water changing question

[Juicebox]

quick question regarding my water changes.. i have a 14 gallon tank only 1 betta in it..

whats best for water changes??

do i go buy a big 5 - 10 gallon jug and leave water in it and conditioner over night and then the next day pour it into the tank

or do i do what i have been and cup the betta,pour the tap water straight into the tank,then put conditioner in and after 30 mins put the betta back into the tank??

i askthis because i dont have any buckets or big jugs that can hold a 50 or even a 25 percent water change worth of water in. i have 1 bucket i use to siphon the dirty tank water into but we also use this bucket for household stuff so its not safe for clean water

[Spacebug75]

My sister has a large community tank (no bettas) and here is what she does:

She bought a siphon that connects directly to the sink. I haven't seen it, but my understanding is that it siphons dirty water directly into the sink, then it attaches to the faucet and you pour water directly into the tank from the tap. She says you have to add conditioner to the tank right before you start the sink and also adjust the water temp so it's not a shock to the fish.

I think it's something like this:

http://www.petdiscounters.com/Ultima...s_p_10101.html

[LeoTheLakerBetta]

I do the same thing; have a big 5 gal bucket for dirty water and a 2 gallon bucket for putting water back in. You don't need to wait overnight though for your conditioner to work. If you don't add conditioner you leave your tap water out to let the chlorine and chloramine gasses dissipate. However, if you add the right amount of conditioner to your tap water then it will be made safe to add the water directly to the tank. Just make sure you add the conditioner. I have forgotten a couple of times and I finally remembered and freaked..

Anyways, just fill your bucket up with your tap water, add the conditioner, then add it to the tank. If you need more water to be added in do it again.

[Juicebox]

ok ty for the replies guys..

is it best to cup the betta during water changes and soil cleaning to reduce the stress on the fish? or arethey just as happy to be left in the tank

[sainthogan]

Mine doesn't seem to mind being in the tank. She's very curious and likes to see what I'm doing. The first time I cleaned the tank (she was in a much smaller one then), she actually followed around my homemade siphon, trying to stick her nose in it. (Don't worry, I only used small hosing so, she couldn't get stuck to it.) Now she'll swim around my siphon and follow it around, I use a turkey baster to suck up her waste and she follows that around too. She also tries to sit under the water flow when I pour the water back in. Needless to say, it really pushes her around, but she still likes to try.

[tanseattle]

I use 1 gal milk container (after super clean it) to mix water with conditioners. 1 gal requires about 10 drops (regular conditions 5ml per 10 gal or 1ml every 2 gal. Each ml has 20 drops so 1 gal require 10 drops).

Then I cover the head and shake it well. Then I pour it in the tank. I do this to my baby betta tanks (over 100 baby bettas) change water 2x a day: after breakfast and dinner.

[Juicebox]

Originally Posted by tanseattle

I use 1 gal milk container (after super clean it) to mix water with conditioners. 1 gal requires about 10 drops (regular conditions 5ml per 10 gal or 1ml every 2 gal. Each ml has 20 drops so 1 gal require 10 drops).

Then I cover the head and shake it well. Then I pour it in the tank. I do this to my baby betta tanks (over 100 baby bettas) change water 2x a day: after breakfast and dinner.

thats crazy dude,changing 100 tanks twice a day. im thinkin about breeding them in a year or two myself but with a full time job i dont know if id be able to do all the changing and feedings required :(