They're often found in aquariums and fish bowls all across this country.
What's "they"?
Well, they refers to three chemicals that you should be familiar with if you hope to succeed in keeping betta fish healthy. Two of them you want to bid farewell to as soon as you can even though one typically one follows the other. The third you want to welcome. Maybe not a warm welcome, mind you, but it is at least the least obnoxious of the three.
The three chemicals we're talking about are ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Usually when you set up a tank, they will follow each other in succession over the first 60 days in the water. Each will spike and fall in turn as the beneficial bacteria in your tank develop in sufficient numbers to keep them in check.
You may see this referred to sometimes as new tank syndrome. Or the nitrogen cycle.
Of those, we're going to focus on ammonia for now since spikes of that in your betta tank can be killers. Not that nitrites are all that much better but one thing at a time.
So the water looks good and all. It's clear. Clean. But it's what you can't see that counts. And how it makes your guy react that counts all the more. At high enough levels ammonia can be fatal. At any level it can be stressful. Which isn't exactly good for when it comes to enjoying a long beta fish life span, now is it?
For this reason you really, really, really, need to control the ammonia levels in your tank. Like I just said, most anything above zero PPM will be stressful for your fish. They will think of little more than surviving while your tank runs through the nitrogen cycle. Which can take up to 6-8 weeks. Best you can do is do frequent 10-15% water changes to keep things as close to tolerable as possible. Especially in a new tank.
You see, any new tank set up is going to see a spike in ammonia levels. Guaranteed. That's because there are no good bugs to consume it and convert it into nitrites. This can be a bad situation for your fish. (Not that high nitrites are a day in the park either but that's another story.) Fish waste and uneaten food are what "cause" it. They are the source. And there is really little you can do to fix it.
Unchecked it can even cause burns on your fish. And imagine how that must feel!
You can and do want to monitor ammonia levels using a quality water testing kit. Any readings above ZERO for ammonia and ZERO for nitrites are poisonous to your fish. (I know I keep repeating it, but I want to make sure it sinks in.)
Some will plant their new tank. This can help some because living plants will use ammonia as plant food. But the only reliable way to keep levels lower is by water changes.
Then there's another idea. You see some will tell you that you can instantly cycle a tank using the methods suggested in this video:
Basically all you are doing is taking filter material from an existing tank that has been doing well for a couple of months and is disease free, and inserting that into your filter for the new tank. Leave it in the new tank for up to a week. The theory being it will flood the water with beneficial bacteria that will colonize the tank in next to no time. Feasting on the ammonia and nitrites that result. Or...instant cycling.
Not sure it quite works INSTANTLY. But it can't hurt and may just help move things along the road towards a cycled tank quite nicely, thank-you-very-much. Meaning your betta will have to deal with the ups and downs of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates for a much shorter period of time. If at all. And if you've learned nothing else you know that ammonia and nitrites are not good for your fish.
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Friday, December 21, 2012
How to Properly Acclimate Your New Betta Fish
OPENING: There's a simple reason why you need to acclimate your new betta to his new tank. The water parameters are different. The pH may be different. The nitrates level may be as well. Plus the temperature he's at in the bag is quite unlikely to be the same as your tank. Not to mention what he was used to in his previous digs.
Which is why saying "Off you go!" and just dumping him in is NEVER a good idea.
You want to slowly let him get used to things at least a little bit before freeing him to explore. This is called acclimating. Failure to do this can be very stressful. It can shock your fish. Worst case it can die. Not a good start. So always, always. always, make an effort to acclimate your striking male betta fish to his new surroundings.
Okay so much for the why. You need the how. And even though this video doesn't feature betta fish, you can still start to get a sense of how to do this by watching it.
Let's quickly hit the highlights of how to acclimate your new betta to his new home.
Sometimes turning off the light to the tank can be calming for the new fish. Good idea.
Usually your fish will come in a bag. You'll want to float the bag for at least 10-15 minutes to let the temperature in the bag come up to the temp in the tank.
