New Bettas

[skepkat]

I love Chuck (picture to left) and since I think I have the hang of water changes I decided to get another one. Unfortunately, I have no self control and came away from the store with 2 new crown tails and a baby.

One crown tail relaxed once he got out of the little cup. The baby seemed stressed for about the first hour or two but has now relaxed and seems happy enough. The other crown tail (which was in bad shape at the store) will need some special care.

Housing for new stressed betta (as yet unnamed):

What size is your tank? 2.5 gal
What temperature is your tank? 80 degrees
Does your tank have a filter? yes, but it seemed to bother him, so I unplugged it.
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no - other than disabled filter
Is your tank heated? no, I keep my house at 80 degrees
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none (other than plants)

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? micro floating betta pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? 1 - 2 times a day

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? As needed (3 times a week)
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? usually 50% (some 25% or 75%)
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Top Fin Water Conitioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

(These are the results from fresh water + conditioner)
Ammonia: .5
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
pH: 7.0
Hardness: 50
Alkalinity: 100

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? see picture (fin rot + clamped)
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Not swimming, just floating near surface
When did you start noticing the symptoms? NA
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? NA
Does your fish have any history of being ill? NA
How old is your fish (approximately)? NA

[skepkat]

Update: This is a better picture of the new fish from last night (clamped and not really swimming much). He seems more relaxed tonight. 2nd picture is him swimming around. You can still see the black edging to his fins. But at least he ate some food and seems a bit more lively.

How long until I should start seeing improvement in his fins?

Any other advice?