I have 3-4 Gallon tank and a betta my tank gets a fair amount of sunlight but never really rdirect it's about 7-8 ft from the window, I have some algae growing now and thinking baout adding a snail with my betta. Anywho What would my Betta be happiest with how much light in there?
How much sun to let into the tank?
- Thread starter everglow
- Start date
The main concern with sunlight is how it affects the temp of a tank. If a tank is a near a window it will get hot during the day and cold during the night. But 7-8 feet away should be much of a concern. If there are no live plants in the tank then you probably get enough light for the betta. But if you want to enjoy him more added light will be needed for nighttime.
Snails are good companions for most bettas. The betta may initially flare and peck at the snails (usually harmlessly on the shell), but eventually will ignore it completely.
You may want to consider doing some additional water changes to control the algae though. While the large apple snails are helpful cleaners, they are not a cure-all, and some maintenance on your part to control nitrates is needed.
Without adequate algae, snails can starve, and this will pollute the tank. An algae tab is often too much for a single snail to consume quickly, so breaking a tab into fourths and providing one piece every 3-4 days will supplement thier diet. the betta may pick at the algae tab a bit, but this is unlikely to be enough to starve the snail. Likewise, the snail will happily eat any food the betta overlooks.
You may want to consider doing some additional water changes to control the algae though. While the large apple snails are helpful cleaners, they are not a cure-all, and some maintenance on your part to control nitrates is needed.
Without adequate algae, snails can starve, and this will pollute the tank. An algae tab is often too much for a single snail to consume quickly, so breaking a tab into fourths and providing one piece every 3-4 days will supplement thier diet. the betta may pick at the algae tab a bit, but this is unlikely to be enough to starve the snail. Likewise, the snail will happily eat any food the betta overlooks.
thanks what about a tiny snail? I dunno if it's an apple snail but I saw one and the shop and he wast about a cm long. This is stupid question but I won't need to add shells for the snail it'll grow it's own won't it? Also would algae hurt my betta is it bad or anything? It's still a mystery how it got in there. Theres a lot of the algae spots around my tank do snails usually hunt them down pretty quick? I mean if the algae doesn't hurt the betta then the snail can have his own garden no bigg deal.
I have lots of small snails and even amona algae eating shrimp in my 5 gallon betta tank. But I keep them more for pets than a work force. There is still plenty of algae. Any tank can have algae and pretty do.
Algae itself won't hurt the betta. But its cause may. Algae generally starts to get bad if there is high levels of nitrogen int he water either ammonia, nitrites or nitrates. These can be harmful and need to be dealt with. But spots of alage are just a common thing and can usually be taken care of with an abrasive pad (watch out on acrylic though).
Snails grow their shell so don't worry about that.
Algae itself won't hurt the betta. But its cause may. Algae generally starts to get bad if there is high levels of nitrogen int he water either ammonia, nitrites or nitrates. These can be harmful and need to be dealt with. But spots of alage are just a common thing and can usually be taken care of with an abrasive pad (watch out on acrylic though).
Snails grow their shell so don't worry about that.
How would nitrates be getting in I use bottled water and I put in a chlorine nutrilizer too. Or would that be the cause? Cause it's never been before? Is it normal for the air hose to have a bit of algae in it?
I think OrionGirl was asking if you had even tested your tank water. Even if you put in clean water, your fish will be producing wastes that will be converted into nitrates. If nitrates are high, they will promote algae growth. Larger or more frequent water changes (along with not over-feeding) will help this problem.