Next you want to gradually add tank water to the bag. You can either spoon this in, use a cup, or lower a side of the bag to allow some to sneak in. You want to add new tank water every 10 to 15 minutes for about an hour. This way you are gradually increasing the amount of tank water in the bag. Helping your fish to slowly adjust over time.
Best practice would be to catch and release rather than dumping the contents fish and all. If you can use your hand rather than a net. Again this is a less stressful. The trick is to do this as quick as you possibly can. Nothing worse than chasing your fish around the bag. You can also injure your fighting fish sometimes during the chase.
Drip acclimation is another way to go. But not a method I would use with bettas. Seems to me to be a bit more stressful. Bag. To bucket. To tank? Not to mention all the water it takes to make that happen.
And since you're releasing your betta into a tank by himself I tend not to feed until the next day. Don't worry. He won't starve. But he will have time to settle in and then can start to adjust to the grub you feed.
CONCLUSION: So that's acclimating in a nutshell. Not that tricky but certainly essential.
Which is why saying "Off you go!" and just dumping him in is NEVER a good idea.
You want to slowly let him get used to things at least a little bit before freeing him to explore. This is called acclimating. Failure to do this can be very stressful. It can shock your fish. Worst case it can die. Not a good start. So always, always. always, make an effort to acclimate your striking male betta fish to his new surroundings.
Okay so much for the why. You need the how. And even though this video doesn't feature betta fish, you can still start to get a sense of how to do this by watching it.
Let's quickly hit the highlights of how to acclimate your new betta to his new home.
Sometimes turning off the light to the tank can be calming for the new fish. Good idea.
Usually your fish will come in a bag. You'll want to float the bag for at least 10-15 minutes to let the temperature in the bag come up to the temp in the tank.
Next you want to gradually add tank water to the bag. You can either spoon this in, use a cup, or lower a side of the bag to allow some to sneak in. You want to add new tank water every 10 to 15 minutes for about an hour. This way you are gradually increasing the amount of tank water in the bag. Helping your fish to slowly adjust over time.
Best practice would be to catch and release rather than dumping the contents fish and all. If you can use your hand rather than a net. Again this is a less stressful. The trick is to do this as quick as you possibly can. Nothing worse than chasing your fish around the bag. You can also injure your fighting fish sometimes during the chase.
Drip acclimation is another way to go. But not a method I would use with bettas. Seems to me to be a bit more stressful. Bag. To bucket. To tank? Not to mention all the water it takes to make that happen.
And since you're releasing your betta into a tank by himself I tend not to feed until the next day. Don't worry. He won't starve. But he will have time to settle in and then can start to adjust to the grub you feed.
CONCLUSION: So that's acclimating in a nutshell. Not that tricky but certainly essential.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Betta Breeding in Two Minutes or Less
OPENING: Seems everyone at one time or another fancies themselves to be a betta breeder. We won't get into whether or not that's a good idea or not. Fact is the lure can be overwhelming. So rather than go into the process blind it might be helpful to have an idea of what you are getting yourself into. The sooner the better too.
To be honest, this video presents what you might call the Readers Digest Condensed version of betta breeding. Or the Cliff Notes version if you prefer. Taking a 15 or so step process that plays out over a day or two or three and condensing it into 120 seconds. Glossing over a lot of the details in the process.
So no, you won't be up to speed on all that's involved in breeding bettas after watching this oversimplification of the what's involved. Because to do it right you've got to
CONCLUSION: Those little bits you see hanging around the bubble nest are day old fry. The newest of the new. Soon it will be up to you to make sure you don't lose 90% of them due to neglect or not knowing what to do.
To be honest, this video presents what you might call the Readers Digest Condensed version of betta breeding. Or the Cliff Notes version if you prefer. Taking a 15 or so step process that plays out over a day or two or three and condensing it into 120 seconds. Glossing over a lot of the details in the process.
