# Upgrading from standard fish bowls.. need advice.



## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

I have two male bettas that are currently in 1 gal fish bowls.. no heater no filter.. nothing.

Within the next 2 or so weeks I will be buying either 2 2.5-3 gallon aquariums or 1 10gallon aquarium with divider.
I am planning on adding mystery snails (probably 1 per fish) to the new set up also.
I've only ever had fish bowls so I have a few questions on using aquariums..

What is cycling? Should I do fish-less or with the fish, snails, already in place?

Should I do live plants? I should let it be know that I'm a college student so this aquarium has to travel 4 hrs back home during the summer and back in the fall (possibly)

Should I get a vacuum to clean the tank? (remember its only going to be 2.5 or 10 gallons)

What is the best way to clean it? Partial water changes or full? How often do you clean it?

Gravel or sand? or both?

Should I use a filter for bettas or not?.. I'm getting conflicting advice with this.

If I got the 10 gallon how many times (theoretically) could I divide it safely? I think probably no more that four (maybe five)?

Im sure I'll have a bunch more questions but for now these are it. I really appreciate your answers.:-D


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## DragonFish (Mar 31, 2009)

Hello 

Wonderful to know that your upgrading! You're boys will be very happy ;-)

Here are a couple links that explain the cycling process, I had others but I don't know what happened to them....you can also google 'Aquarium cycle' or something of the sort 
http://www.fishforum.com/freshwater-aquariums/aquarium-cycle-252/
http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

Personally, I think if you can, go with a fishless cycle. Heres a wonderful link that explains how to go about it
http://www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861

If your super edger to get your fish in there though, you could do a cycle with fish...but that can be a hassle for you could be doing partial water changes daily at times in order to keep your levels of ammonia and nitrite down. 
Also, no matter what, you'll need a test kit..the liquid dropper kind. Those strips are inaccurate.

I also hear of some people using Seachem 'Stability' and a couple other products to assist in their cycling...I've never been able to find them around here so I've never tried it, hopefully someone who has will chime in ;-)

Probably silk plants would be more suited for you as opposed to live, all the beauty without the hassle of fertilizers and whatnot....and much easier to move, thats for sure.

Yes, they make small gravel vacs for smaller tanks and you should always have one...you'll be amazed how much waste you remove with them, even in a betta tank. Not to mention I find its far less stressful on the fish to syphon out water.

With a tank with a filter, I wouldn't suggest doing a full water change at all....you'll likely kill any good bacteria that forms. PWCs of 20%-50%(depending on take size)should do. I do weekly 20%-30% in all my tanks 10 gallons+ and then something around 30% twice a week for the 2 gallon. Smaller the tank, the more frequent the PWC.
Unfiltered tanks, IMO, should get PWCs every other day, removing any waste, and then a full clean once a week.

I prefer gravel, though some prefer sand. Its a personal preference really. I actually find gravel easier to deal with, but others will argue that sand is better.

Yes, I suggest you get a filter. There are many easy ways to modify the filter in order to make it safe for bettas and a filter means less water changes. ;-)

I'd say three is the max amount you could divide a 10....maybe four, but I think that would be seriously pushing it. 

I hope I covered everything and I hope this helps! :-D


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

great. Thanks for all the info. I think if i get the 10 gallon I will just stick to dividing it in half and adding the m. snails or possible a dwarf frog... i want to see how they react to the snails first.
I probably will be doing silk plants bc this is my first 'real" aquarium so i dont want to overwhelm myself. I will make sure to get a vacuum and test kits (which i forgot to mention thank you).


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## DragonFish (Mar 31, 2009)

Your welcome! Happy I could help  Best of luck with your new tank!


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## kelly528 (Aug 31, 2009)

Go with gravel... sand needs some practice since it is all to easily sucked up by the vacuum.

Vacuuming would be good for either size.

Divide the tank into 3 compartments... 4 is pushing it. I suppose you could divide it 5 times and still have 2 gallons for each betta, but because of the size of the tank if you have 4 or 5 compartments it will look really weird and squished. Could be a nightmare to vacuum too. With 3 compartments you could fit 1 more betta and the tank would still look 'right'.


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

thanks... i think i will go with gravel.. seems easier. for now I think I'll just keep the two bc i want them to have tank mates...but i always seem to find new bettas I just fall in love with  so who knows..


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## Granny (Jul 1, 2011)

What type filter should be used with a 10 gallon tank.

Good Luck 1 fish 2 fish.


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

This thread is almost 2 years old!


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## danifacetastic (Nov 11, 2010)

Sorry if your questions have already been answered but I thought I'd put my opinion in. I think a divided 10 gallon would be easier to maintain than separate tanks.
I've never intentionally cycled my fish tank. I don't know a lot about it but I heard that fish in cycles work fine.
I also don't know anything about plants. I've been too scared to try them.
I think you should get a gravel vacumn. They're only about $7-10 and super easy. And if you're getting a 10 gallon there's no way to do 100% water changes so you'll have to get a vacumn. 
I think the best way to clean is to use a gravel vacumn and do one 50% change a week.
I use a small filter in my tank and never had a problem. If you don't have a filter you'll have to do more water changes.
Most people wouldn't divide a ten gallon more than twice but I have mine in thirds. I wouldn't go any more than three.


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## danifacetastic (Nov 11, 2010)

Also if you're dividing the tank I would stick with snails, not frogs. I had two dwarfs in my 10 gallon divided in three and they both died within a week. Dwarfs are extremely difficult to feed and even if you get sinking frog pellets your bettas will gobble them up before the frog will find it. Frogs have a very bad sense of sight and go off smell so the only real way to feed them in a tank with fish is to get tweezers and hold the food right in front of their face. Also dwarfs like to be in groups (which I didn't know) and it's inhumane to have them in such a small space. Also the bettas can nip at the frogs and harm them.

Just a word of advice  I didn't know any of that until both my frogs died : / They were very funny though.


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## regalesse (Jun 5, 2011)

if you are going to put your fish in the tank and cycle it, use your existing rocks without washing them and use live plants they will help you with your cycling more quickly. the used gravel hold good bacteria and the live plants will help with any amonia problems. your fish should tollerate the cycle just fine that way. remember to do between 30 and 50 percent water changes every day or every other day and keep checking the amonia in the tanks daily. you want to try to keep the readings at 0.


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## TheBlueBettaFish (Jun 30, 2011)

lol Dramas right...this is almost 2 YRS old! ROFL


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## danifacetastic (Nov 11, 2010)

Oh wow I didn't even notice that XD


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