Reducing water flow for Betta?

[Crlomancer]

I'm an aquarium newbie - about 80% of what I know is learned in the last month, monthly from this forum. I inherited an 8g BioCube and my daughter loves Betta fish. So we have a very basic setup (I'll try to post a pic tomorrow) with some gravel, a java fern, and Metta the Betta (named by my daughter).

Here's my problem - if it is one - the pump in the BioCube puts out 106 GPH and the Betta really doesn't seem to like the flow. I've read that they prefer more stagnant water, but I need to keep the water flowing to keep it clean. What can I do? I saw somewhere a guide on reducing flow, but it turns out that's from a filter - totally different thing. Any tips or advice on either how to divert or reduce the flow so both the tank and fish can be happy would be appreciated!

Thanks

 

[DreaminginBlue]

Is there an intake (i.e. a place where the water is sucked in)? If so, you can put a filter intake sponge over it to baffle the flow.
Otherwise, raising the water level could help as well.
Hope your betta is doing well- what a cute name!

 

[Crlomancer]

Is there an intake (i.e. a place where the water is sucked in)? If so, you can put a filter intake sponge over it to baffle the flow.
Otherwise, raising the water level could help as well.
Hope your betta is doing well- what a cute name!

Thanks for the quick response! It's a three chamber filtration setup, ending with a submerged pump pushing the water back into the tank. I'm not sure how I'd reduce the flow to it, other than blocking the top or bottom inlets leading to the first chamber.

The tank has a gauge on the side and it's near the max fill (more and the water inside the tank would spill over the top of the back, bypassing one or two of the filter chambers.

Is something like a ball valve a possibility?

Here's a pic - apologies for the poor picture - the tank is in my 5 year old daughter's room and I was trying not to wake her. Also, for the modest state of the tank itself... But you can see one of the inlets. The other becomes visible when the water rises (pump on) but I only run the pump for an hour or two a day because it seems to stress the fish so much!

 

[TMaier]

Can you post a pic of where the flow comes out to help us?

 

[Crlomancer]

Apologies for the quality of the pic (trying not to wake my 5 year old, the tank is in her room) and the modest state of the tank.

The water gets pushed out of the top left in the pic (right under the suction cup leaf I thought that a fish would care about). The water intake is on the bottom right and there is another above the water line. The water level rises significantly when the pump is on. If I add more water, it will spill over the back, bypassing one or two of the filter chambers.

The BioCube has a 3 chamber filter. The third chamber has the submerged pump. From what I've read, I don't want to reduce the water intake on the pump but it may be possible to reduce the output with a ball valve...?

 

[TMaier]

Does the output nozzle come off leaving a round hole where you could attach a tube to diffuse or a sponge like these. They have many adapters on them.
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/PreFilter.html

 

[Fresh2o]

Does the output nozzle come off leaving a round hole where you could attach a tube to diffuse or a sponge like these. They have many adapters on them.
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/PreFilter.html

...to add to this, perhaps a spray bar can be added to the outflow. Or something with a strainer on the end. It should not reduce throughout, however, it will disperse the flow.

 

[Crlomancer]

Does the output nozzle come off leaving a round hole where you could attach a tube to diffuse or a sponge like these. They have many adapters on them.
Filter Max Aquarium Sponge Pre Filter; Fits HOB, Canister, more

Yes, it does. Those prefilters look just about perfect. One question though - will there still be enough water movement to make the filtration system effective? I think these are designed to go on the intake instead of the output, but it could work for diffusing instead of filtering (I think).

...to add to this, perhaps a spray bar can be added to the outflow. Or something with a strainer on the end. It should not reduce throughout, however, it will disperse the flow.

I saw some spray bars, but they're pricey (at least for me, around $20 for a rain simulator feels steep). If you've got a cheap source, I'm happy to take a look!

As always, thanks for the insightful and fast responses!

 

[DreaminginBlue]

Adding the prefliter should still give the system enough suction to filter the water. I had to do this in a friend's betta tank because the poor little guy was being blown everywhere by the filter, but now everything's running smoothly.

 

[TMaier]

Using the prefilter sponge on an output is not something I have done so I cannot confirm. One of there sponges is made for higher flow so I don't think there will be too much back pressure. Is there any chance of an overflow if there is?

 

[Crlomancer]

Adding the prefliter should still give the system enough suction to filter the water. I had to do this in a friend's betta tank because the poor little guy was being blown everywhere by the filter, but now everything's running smoothly.

This is the pump I have. I don't think I could hook this up as a prefilter, as the water is pulled from around the pump. Please let me know if I've missed something!

Using the prefilter sponge on an output is not something I have done so I cannot confirm. One of there sponges is made for higher flow so I don't think there will be too much back pressure. Is there any chance of an overflow if there is?

I don't think so... When the pump is turned off, the water level equalizes to what you see in the picture. Unless the water level raised significantly inside the third chamber, there shouldn't be any leaks. I think what you're describing was done successfully here.

And another solution was this one...

 

[TMaier]

Cool. With pics and everything. Just shoved reticulated foam on the output.

 

[Flare]

one tank i use a pre made filter, and the other tank i used a cut up sponge. Both work well. As you see my bettas swim near it as they both came to check me out as i opened the lid ( dinner time??) My female doesnt seem overly bothered when the snail knocks off the sponge. My male betta is mega stressed when his sponge is knocked off by my massive snail.

 

[Druinz]

Thanks for the quick response! It's a three chamber filtration setup, ending with a submerged pump pushing the water back into the tank. I'm not sure how I'd reduce the flow to it, other than blocking the top or bottom inlets leading to the first chamber.

The tank has a gauge on the side and it's near the max fill (more and the water inside the tank would spill over the top of the back, bypassing one or two of the filter chambers.

Is something like a ball valve a possibility?

Here's a pic - apologies for the poor picture - the tank is in my 5 year old daughter's room and I was trying not to wake her. Also, for the modest state of the tank itself... But you can see one of the inlets. The other becomes visible when the water rises (pump on) but I only run the pump for an hour or two a day because it seems to stress the fish so much!

Off topic and I can't tell if it is or not, but the rhizome of Java fern should not be planted under the substrate or it'll die. Tie it to a rock or driftwood or find a way to sink it while having the roots out or it'll wither fairly quick. Java fern absorbs nutrients from the water column so having the roots buried sort of starves it

 

[Betta keeper]

My favourite trick, of everything that I have done to divert flow, was to get a bunch of floating hornwort and tie it near the outflow of my filter. The hornwort took the current, and it barely affected the tank itself [emoji4]
Now eventually the hornwort complained about the temperature of the water, but there are other floating plants better suited to warm water...ancharis?

 

[Crlomancer]

Off topic and I can't tell if it is or not, but the rhizome of Java fern should not be planted under the substrate or it'll die. Tie it to a rock or driftwood or find a way to sink it while having the roots out or it'll wither fairly quick. Java fern absorbs nutrients from the water column so having the roots buried sort of starves it

Thanks for the tip! The base of the plant is tied to a bit of coconut shell, but with the current I did heap up a bit of gravel around the edges. It's definitely not covered, but I'll see if the new lower-current tank still needs it

My favourite trick, of everything that I have done to divert flow, was to get a bunch of floating hornwort and tie it near the outflow of my filter. The hornwort took the current, and it barely affected the tank itself [emoji4]
Now eventually the hornwort complained about the temperature of the water, but there are other floating plants better suited to warm water...ancharis?

I did end up snagging a filter for a couple of bucks and it seems to be doing the trick. If this fails, I'll definitely look into some hardy plants to block the flow - that'd also have the benefit of increasing the aesthetics, I think!