Betta fish questions

[Sadness Child]

Partial one about 15% each week and depending on filtration 50%-25% each month

 

[NatJ]

Can someone explain what the cycle is and how it works lol

Fish pee and poop in the water. Obviously, it doesn't stay clean.
You can manage it by just changing lots of water, frequently--but that's a lot of work, and all the changes are not really good for the fish, and the waste also builds up between the changes.

There are several kinds of bacteria that can help. I think they can drift around in the air, because I know they can appear without needing to be deliberately added.

One kind of bacteria converts ammonia (from the fish waste) into nitrite, which is also bad for fish.
Another kind of bacteria converts the nitrite into nitrate, which is much less bad. (Yes, nitrite and nitrate have only one letter different between them--it gets confusing.)

Then you still need to do water changes regularly to remove the nitrate, but it's not nearly as bad as the original ammonia would be.

Cycling is getting those bacteria set up. You need ammonia in the tank for the bacteria to eat-- adding pure ammonia works, or sprinkling fish food every day and letting it break down also works but takes longer, or adding a fish to produce the ammonia also works. I've even heard of a few people adding a bit of human urine, although most of us prefer not to do that

At this stage, you need a test kit. You will need to test the ammonia and nitrite every day, and keep adding more ammonia each day if the level goes down. When the nitrite level starts to go up, and the ammonia level is dropping each day, you know one kind of bacteria is present in the tank. Then you keep adding ammonia each day, keep testing ammonia and nitrite, and also start to test nitrate. You will know the cycle is "finished" when you add ammonia every day, the ammonia is gone by the next day, your test finds no nitrite, and the nitrate test shows that it's increasing a bit each day. That tells you that both kinds of bacteria are doing their job properly.

Just putting in one fish and waiting it out used to be common, but ammonia from the fish tends to build up to dangerous levels before the right bacteria move in & grow enough, so it's very hard on that fish. "Fishless cycling," just adding a measured amount of ammonia each day, is now considered much better.

A minor variation is to "feed" the tank each day with fish food, as if there were a fish in it, and the food will break down and cause ammonia, and your test kit can show the ammonia levels go up with time, and then go down as the nitrite levels go up, and then the nitrite goes down as the nitrate goes up.

No matter how you cycle the tank, remember to keep feeding it (ammonia or fish food) until you get your fish-- if you let the bacteria starve, you will need to start over growing new ones!

Changing water does not usually hurt the bacteria, because they mostly live in the filter media and the gravel. But if you replace all the filter media at once, there's a chance the tank will have to cycle again. The obvious way to prevent this is to change half the filter media when it needs it, and the other half later. Think of the filter as mostly a place for bacteria to live, not a thing that collects dirt.

For how much ammonia: google for "fishless cycle" and you'll find lots of pages to tell you how much. Or you could guess how much one betta might pee in one day, and add that much each day

Ammonia is usually sold in the cleaning aisle in stores, or there may be some at your home, but check to be sure it does not have scents, soaps, colors, and so forth (those are not good for fishtanks, even though they're fine when cleaning houses.)

 

[black_cat]

Fish pee and poop in the water. Obviously, it doesn't stay clean.
You can manage it by just changing lots of water, frequently--but that's a lot of work, and all the changes are not really good for the fish, and the waste also builds up between the changes.

There are several kinds of bacteria that can help. I think they can drift around in the air, because I know they can appear without needing to be deliberately added.

One kind of bacteria converts ammonia (from the fish waste) into nitrite, which is also bad for fish.
Another kind of bacteria converts the nitrite into nitrate, which is much less bad. (Yes, nitrite and nitrate have only one letter different between them--it gets confusing.)

Then you still need to do water changes regularly to remove the nitrate, but it's not nearly as bad as the original ammonia would be.

Cycling is getting those bacteria set up. You need ammonia in the tank for the bacteria to eat-- adding pure ammonia works, or sprinkling fish food every day and letting it break down also works but takes longer, or adding a fish to produce the ammonia also works. I've even heard of a few people adding a bit of human urine, although most of us prefer not to do that

At this stage, you need a test kit. You will need to test the ammonia and nitrite every day, and keep adding more ammonia each day if the level goes down. When the nitrite level starts to go up, and the ammonia level is dropping each day, you know one kind of bacteria is present in the tank. Then you keep adding ammonia each day, keep testing ammonia and nitrite, and also start to test nitrate. You will know the cycle is "finished" when you add ammonia every day, the ammonia is gone by the next day, your test finds no nitrite, and the nitrate test shows that it's increasing a bit each day. That tells you that both kinds of bacteria are doing their job properly.

