New betta fish and owner

[xjumperloverx]

Hello everyone, I just purchased my first betta fish today and I'm very excited about it and did quite a bit of research and asked about them in the pet store, but I forgot a few and wanted to just find out!

I have a 10 gallon tank that I just set up a few hours ago, along with it's water filter and heater. I bought AquaSafe water conditioner and put that in my new tank according to the measurements. I also bought EasyBalance water treatment stuff but didn't put it in yet because I'm not sure if I'm supposed to or not...? And when can I put my betta in it's new home and how do I go about doing so? And how often should I change the water in a tank this size?

Thanks!!

[SaylorKennedy]

WELCOME TO THE ADDICTION!
The EasyBalance and the Aquasafe conditioner are the same thing, just different brands, so you just need to add one.

[Jynx]

where is the fish in the meantime? if he's in one of those little cups the store keeps them in i'd say go ahead and put him in the tank now. those little cups aren't good for them- they get stressed out and the filth builds up really fast.
You'll want to make sure the tank water and the water he's in now are close in temperature before you put him in there so he doesn't get shocky.
also i'd like to point out that betta can be injured on sharp plastic plants or aquarium decoration. the fins get caught really easily and it leads to infection. we like real or silk plants best for betta.

[dr2b]

Welcome to Fishforum :) You need to make sure that if you live some place that is cooler you get a heater. You want your water temperature to be a constanct 77-80 degrees. Also, like Jynx pointed out, you want to make sure you use real or silk plants because of the fact that plastic plants are sharp and tear their fins. Same goes for decorations also, I've had to sand a few down because they were too sharp. And I'm sure you know this, but we recommend you feed them 2 times a day 2-3 pellets each time and fasting (not feeding) once a week. You can feed freezedried or frozen bloodworms or brineshrimp as a treat once a week or so.

As mentioned before, you need to acclimate your betta to its new home. Make sure the temperatures are close to the same and sit his cup in the water for awhile and eventually add some of the new water in the cup so he can get used to it. I would use the Aquasafe and take the other water conditioner back to the petstore you got it from.

I have a 5 gallon cycled tank and I do a 30-35% water change once a week on it. I'd say you need to change the water at least once a week, but you may not have to change as much as I do.

[xjumperloverx]

Thanks! I put him in there last night because I felt bad leaving him in the little cup and I think he likes it. He's swimming everywhere and checking everything out. I'm not quite sure what's going on with my heater and thermometer though... the thermometer is really weird and I can't tell what temp it is and the water feels cold to touch. Is that okay for the time being? I'm looking for a different thermometer to try that and if I can't figure it out and it's still cold I'm going to go buy a new one tonight, but it's not going to kill him for a couple of hours is it? And do they make digital thermometers/heaters? That would make life easier....

[dramaqueen]

Yes, they make digital thermometers. They're not quite as accurate as the glass ones but I was fairly happy with mine.

[dr2b]

I use digital after I broke my glass one in the tank. I am happy with mine. I tested it by using a glass one and the digital for awhile and they were the same temperatures.

[Jynx]

if he's swimming around and being active he's probably ok for now- you would have cause to worry if he was just lying limp at the bottom or being really sluggish and not eating. just figure out your heating stuffs soon and he'll be kool
grats on new fish!

[xjumperloverx]

Thanks everyone! I found another thermometer that I know is right (I set in in the window and it matched my digital) so I stuck it in the tank it's around 80ish which he seems to like because he's been swimming all around so I think I'm good...

[Russell Crowe]

I'm jealous, my female beta is lifeless in her new 10 gallon. She was happier in the cup. She also won't eat in the tank I have to put her in the cup to feed her. I am hoping she will get used to the tank.