So no, you won't be up to speed on all that's involved in breeding bettas after watching this oversimplification of the what's involved. Because to do it right you've got to
- pick the right breeding stock,
- start the microworm cultures,
- set up the breeding tank,
- condition the male and female bettas,
- move the male to the breeding tank,
- watch to see if he's in a bubble next blowing mood,
- safely introduce the female, in sight but out of reach
- judge that the time is right to release the female by their reaction to each other,
- observe the courtship ritual to make sure it isn't putting the female at too much risk,
- observe the actual mating and egg producing,
- get the female out,
- let the male hang around to tend the eggs for a day or two more,
- then remove him.
CONCLUSION: Those little bits you see hanging around the bubble nest are day old fry. The newest of the new. Soon it will be up to you to make sure you don't lose 90% of them due to neglect or not knowing what to do.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Better Betta Keeping Through Chemistry?
OPENING: Shortcuts! Who doesn’t like shortcuts? It’s why pills are preferred to exercising and eating better. You get the benefits without the pain. Or you might say the gain without pain.
Similar thing with the water quality of your betta tank. Sure you can bother to cycle your tank. But most of the time we’re in a hurry and only find out once our betta is in the water that things are not going well. Ammonia levels have spiked. Which all but assures you that a nitrite spike is on the horizon. Not the kind of coming attractions your halfmoon male will find all that appealing I can assure you.
But there may be help on the horizon for that too. You see, the fish keeping industry also knows that problems with your betta tank’s water can come out of nowhere. Or not. And they know too you want a quick and easy fix. So as this video shows, they’ve come up with products that can help.
One such would be a product called AmQuel Plus. Billed as a water conditioner it can help keep things tolerable for the occupant of your tank. It works to make ammonia and nitrites nontoxic to your fish. Let me hasten to add that it doesn’t remove them, just makes them nontoxic through the magic that is chemistry. The problem is when you see this working it may make you less inclined to do the water changes you know in your heart of hearts you should be making. Please don’t let that happen, okay?
Stress coat is the other product profiled. It gives their slime coat a bit of a boost.
Finally there’s aquarium salt. It can help cure and ward off health problems better than Obamacare. Just know this. Some in bettadom swear by it. Others swear you don’t need it. Both sides can produce convincing evidence to support their position. Leaving it up to you to decide which camp you fall into.
If you opt to use it you might keep the dosage to no more than a quarter to a half teaspoon per gallon. And while we’re revealing trade secrets a lower cost alternative might be Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt.
The Problem with Amquel?
Before we go there’s a problem with products like Amquel. It may throw off the readings your test kit gives for ammonia levels. Creating a false sense of security or panic when no such thing exists. Just something to be aware of I’d say.
Okay, okay I can’t leave you hanging like that. Just to clarify, you need an ammonia kit that is salicylate-based NOT Nessler-reagent based. Reason being, and to keep things simple this isn’t chemistry class after all, the reagent used in kits relying on the Nessler method will react with the Amquel and produce a massive false positive. What you need is one that is Salicylate based. If you insist, click here and you can read the ins and outs of ammonia test kits until your eyes glaze over. So go ahead knock yourself out. (Oh and there's nothing necessarily special about that page. Just thought it was helpful is all. You can probably find others that are better if you look hard enough. )
Anyway, long story short you’ll need to get the appropriately named "Amquel Test Kit" if you want to measure ammonia levels properly when using Amquel in your tank. Or you can use the one put out by Seachem. It too will work correctly with ammonia neutralizing products like Amquel. Just not as fast as others might.
Anyway, some prefer to team Amquel Plus up with NovAqua because that’s how they were designed to be used. In tandem. Together they will tackle chlorine, chloramines and ammonia, with the NovAqua also providing a bit of slime coat protection.
One site likened NovAqua as a conditioner with benefits. Nice. In other words it works to make tap water safe for your fish by removing the chlorine. Plus it gives their slime coats a boost.
So you use the Amquel Plus to neutralize the ammonia. And the NovAqua to condition the water.
CONCLUSION: You should have picked up something to use in a pinch if the water parameters get out of whack in betta fish tank. But it should not be considered an alternate to regular water changes. But more just a way to help get your fish over the hump and to keep things from getting seriously out of hand should the need arise. Okay?
