Was given a tank + betta by a coworker and need help

Your nitrates are 0 because of your algae! BE CAREFUL removing it too quickly.

I found out the other day that my tap water tests 0 for cl-. I was really confused by that... it doesn't taste like sulfur....

ph shouldn't be a problem, but definately check for cl-. any dechlorinator should work well, but I've heard the best is stress coat +. I'm currently using tetra aquasafe, but as I said, I apparently have chlorine free tapwater, so I can't say for sure that it works....

Thing with cl- is the amount that is normally in tapwater won't hurt the fish immediately, but it doesn't evaporate, and over time will build up both in the water, and in the fish's tissues, and eventually kill them.
 
bawsko said:
i googled an image and you were right. he said the fish was an oto. however i cannot find the thing. i took out the rock and looked around with a light and only saw the betta swimming around. so i have no idea where it may be :(
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Unfortunately, it may have died. Otos are sensitive fish and are known for being difficult to keep alive. Do you know if the oto was a recent purchase?
Also, otos are schooling fish that enjoy the company of their own species. They tend to be nervous--and thus prone to illness--when kept alone. That, coupled with the fact that its tankmate was a carnivorous betta, may have stressed it to the point of death.
But, they are also experts at hiding, so he may be in there somewhere still.
I wanted to add--good job with this tank! And, even though it's in bad shape, I give your co-worker credit for keeping the betta in a filtered 5 gallon, instead of a bare liter vase. :)
 
LeahK said:
Unfortunately, it may have died. Otos are sensitive fish and are known for being difficult to keep alive. Do you know if the oto was a recent purchase?
Also, otos are schooling fish that enjoy the company of their own species. They tend to be nervous--and thus prone to illness--when kept alone. That, coupled with the fact that its tankmate was a carnivorous betta, may have stressed it to the point of death.
But, they are also experts at hiding, so he may be in there somewhere still.
I wanted to add--good job with this tank! And, even though it's in bad shape, I give your co-worker credit for keeping the betta in a filtered 5 gallon, instead of a bare liter vase. :)
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There's another guy here who has his own aquarium similar to this one with plants and whatnot. Apparently he had 3 otos that were a few months old and gave the other coworker one for his tank. It was only in there for a month so I don't know what happened to it. I figure if it died I should have found its remains somewhere but I see nothing. Very strange.

I just thought of something, I wonder if I can get a few plants from him.

One last thing (well hopefully last) Is there any way to make the water clearer? The betta is hanging around in the back and I can't see him unless I turn the tank. I'm not sure if the water is that dirty or if it's the acrylic. I'm guessing if it's the water, then the water changes will help.
 
mr betta is hanging out in the back of his tank due to all the hubbub surrounding him lately (tank cleaning, water changes, move to a new environment <your office>), etc. He's just a lil stressed. give him time, he'll start coming to the front, begging for food, flipping you the fin, lol, and whatnot.

as for the question on if it's the water or the acrylic being dirty, i'm thinking it's most likely just the algae and gunk on the acrylic and the fact that it doesn't look like it's ever been cleaned. go slow, clean a bit at a time, small frequent water changes, and you should have it looking spiffy.
 
bawsko said:
is it normal for there to be 0 nitrates? people said it should be 20 or 40 earlier, maybe i did the test wrong? i followed the instructions perfectly
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It's possible.

A couple of reasons I could see this happening.

1. Fish hasn't been feed for a couple of days. And not very often before that.

2. That good 'ol algae growing, that we just plain get disgusted with. Has used it all up. : )

Thats why we've suggested to only remove bits at a time. That poor little fish in that disgusting looking tank. Might be sitting in some prestine water? IDK, but there probably isn't a whole lot of factual info about it. Sense it's hard to find anyone that would let a tank look like this. And then tell us about how perfectly balanced it is.
 
hey bawsko, how's the lil betta tank clean up coming along? got any pics for us?
 
that is one lucky little fish there, who hit the jackpot with a new owner lol
i'd love to see how the little guy and his digs are doing now :)
 
Glad he has found a good caring owner...

I would not use any kind of scraper or scrubbie on that tank, they scratch VERY easily, even with a soft scrub pad. If it is an option, consider moving the betta to another plastic container (at least 1 gallon) drain the tank (save some water), remove the filter pad and put it in the old tank water to keep the good bacteria going.

Then gently use a wet terry washcloth on the algae. Once you have the worst of it off, you could try a small amount of bleach on the washcloth to kill the rest. make sure you rinse the tank extra well, and use extra dechlorinator when you refill it. Reinstall the old filter pad. That would be a good time to rinse the gravel too. Don't get the gravel on the sides when pouring out...again, they can scratch.

Personal experience with an eclipse 5 and numerous plastic storage containers...

SMinNC has a point...there may be so much algae that it is maintaining some sort of balance...try the washcloth first to remove SOME of the algae.

I'd add some hornwort or anacharis to the tank to get some plant life in there. that will help with the nitrates too.
 
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glad the little guy found a good owner.

as a side note, not all bettas come from swamplike areas. there are over 40 different kinds of betta!
 
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