Working with a 2.5gal tank. Need some advice.

[Xaoey]

Hi guys, thanks for all your advice. You've all really helped me and my betta friend out a lot! Also thanks Purrbox for the links with the info to acclimating.

I took all your suggestions and moved him over last night. I did some tests with the aquarium pharmaceutical test kit and my water looks excellent. Also I've been adding water to my 2.5gal tank due to evaporation (this was before my betta went in) and I've been adding a drop of seachem prime to the new water entering the tank. Just a quick question here. Is it possible to over treat your water by doing this? I'm just wondering now that my betta is in there if I should keep adding that little drop to the new water, because I was not doing that with his cup water.

Finally I just want to say thank you to everyone who has commented. I've really learned a lot in the past few days from all of you. Even though my tank is small, it's still a lot of work and I hope you'll all be around in the future as well when I need more advice.

 

[fearlessfisch]

It won't hurt. It's better to overtreat than undertreat the water. You are doing partial water changes in addition to topping it off, right? I'm pretty sure you meant that but just want to be sure.

How does he like his new digs?

 

[Xaoey]

It won't hurt. It's better to overtreat than undertreat the water. You are doing partial water changes in addition to topping it off, right? I'm pretty sure you meant that but just want to be sure.

How does he like his new digs?

It's good to know that I can't over treat the water and poison my fish. So I guess I am going to stick with adding that one drop of Prime to his new water.

Hmm I'm not sure what you mean by "partial water changes" and "topping it off" but what I have been doing is just adding about a cup of new water (that has sat out at least 24 hours) every two days. Am I doing it wrong? For instance should I be taking some water out of the tank and replacing it instead?

When I moved him over last night, he seemed really excited. He swam around and his cute little fins were fluttering. Also when I put him in the tank it was the first time I had seen him flare his fins and his little betta mask thing. There's a turtle attached to the decoration I bought, and he was pretty occupied with it for the first 2 hours or so. He thought it was competition and kept pecking at it. But now I think he realizes it is fake and he's stopped flaring at it and instead seems to rest on top of it's shell.

 

[Sahabo]

I'm so glad your betta is loving his new home! You've done a really great job

The evaporation will stop if you get a hood for the tank, then you won't have to top it off, you can just do partial water changes as needed. Partial water change (pwc) is when you remove a certain percent of the water in the tank and replace it with new dechlorinated water. How often and how much water you change will be determined by cycling and your water test results. You do regular pwcs to maintain good water quality without ever having to completely tear down your tank or change 100% of the water.

To do a pwc, get the new water ready, make sure it is the same temp as the tank water, add the Prime to the new water. Remove a percentage of the tank water. Many use a siphon to do this but your tank is probably too small to use one. A siphon removes water while also cleaning up debris without sucking up gravel. But, you could use a turkey baster to do that and it should work fine. Then, you add in the new water. Prime works instantly to age the water and makes it safe.

As a side note, you probably don't want to mess around with the gravel too much or go overboard with the pwcs while you are trying to establish a cycle in the tank. Just test your water daily and do a pwc when needed to keep the ammonia levels under .5ppm Once your tank is cycled, the ammonia will always be at 0.

 

[fearlessfisch]

Hi again.

He sounds happy. I love hearing about bettas who find nice homes. So many of them don't.

Yes, you should be removing about 30 to 50 percent of the water a few times a week for the first six or eight weeks, while your tank is cycling. That number is just a guideline to ensure safety in case you don't have a test kit. As Sahabo said, you may not have to do it as frequently with just one little fish. If you have a test kit, just make sure levels of ammonia and nitrite stay below 0.5 at all times, as mentioned above.

You have to remove water rather than just adding more, because your fish is excreting ammonia, which will build up in the water, burn his gills, and poison him. Until your cycle is complete, ammonia and nitrite levels can rise very quickly, because you have not yet built the colonies of good bacteria that convert ammonia to nitrite and then to nitrate in an established tank. Nitrate is not nearly as dangerous to fish. Once the tank has been running for six or eight weeks, you can drop down to weekly water changes of 30 to 50 percent, which is normal maintenance.

