I just inherited what I'm guessing is a 1 gallon / 1 fish beta tank. I've got a male beta in there now and am looking for some pointers on water changes and some other things. Can I can give the guy a girlfriend if I frequently change the water. I feel bad for the guy who lives his entire life in a cubicle. Is it bad for me to change a portion of the water every day when I come in to work? Should I be worried about weekend neglect?
Tiny Tank Questions
- Thread starter haydenm315
- Start date
First of all, I wouldn't recommend putting a male and a female betta together in such a small tank. These fish normally don't have a very "loving" relationship. It would be best to keep him alone. Is there some type of filter in the tank? At least an undergravel filter? A betta should be fine in a 1 gallon tank over a weekend even without a filter, but personally I like keeping my bettas with a filter.
Jason
Jason
I keep my beta in a 2 litre container... bought the size of a 2 litlre pop bottle type of volume. Hes been in there since june and uh sometimes i get lazy and dont change the water for maybe 2 weeks. Hes jumped out a few times but hasn't died cuz when he dries up he just gets resoaked. They are very hardy.
Jaydog985 said:
The tank doesn't have a filter. It's already so small, I'd hate to take up more real estate. The way the lid is, makes it hard for me to understand how to put a non space intrusive filter in there. Undergravel would be the way to go I guess. I guess no tank buddy for him. Maybe I'll have him start to read one of my programming references. I'll flip the page every day?
TheMightyQueenPixie
Best Invention EVER!
Too small for a filter and totally not necessary...Change water 100 percent every 3 days...if you have gravel, give it a good rinse...Do try to figure out a way to heat them though...Unless your house is 80 degrees 24 hours a day, a bowl is too cold...A 2.5 gal can be safely heated with a 25 watt heater...20 bucks for the whole sheebang and a nice environment that will promote optimal longevity.
I second MQP.......a one gallon is too small for a filter. I had the bubbler running on my one gallons when I first got them and found that they do much better withouth them. In a tank that small all that happens is they get sloshed around by the current...not to mention all the gunk that collects under the UGF.
Heating a tank that small is a challenge. Some folks use those reptile heating pads and set the tank on top of it. But you will need a thermometer to keep track of the water temps. If it gets too warm just move a portion of the tank off of the pad. I'd add that on a day when you can be home to keep track of it until you get it settled. It would be awful to come home to a cooked betta !!
If you go with the 2 gallon you won't have that worry with a heater in it..and the betta will have more room to roam.....NO females though...lol....bad idea !!!
Heating a tank that small is a challenge. Some folks use those reptile heating pads and set the tank on top of it. But you will need a thermometer to keep track of the water temps. If it gets too warm just move a portion of the tank off of the pad. I'd add that on a day when you can be home to keep track of it until you get it settled. It would be awful to come home to a cooked betta !!
If you go with the 2 gallon you won't have that worry with a heater in it..and the betta will have more room to roam.....NO females though...lol....bad idea !!!
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TWO WEEKS because "sometimes i get lazy"? Geez, I'm glad I'm not your betta fishOnikun said:
C'mon, that's WAY too long to go without a water change and *please* get a decent lid for the bowl so he doesn't die. Don't abuse the fish, eh?
Roan
TheMightyQueenPixie said:
This monday marks the first week I've had him. I've been changing about 25% of the water every day. I need to come up with some sort of efficent system to do the 100% at work. I've got the cup he came in to put the fish in while changing the water. I'm thinking I need a strainer or something to just dump the tank in twice a week. Any suggestions? My job is a pretty constant environment. My cubicle is deep in the building and the tank has been reading 78f everyday. I work for a pretty serious company. I hope csc keeps up the good work. I know the computers can't deal with nasty temps.
Hayden,haydenm315 said:
Okay, yer a computer geek, spring some of your hard-earned Dilbert Dollars and buy your fishy a 5 gal (or bigger) tank, filter, and heater. It'll fit right on your desk beside your flat-screen (that's where mine is) . You can get an Eclipse 6 for about 46$ on line, with shipping around 50 bucks. You can even shop for it during work and have it delivered right to your desk
Why? Because then you won't have to worry about your betta so much or do so much maintenance. Less worry/work = more productive on the job. Water 25% change 1 per week instead of twice a week and you don't need to remove him from the tank.
Whoda thunk it? Betta fish, the cubicle dwellers of the millenium
Just a thought
Roan (ex-Network Analyst turned Artist)
Hey haydenm315,
If you can't be there to keep up the bowl maintenance, why not just get a small filtered tank (say, 3 gallons)? Less work for you (only change 25% of the water once a WEEK), less stress for him (because of the clean water) & bubbles for him to play with when you're not there!. Seriously, you'll see a happy fish if you upgrade--I upgraded from a 1/2 gallon betta bowl to a 3 gallon Waterhome 3 tank & my fish is a swimming maniac now.
If you can't be there to keep up the bowl maintenance, why not just get a small filtered tank (say, 3 gallons)? Less work for you (only change 25% of the water once a WEEK), less stress for him (because of the clean water) & bubbles for him to play with when you're not there!. Seriously, you'll see a happy fish if you upgrade--I upgraded from a 1/2 gallon betta bowl to a 3 gallon Waterhome 3 tank & my fish is a swimming maniac now.