New To Fish And Need Some Advice/help

[JillianJaclyn]

So I decided to get a betta last week and got one on Saturday with a little bamboo plant and a 1/2 gallon bowl. My betta was not doing well so I looked around online and saw that they do not like such small tanks. So after having done more research, I went back to the store and got a 10 gallon instead and got the betta a little pagoda thing to hide in and some tall plastic plants. I also got him a filter and a heater and a bubble wand. I had a betta and he died from swim bladder disease. So I got a second betta and all he does is lay in the bottom of the tank. I called the store and they said that it was probably because my tank was new (I treated it with conditioner ahead of time but it was a new tank). I ended up putting the betta back in the cup he was sold in until the tank sets up because I thought it would be safer for him. I took him back to the pet store to see if they thought he might have SBD because he is still lying on the bottom of the tank and when he swims it seems like his top half is more buoyant and he just doesn't seem to be acting right (although I have only had him for 24 hours so I'm not sure). The woman at the pet store said that the reason he was at the bottom of the tank was because bettas don't like big tanks with filters and prefer to be in small bowls or vases with no moving water or heater because they breathe the air. I know from other research that isn't true but she basically told me I was wrong and didn't know what I was talking about. So right now the betta is in his little cup (the water was just changed yesterday at the store right before I bought him) which I have floating in the tank to keep the water warm. Anyway, this is probably way too much information but I don't know what all is relevant. Oh, and the pH was 8.4 yesterday when he was in the tank (I got it down to 7.2 now, but he isn't in it) and I also added some bacteria and stress coat to the water for when he's ready to go in in a couple of days.

Does anyone think he's sick? I'm trying really hard to make sure he's happy and healthy because I feel really bad for getting the last one without knowing anything about him and then having him die on me after about 48 hours. I really want this one to be okay.

Thanks!
Jillian

 

[KittyKat]

What are your ammonia and nitrite?

He would be better off back in the tank, the ammonia is probably very high in the water he currently is in just because it is such a small volume. Go read about cycling.

And yes, it is true that the 10 gallon is better than any of the other things you mention.

 

[marieukxx]

You haven't cycled your tank. You need to do that, there is info in the new freswater tank section. Plus you need a test kit to test your amonia, nitrites and nitrate and that will give us a picture of what's causing this.

 

[-FighterFishh]

First off, you've come to the right place for help!

It sounds a lot like you haven't cycled your tank, and this means that the ammonia levels are probably very high.
Read through this for more info on that:
Here!

You're in a fish-in cycle now, which basically means that you need to do daily water changes with warm, dechlorinated water to keep the ammonia levels down. This will mean that the cycle will take a lot longer, so be patient.
To help, try putting in some live plants. These will help with the water quality and also with oxygenating the water, too.
Make sure the flow coming from the filter isn't too strong, as this could make it hard for him to swim.
Also, don't feed him too much. Food that isn't eaten will rot and cause even more ammonia. Put in some flakes, and if they aren't eaten after 5 minutes, get them out. Only feed him once a day.

So to recap:
Do daily water changes with warm, dechlorinated water.
Get hold of some live plants to help with the water quality (buy a liquid testing kit so you can test at home).
Make sure the flow from the filter isn't too strong.
Don't overfeed him.

Put him back in his larger tank and do a large water change now. Hopefully that'll perk him up for today.
Good luck!

 

[JillianJaclyn]

What are your ammonia and nitrite?

He would be better off back in the tank, the ammonia is probably very high in the water he currently is in just because it is such a small volume. Go read about cycling.

And yes, it is true that the 10 gallon is better than any of the other things you mention.

The ammonia and nitrites are both low and in safe levels. I think he said nitrite 2 or something was like not even there at the time.

Should I keep the bubble wand and filter going?

I did research cycling a bit (unfortunately after I got the fish) and it seemed like there wasn't much I could do to speed it along and make it safe for him faster. And all the people I talked to at the pet stores I was running to (2 stores and like 8 people) said I couldn't do much to speed it along but that you should wait at least a week before putting fish into a new tank. I have a platy in the tank but won't add more for at least a few more days.

