Hey all , I am quite anxious about doing my first water change in my beta tank… My betta is doing really well , constantly exploring, foraging , interacting with the hitchhiker snails that have found their way into the tank and is also very responsive to me and I’m concerned about changing the water in case it causes fluctuations in ph , stability etc. He is very young and small so he currently is in a 3.5 gallon which I will be upgrading as he matures and grows however with such a small tank I worry that fluctuations in water quality can be detrimental to his health. Does anyone have a small tank and would be able to tell me how they clean it ..
Also if anyone has any suggestions about how I can improve my tank feel free to let me know !
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Posted by Lopsided-Side7819
5 Comments
First thing to know is what the parameters are. If ammonia + nitrites are 0 and nitrates are under 20 ppm I wouldn’t disturb the system unless their is visible mulm or another issue you are seeing.
Judging (I’m sorry) your answers you don’t own a liquid master kit by api. Get that please. 3.5 gal for betta is ooookaaaay. But you will need to change your water every week. Like 10-20%. If you want to skip that maintenance get a bigger tank even like 10 gallon. Look up on Facebook marketplace but be careful. But again. You will see the difference. I’ve been through that 😂
Btw I also you have a betta floating thing. I got the same one but different color and it’s very sharp inside. Make sure it’s smooth so it won’t rip the fins. I got a wet sanding paper from Walmart to do it under water in a separate tub to make sure it’s smooth. I found it in a car section I believe
I got one of those 3 D printed spherical play spot. It had sharp points inside. I disposed of it.
When I started with a smaller tank, I would do a 10% weekly water change, testing the water right before the change and about 24h after. If ammonia reads at 0.25 you will do a 25% water change, and same for 0.5 = 50%. Before any water change, scrub your walls for algae and check your decor/hides for algae as well and manually wipe those. Make sure to siphon your gravel before each water change as well and to spot clean if food drops onto the ground.
Speaking of food, don’t use flakes in a small tank, and feed one piece of food at a time so there’s no extra food to dirty it up.
You can add a bio sponge to your filter if there’s space and maybe get 1 or 2 more of those white rocks and use aquarium glue to stick moss to it.