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I plan on setting up my first Betta tank. It will be a 2 gallon size; one male Betta; black aquarium gravel to enhance the colours of the fish; one broad leafed silk plant, & a small cave.If I were to get a Java Fern instead of the fake plant, will taking it out when doing weekly water changes cause any negative effects on it.The tank has a incadescent light/hood. I order for the correct temp to be maintained, will the incadescent light do this or can you buy a small heater for this siz tank. If so how many watts do I need. Finally are Dry Almond Leaves something my tank should have. I have read that they very good for aged water, maitaining water , prevent the cause of disease , help betta color and health. If this is correct how many do I use and does it need to be replaced with each 100% water change. I plan to use aged water that has been treated. