You can always get one of the Lee carbon and sponge filters that you hook to a small pump-- They're about $5.00 for two plus the cost of the pump. I can't imagine that a low rated pump would use much more electricity than, say, a lightbulb on all of the time. I cycle them to use them in small hospital tanks all of the time. After I'm finished, I throw them out to avoid contamination, but that wouldn't be a problem in your friend's case.
Convince her that she needs a filter!!
- Thread starter Lexi_D
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have you seen the rice paddies in person especially during dry season and the seasons in between when its not a wet season-:naughty: enuff said -
I think people need to get off their high horses and get back to reality, those animals are evolved to thrive in the environment they are given. Their number one drive is the need to reproduce. Y'all are doing something against the nature of the animal, denying their want to reproduce if you want to keep one male betta by itself its whole life then cry about air conditioning and crying about the water quality-needing electrical filteration get real- the bioload for ONE betta is not going to hurt the water in a 2.5g tank if you over feed it then its the problem, it doesn't matter what the diet is it does not eat much. Ask the thai betta breeders- overweight betta isn't good for breeding. I would be personally more worried with the live feeds but 99.9999 percent of betta owners dont do that with commerically available betta foods on the market- most of it is just fillers which won't contribute to HIGH bioload for one freaking splendens. Hence the reason why real hobbyists make their own fish food like I do or get it from a specialized source.
I have bred/raised crowntails, plakats, rubras, cannitodes in the past- I think people over do it sometimes but hey its to everyones own. I do excessive filterations in 99 percent of my tanks as I am guilty as charged on that with my stock. Running 2 AC500s in a 55g tank..... NATURE has been filtering its waters for eons without a giant electrical filter.
Okay, please give me a creditable source from an expert that specifically states that electrical filtration is needed for a betta since its your argument, for the sake of the fish's comfort.
it's never going to be comfortable as it's always going to be building bubblenests, waiting for the mate that never comes... what a huge let down for that guy. (lol) I even read somewhere that a college did an experiment with two of those guys they were put in a lake on the opposite ends, yet they had to find each other and fight to the death. It's all about reproduction. that's what the fish lives for killing off its competition and being able to reproduce.
those guys are great dads. I do enjoy watching their zest when it comes to guarding their young constantly putting the wigglers back up their nest when they sink..... if they were the size of oscars they would have given me nasty bites... I do see the difference between a mated and unmated male- breeders would probably know what I'm talking about- I see the more pride in that mated male- its showing off more often. While the unmated male somehow fades out and withdraws. Perhaps it was only my experience. I got out of the betta hobby due to the fact that theres tooooo many jars to separate the males, when the guys start trying to pick on each other tho there were few batches that I have had the brothers grow to adulthood without any issues in the same tank.
:thumbsup: don't get me wrong, I do have nano tanks set up with lighting systems, plants, shrimps, CPOS , nanofish species and what not- I'm for nano tanks, I do go all the way when it comes to enjoying the fish species however people do not see the cost with ELECTRICTY, the cost of replacement cartidges, it does add up for a year.
Look up people's fish bowls online- its all awesome I just can't figure out how people do it with plants thats my number one goal this year is to get a container thats able to hold a pint of water and have a species of plant growing out of it making it look like a tiny biotope
cheers
If she's not allowed to get a filter (which makes no sense to me), then get lots of live plants for the tank. They'll use the betta's waste as food.
A good reason to get a filter , though, is that the fish will show better colors and be more active due to better water quality.
A good reason to get a filter , though, is that the fish will show better colors and be more active due to better water quality.
Wow, this has stirred up quite a controversy! lol... I sent her basically what jm said about the filter, and then she said her mom didn't even want her to get the bigger tank so she was pushing it with the filter. I'm sending her an email now about getting live plants... we'll see where that goes and I'll update you on that when she responds to see if we can come up with anything else (if the answer is no).
people say filters aren't necessary for bettas because they breathe atmospheric air and don't need the turbulanca and because they're not messy fish. This is WRONG get your friend to but at least a small corner filter or sponge filter. If the tank doesn't have a heater she should get a small watt heater too. Bettas need a water temperature of about 78 degrees. The corner filter should only be a few bucks but the heater will be probably around fifteen. Good Luck 
With all due respect,bull cookies! Plenty of trops can handle normal room temps (say 70) with no problem at all, and if you change enough water often enough filtration isn't necesssary either. A filter is just a convenience which allows you to not have to make large daily changes.
the places where bettas live are not tiny little puddles that are 1 or 2 gallons each. even at their lowest livable points, they are still much larger than even what we consider to be "large tanks." these "condiditons" that bettas were "born to live in" do not in any shape or form constitute it living in ammonia ridden water. water chemistry tells us that since the low pH of a rice paddy causes ammonia to be exchanged for much less toxic ammonium, the level of toxic ammonia in the water is much lower than the typically high-pH tap water in the US.
and yes, one bettas IS going to spoil a 2.5 gallon tank in one day. fish make ammonia constantly, and the level at which it becomes toxic is extremely low, which is why test kits measure parts per million.
and yes, one bettas IS going to spoil a 2.5 gallon tank in one day. fish make ammonia constantly, and the level at which it becomes toxic is extremely low, which is why test kits measure parts per million.
Just add enough water lettuce that the betta can access the air.
My flipped-over API master test kit lid tank (guesstimated 0.4 gallons) is currently at 0 ammonia 0 nitrite having been set up for 5 days and never had a water change. Fed liberally. However, an eclipse system 3 with a heater is on the way.
The idea that you NEED a filter is laughable if you have enough plants.
What you do NEED is a HEATER. Water temps on a small open-top tank typically sit around 70-72F, depending on room temp. Betta should have 75-80F
My flipped-over API master test kit lid tank (guesstimated 0.4 gallons) is currently at 0 ammonia 0 nitrite having been set up for 5 days and never had a water change. Fed liberally. However, an eclipse system 3 with a heater is on the way.
The idea that you NEED a filter is laughable if you have enough plants.
What you do NEED is a HEATER. Water temps on a small open-top tank typically sit around 70-72F, depending on room temp. Betta should have 75-80F
:thumbsup: gotta agree on a heater- my rooms are constantly at the same temperature year long. I always added heaters when breeding my bettas- and lamps to keep the air warmer right above the surface for the tiny babies or they would have died from the cold air draft if there were any.
PLUS forgot to add to my long explaination:
bettas especially the male splendens with large/showy fins being able to handle current that electrical filters are going to be dishing out- even the ones run by airstones in a small tank- it creates currents or disturbances in the water. The guys don't like their bubblenests being constantly wrecked and will be trying to look for new locations to make the bubble nests being stressed out...they work very hard maintaining their bubblenests 24/7
they have long/showy fins and will be working twice as hard compared to other streamlined fish or females- thats added stress to those male bettas. They're simply not evolved for currents at all hence why they're in still water pools. Their bodies are not simply created for that.