Similar thing with the water quality of your betta tank. Sure you can bother to cycle your tank. But most of the time we’re in a hurry and only find out once our betta is in the water that things are not going well. Ammonia levels have spiked. Which all but assures you that a nitrite spike is on the horizon. Not the kind of coming attractions your halfmoon male will find all that appealing I can assure you.
But there may be help on the horizon for that too. You see, the fish keeping industry also knows that problems with your betta tank’s water can come out of nowhere. Or not. And they know too you want a quick and easy fix. So as this video shows, they’ve come up with products that can help.
One such would be a product called AmQuel Plus. Billed as a water conditioner it can help keep things tolerable for the occupant of your tank. It works to make ammonia and nitrites nontoxic to your fish. Let me hasten to add that it doesn’t remove them, just makes them nontoxic through the magic that is chemistry. The problem is when you see this working it may make you less inclined to do the water changes you know in your heart of hearts you should be making. Please don’t let that happen, okay?
Stress coat is the other product profiled. It gives their slime coat a bit of a boost.
Finally there’s aquarium salt. It can help cure and ward off health problems better than Obamacare. Just know this. Some in bettadom swear by it. Others swear you don’t need it. Both sides can produce convincing evidence to support their position. Leaving it up to you to decide which camp you fall into.
If you opt to use it you might keep the dosage to no more than a quarter to a half teaspoon per gallon. And while we’re revealing trade secrets a lower cost alternative might be Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt.
The Problem with Amquel?
Before we go there’s a problem with products like Amquel. It may throw off the readings your test kit gives for ammonia levels. Creating a false sense of security or panic when no such thing exists. Just something to be aware of I’d say.
Okay, okay I can’t leave you hanging like that. Just to clarify, you need an ammonia kit that is salicylate-based NOT Nessler-reagent based. Reason being, and to keep things simple this isn’t chemistry class after all, the reagent used in kits relying on the Nessler method will react with the Amquel and produce a massive false positive. What you need is one that is Salicylate based. If you insist, click here and you can read the ins and outs of ammonia test kits until your eyes glaze over. So go ahead knock yourself out. (Oh and there's nothing necessarily special about that page. Just thought it was helpful is all. You can probably find others that are better if you look hard enough. )
Anyway, long story short you’ll need to get the appropriately named "Amquel Test Kit" if you want to measure ammonia levels properly when using Amquel in your tank. Or you can use the one put out by Seachem. It too will work correctly with ammonia neutralizing products like Amquel. Just not as fast as others might.
Anyway, some prefer to team Amquel Plus up with NovAqua because that’s how they were designed to be used. In tandem. Together they will tackle chlorine, chloramines and ammonia, with the NovAqua also providing a bit of slime coat protection.
One site likened NovAqua as a conditioner with benefits. Nice. In other words it works to make tap water safe for your fish by removing the chlorine. Plus it gives their slime coats a boost.
So you use the Amquel Plus to neutralize the ammonia. And the NovAqua to condition the water.
CONCLUSION: You should have picked up something to use in a pinch if the water parameters get out of whack in betta fish tank. But it should not be considered an alternate to regular water changes. But more just a way to help get your fish over the hump and to keep things from getting seriously out of hand should the need arise. Okay?
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Beginner's Brine Shrimp Hatchery Tutorial
OPENING: Brine shrimp are a great betta fry food. Some adults like to weigh into a cloud of them inhaling them by the mouthful too. Hatching them isn’t that tough either. The process is clearly laid out for you in this video.
As you can see, this helpful video offers some great tips.
A: They are a nearly perfect food when freshly hatched. Reason being their yolk sac offers a decent amount of protein and fat to nourish the babies.
QUESTION: What can I do to get a great hatch?
A: Buy eggs rated to give you a 90% hatch. They’ll cost a bit more but they’re worth it because they’ll hatch out more artemia.
QUESTION: Anything else to improve the hatch rate?
A: Make sure you’ve got sufficient aeration. Eggs that aren’t kept moving are more apt not to hatch.
QUESTION: What should I do with the excess from a hatch to save them for another time?
A: Stick the brine shrimp in an ice cube tray and freeze them
QUESTION: How long will these guys live in the my hatcher?
