It's 5:00 in the morning, and you are awakened by a small sudden cold snap, be it your home's heater has broken, your room mate won't allow it to be on, or in my case, it's a gas heater that's been "summerized" and your family won't get it ready for winter until later on in the fall months. By instinct, you decide to check on your Betta and come to find out, your thermometer … [Read more...] about Cold Snaps: what can you do?
Equipment
Reduce Filter Current for your Betta
Even mild filter current can become a nuisance for a betta fish who have large heavy fins and are notoriously slow swimmers compared to other small aquarium fish. It can be challenging for betta keepers to find a balance between enough current to keep the water clean and cycling, yet gentile enough to allow their betta fish to swim comfortably and eat their food without it … [Read more...] about Reduce Filter Current for your Betta
A Warning About Distilled Water and Betta Fish
Unlike tap water or spring water, distilled water has gone through a process that strips it almost completely of all minerals. Like RO water (reverse osmosis), it is essentially pure and no longer contains any of the trace elements that would be found naturally in water. Fish kept in distilled water over a period of time may show signs of lethargy or color loss. Most aquarists … [Read more...] about A Warning About Distilled Water and Betta Fish
Betta Fish Hammock
If you stop to watch your betta for a few minutes you will see him surface, sticking his mouth above water, to suck in air. Though they have gills, they still rely on their labyrinth organ (similar to lungs) to gain oxygen from the atmosphere. This allows them to survive in poorly oxygenated waters where other fish species would suffocate and parish. Betta fish spend much of … [Read more...] about Betta Fish Hammock
Top 5 Must-have Betta Fish Supplies
Anybody who has kept fish, whether it be a large built in aquarium or a small betta bowl, knows there is a lot involved with creating an ecosystem that can sustain life. We have filters, lighting, food, nets, testing equipment, medication, sponges & scrapers, dechlorinators, and the list goes on. There are a lot of aquarium supplies that are helpful to keep on hand, but … [Read more...] about Top 5 Must-have Betta Fish Supplies
Heating Small Betta Fish Bowls
NS wrote, Hey. I just arrived at my college today and got a fish. I’m currently housed in a triple which leaves very little room for a fish. Before heading out to the store to get my new little bud I was just wondering what type of heater i should use on my 1 gallon corner tank? The tank has an undergravel filter, and live plants will be going in with it to help keep it a … [Read more...] about Heating Small Betta Fish Bowls
Selecting the Proper Sized Aquarium Heater for Your Fish Tank
Q: MS wrote, Great blog, I wonder if you could give me a little advice please.I have a 5.5 gallon filtered aquarium with 1 betta. I am heating it with a 25w Hagen Elite which says on the pack it’s right for the volume of water. Trouble is even when I turn it down to it’s lowest setting I can’t get the temperature as low as I’d like. I understand perfect temperature is around … [Read more...] about Selecting the Proper Sized Aquarium Heater for Your Fish Tank
Moving Your Aquarium Fish
Fish in plastic bags loaded on a bike, originally uploaded by Jungle_Boy. Q: TF wrote, My wife and I will be moving in a few weeks to a new home. It’s about a half hour drive from our current place, but I was wondering if you could offer any advice on how to best move my male betta and his tank (separately of course :) . It’s a 5 gallon tank with a heater, sponge filter, … [Read more...] about Moving Your Aquarium Fish
Betta Tank Filter Current – Checking Out the MiniBow 5 and the Eclipse 6
Q: LB wrote, Hi! I am an old hand at tropical fish keeping and used to run both a 50 gallon and a 90 gallon tank. However, I’ve been out of it for 10 years or so. My daughter is in college and bought herself a Betta for a pet, however, she doesn’t have the time to care for it properly and is soon moving out of the college residence. So good old Mom is going to take the Betta … [Read more...] about Betta Tank Filter Current – Checking Out the MiniBow 5 and the Eclipse 6
Betta Fish and Filter Current
IMG_4794, originally uploaded by Bassline Audio Visual. Q: M wrote: WOW I have to say that your website is quite the place to find the answers your looking for so thank you so much in helping people find the right answers to keep their wonderful fish alive and well! I was wonder now if you could help me…I bought a betta fish about a week ago and had him in a bowl at first … [Read more...] about Betta Fish and Filter Current