Betta Tanks

[BettaBetta]

Hi everyone, stuck at college and I picked up a Female and Male Betta at walmart for a lil entertainment :)

They are currently living together peacefully... Sometimes the male gets a lil agressive but never for long so I am not too worried.

They have a half a gallon tank filled 3/4 so they dont jump out. and a lil bit of aquarium gravel.

I feed them betta Bio Gold.
3 times a day and clean 1/3 of the water every week.

My question is, well they look bored. I want to up the tank quality to this 1 gallon more room ( I know bettas dont need much room, but I dont want him bumping into her too much)

And I saw a tank but it's aerated, and Bettas don't need air filtration but is it alright to have it or will there be too much oxygen in the water or will it bother them?

ANy info or suggestions would be great thank you :D

Joe

[hcgirl80]

First: 1/2 gallon is too small for a betta. I suggest getting a 2.5 or 3g aquarium for them.
You need filtration also.

3 times a day is probably too much for a betta. Switch it down to 1 or 2 feedings a day.
Your water change rate is good.

As for the bettas looking bored, you need a decoration/hiding place for them to play in. I have a turtle decoration and my fish love it. you can also get a clay flower pot and put it in there for a hiding place.

Let others tell you more cuz I gotta go. Brother's turn. URRG!

[BettaBetta]

Well i know they DOnt need it because they can breahte atmospheric air, but I guess I'll go with the 2 gallon tank, budget is a little low,

yeah i was deifnelty in the mood for some hiding spots :)

Alright sounds good thanks for the suggestions I'll get on that tonight :D

edit: Unless by filtrations you mean filtrate the water?

My main concern is if they can have an aerator to recycle the oxygen in the water.

[phanmc]

First off, a half gallon tank is way too small for a pair of bettas. I wouldn't settle for anything less than a 2 gallon for 1 betta. People may stick them in little cups, but it doesn't mean they don't enjoy larger space. I have a betta in a 12 gallon tank and he likes to swim all over the place.

Secondly, do not keep a male and female together unless you're mating them (and then you'd need to remove the female) or you have a large tank. When it comes time to mate, if the female is not ready the male will harass her and one or the other will die from the result. The male will also attack the female after they mate as he defends his bubblenest.

Third, you don't need to feed them 3 times a day. A couple of pellets once a day is enough.

Finally, aeration is not necessary but will not harm them. If the aeration is causing alot of surface agitation, then that may bother them.

[BettaBetta]

Thankyou Phanmc

I'll move the female out of there into another tank :D

How will I knwo when it is time to mate them?

[N8DOGG]

Why not get a 10 gallon??? I just bought one from petco for $6. Then get a divider and you can keep both in there. You'll need to get a heater and a filter.

[phanmc]

Regarding filtration, bettas do need clean water so unless you plan on doing water changes everyday, some sort of filter is required (and we're not talking about the aerating unit).

Regarding mating, its a fairly involved process. Try doing a search in google on mating bettas.

[BettaBetta]

The tanks here are wee bit expensive
so 'll do my best and I dont have room for a 10 gallon tank in my dorm lol

so prolly 2 2 gallon tanks or 2 1 gallon

we'll see Im trying my best to make a good environment for both.

[phanmc]

The tank divider is a great idea. If you can't find a cheap 10 gallon tank, see if you can't find anything smaller like a 5 or 6 gallon tank with a divider. That way, you will only need one filter and heater.

[ChicoRaton]

ditto. as far as the filter and heater, it might be least expensive to get an aquaclear mini filter, via aqua preset 50 watt heater, and test kits to monitor your cycle, although that's not necesary if you just do daily 1 gallon water changes.

the total for the filter, heater, and an ammonia test kit is $21.97 at bigalsonline.com and you can take $1.99 off of that if you forgo the ammonia test kit. to get a nitrite test kit add another $4.97.

Then just get a 5 or 10 gallon tank and divider locally and you have an awesome betta setup

good luck

[jamzwayne]

BettaBetta,

Your heart is in the right place. Your doing good, and this is the right start by coming to this forum. I have learned SOOOO much here, and I still have alot to learn...

I agree with everyone on this thread. I am still mad at my mom for keeping her betta in a lil vase on her desk :mad2

I have a spare 10 gallon that could be all his, but she says, "its cute", I say its mean. The more room they have the better they will be. I'd go with a small 5 or 10 gallon tank, a cheap heater (you have AC right? room temp might be a lil cold for em), and a small filter, just to help keep the water cleaner.

*Your doing good*

[BettaBetta]

haha thanks, no our dorms dont have AC so the temp is roughly 75-80 F

They've been peaceful so far together the past 2 days, they're sleeping now

I see bubbles forming around the bowl whcih at least means my male is content with his living habitat.

But tomorrow im going to try and find a ride to wallmart and look for a double tank for 2 1 gallons and get a nice filtration system for them.

I mean I got them for no reason but now I feel obligated to really take care of them, who knows it may keep my focused durring the school year that I have responsibilities.

But yeah I want to seperate them because if she isnt ready to mate I dont want one dead.

BTW can other fish live with betta fish or will the male and or female get agressive towards them? I think they would so I dont think i will do that.

This site is infomrative and great btw

Still trying to name them, if anyone wants to throw some out for a male and female looking for something unique :)

[ROLLIN]

They've been peaceful so far together the past 2 days, they're sleeping now

I see bubbles forming around the bowl whcih at least means my male is content with his living habitat.




The bettas "sleeping", and the bubbles on the surface could be connected. You are right that males will blow bubble nests, but have you seen him blowing them? Often when the water is foamy/bubbly it will also have ammonia in it (unless made by the betta). Stir the surface of the water with your finger and make bubbles. If they pop right away, the water is probably ok. If the bubbles linger and take a long time to pop, a water change is likely to help. Because of the small size of the aquarium/bowl, my guess is that the water quality is suffering and that is why the bettas are resting on the bottom, or "sleeping".

[BettaBetta]

I think it's okay.

I've seen the male blow the bubbles and now that there is light in my room they are lively again :) The female is oddly on the top of the bowl and the male is on th ebottom though lol.

Whater was bottled poland spring put in at room temp then I just let it sit for a day then I floated them in to get used to it and let em in

Edit: Im going to try and get a ride to the store today and get more suitable tanks for them

any suggestions on how I should introduce them to the new tank and specific water ( IE Tap or Btottled?)

Thanks again,
Joe