How to Clean a Betta Aquarium

Cleaning your betta's tank is a vital part of your betta's health, so you must know how to do it. It's a little messy, so you might want to purchase a pair of gloves before beginning.

What you'll need:

• Siphon
• 10 quart bucket (if you have a tank under 2.5 gallons; if you have a larger aquarium, you'll need another drainage system)
• Plastic cups (to place betta in)
• Thermometer
• Fish net
• Water Conditioner
• Aquarium Salt
• Teaspoon
• Clean water source (sink, bottled water, betta water, etc.)

What to do:

The first thing you'll have to do is unplug any filters, heaters, or other electrical appliances. After doing this, take your plastic cup and scoop a cupful of water into it. Then, use the net to add the betta to the plastic cup.

Remove any decorations, plants, etc. before siphoning the tank (this step is optional, but you will do a much more thorough job if you remove them first). Take the siphon and make sure one end is fully submerged in the water in the aquarium. The other end should be in the bucket or other drainage source.

Start pumping the siphon in the water until the water flows through the tube. If you want to do a thorough clean, completely empty the water from the aquarium. If not, pull up the siphon when you reach the desired amount empty.

Empty dirty water. If you are using water from the sink, put the thermometer in your betta's cup. Using both hot and cold water, mix them until you reach the exact temperature read on the thermometer. Differing temperatures can cause shock to your betta fish.

Put water in aquarium. Add water conditioner. You can find how much water conditioner to add by reading the instructions on the labels on the conditioner. Next, add the aquarium salt. Aquarium salt is optional, but I highly recommend it, since it prevents internal diseases and parasites, along with velvet and ick. Add 3/4 teaspoon aquarium salt per gallon of water. Do not put table salt in the betta's water.

To clean and disinfect plants and other decorations for the betta aquarium, run them under hot water for about 1 minute. Add desired decorations to the aquarium. Finally, add the betta fish to his new clean aquarium. Plug in filters, heaters, etc. to complete your cleaning of the tank.

Do not:

• Use soap when cleaning a betta fish tank.
• Add table salt to any betta fish tank.
• Add too much water conditioner.

Aquarium Maintenance

Maintaining a betta aquarium must be done with extreme care... slowly and very carefully. And anyone who wants to succeed in keeping bettas must take time to understand some basic tank and water chemistry.
You will need a kit that tests each of these:

• Ammonia
• Nitrite
• Nitrate
• PH
• Water Hardness
• Chlorine/Chloramine

What causes ammonia?

The worst rivals are ammonia and nitrates. Ammonia is the largest killer of aquarium fish. It occurs most often when a tank is newly set up, but it can also occur in an established tank when too many new fish are added at one time, when a filter fails or due to a change in water conditions. Ammonia can be produced by your betta fish; the more they eat, the more ammonia gets put into the water. Ammonia is also created by decaying plants and excess food. Even over-feeding your betta fish can cause a sudden rise in the ammonia levels in the tank and can kill your fish literally overnight.

Symptoms:

• Fish gasp for breath at top of the water
• Purple or red fins that appear to be bleeding
• Fish becomes increasingly lethargic
• Loss of appetite
• Fish lays at the bottom of the tank, with clamped fins
• Red streaking all over body

Treatment:

• Lower pH below 7.0
• 25-50% water change
• Use chemical to neutralize ammonia
• Discontinue or reduce feeding

Prevention:

• Stock new tanks slowly
• Remove any uneaten food
• Change water regularly
• Test water consistently to catch problems early

The ammonia needs to be broken into smaller and less harmful substances by beneficial bacteria. Beneficial bacteria lives on gravel and inside the tank and it needs time to develop into sufficient quantities. It's always possible to use chemical filters and other devices, but for the beginner, it's safest to start with no more than one fish.