Changing water will not hurt your cycle, as the good bacteria live primarily on surfaces (e.g., your gravel, plants, decorations, and the sponge in your filter) rather than in the water. I agree with the suggestion that you avoid gravel vacuuming for now unless the place gets absolutely disgusting. Also be sure you don't wash the filter sponge for now. Later, when you get to the point that you have to clean the filter sponge, don't use tap water, but rather water from your tank, to avoid disrupting the bacteria colonies.

I'm happy for your little guy. Pictures are always welcome.

 

[Xaoey]

Hello all,

Just wanted to update everyone on my aquarium, for those that are interested. So I finally got my filter and my heater. I set them up and have already put my betta in whom I named Beggarfin (because he begs for food a lot), anyway everything seems to be going well at this point.

I've been doing 1/4 tank water changes every 2 days and Beggarfin has changed colors already!He used to be pasty white but now he has this nice little pink tint all over his body.

As for the visa-therm stealth heater that thing is great it fits in my tank no problem. I was concerned about it but it really is great. I really love my Azoo palm filter as well. It's a little strong and I think Beggarfin can be a little overwhelmed with it when he's tired, but for the most part the current isn't too bad on it.

I plan on adding a live plant soon, I heard bettas like fern, so maybe if I put the plant where the water is pouring out of the filter, the plant will help with the current.

Anyway here's some pictures for anyone who is interested.

This is a close up of the heater and filter (they're the perfect size!)
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b182/xaochan/Beggarfin034.jpg

Here's a picture of the whole tank.
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b182/xaochan/Beggarfin035.jpg

This is my best bud Beggarfin.
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b182/xaochan/Beggarfin028.jpg

and one more of Beggarfin going up for air.
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b182/xaochan/Beggarfin023.jpg

Finally, now that I have a heater, do I have to heat my water changes before I put it in my aquarium? Not sure how other people handle this.

 

[fearlessfisch]

Aw, what a cutie! He has a really nice face.

Yes, just measure the water temperature in the tank, and then hold the thermometer under the tap and make sure you heat the tap water to the same temperature before adding it to the tank.

I personally make the new water just a teeny tiny bit cooler (by no more than half a degree or so) than the old water, just because i like the idea that it feels "fresh." But that is just my own little quirk and I admit I am only projecting my feelings onto my fish.

I am happy that Beggarfin has someone who cares about him.

 

[Sahabo]

what a great looking betta! So glad he's doing well...your setup looks great

I have two aquarium thermometers, one for the tank and one I use to measure new water. People use a variety of methods including holding the therm under tap water, filling your container with cold water and heating some of it up on the stove or the microwave, and some have a separate heater they use to warm the new water (starting the day before the pwc is due). I think the fist method is the easiest

For plants, I would suggest dwarf java fern (because your tank is small) and/or java moss. For java fern, you don't want to plant it into the gravel. It does well when tied to a piece of driftwood, rock or decoration and allowed to root itself there.

 

[Purrbox]

With that orientation on your heater, you'll need to make sure that you turn it off when doing water changes.

The aquarium is looking great, and it sounds like your betta looks like he's feeling good since he's gaining some color. He'll definately enjoy a live plant. A Java fern would be an excellant choice.

 

[marchmaxima]

I've used the Hydor 7.5W flat heater

Neilanh, does this one have a temperature adjustment thingy? I'm looking for a heater for my 1.5g.

 

[Xaoey]

Marchmaxima I don't think that one has a dial for temperature control. At least according to the description it doesn't. Although I don't have that heater myself, according to the description, the temperature of your water would seem to be at whatever your room temperature is + 5degrees F

2-5 Gallon Mini Aquarium Heater

 

[neilanh]

Sharon - no, no adjustment. That one in particular is just always on actually, with the very low wattage it basically just maintains the aquarium temperature a few degrees above ambient.

marineland has a 10W heater that's only 5 or 6 inches in length IIRC, that is preset to 78 deg F. Unlike the hydor 7.5W, the marineland actually has a thermostat and will click on and off as necessary.