[CasperXx]

My betta seems very happy, he's very active and has made bubble nests since I brought him home 2 months ago. However, it's only been in my own research that I've found out that they should have a bigger tank and a heater. I got him a bigger bowl than the pet shop was suggesting because I thought the tiny thing was crewl!
My question is though, if he is happy & healthy in this temperature, is it really nessissary to buy a heat lamp? I'm concerned that the temperature change would send him into shock too.

 

[Mo]

Heating a tank would be ideal for a Betta, my recommendation would be along the lines of a heater compared to a heat lamp as the temperature will constantly fluctuate and will keep heating the tank as long as the light is on. So what size is your tank? There are a few smaller heaters for smaller size tanks such as the hydor mini heater that comes around 7.5 watts

 

[MyBettaHalf]

If you decide to get a heater, be sure to get a thermometer too. Not all heaters have a temperture readout, and not all that do are accurate. It's just easier to spend the 3 bucks or whatever and get the thermometer.

Then, when you have your heater and thermometer, you can verify your starting temps, and very slowly raise them to avoid shocking the fishy. Do literally a couple of degrees a day, until you reach the desired temperture in a few days (about 78-82 degrees I believe).

 

[Pogthefish]

well i say get a heater and thermometer and a couple of degrees a day is too slow, about two degrees an hour. gosh as long as u dont change the temp too often then its fins, i mean in the wild do you think the temp changes that slow? lol!

 

[Sea Dragon]

In the wild, the temperature DOES change pretty slowly, especially in Thailand/Southeast Asia where it's hot hot hot, whether it be day or night Plus remember that the wild habitat of bettas is much larger than a 2 gallon bowl.

 

[Pogthefish]

yea but u see 1 degree is slow, but bettas survive. i see where ur comin from but i mean is bein in the wrong temp and the temp constanlty changin 1 degree a day rlly less stressful than one big change 2 deg an hour over 1 day?

 

[Mo]

Automatically changing the adjustable Heater in very wide amounts will have little effect on bettas, as the way they are designed to work properly is to gradually change the temperature. In this situation I would agree with pogthefish as the heater will not change the temperature at the second its changed. they are designed not to do that