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New Here and New Betta

423 views 9 replies 4 participants last post by  sarav 
#1 ·
Hello!

I just bought my first Betta fish. :) I found your website before purchasing, so I think I have everything I need. I bought a 2.5 Gallon Betta Tank, and it came with a filter, some food and the water conditioner. Separately I bought some gems, plastic plants and a heater. I never found a net or thermometer, so I guess I will be buying that tomorrow! I have just a few questions:

1. The tank instructions said to let the filter run for 24 hours before adding the fish, should I do this?

2. If I have to wait the full 24 hours, should I leave the fish in the cup floating in water in my sink for that amount of time, or should I just leave it in the little cup until I'm ready to slowly introduce him to the tank? It's going to be difficult to keep the sink water warm over night.

3. When should I turn on the heater? Now? Or a few hours before I'm going to introduce the fish (Assuming I have to wait 24 hours)? Or do I turn on the heater after the fish is in the tank?

Thanks in advance. I'm so excited to have a Betta. When I figure out how to post pictures, I will! :)
 
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#2 ·
Hi,
Welcome...I am sure there will be a difference of opinion here, but if it were me I would leave him in the cup in a warm area of your house. He would have been in the cup in the pet store anyway, one more day will not kill him. That said, be sure his water is clean! enjoy your new guy!
 
#3 ·
I would go ahead and leave it on for 24hrs first as per instructions. It's been too many years since I have needed to get a new filter but I believe that they were the same way back then- I always cycled larger tanks, and since yours doesn't need to cycle you won't need to do so, so the 24 hrs is all you need.

You can leave him in the cup, as mentioned before in a warm spot in your house. You could also place in within a small towel to keep him warm- just remember that those cups can get warm/cold really quickly.

I would suggest taking out part of the water and replacing it with clean water and conditioner, but since you have no way of testing the temp then I would hold off.

Turn the heater on asap, as it takes a while for it to get to the correct temp (76-82*F), so may as well get it started so tomorrow you won't have to worry about it.
 
#4 ·
So here's my new tank set up: I found a thermometer, so we're well on our way to having a nice warm tank!




Here's Nami:





I know the pictures aren't that great because he's still in his little cup and it's hard to take pictures of him. Hopefully in a few hours I will be able to introduce him to his forever home! The cup he's in says he's a crowntail fish, hopefully he looks happy and healthy!

I don't have a whole lot of plants in the tank, and I was going to get more. Do I have to soak these in conditioned water before placing them in the tank, or can I just wash them in hot water and then put them in the tank?

One more question, do they need those floating leaves or floating logs like I saw in the store?

Thank you!
 
#5 ·
I don't have a whole lot of plants in the tank, and I was going to get more. Do I have to soak these in conditioned water before placing them in the tank, or can I just wash them in hot water and then put them in the tank?

One more question, do they need those floating leaves or floating logs like I saw in the store?

Thank you!
I would just give the plants a quick rinse and put them in the tank. You don't need to get a floating leaf or log but I would suggest some sort of hiding/resting spot for you betta. I personally have a japanese latern style temple that my guy can swim through and rest in. He loves that temple, too. Sleeps on the top "floor."
 
#6 ·
So Nami is settling into his new place. Here's a few pictures I could get of him. He's swimming around quite a bit, so we turned off his lamp to let him calm down.

How do you all seem to have beautiful pictures of your fish. These were the best blurry few I could come up with!








Thanks for all of your help!
 
#7 ·
Cute guy you have there :)

lol out of hundreds of pictures there may be just 1 decent one for everyone. Sometimes even worse, if a flash is used all the time some bettas may recognize the camera and go hide :p

He may be more appreciative to have the log or the hammock, but not needed. Anything floating in my male's tanks always gets a bubble nest built under them and they use the caves as beds.
 
#8 ·
Well he's been there for two hours and I just turned on his light and tried to give him some food pellets. I put two in and I think he knew they were there, but by the time he got to them, they were down in the rocks and he didn't try to get them. Does he not know they are there, or is he unable to get them from the rocks? I tried to put in a few more when he was closer to the top, but the same thing happened. He would swim to them but they'd be at the bottom on the rocks by the time he got to them.

I gave him two pellets this morning before I transferred him, so I know he's not too hungry. Should I just wait until tomorrow morning to feed him again?

I can't see the food now that they are amongst the rocks, they seem to have sunk completely so I'm not sure how I'll know if he's eaten them. Perhaps I should try to find a new type of food that floats?
 
#9 ·
You could try floating pellets, or train him when it's feeding time.

When you are about to feed, tap the lid over the spot you want to feed him at, or take the tip of one of your fingers (I use my pinky after I clean my hands first) and wiggle a little bit of it in the water to get his attention, once he comes up to investigate it drop in a pellet and see how he does. If he gets it just fine, then every time you are about to drop in a pellet, stick your pinky in the spot and when he is up there and ready drop in another. Soon you may be able to just have to use your pinky once and he will be ready for food each time you drop one in.
After a week or so he should be trained to eat them.
 
#10 ·
The pinky trick worked perfectly! He just ate two more pellets.

I noticed that the heater has heated the tank up right to 82*F or just over. I've turned off his light to see if that will help cool him down and I've turned down the heat in the room. The heater I have is a 10W that is made for tanks up to 5 Gallon (I have a 2.5). How do the heaters work? Will they shut off when they reach a certain temperature? It's been plugged in since 10AM and now it's 10PM. It JUST reached this temperature, all day it was within the perfect range.

I'm going out for New Years Eve now, so hopefully it will cool down a little with us not in the room. Is there any point when too warm is very problematic?

Thanks again. This website is so helpful!
 
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