Monday, May 24, 2010

Betta temperature??

I have one betta fish in a 1.5 gallon tank, and i got a little stick on thermometer- no heater, because i was told that they would be fine. It says the temperature is 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Is this okay? should i raise the temp by adding warmer water? help!
Answers:
If you can get a heater small enough for the tank, by all means do so. Don't just add in warm water, which eventually will be 68 anyway. A heater will warm the water slowly and then keep it at an even temp, 75-78 is good. My Betta's are just in covered jars that I got at an antique mall. They do very nice in them. I only change water every 3 months, by scooping them into a small container with some of their old water. I rinse the glass stones and inside of the tank till clean. Then I fill it with bottled drinking water and a drop of water conditioner. Then I put the Betta back in. Give him a little to eat in his fresh water. Feed him once daily with no more than a couple pieces of Betta food or blood worms. They stay healthy and beautiful. I do have a real plant in the jars that are growing.
The jars are covered all the time,except when feeding of course. I put clear "feet" under the lid rim so it isn't tight fitted. The jars are next to a south facing window on a table. They look beautiful. I have never had even one problem keeping my Betta's like this. In summer we have air-conditioning in winter heat. They do fine.
even though 68 degrees is fine for a beta fish, i would recommend raising the water to mid-to-high 70s F b/c they can get a little uncomfortable at colder temps.
Don't add warmer water ,it will shock your fish temperature changes must be gradual,for the health of the fish and any beneficial bacteria that may be present.
68 degrees is a little cold. Ideally, you don't want to go below 75. Adding warm water would raise the temperature too quickly. Is the tank near a window? If so, I would move him to a spot in the house where you won't get any drafts. I heat my bettas' tanks with the bulbs that attach to the hoods of their tanks. They warm it up gradually so it's not too much of a shock to the fish.
bettas can usually live in any conditions. you can put them in a muddy puddle and they can survive as long as they can get to air (but dont do that because i think it is cruel) NE way you can add warmer water to the tank if you want but i dont think the betta will be harmed 68 degrees should be fine. Maybe in winter if you are worried about it put a lamp over it during the day then wrap a towel around it during the night to keep the warm air in if you do add warm water gradually add it or it will be too much of a shock to the fish
just get a small heater and a 2.5 gallon tank with filter, and keep the temperature around 75-82 degrees, it's much healthier for him
Please read through the following link
http://www.firsttankguide.net/betta.php...

Hope that helps
Good luck

EB
that isnt good.bettas aer tropical fish and need the temperature of their tank to be 75-80 degrees F.to fix this problem,get a small lamp and put it over the fish's water at the top of his tank.he will be very happy with warmer water.
Although they can survive in that temp, it would be better if you can raise the temp to arnf 75-78F. You can do this by moving the tank to a warmer part of the house or by adding an aquarium heater, but NEVER add warm water to your tank, you will do more harm than good.