 

[lilfishie]

Hi Jillian, Welcome to the forum, your certainly in the right place

First off your reasearch is spot on with reguards to filters and heating and a 10 gal is perfect for a betta

since your tank is new your filter will not be cycled, this basically is the growing of good bacteria that breaks down harmful waste until its safe to live in, a short basic idea shown below


fish poo = Ammonia which is poisonus to fish.
+ some good bac which breaks this into NitrItes which are also harmful
+ more time and good bacs this is then made into NitrAtes which is perfectly safe for your fish

Do you by any chance have a friend/family member that keeps fish?

 

[-FighterFishh]

What are your ammonia and nitrite?

He would be better off back in the tank, the ammonia is probably very high in the water he currently is in just because it is such a small volume. Go read about cycling.

And yes, it is true that the 10 gallon is better than any of the other things you mention.

The ammonia and nitrites are both low and in safe levels. I think he said nitrite 2 or something was like not even there at the time.

Should I keep the bubble wand and filter going?

I did research cycling a bit (unfortunately after I got the fish) and it seemed like there wasn't much I could do to speed it along and make it safe for him faster. And all the people I talked to at the pet stores I was running to (2 stores and like 8 people) said I couldn't do much to speed it along but that you should wait at least a week before putting fish into a new tank. I have a platy in the tank but won't add more for at least a few more days.

Do not add any more fish for at least a few weeks. More fish = more ammonia.
The tank isn't cycled, and so your ammonia will go up. You need to get hold of your own liquid test kit. API ones are the best. This will make sure you can test the water parameters each day and keep on top of water changes, as you'll need to be doing them daily.

 

[JillianJaclyn]

First off, you've come to the right place for help!

It sounds a lot like you haven't cycled your tank, and this means that the ammonia levels are probably very high.
Read through this for more info on that:
Here!

You're in a fish-in cycle now, which basically means that you need to do daily water changes with warm, dechlorinated water to keep the ammonia levels down. This will mean that the cycle will take a lot longer, so be patient.
To help, try putting in some live plants. These will help with the water quality and also with oxygenating the water, too.
Make sure the flow coming from the filter isn't too strong, as this could make it hard for him to swim.
Also, don't feed him too much. Food that isn't eaten will rot and cause even more ammonia. Put in some flakes, and if they aren't eaten after 5 minutes, get them out. Only feed him once a day.

So to recap:
Do daily water changes with warm, dechlorinated water.
Get hold of some live plants to help with the water quality (buy a liquid testing kit so you can test at home).
Make sure the flow from the filter isn't too strong.
Don't overfeed him.

Put him back in his larger tank and do a large water change now. Hopefully that'll perk him up for today.
Good luck!

Thank you for the advice. By large water change do you mean about 50% or more than that? Also, do I need to add the stress coat to the new water? And the pH must be high on my tap so do I need to add pH down to the new water as well? I'm sorry I'm really new to fish and have NO idea what I'm doing. And it's worse because the pet store people basically all contradicted each other about bettas.

I put the tall plastic plants right in front of the filter to try to slow the flow somewhat. I do have one live bamboo in there. Is there any particular other type of plant that's best to put in there? And do you need to do anything to take care of the plant?

Thank you so much. I'm very happy to have found this forum. Much more helpful than the people at the pet store.

 

[lilfishie]

Don't worry about your pH for now, you need an Ammonia and NitrIte test kit.

The Bamboo won't do well in a tank unfortunately and will rot and die, Live plants are good though as they will remove some of the ammonia for you, but you will need to be water changing everyday for now until you can get hold of a test kit, as mentioned API is 1 of the best. well worth the money

 

[JillianJaclyn]

Hi Jillian, Welcome to the forum, your certainly in the right place

First off your reasearch is spot on with reguards to filters and heating and a 10 gal is perfect for a betta

since your tank is new your filter will not be cycled, this basically is the growing of good bacteria that breaks down harmful waste until its safe to live in, a short basic idea shown below


fish poo = Ammonia which is poisonus to fish.
+ some good bac which breaks this into NitrItes which are also harmful
+ more time and good bacs this is then made into NitrAtes which is perfectly safe for your fish

Do you by any chance have a friend/family member that keeps fish?

No, unfortunately I don't have anyone that has fish. I did add some liquid good bacteria.

I just put the betta back into the 10 gallon and he sunk straight to the bottom and is just laying there. He seems to be struggling to breathe.

 

[lilfishie]

Make sure theres some surface movement to allow more oxygen into the water, turn the lights off for now give him a few hours see if that helps, it may just be the stress of being moved about, which is not your fault

 

[-FighterFishh]

First off, you've come to the right place for help!

