# Water conditioner, stress coat, or both?



## AshPell (Mar 16, 2013)

I have been using Aqueon Betta Bowl Plus for my betta, Marvin, for about two months now, and I started using API Stress Coat a couple days ago. I noticed on the bottle that it says that it conditions the water, as well, however, I'm not sure if it conditions as well as an actual conditioner, and I was wondering if I should keep using both.
My worry is, I don't want to over-treat the water and cause harm to Marvin! But if I can switch completely to stress coat and save a little money, I would like to do that, but I don't know if stress coat will condition the water enough...
So...should I use both the stress coat and water conditioner, or can I get away with using only the stress coat?


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## Tikibirds (May 26, 2011)

Stress Cost is a conditioner as it removes chlorine and heavy metals. 
For a while I used a little of both too but then when I increased the number of bettas I had (24 at one time) it became more economical to cut out the betta bowl plus since I have only seen it in very small bottles. 

The main difference between the two is that stress coat has aloe which can help with fin regrowth. 

Prime is another popular one - this one helps neturalize ammonia, nitrite and nitrates. I use this for the bettas in 2-3 gallon tanks since my tap has ammonia in it. But OMG - does it reek :evil: I think its sulfer based. Amquel plus does the same but dosent smell.


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

I use prime and stress coat plus together!! Love both


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## ryancalif (Mar 10, 2013)

Prime seems very popular on here.

I've been using API Stress Coat for water conditioning.. no complaints. I have another bottle of Kordon Ammonia/Nitrite Detoxifier as well, just in case.

As for over-treating, you shouldn't need to worry. Water conditioners are pretty safe. The danger comes in around 5-6 times the recommended dosage... so you have a little wiggle room.


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## Sea Dragon (Mar 20, 2012)

Stress coat is awesome, but it makes my tank slimy  Im slowly switching over to Prime because of that lol. Shame because I have a giant bottle of it.


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## Bombalurina (Oct 10, 2011)

StressCoat is pretty good - I don't think you'll do any damage by using both, but you'll save money by just using one or the other.

Like many on here, my favourite is Prime. It deals with chlorine, chloramine, ammonia, nitrites and heavy metals, plus it is super-duper concentrated so it lasts forever. It also has a more concentrated cousin, Safe, one tsp of which is going to dechlorinate my entire 540litre pond, but that's obviously not great for a betta owner.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Yes, Prime smells like sulphur. It's the sulphur compound that adds the extra hydrogen ion which turns harmful ammonia (NH3) into (relatively) harmless ammonium (NH4).


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## Polkadot (Feb 10, 2013)

I also use Stress Coat + and have found it to be really great,you only need a little amount,it has no smell & keeps the water crystal clear.Best of all it helps keep my boys fins and slime coats in great condition.It is true that the aloe can build up a little over time & stick to things like decorations,heater etc,but I have found it to be only a tiny amount and just give the top of the heater a wipe over when I do a wc.But I like the aloe,it's very good & gentle. :-D


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

Sea Dragon said:


> Stress coat is awesome, but it makes my tank slimy  Im slowly switching over to Prime because of that lol. Shame because I have a giant bottle of it.


Thats the purpose of stress coat. Its to add a protective slime coat for the betta


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