Betta Surrounds It Self With Slime

[bzy]

I'v set up a new tank for my 2 female bettas, I have timed up them with a guppy an a tiny rainbow shark.
After 2 day the one of the bettas started hiding behind the heater, she was staying still and because every one was a bit scared from the new environment i was thinking that she was just cautious (she had her good appetite).
And couple days after/yesterday I started to think that she might be sick and later that night she wouldn't eat, which with my little experience is very bad.
 
Now she surrounded the place she hides with white shade slime, other then that she doesn't have any other visual symptoms.
 
I have water treatments on stand by(Sera Bactopur and Ichtopur and kalium permanganat) but i don't know if i should threat the tank for bacteria or parasite?
and removing her from the thank is not a good option I have no other heater and being a winter would be cold for her (apartment temp is 15-18C).
 
Please help!
 
 
 

 

[Ninjouzata]

to the forum! Sorry you're having troubles.
 
Is the slime coming from her or is it something growing in the tank? Have you tried wiping it off?
I think you usually see this slime build near things like the suction cup of the heater in newly set up tanks. Did you cycle the tank? If you don't know what that is, have a read of THIS.
 
What size tank is this? Rainbow sharks need around a 55G tank when adult.
 
I imagine she may be hiding from either the shark or the other female betta, as they are not meant to be kept in such low numbers. You want 5+ female bettas or just one.
They can be just as aggressive if not moreso than the males, and so having more of them helps to spread it and make sure one isn't getting ganged up on.
 
What temperature is the water? Other water parameters such as pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate would also be useful to know.
 
Sorry if any of that sounded harsh, just wanted you to have something to think about with your stocking, and hopefully someone else can help more on the slime as I havn't personally experienced it.
If the slime is what I'm thinking with newly set-up tanks I believe it's not harmful, just ugly.

 

[KirkyArcher]

Agree with Ninjouzata, it's very common for this form of "slime" that is actually a totally harmless bacterial/fungal growth to appear on and around heaters filters and even on decorations introduced to a new tank   Also again as mentioned rainbow sharks and Betta don't get along, and you're correct that it may take a little time for her to get accustom to her new environment but a strong chance that she is hiding as she feels threatened.

 

[bzy]

Thanks for the fast replay!
The tank was not properly cycled, i did not had the measurement equipment to check the status of the cycle, however I filled 1/3 of the new tank with the water of the old one that has not been trough a water change for 3 weeks, the water from the old one was very clear with a slightly green color shade.
 
The tank pH level is 8.5,
I run to the nearest pet store as soon as i got you'r response to find ammonia and nitrate testers and unfortunately they didn't had any, but i bought Sera Bio Nitrivec and treated the tank just now.
 
I cleaned the slime but i think that my beta has produced it.
 
Dont worry about being harsh , we newbies need that in order not to ignorantly kill fish.
The shark is less than 3cm or 1inch long she avoids the bettas strategically and they ignore her they are double in length from the shark and very fat, The two betas lived together in 2 gallon bawl when i got them, they are not aggressive at all, the other one even comes to check on the sick one making her company floating by her side for couple of minutes.
The new tank is 30l or 8gal (I will eventually upgrade).
 
The strange thing is that the sick does not have any other fiscal changes, in the past i noticed that when they are scared or stressed they lose body color until they are calm again, they become more white. But now the sick one is with full color all the time, I even added garlic yesterday (heard it was good for their appetite) The loss of appetite relly concerns me.

 

[Alasse]

The shark needs to go, not at suitable for that sized tank. There is no other way around it 
The betta girls would be far better either on their own or in a harem of 5-6. The one hiding behind the heater probably isnt actually sick, she is just staying up there away from everything else, she is being bullied i bet, so she is staying where she feels safest. She will probably not eat, not from lack of appetite as such, but because she does not feel safe coming out to get food.
 
If you want to keep them i would seriously look at upgrading to a bigger tank now and keeping the small tank as a hospital/quarantine tank (keep the stressed betta in it)
 
If most of what you are treating the tank with are medications, you really are overdoing it, pick one and use as recommended. Over medicating will not be doing your fish nor especially the tank (which is trying to cycle) any favours at all.
 
Hate to tell you, but using the old water is useless, water does not hold much good bacteria at all, the decor does (gravels, wood etc) Not to mention you are adding 3weeks worth of nitrates and nasties to your new tank, please do water changes weekly at least, especially on a tank that isnt cycled and has fish in it. Small tanks are less forgiving.

 

[Blondielovesfish]

to the forum.
 
