Catladynew2fish
New Member
Oh I see, ok!
Very confusing for a beginner, as so much contradicting information online.
I’ll keep it simple! Thank you!
Is there something wrong with my betta?
- Thread starter Catladynew2fish
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Very confusing for a beginner, as so much contradicting information online.
I’ll keep it simple! Thank you!
More than welcome
I definitely wouldn't be doing a fish-in cycle without adding beneficial bacteria. Considering it takes around 6 weeks for them to naturally colonise properly, that's a long time for fish to be exposed to the ammonia & nitrite before bacteria levels are adequate enough to detox them fully. And I wouldn't trust only using prime to detox them temporarily in the mean time - the sooner you can get a strong bacteria colony going the better and that's what the SafeStart is for. Even the link you shared recommends it as being essential during a fish-in cycle.
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Catladynew2fish
New Member
Would he be better off to remove him from 5 gal tank and temporarily place him in his 1.5 gallon, where he originally was? That would probably stress him even more right?
A larger water volume will be more stable and the ammonia and nitrite won't build up as quickly so leave him where he is.
If you do a fish in cycle, just feed him 2-3 times a week and do a 75% water change & gravel clean the substrate 4-8 hours after feeding. After the filter has cycled in 4-6 weeks, you can feed more often and do a water change & gravel clean once a week.
You should also monitor the ammonia and nitrite levels and do a 75% water change any day there is an ammonia or nitrite reading above 0ppm, or a nitrate reading above 20ppm.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.
Catladynew2fish
New Member
Catladynew2fish
New Member
Hello again everyone. So I’ve been doing the daily water changes, using prime, and the numbers in tank look ok. Ammonia was .25ppm but did water change right after testing. The good news, the fish is now eating small amounts of crushed betta pellets. Active when I come to tank. Swims up to me. The bad news, his tail is not looking so good. Looks a bit frayed…possibly the beginning of fin rot? Any suggestions? Trying to keep him alive! Please help if possible!
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CaptainBarnicles
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Hiya! Good job being consistent here, it's key to success when doing a fish-in cycle. May I ask please how much water you're changing every day? Are you vacuuming the gravel when you do it? Do you have live plants? If not I strongly urge you to get some, fast growing stem plants in particular or water sprite that you can float on the surface. Not only will they help with your cycle but they will be kinder of your bettas fins. They're extremely delicate as I'm sure you're aware, I would check your decor for any sharp bits just to make double sure
Catladynew2fish
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Catladynew2fish
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Yes. I’m changing 30-50% of water daily. Today I did 75% change. Yes to vacuuming gravel. No to live plants. I’m a little intimidated to try to keep something else alive lol. Also worried they may bring in unwanted parasites and never sure which plants to get. The ones that have been recommended on this thread are not anywhere I can find in a pet store. Do you think it’s the decor that’s ripping up his fin, or do you think he could have a fungal/bacterial infection?
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Catladynew2fish
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Catladynew2fish
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I’ve noticed the past couple days, the fins are a bit ragged.
CaptainBarnicles
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It's possibly down to fin rot because he's stressed and his water isn't there yet. Keep up with the water changes, if it was me I'd be doing 50-75% everyday. Please do consider the live plants, most are so so easy to keep. Look for elodea/anacharis, that's a very common one so you should be able to get hold of it
Edited to add, elodea will thrive just floating on the surface so don't be scared of it
Edited to add, elodea will thrive just floating on the surface so don't be scared of it
Catladynew2fish
New Member
Thank you!It's possibly down to fin rot because he's stressed and his water isn't there yet. Keep up with the water changes, if it was me I'd be doing 50-75% everyday. Please do consider the live plants, most are so so easy to keep. Look for elodea/anacharis, that's a very common one so you should be able to get hold of it
Edited to add, elodea will thrive just floating on the surface so don't be scared of it
I will continue doing daily 75% water changes and I’ll stop by the pet store tomorrow to see if I can find any of those plants. Did the plants need to be quarantined or soaked in peroxide before adding them to tank?
If it is fin rot, is there something I can use on him to help prevent or stop it?
Fin rot is normally caused by poor water quality (ammonia or nitrite), which damages the tissue and allows harmful bacteria and fungus in.
The best treatment for fin rot is clean water and a bit of salt. However, the fish doesn't appear to have any infection in the fins so just keep doing big water changes to keep ammonia and nitrite levels low.
You can post pictures once or twice a week to compare with previous pictures and see if the fins are getting worse. If they do get worse, add some salt, (see directions below).
---------------------
SALT
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt) or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.
Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, Bettas & gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.
The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria, fish, plants, shrimp or snails.
After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.
If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.
When you first add salt, add the salt to a small bucket of tank water and dissolve the salt. Then slowly pour the salt water into the tank near the filter outlet. Add the salt over a couple of minutes.
The best treatment for fin rot is clean water and a bit of salt. However, the fish doesn't appear to have any infection in the fins so just keep doing big water changes to keep ammonia and nitrite levels low.
You can post pictures once or twice a week to compare with previous pictures and see if the fins are getting worse. If they do get worse, add some salt, (see directions below).
---------------------
SALT
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt) or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.
Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, Bettas & gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.
The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria, fish, plants, shrimp or snails.
After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.
If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.
When you first add salt, add the salt to a small bucket of tank water and dissolve the salt. Then slowly pour the salt water into the tank near the filter outlet. Add the salt over a couple of minutes.
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