# can Bettas tolerate 60F temp?



## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

I have recently come back from holiday, and whilst I was away i visited a fish store and asked for a heater for a 2.5gal fish bowl- the lady sold me a Hydor under gravel preset heater and told me that it was good for up to 20L
(this was also stated on packet) I had asked her up to what temp does it go at which she told me it would be suitable for that size tank.

knowing that bettas like warmer water 72-78, i thought this would be ok but after setting it up and running it - it onlys heats the water to 60-61F

He is not so lethargic now,but I am hoping he will be ok for a time till I decide to get another.

also tested water and found the following:
Ammonia= .25ppm
Ph=7.6

I do 100% water change every week


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Personally I think while a betta may be able to _tolerate_ a temperature of 60 degrees, it is not a suitable temperature for a tropical fish. Particularly if you are looking at having the water at this temperature for more than a couple of days.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

thats a shame because before there was no heater at all, and now I intend to use this one for at least a month, everything here on the continent is so expensive, i cant just waste money and get another one so soon after, hes been in colder water for a long time,I just think for now he will have to acclimatize to it until I can afford a better one.

but thanks for the advice,and will be hoping to get a new one soon


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## Aus (Feb 3, 2012)

Don't feel bad - you are doing the best you can for him! 

I would so mail you a spare Dymax mini heater, but I fear the postage from here would cost almost as much a new heater.. and take probably as long to get there!


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

*60f*



Aus said:


> Don't feel bad - you are doing the best you can for him!
> 
> I would so mail you a spare Dymax mini heater, but I fear the postage from here would cost almost as much a new heater.. and take probably as long to get there!


Are you able to find out for me anyway??
I would be interested.


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## fidget (Aug 18, 2013)

There are lots of cheap heaters on ebay! I've gotten a bunch and haven't had any problems.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

they dont post to Portugal.

I have already looked


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## Aus (Feb 3, 2012)

I can ask my housemate to check the exact postage (he works at the post office, lol) but he says just by looking at it that it would probably be cheaper just to buy a new heater locally. 

I hate that postage costs so much! But anyway, I'll let you know how much when he gets around to properly weighing it.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

@Aus

have a look anyway.
I will wait now for a month or 2, before i think of getting another.
I have looked on ebay and amazon but they dont ship to Portugal.


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## Starfish1 (Dec 9, 2012)

What temp is the room that he's in? If you heat the room up to 70 or move him to a warmer room, the hydor under gravel heater would keep it a few degrees warmer than the temperature of the air. It's not good to keep them in rooms that are below 70°, because even if the water is warm they need warm air for the labyrinth organ that they use to breathe when they come up to take a breath. 

Heaters will only heat the water to a certain point, the room has to be warm too or else your aquarium won't be warm enough.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

due to position of electric sockets ,he cam only be kept in the kitchen-

the temp in my kitchen is at the moment 64.94F

the good news is his appetite has come backand he is eating his flakes


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## Starfish1 (Dec 9, 2012)

Ok hmmm do you think it's safe to plug an extension cord in and move him to a bedroom where it is warmer? I have no idea if that is ok or not so its up to you. 

What I am wondering is, is this thing working? Can you put your hand on and tell if it feels hot? I know those Hydor under gravel heaters are not very strong at all, are you able to return it to the store and explain that it is not making your water warm enough and see if they will let you exchange it for a different model?

My other suggestion, if any of the other rooms in your home are warmer than 64° It might be better to forget plugging anything in like the filter, heater etc. and just put your fish in the warmer room with no heater until you're able to get a new one. I think you would actually get warmer water in one of the other rooms than in your kitchen with the heater.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

its not too warm.
temp is at 59-60F

I will look into this.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Cover the tank with towels on three sides AND the top. Keep as much heat in as possible. 

The petstore lady told you wrong. They ought to exchange it just because of that.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

@Aus
It was bought in Spain, I live in Portugal.

so exchange is out of the question.

willjust have to find another solution


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## Starfish1 (Dec 9, 2012)

Yes I would see if you can exchange it. It wouldn't be fair for you to have to keep something you bought that will just go to waste. 

It was definitely her fault for telling you to buy the wrong item for your needs. You need an adjustable probabaly 50 watt if it will be in such a cold room. I've used a 50 watt in a 2.5 tank I had on my cold floor temporarily during some rearranging. It kept the water nice and warm. Just watch it for the first day or two because the number on the dial does not necessarily correspond to the temp of the water. It will depend on what brand heater you buy. My via aqua is always exactly the temp on the dial and my hydor theo's are not. If you have the 50 watt and move the fish to a normal temp room (70-ish) then you will need to turn it down and watch the temp closely again for a day or two. Always watch any heater you buy for the first day or two to make sure that it doesn't get dangerously hot. Or you could do a test run in a bucket


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

@starfish1

exchange is out the question.
It was bought I a different country.

All I can dofor now is do a water change with warm water


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Don't start doing water changes with warm water. Having the temperature going up and down is worse for the fish than a steady cool temperature.

Put towels _under_ the tank, as well as on all sides and the _top_.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

seems a little unpractical.

but I know you want to help me.
i will put a towel underneath the tank to keep it of the granite top.


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## Aus (Feb 3, 2012)

It's really not impractical, if it helps keep your fish from getting a chill and ending up with a sickness that could cost you many more $ in medications. Or worse, the fish itself... 

There must be fish forums in Portugal? Perhaps if you post your heater problem in the tropical section and offer to pay for it when you can afford to, somebody will be nice enough to fast-track you a spare heater. 

My housemate isn't working for the next few days, so it'll take that long to get you the quote on postage, btw.  Sorry!