You desperately need to rehome your rainbow shark, although it may be small now, it will quickly become stunted in a tank of your size.
 
How many guppies do you have?
 
If you could get a 10 or 20G tank then that would really help your bettas. They need to be in groups of at least 5 and like Alasse said, the one hiding behind a heater is most probably being bullied. 
 
The best thing now would be for your to do daily water changes of at least 75% (with dechlorinator), then, order a test kit online, the API freshwater master test kit is reasonably good quality and not too expensive. 
Once you have your test kit, you will need to do a water change everytime ammonia reaches 0.5ppm. At your pH (are you sure the test was accurate?) even low amounts of ammonia could be lethal.
 
What temperature do you have the tanks set to?

 

[bzy]

Thanks to you all, you are all really helpful;
 
Alasse: I haven't treated the tank with medications yet as I am not sure if i should treat it for bacteria or for parasites, I have only added - as presented on the product fresh water bacteria spores that should sped up the cycling process. 
 
Blondielovesfish :I have one guppie 2 female betas and rainbow shark, Doing 75% water changes daily sounds a bit extreme to me I'm not sure if that will help in any circumstances, correct me if I'm wrong but if the thank is not cycled yet i think that, that much that often will just slow down the cycling process.
The pH... I'm not sure about that the color of the charts ware not easy to match I did 2 tests at the first i could not decide between the color of the 7.0 7.5 mark and the 8.0, and the second I had the same issue but with the 8.0 and the 8.5 (by the way is there such a product that has a transparent comparison chart, that would make test much easier to conclude). And the thermostat on the heater is set to turn it of on 30C or 86F.
 
I will remove the shark for 24 hours to see if there is mood change, I mentioned that the shark does not attack them but she moves faster then the other 3 trough the tank and a bit erratic.

 

[tunagirll]

The bacteria colonies attach themselves to the media in your filter, the tank walls etc, they don't float in the water so water changes won't affect your tank cycling
 
Unfortunately this also means that although you transferred some of your old water to the new tank, it's unlikely that you transferred any of the bacteria from the old tank. You are currently in a 'fish in' cycle which means it will be essential to do large water changes religiously until your bacterial colonies develop: the fish will put out more waste than the bacteria can deal with. If you don't do large water changes, you will risk making your fish sick. It's likely that you will be in a 'fish in' cycle for a few months so be prepared The good news is that water changes are a MUCH cheaper and more effective way of managing your fish than adding water treatment products!
 
When testing water it can be difficult to match to the charts. Inspect your water test outside in the light, held against a piece of white paper. This will make it easier to compare to the colour chart.
 
Your bettas - you simply can't have them together. Your other girl is hiding because she's been bullied. I understand they got along in the prior tank, but in the new tank it just takes one to establish dominance and it's all over. That won't stop, so you do need to separate her or she will die from stress and starvation. You can keep female bettas together in a large static group of at least 6, which is called a soriority, but these are not recommended for beginners due to needing to understand the social order of fish in order to be successful.
 
Your heater - you need a thermometer in the tank to see what the actual water temperature is. This is for a few reasons. One; many heaters are not accurate and you need to know what to set the heater to in order to get the right temperature in the tank. Two; It helps you see if the heater is strong enough to maintain the right temperature in the tank. Three; It helps you see if the heater is on the fritz - maybe something as simple as not putting in the plug hard enough after a water change, as I did last week
 
The red finned shark will grow to 6 inches and usually needs a 200 litre tank as a minimum; they are territorial and can become aggressive as they mature. He might be okay now but you're going to need that larger tank sooner than later
 
Back onto temperature; your betta likes it around 25 to 30 degrees C. Your red finned shark likes it 22 to 26 degrees C. If your tank is at 30 you're at the top end for your betta and your red finned shark will be feeling like an eskimo in florida
 
So if it were me, I'd make some plans for your shark. Split the tank or get a second tank and split the bettas so they each have their own crib (with or without guppy). Tune the temp to around 27 degrees in the tank. And yes, large water changes I've had to learn a lot of this the hard way too so I feel your pain; sorry if I didn't give you what you wanted to hear but I hope it helps. best wishes of the season to you and your fishies!

 

[PrairieSunflower]

Yes, big water changes will slow down your cycling process... BUT, not doing big water changes in an uncycled tank will mean the ammonia builds and harms, sickens or kills your fish.  The only way to avoid big water changes is to do a fishless cycle... when doing a fish-in cycle you have no choice but to do big water changes for the safety of your fish.