Just putting in one fish and waiting it out used to be common, but ammonia from the fish tends to build up to dangerous levels before the right bacteria move in & grow enough, so it's very hard on that fish. "Fishless cycling," just adding a measured amount of ammonia each day, is now considered much better.

A minor variation is to "feed" the tank each day with fish food, as if there were a fish in it, and the food will break down and cause ammonia, and your test kit can show the ammonia levels go up with time, and then go down as the nitrite levels go up, and then the nitrite goes down as the nitrate goes up.

No matter how you cycle the tank, remember to keep feeding it (ammonia or fish food) until you get your fish-- if you let the bacteria starve, you will need to start over growing new ones!

Changing water does not usually hurt the bacteria, because they mostly live in the filter media and the gravel. But if you replace all the filter media at once, there's a chance the tank will have to cycle again. The obvious way to prevent this is to change half the filter media when it needs it, and the other half later. Think of the filter as mostly a place for bacteria to live, not a thing that collects dirt.

For how much ammonia: google for "fishless cycle" and you'll find lots of pages to tell you how much. Or you could guess how much one betta might pee in one day, and add that much each day

Ammonia is usually sold in the cleaning aisle in stores, or there may be some at your home, but check to be sure it does not have scents, soaps, colors, and so forth (those are not good for fishtanks, even though they're fine when cleaning houses.)

That was super helpful! Thank you so much! I've asked this before, but filter media is the stuff doing the filtering inside the filter, right? *tries to remember what I've been told* I want a hang on back filter, and put in sponge and poly fill?

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Do you want it to be going on? Does it have to be a full water change to remove it? Or just a partial one?

You do want it to be happening because it turns ammonia into less harmful chemicals that the fish is more able to live in.

Partial water changes keep the cycle "alive" and running smoothly.

 

[black_cat]

You do want it to be happening because it turns ammonia into less harmful chemicals that the fish is more able to live in.

Partial water changes keep the cycle "alive" and running smoothly.

Ok

 

[NatJ]

That was super helpful! Thank you so much! I've asked this before, but filter media is the stuff doing the filtering inside the filter, right? *tries to remember what I've been told* I want a hang on back filter, and put in sponge and poly fill?

Yes, the filter media is the stuff doing the filtering inside the filter.

It's common to not really change the sponge and poly fill--when you do a water change, take the water out into a clean bucket, then grab the sponge & poly fill from your filter and squeeze them a time or two inside that bucket of just-removed water. That gets a lot of gunk out, but leaves enough bacteria to keep processing the fish waste. Then put the same sponge & poly fill right back into your filter, and dump out the bucket of old water (which is now even dirtier than it was a few minutes ago.)

 

[black_cat]

Once you have the fish, do you still need to test the water every day? Or can you assume that it's doing its thing?

 

[ChocolateMouse]

If you have a hang on back filter with cartridges I'd usually just swoosh them around in some dechlorinated water (old tank water or clean is fine imo) until they stopped giving off a lot of debris and then replace them.

I never knew anyone who tested more than once every week.

 

[SegiDream]

Can someone explain what the cycle is and how it works lol

The cycle is what happens when beneficial bacteria converts toxic fish waste ammonia into much safer nitrates. It's a 3 stage process from ammonia to nitrites to nitrates. Ammonia and nitrites are very toxic to fish, so you want the nitrates instead. A very high amount of nitrates is still toxic to fish which is why you have to do weekly water changes to bring the nitrate number down. Plants also help with this.

To get your cycle started you will need to buy bottled beneficial bacteria (tetra safe start plus) and add a food source such as pure ammonia or a live fish. If you add live fish you'll need to test the water regularly and often to make sure the levels are safe for the fish, this can draw out the cycle process and if you're not careful you can lose fish this way. Your testing will probably reveal high levels of ammonia at first. Then slowly you'll start to see nitrites. And then finally some nitrates. When a tank is fully cycled you should see 0 ammonia 0 nitrites and some nitrates on your test results. To test your cycle you would add ammonia to the tank and then test the levels the next day to make sure the results are still 0 ammonia 0 nitrites and some nitrates.

Side note: You absolutely should be using prime if you cycle your tank with a live fish. Change the water if ammonia + nitrates = get close to 1ppm.

Most of the beneficial bacteria lives on your filter material but a little bit also lives on the surfaces in the aquarium, even on live plants. Since most of it lives on the filter media you don't want to throw away your filter media because you'd be throwing away your cycle. And you definitely never want to rinse your filter media in chlorinated tap water. Always use old tank water to rinse the filter and media. If your filter media has activated charcoal in it, toss the activated charcoal after 30 days, cut it out if you have to.

 

[black_cat]

Really struggling to find a filter. They all say "POWER FILTER" and seem way too aggressive for a betta.