A: They can go for several days if you keep the aeration going. They will live off their egg yolk initially. And if you don’t aerate them well, they may suffocate.
QUESTION: How can I increase the temperature of the hatchery to get them to come out faster?
A: One way would be to keep a light on them. The heat from the bulb will heat them up. Or you could keep your hatching set up in a heated aquarium.
QUESTION: Do I have to use premix?
A: No. It’s just that the premixed eggs/salt is somewhat more convenient. Alternately you can use aquarium salt (not iodized table salt), baking soda and shrimp eggs. You’ll need a pinch of baking soda, add one tablespoon of salt for every liter of water, and a quarter or half a teaspoon of brine shrimp eggs. Fill your pop bottle most of the way up and add the salt, baking soda and shrimp eggs.
QUESTION: Which reminds me, how many shrimp in quarter of a teaspoon?
A: That’s about 180,000 shrimp.
QUESTION: What if I want to feed my BBS to grow them out?
A: You can try things like phytoplankton, Liquidfry, yeast, soybean powder and egg yolk. Just take care not to overfeed. In other words frequent smaller feedings are better than one huge feed. It is very easy to foul their water.
CONCLUSION: This post reveals just enough to make you dangerous. Do a bit more research however and in no time you'll have a hatchery full of BBS to feed your baby bettas.
As you can see, this helpful video offers some great tips.
- It starts off with a list of items you’ll need which among other things will include a two liter pop bottle, air pump, airline, rigid airline, brine shrimp eggs and premix.
- If you aren’t using aged water, add a dechlorinator.
- If you have a shrimp and salt premix you’ll want to add a tablespoon of that to your two liter bottle.
- Add one liter of water to the bottle.
- Place the rigid airline into the water and unleash the bubbles. These will keep the eggs in motion and they should hatch in 24-36 hours depending on the temperature. 78-80 F is ideal. Lower just means the eggs will take longer to hatch.
- When the shrimp hatch the water will look bright orange. Now you just use your rigid tubing and airline as a suction to draw the shrimp out of the hatchery. Then get the air line pumping the air again to keep the shrimp alive and in motion until the next feeding time.
Brine Shrimp Hatching FAQ
QUESTION: I’m new to this. Why should I feed my fry BBS?A: They are a nearly perfect food when freshly hatched. Reason being their yolk sac offers a decent amount of protein and fat to nourish the babies.
QUESTION: What can I do to get a great hatch?
A: Buy eggs rated to give you a 90% hatch. They’ll cost a bit more but they’re worth it because they’ll hatch out more artemia.
QUESTION: Anything else to improve the hatch rate?
A: Make sure you’ve got sufficient aeration. Eggs that aren’t kept moving are more apt not to hatch.
QUESTION: What should I do with the excess from a hatch to save them for another time?
A: Stick the brine shrimp in an ice cube tray and freeze them
QUESTION: How long will these guys live in the my hatcher?
A: They can go for several days if you keep the aeration going. They will live off their egg yolk initially. And if you don’t aerate them well, they may suffocate.
QUESTION: How can I increase the temperature of the hatchery to get them to come out faster?
A: One way would be to keep a light on them. The heat from the bulb will heat them up. Or you could keep your hatching set up in a heated aquarium.
QUESTION: Do I have to use premix?
A: No. It’s just that the premixed eggs/salt is somewhat more convenient. Alternately you can use aquarium salt (not iodized table salt), baking soda and shrimp eggs. You’ll need a pinch of baking soda, add one tablespoon of salt for every liter of water, and a quarter or half a teaspoon of brine shrimp eggs. Fill your pop bottle most of the way up and add the salt, baking soda and shrimp eggs.
QUESTION: Which reminds me, how many shrimp in quarter of a teaspoon?
A: That’s about 180,000 shrimp.
QUESTION: What if I want to feed my BBS to grow them out?
A: You can try things like phytoplankton, Liquidfry, yeast, soybean powder and egg yolk. Just take care not to overfeed. In other words frequent smaller feedings are better than one huge feed. It is very easy to foul their water.
