Help with 5 gallon tank?

[relizabethc]

Hey, I'm a newbie betta owner and I need some help! I have a betta fish, but he is in this pathetic small tank. I got him a bigger five gallon tank, but I know from experience from other people with the same tank that the filter included is far too strong. I went out yesterday and bought decorations and gravel for the tank, along with a new heater, a testing kit, and the tropical fish care stuff with bacteria in it. I have read online that I need to cycle the tank, but is it possible to do a fishless cycle in a tank that does not have a filter? If not, what should I do? I don't want to hurt my fish or have him die, and I'm really confused!

[Friendlyfishies]

You might be able to baffle the filter using an elastic band and sponge...I baffle mine like this...



Im not sure what type of kit or filter you have, but baffling may be an option...theres also a sticky in the forum that shows you how to baffle the filter using a plastic water bottle.

Also be careful when using sponge over the intake (the peice that sucks water and debri in)...make sure the sponge is trimmed down and very pourus (large holes) or else you risk blowing the pump...you dont really need to cover the intake, but I prefer to because my betta like to rest on the intake which tears up his finnage.

[relizabethc]

I have the five gallon tank by Aquarius. It comes with a mini might power filter. Friends of mine who have had this tank tell me that their betta fish got stuck to the filter and that the fish got blown around by the current. I could try to baffle the outflow but I'm not sure how to baffle the intake.

[Viva]

Since most of the beneficial bacteria that keeps our tank "cycled" is located in the filter, I would suggest setting the filter up anyways or getting one that is known to have a small current or has an adjustable flow.

It would be easy to baffle your filter you have now so you don't have to purchase another one.

Someone has mentioned how to baffle the outflow, if the intake is just a tube that sucks in water, you can buy cheap sponges and either shove them inside the tube, or get a pre-filter sponge which fit right onto the outside of the tube. They look like this:


They are made for a Fluval filter, but they fit perfectly on both my Tetra Whisper PF10 and my Top Fin 10. You can always cut the sponges to make them fit the way you want them to, though mine required no cutting at all.

Make sure to read up on the Nitrogen cycle and keeping your beneficial bacteria happy and healthy so they can remove the dangerous Ammonia and Nitrites.