Relocation of Betta

[CooperS]

Hi,

I've had Marlin, my veiltail male for almost a year and a half now. I would like to upgrade his tank from a 1 gallon to a 2.5-3 gallon but I have some questions.

First, is is okay to switch tanks with bettas? What steps should I take to make sure that he doesn't go into shock?

Do I *need* a filter for a 2.5 gallon tank? I've been doing manual changes with the 1 gallon tank.

Should I use live plants? What's the benefit - it acts as a filter (somewhat), right? What are some basic plants that don't require a lot of extra care?

The room I will be keeping him in keeps water at around 76-77 F, but I might buy a heater to bump it up to 80. Any suggestions?

EDIT: What do you think about this tank? I would obviously remove the divider. Are built in filters usually okay?

[AyalaCookiejar]

Yes, it is perfectly fine to switch tanks. My betta LOVED his upgrade from a one gallon to a five gallon. I moved over his old decor which he is familiar with and added some new decor. In an underdecorated tank, sometimes they can get a little freaked out with wide open space. I suggest that you add at least one plant in the new tank that reaches the surface or gets close so he has resting places near the top, and a tank that is wider than it is tall is best.

You will need to acclimate him to new, clean water. You should already be doing that when you do 100%s though so it will be roughly the same.

You don't need a filter. Many people recommend that you don't filter anything under a five gallon, anyways.

There are a lot of beginner plants that are hardy and don't require a lot of light. However, if you don't have dirt substrate, you need a nutrient supplement and correct lighting. I will find a link to a very helpful thread I posted a while back for anyone who is very inexperienced with live plants.

76-77 is kind of cool. They should have at least 78 degree water. A heater is pretty much always necessary for bettas. A 25 watt adjustable heater (like the Hydor Theo which is what I have) would be perfect for 2-7 gallon tanks.


Edit: Here is the link to that thread about plants:
http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=124487
If you have the patience to read it all it contains very good info on the needed light/nutrients and a lot of easy beginner plants as well as how to trim them and everything.

[Laki]

Ayala covered it :)
As for live plants, some beginner plants would be java fern, java moss, marimo moss balls, salvinia, frogbit, hornwort, anubias... There are others but these have all survived for me and I have NO luck lol
They don't act as a "filter", they use up ammonia and nitrites (Or nitrates) for food production. But great to have, they look wonderful and natural and the fish love them.

In a tnak smaller than 5g you don't need a filter. You can set up a sponge filter but it won't affect your twice weekly water changes too dramatically.

[CooperS]

Thanks both of you :) So just acclimate him slowly to the new water in the tank like when you do 100%'s? And then do two weekly changes of water? I don't really have the resources at school to take care of a plant right now, but I may ask a friend I know for help with them. I think I'll add a large, fake plant instead as I've noticed my betta likes to rest at the top of the water.

[CooperS]

By the way, can either of you recommend a heater? I've heard a lot of good things about Hydor Theos?

[AyalaCookiejar]

Yep, like I said I have the Hydor Theo heater (four, actually!) 3 25watts and a 50watt. My room temp gets down to like 60 degrees this time a year but all my tanks are holding steady 78-79.

Edit: The 25watt would be perfect for a 2.5 gallon.

[CooperS]

Thanks a lot :) A question about heaters though, they maintain the temp, right? They don't just add heat? Like if I set it to 80 F and the room temp is 70 F, the water temp won't go up if the room temp does, right? I am nervous about using heaters, I don't want them to fry my fish!!

[Laki]

Avoid pre-set heaters. I have a pre set Aqueon 10 w (which I love) but I have to be careful because it can easily put my .5 to 85F. (it was only snails so..) Presets are the accident heaters.
Adjustable heaters you can set to keep a stable temp, it will run on its own thermostat-outside temps don't affect it.