Amateur Here

[ShawnBliss]

I'm new to fish and I didn't know anything about cycling a tank. Will I be able to keep my betta healthy during the cycling process? I was thinking maybe 1-2 10% water changes daily and a 50% water change every other day. Would this be sufficient?

[BettaMiah]

How big is your tank? Anything under 3 gallons is pretty much impossible to cycle because you will be doing tons of water changes.

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum......

What size tank, type of filter, any live plants, water temp, pH, stocking level, type of substrate and do you have a test kit.........if you have live plants-type of lights and photoperiod......can you post a pic......

The nitrogen cycle isn't as complicated as it sounds once you understand the bacteria to meet its needs.......it needs- surface area, oxygen and food to thrive and colonize.....as BettaMiah posted....in small filtered tanks under 5gals..... its not that a filtered smaller tank can't cycle...its more due to limited surface area that limits the stability of the nitrogen cycle and nitrifying bacteria colony....

[ShawnBliss]

• Size: 2.5 gallons
• Filter: Tetra i-3 Whisper
• Live Plants: None (Yet)
• Water Temp: 78-80 degrees fahrenheit
• Stock: One betta
• Substrate: Gravel
• Lighting: LED

I only had 1 test strip yesterday, I'll have to buy a test kit soon. The strip yesterday said the pH was 7.5. Also, I have no problem doing as many water changes as necessary I just don't want to change it too much and hurt the fish or reset the cycling process.

[Micho]

You will not be able to cycle your tank.

To be honest you can cycle your tank if it's 5 gallons and higher, even at 5 gallons the cycle is unstable, the bigger the tank the more stable the cycle is. . .

If you plan to add live plants in, try to get a hardy low-light plants. Since you're using a LED light. . You can read a plant guide here and choose what to add to your tank, maybe a marimo moss ball or some moss: http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=76428