It sounds a lot like you haven't cycled your tank, and this means that the ammonia levels are probably very high.
Read through this for more info on that:
Here!

You're in a fish-in cycle now, which basically means that you need to do daily water changes with warm, dechlorinated water to keep the ammonia levels down. This will mean that the cycle will take a lot longer, so be patient.
To help, try putting in some live plants. These will help with the water quality and also with oxygenating the water, too.
Make sure the flow coming from the filter isn't too strong, as this could make it hard for him to swim.
Also, don't feed him too much. Food that isn't eaten will rot and cause even more ammonia. Put in some flakes, and if they aren't eaten after 5 minutes, get them out. Only feed him once a day.

So to recap:
Do daily water changes with warm, dechlorinated water.
Get hold of some live plants to help with the water quality (buy a liquid testing kit so you can test at home).
Make sure the flow from the filter isn't too strong.
Don't overfeed him.

Put him back in his larger tank and do a large water change now. Hopefully that'll perk him up for today.
Good luck!

Thank you for the advice. By large water change do you mean about 50% or more than that? Also, do I need to add the stress coat to the new water? And the pH must be high on my tap so do I need to add pH down to the new water as well? I'm sorry I'm really new to fish and have NO idea what I'm doing. And it's worse because the pet store people basically all contradicted each other about bettas.

I put the tall plastic plants right in front of the filter to try to slow the flow somewhat. I do have one live bamboo in there. Is there any particular other type of plant that's best to put in there? And do you need to do anything to take care of the plant?

Thank you so much. I'm very happy to have found this forum. Much more helpful than the people at the pet store.

50% should do really, but if that doesn't help the levels, then try doing some higher ones.
Yes, adding stress coat is good. Make sure the water is warm and dechlorinated when you add it to the tank, and you could also add live bacteria with each water change to try and boost the filter a little.
I don't think pH is the top of your worries, but trying to get it down couldn't hurt.
That sounds good! Obstructing the flow should help him swim-wise
Good plants would be elodea. It's a good oxeygenator! It also doesn't really require much care. I just replace my plants when they start to look scraggly!

You're very welcome We're glad to be able to help!

 

[JillianJaclyn]

Make sure theres some surface movement to allow more oxygen into the water, turn the lights off for now give him a few hours see if that helps, it may just be the stress of being moved about, which is not your fault

He is swimming some now. I have the bubble wand so there's a good amount of surface movement. Oh, and I have the temperature set at about 81 degrees. Is that about right?

Is there a decent test kit that's not really expensive? I'm not working while I'm finishing college and I have limited funds. This has definitely turned out to be more money than I expected it to be, but I've always been taught if you have a pet take good care of it.

 

[KittyKat]

What are your ammonia and nitrite?

The ammonia and nitrites are both low and in safe levels. I think he said nitrite 2 or something was like not even there at the time.

Safe levels are 0 ppm for both. Anything above 0 ppm is not safe.

Should I keep the bubble wand and filter going?

You mean an airstone? It makes no difference, so whatever you prefer.
Yes, you must keep the filter running at all times, otherwise it will not cycle.

I did research cycling a bit (unfortunately after I got the fish) and it seemed like there wasn't much I could do to speed it along and make it safe for him faster. And all the people I talked to at the pet stores I was running to (2 stores and like 8 people) said I couldn't do much to speed it along but that you should wait at least a week before putting fish into a new tank. I have a platy in the tank but won't add more for at least a few more days.

Erm, you should not add any more fish until you actually finish cycling the filter: if you add more fish before that point, you will be poisoning them.
Yes, you can speed it along by seeding it with media from an established filter.

 

[-FighterFishh]

Make sure theres some surface movement to allow more oxygen into the water, turn the lights off for now give him a few hours see if that helps, it may just be the stress of being moved about, which is not your fault

He is swimming some now. I have the bubble wand so there's a good amount of surface movement. Oh, and I have the temperature set at about 81 degrees. Is that about right?

Is there a decent test kit that's not really expensive? I'm not working while I'm finishing college and I have limited funds. This has definitely turned out to be more money than I expected it to be, but I've always been taught if you have a pet take good care of it.

Sounds brilliant!

The best test kit would be this one, but I only have an ammonia one, and that does me fine. For you though, I'd suggest an ammonia one, a nitrate one and a nitrite one so that you can keep up to date on your cycle