I have that glass jar with my betta in it for right now from walmart. They had two sizes, a one gallon jar which cost around $7 and a two gallon jar which cost around $12. I had gotten the one gallon jar. I don't keep the lid on the jar because I have a heater and the electrical cord won't allow the lid to stay on. If you are worried about the fish jumping out, put plastic wrap tightly over the top and rubber band it around. Then make a hole for oxygen exchange and feeding.
I wish I had gotten the two gallon so he had extra space, but he is doing just fine in the one gallon jar. I have a plant, some stones, a glass thermometer, and heater in his setup. It's the bare minimum setup and he is happy and healthy. The most expensive piece of his setup was the heater. It cost $17 from petsmart. I got the Marineland Stealth Pro Shatter Proof heater 10 watt for up to 3 gallons. It is preset and keeps the temperature 78-80 degrees. The glass thermometer cost $4 from petsmart also. Walmart also sells glass stones and pebbles in their craft section which cost a lot less and looks nicer than buying the stuff that is specifically marketed as gravel.
If you plan on getting a larger tank later I would buy things that you can use in that setup in the future. So if you are planning on getting a heater, I would make sure that it will be appropriate for the size tank that you will be getting in the future. It will save you money so you won't have to re buy things again once you upgrade.
I also plan on upgrading to a bigger tank with a filter cause I hate having to do 100% water changes every few days.
thanks for your help, everyone! I have one more question: when I got my new guy, I had him in a temporary bowl while I was cleaning out my critter carrier. so a week later, I put him in the critter carrier and he's been in there for about three weeks, so will it stress him out to move him again? especially after his "accident" about two weeks ago... http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=53275
"I just want to say that in my experience, the Tetra HT10 heater is a good pre-set heater. It was about $16 at my local pet store."
Ok, here is what I don't get. WHY would anybody pay $16.00 for a pre-set heater (which aren't all that dependable, IMO) when they could go to Ebay and get a 25 watt ADJUSTABLE, fully submersible Jebo heater for $15.49 IN THE DOOR????!!!!
I have two from this seller and could not be happier with them AND the entire transaction (VERY fast shipping):
BTW, if anybody is interested the 50 watt heaters are the same price.
Because, as other people have already stated, the Tetra pre-set heaters WORK. I could have bought a CHEAPER adjustable at the pet store, but it looked fragile. I felt the Tetra looked like the better product, and as I said before, it has been working wonderfully for me. Last night the temperature outside was in the 30's, my house temperature was set to 68. Both my 2.5 gallon tank and the new 5 gallon were 77-78 degress. I check them both with the tank LCD thermometer and a digital meat thermometer I have. I know the temperature in my tanks are stable and plenty warm.
I'm sorry if you have had problems with pre-set. All I know is that the two Tetra HT10 pre-set heaters I have work great. At least in the 2.5 and 5 gallon tanks. They are supposedly good for anywhere from 2-10 gallons, though I might worry about using one in a 10 gallon. I'd go to the larger wattage Tetra heater.
Because, as other people have already stated, the Tetra pre-set heaters WORK. I could have bought a CHEAPER adjustable at the pet store, but it looked fragile. I felt the Tetra looked like the better product, and as I said before, it has been working wonderfully for me. Last night the temperature outside was in the 30's, my house temperature was set to 68. Both my 2.5 gallon tank and the new 5 gallon were 77-78 degress. I check them both with the tank LCD thermometer and a digital meat thermometer I have. I know the temperature in my tanks are stable and plenty warm.
I'm sorry if you have had problems with pre-set. All I know is that the two Tetra HT10 pre-set heaters I have work great. At least in the 2.5 and 5 gallon tanks. They are supposedly good for anywhere from 2-10 gallons, though I might worry about using one in a 10 gallon. I'd go to the larger wattage Tetra heater.
I had a small spawn of VT bettas earlier this year and I moved them to a 10 gallon growout tank with the small Tetra preset and they did fine :)
hey, so i was at a local walmart today and saw that the 10 gallon tanks were on clearance, they only cost $13!!! i totally thought of you when i saw that, but idk if itd fit on a dresser, maybe you could find a different place for it...but if your store has them, you should deffinetly look into getting one, and returning the jars, and it would save you some money and give your boys tons of room! :D
Well I think most of your problems have been answered and I
ll just give my 2 cents on the heaviness aspect of it.
If you scoop your bettas into cups (like the ones they came in or a couple cups that've been rinsed in REALLY HOT water several times so that there's no soap residue) then you can completely empty the water out of your enclosure into a bucket, take it to be cleaned in the bathroom/kitchen, bring it back to where you want it, then fill it with water after you've set it back down where it's supposed to be. This way you never lift your enclosure when there's water in it so you won't have to worry about dropping it or anything. =]
Also you can get 2 gallon jars at Wal-Mart or Target for $8-$15 dollars. =] They're by Mainstays and they're often labeled as 2 gallon Heritage Hill Jars. The label is on the bottom though so just look for a really big clear glass jar with a glass lid that comes all the way off and chances are that'll be it. =]
Here's a picture if it helps:
Genie's in one of those right now and he loves it. =]
Or you could get a critter keeper for about $10-$15 and it's lighter and a lot less breakable. =]
Good luck! =] And no you're not bad. =P I'd try to bug your mom as much as you could though for a heater. =]
EDIT: I agree with Celine! If they're on sale at your Wal-Mart too then TOTALLY go for it! =]
Last edited by wallywestisthebest333; 10-25-2010 at 05:38 PM.
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