CONCLUSION: This post reveals just enough to make you dangerous. Do a bit more research however and in no time you'll have a hatchery full of BBS to feed your baby bettas.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Treating Dropsy in Betta Fish
OPENING: Bettas with dropsy are a sad sight as this video clearly shows.
See how swollen this poor guy is? Notice his scales are sticking out like what is commonly referred to as a pinecone? Classic symptoms. Painting a perfect picture of what a beta with dropsy looks like. As this eHow article points out, it's more or less the result of a bacterial infection.
Now most betta keepers would agree with this following video that warns that dropsy is very hard to treat successfully. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try. But it does mean you should go into the treatment routine knowing ahead of time that the odds are against your fish.
That said this video outlines a five step treatment process step by step.
Usually with a betta it will be isolated already. You want this because the antibiotic medications recommend aren't recommended for general consumption.
At the same time you are told to use Epsom salt to help relieve the excess fluid buildup.
The point about no activated charcoal should not be overlooked. It will remove the medication from the water making it less likely you will succeed. So if you've got such a filter operational, remove the carbon before starting treatment. You can always add is later to help remove the medications from the water. That and water changes should accomplish that.
CONCLUSION: This helpful vid gives you a good overview of what you are up against should your fish be unlucky enough to come down with a case of dropsy. It does a good job of describing the disease and what you can try to do to beat it.
See how swollen this poor guy is? Notice his scales are sticking out like what is commonly referred to as a pinecone? Classic symptoms. Painting a perfect picture of what a beta with dropsy looks like. As this eHow article points out, it's more or less the result of a bacterial infection.
Now most betta keepers would agree with this following video that warns that dropsy is very hard to treat successfully. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try. But it does mean you should go into the treatment routine knowing ahead of time that the odds are against your fish.
That said this video outlines a five step treatment process step by step.
Usually with a betta it will be isolated already. You want this because the antibiotic medications recommend aren't recommended for general consumption.
At the same time you are told to use Epsom salt to help relieve the excess fluid buildup.
The point about no activated charcoal should not be overlooked. It will remove the medication from the water making it less likely you will succeed. So if you've got such a filter operational, remove the carbon before starting treatment. You can always add is later to help remove the medications from the water. That and water changes should accomplish that.
CONCLUSION: This helpful vid gives you a good overview of what you are up against should your fish be unlucky enough to come down with a case of dropsy. It does a good job of describing the disease and what you can try to do to beat it.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
To Cycle Or Not to Cycle, Is That The Question?
Some say that happiness is what happens when keeping bettas is a cycled tank. Life is easier for you. Life is better for the bettas. Which I'd tend to agree with.
Now if you thoroughly understand tank cycling raise your hand. Okay a few hands went up.
Otherwise for the rest would it be safe to say you don't know what a cycled tank is? Or that you don't know why you should know? If that's true, then this quick heads up should be an eye opener to the possibilities.
If you didn't sleep walk through this video here's what you should have learned.
Okay so if this whole cycling business is as clear as mud sometimes it helps to get your brain around a concept if you see it explained a second time from a slightly different perspective. So here's a second pretty decent video.
The nice thing about this one is you get to see a nifty image of the nitrogen cycle from fish to nitrates. That to me helps make the whole process crystal clear. Hopefully you'll feel that way too.
Even better there's a second image, well a chart actually, that shows how the three compounds, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates spike and then crash over time. Which is pretty darn helpful too.
And pay attention to the approximate number of days it takes to make each part of the cycle happen. Which only reinforces the point made that if you are doing a 100% water change once a month, your betta fish is likely under constant stress.
Still I can't say for sure that if you have a cycled tank you are going to significantly expand the life span of your betta fish. Sure having them in a tank rather than a bowl will help. And not subjecting them constantly to ammonia spikes that accompany 100% water changes will help too. But there are other pitfalls that can shorten their life expectancy. Some of which are beyond your control even.
So to cycle or not to cycle is that the question really isn't the question. Because for the health of your fish you do want to cycle your tank. Your betta will be happier. And you'll be happier. With that let's end this cycling story.
