"Betta died because you cleaned the tank"

[JuiceBox52]

So a friend just told me that she got a betta and it died so she replaced it like 8 times. She knew that I keep fish so she asked me why they were dying and I gave her a few possibilities. She told me that the person at the pet store told her that they were dying because she cleaned the tank.... apparently the pet store employees betta never had its tank cleaned and lived three years.... what's up with that? All the pet store people I've met know at least that the water needs changed lol

 

[Munroco]

Rule of thumb, be very wary of taking advice from people who work in fish stores unless you know they are knowledgable.

It is possible though that they are right in that your friend may have been cleaning out the filter and destroying that bacteria that live inside it and keep your tank free from things like ammonia.

Read up on tank cycling for more info.

 

[Essjay]

How exactly does she clean the tank? Does she use un-conditioned water? Wash the filter media (assuming she has filter) under the tap? Change the filter media every couple of weeks? Horrible thought, but does she clean the tank with detergent (I wouldn't put that past some people)?

 

[AbbeysDad]

Gee, I'm wondering why/how she killed 8 fish before asking a friend she knew was in the hobby?!
It's hard to speak about the pet store employee's claim that the fish lived without a water change for three years (or perhaps s/he meant that the tank was literally never cleaned (while water changes were done)...or frankly that any fish for sale in a pet store just lives on for three years. I have heard of pet stores that don't do water changes per se as they actually top off from the result of water removed by fish sales. This likely would not be the case for beta's as they are most often housed alone in tiny bowls or tanks. So on the surface, it seems like a false claim.
One has to question what she was doing when 'cleaning'. Obviously there's temperature, conditioner, method of cleaning, many of which have already been mentioned. It would seem she did something very wrong...at least 8 times!!!
(So I hope the @JuiceBox52 set her on the right path)

 

[JuiceBox52]

I asked her how she cleaned it and she was doing everything correctly... she showed me some pictures of the fish right after they were brought home and they didnt look too healthy in the first place. The fish that lived 3 years was not in the pet store, it was the employees personal pet...