeon tank was too strong for Freddy, my betta. I bought a box of aquarium filtration foam that is about an inch thick. Cut a three inch square and made a pocket in it large enough to fit over the valve. I sewed on fish line at each end to secure it to the valve. now my fish swims freely around the tank without being thrown about by the current. I also used some of the foam and put it behind the plastic grill so his fins wouldn't get suck in.

 

[bettagirl03]

Pictures will come soon- except I cant find my camera. or my phone. or even my my ipod.
I should probably get off the internet and look for them...

 

[bettagirl03]

Thanks! Thats Kinda what I planned on doing, ut every time I go to petsmart I always get distracted and forget to pick up a sponge!

 

[Jeanette527]

Filter

So far the sponge is doing great. I can feel the water move when I put my hand next to it. Freddy is all over the place because there is no current.
Good luck!