Hallyx is right about keeping the temp steady (ie, not adding warm water to keep him warm, only to have it cool overnight)- if there's one thing bettas really hate is sudden change - in temp/water conditions/food.. everything, really, lol. They'll survive for years in horrible, cold, dirty, cramped conditions that'd kill any other tropical fish.. but then change them suddenly to better conditions and they can drop dead in a blink.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

thanks for that- I will post in the classifieds and see if anybody can help


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## kittenfish (Dec 1, 2013)

Did a quick search on ebay and found the following items that can be shipped to Portugal:

1 2 3 4 5 6


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

was looking for a good brand and not anything made in china


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Honestly, a Chinese made heater is probably better than leaving your betta to try and survive in 60 degree water. 

You are going to be leaving yourself open to all sorts of opportunistic parasites and diseases as well as possible problems with metabolism and digestion if you keep your betta at that kind of temperature. 

Cheap heaters don't necessarily mean they are bad. I actually stopped using Eheim Jagers and went for a cheaper brand simply because I had two quite expensive Jagers kill two tanks worth of fish. 

I think nowadays mostly everything is made in China. However, there are still varying degrees of quality between goods produced there.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

this is try I will look into this , this week.


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## kman (Dec 10, 2013)

Keep him in the warmest room possible. Bettas are happier with warmer water but should tolerate the 60s fine until you can get a heater, even if it takes a few months. Frankly, they'd most likely _tolerate_ it for years, but it's not an especially nice life for the fish. If you can get the water temps into the 70s I'd call it good enough.

Fortunately small heaters are pretty cheap, so even if you pay a lot for postage, it shouldn't be too terrible. Perhaps $10-15 for the heater, so even if you double that with postage, it's not likely to break the bank.


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## fatal (Jan 2, 2014)

I just had a heater burn out on me, I awoke to find Cricket's bowl at 60 (air temp was 50 in the house). His bowl is a 2 gallon decorative jar, the glass is thinner than aquarium glass, and it's sitting on a stone mantle. All things to factor in when choosing a heater.

I went straight to PetSmart where I purchased the defunct heater 3 weeks earlier....they exchanged it out happily and let me pick a different type. I'm not plugging PetSmart here, it just happened to be a good experience. 

I went with a 25watt adjustable temp heater. When I set it on 86, it stays just under 80......Even the 25watt struggles a bit in the 2 gallons of water.


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## kman (Dec 10, 2013)

fatal said:


> I just had a heater burn out on me, I awoke to find Cricket's bowl at 60 (air temp was 50 in the house). His bowl is a 2 gallon decorative jar, the glass is thinner than aquarium glass, and it's sitting on a stone mantle. All things to factor in when choosing a heater.
> 
> I went straight to PetSmart where I purchased the defunct heater 3 weeks earlier....they exchanged it out happily and let me pick a different type. I'm not plugging PetSmart here, it just happened to be a good experience.
> 
> I went with a 25watt adjustable temp heater. When I set it on 86, it stays just under 80......Even the 25watt struggles a bit in the 2 gallons of water.


A 25 watt should not struggle in 2 gallons unless you have a REALLY cold house. Normal room temps, a 10w should do fine to keep 2 gals at around 78 degrees.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

You might consider placing a towel or other insulation between the tank and the mantle. Covering the tank with cling-film will help keep in the warmth.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

*heaters*



LittleBettaFish said:


> Honestly, a Chinese made heater is probably better than leaving your betta to try and survive in 60 degree water.
> 
> You are going to be leaving yourself open to all sorts of opportunistic parasites and diseases as well as possible problems with metabolism and digestion if you keep your betta at that kind of temperature.
> 
> ...


Unfortunately I can not buy anything from china off the internet,because of Customs here in Portugal- I once purchased a UV filter of the net and customs charged me for import tax which was half the price of the item.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

*heaters*



Hallyx said:


> You might consider placing a towel or other insulation between the tank and the mantle. Covering the tank with cling-film will help keep in the warmth.


I want to look ands watch Grumpy, I think I am going to have to get an extra heater, at the moment I have place the bowl on a towel and he was swimming around this morning and when I fed him he ate,so thats good.


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## kman (Dec 10, 2013)

AlgarveblueVT said:


> Unfortunately I can not buy anything from china off the internet,because of Customs here in Portugal- I once purchased a UV filter of the net and customs charged me for import tax which was half the price of the item.


It's all a matter of perspective, though. If you can't find a heater locally for some reason, or they're crazy expensive, which is more expensive: An inexpensive heater that costs 2x normal because of import taxes, or the local purchase? Twice the normal price still isn't all that bad when the item in question is truly inexpensive.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

@Kman

I cant get a 15W nano heater locally, thats why I am searching still online


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## kman (Dec 10, 2013)

AlgarveblueVT said:


> @Kman
> 
> I cant get a 15W nano heater locally, thats why I am searching still online


Right. So yeah, if you're looking at double the normal price (due to import taxes), instead of $20 you're looking at $40, worst case (more likely $30, I'd think)? An annoying amount of money to spend on a small heater, to be sure, but hopefully $40 isn't going to break the bank. It's not like we're talking hundreds of dollars here.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

Good news I have just received my 50W nano heater with controllable temp so temp between 72 and 78?


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Good on you, Algarve. Let us know how your fish likes it.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

will do


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

So not to happy with new heater
put it to 23-25C/ 73-77F , but my thermo only shows around 68F
Heater has turned itself off.


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## AlgarveblueVT (Jul 11, 2013)

Mind you the bowl has been refilled and checking again the heater has come back on again.
temp is slowly creeping up

Ammonia test= 0.25ppm
Ph= 7.6


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