Now if you thoroughly understand tank cycling raise your hand. Okay a few hands went up.
Otherwise for the rest would it be safe to say you don't know what a cycled tank is? Or that you don't know why you should know? If that's true, then this quick heads up should be an eye opener to the possibilities.
If you didn't sleep walk through this video here's what you should have learned.
- The phrase "cycling a fish tank" is about your filter as much as anything else? It also involves the nitrogen cycle and it's referred to as a cycle for a reason. Here's why.
- Your fish are ammonia producers. The amount produced depends on the type and number of fish.
- When doing cycling with fish you start with a few so called hardy fish. These would be fish that can cope with spiking ammonia levels without dying basically. The idea is to build up the beneficial bacteria that break down the harmful ammonia compounds. First it is broken down into nitrites. And finally nitrates. The latter is for the most part benign in limited doses.
- Ammonia is most harmful. Nitrites less so. Nitrates again pretty much not so harmful.
- Doing the cycling with fish is a way to gradually introduce more fish over time to give the bacteria in the tank time to build up to handle the ammonia load. This is likely not a good thing to do with a prized bettta fish however.
- To monitor this cycle you'll need an ammonia test kit. It will pretty much last forever so get a good one like something from API. (Don't get the strips. They aren't nearly accurate enough.) You can see how simple it is. A vial of tank water. A few drops of reactant. Wait a bit. And BOOM you know your ammonia levels.
- Strips are said to be okay for measuring nitrites and nitrates. I tend to disagree. Again a single kit from API can do it all. But let's say that's up to you.
- The typical nitrogen cycle your tank will go through is pretty predictable.
- Initially you are going to have an ammonia spike. This is stressful for the fish. Very stressful. In a way it's like living in a smoke filled room. It might not kill you, but breathing in that smoke 24/7 isn't doing you any good either.
- The good news, if there is good news, is that the ammonia is food for the good bugs. So they too will multiply like crazy. This will eventually crash the ammonia spike but replace it with a nitrite spike because that's what the bacteria break ammonia down into. Better but still not good.
- Meanwhile your fish is trying to cope with these gyrating water parameters and still be styling while doing so. Also not so good.
- More bacteria develop which will eventually take care of the nitrites. This leads to a jump in nitrates. But this is manageable by regular water changes. Which is why the routine is to change out say 80% of the water once the nitrates spike to get that level down. And from there you are good doing 25% changes every week to 10 days or so.
- But you can also see how 100% water changes are hard on your betta. Because every time you're flushing any good bacteria that have developed down the drain. So that ammonia levels spike, the bacteria catch up, nitrite levels spike, bacteria catch up, nitrate levels spike, BOOM you come along and do a 100% water change somewhere along the way and start the process all over again. Leaving the fish to try to adjust, and adjust and adjust.
- With one betta it's unlikely you can bring in aged filter media. But might be doable if you have a number of these guys in different tanks.
Okay so if this whole cycling business is as clear as mud sometimes it helps to get your brain around a concept if you see it explained a second time from a slightly different perspective. So here's a second pretty decent video.
The nice thing about this one is you get to see a nifty image of the nitrogen cycle from fish to nitrates. That to me helps make the whole process crystal clear. Hopefully you'll feel that way too.
Even better there's a second image, well a chart actually, that shows how the three compounds, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates spike and then crash over time. Which is pretty darn helpful too.
And pay attention to the approximate number of days it takes to make each part of the cycle happen. Which only reinforces the point made that if you are doing a 100% water change once a month, your betta fish is likely under constant stress.
Still I can't say for sure that if you have a cycled tank you are going to significantly expand the life span of your betta fish. Sure having them in a tank rather than a bowl will help. And not subjecting them constantly to ammonia spikes that accompany 100% water changes will help too. But there are other pitfalls that can shorten their life expectancy. Some of which are beyond your control even.
So to cycle or not to cycle is that the question really isn't the question. Because for the health of your fish you do want to cycle your tank. Your betta will be happier. And you'll be happier. With that let's end this cycling story.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)