hello everyone :) newbie needing some help please :)

[KMJBandmooch]

im obviously a newbie. just got my betta (Mooch) two days ago... i have him in a small tank. i found a bigger tank yesterday for 3 bucks should i get it? or should i get one of the bigger ones from wallmart?, i assume the tank i found is a gallon( approx a foot tall& wide, glass octagon).... can somebody reply ASAP and tell me what size is the minimum recommended is because i cant really affoard a huge tanks maintenence( chemicals etc).. my grandma has a massive tank im prettty sure but i dont have space for it unless my fish goes to my dads which im thinking about anyway. Ive seen alot of post about heating the tank, and im very concerned because my betta is in room temp (at best because my room is FREEZING!!! the last thing i want is to be cruel to my betta. unfortunatly i didnt do research before hand. i will post pics of my tank and would appreciate ALL feedback,.


my betta has noticed his reflection.. and i dont see him taking an interest in fanning out. but hes being aggresssive in his own way???, and hasnt left his reflection alone all day, not even to eat, which concerns me, he is quite active and if im by the tank he will come to me.


the quicker the help the better im pretty much willing to do anything because i want my little guy to be happy....

[Nubster]

If the tank you are looking at is a gallon and it's bigger than the one you have, then yes, you need a bigger tank. Bettas might be stored in cups at the store but that doesn't mean they like being in tiny spaces. I would strongly suggest a 2.5g or larger tank, preferably larger. 5g would be great and a 10g would be a dream Betta home.

You need a heater. Bettas are tropical fish. More important that the water temp (this is important though) is keeping the temp stable. Get a heater.

You mention expensive chemicals. What chemicals? All you need is a bottle of Prime. Get a 250ml bottle for <$10 and if you only have a 2.5g or 5g tank, that bottle of Prime will last you a VERY long time. Consider that one ml of Prime will treat 10g of water. There are 15 drops in a ml. That means in a 5g tank, doing a 50% water change, you use like 2-3 of the stuff to treat your water change water. There are 3750 drops in a 250ml bottle. So really, not expensive at all.

You can reduce the cost of chemicals even further if you get a small filter. Get a filter and once it is established, you can reduce the number of water changes you need to do. No filter you need to change the water probably every other day, if not daily. With filter, you can do once a week water changes. A couple low maintenance plants will help too and the Betta will love them.

[KMJBandmooch]

im very thankfull for your reply. im going out on wedenesday to get proper fish stuff.. my fish is in the warmest room possible right now hopefully i can get the stuff ready and mr mooch will be happy..... and i promise there will be a few more questions to follow :P

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum and to the wonderful world of Betta keeping....so glad you found us and became a member of our neat little community....

IMO/E In 1gal unfiltered tanks are fine to keep a single Betta provided that you make the needed water changes to maintain water quality, don't overfed and remove uneaten food within a reasonable time....

Filters are optional for Bettas and in tanks smaller than 3gal-often they can cause stress and fin damage.

In 1gal unfiltered tanks-water changes of twice weekly...1-50 and 1-100% should maintain water quality-unless you have live rooted plants

You may or may not need a heater, however, its good to have one on hand

You do need a thermometer to monitor the tank temp to maintain a somewhat stable temp in the 76-80F range and the temp of the replacement water used for water changes to try and keep temp between new and old water within a few degrees of each other.

The only chemical additive you need is a good dechlorinator that covers both chlorine and chloramine. Be sure to check the label for proper dosage if you have both since some require double dose when you have chloramine in the source water

Dose for the full volume of the tank even with the 50% water change as a general rule-its hard to overdose these products

Look forward to hearing more about your Betta keeping adventures....

[dramaqueen]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

[morla]

Hi! Welcome to the forum! I hope you like it here!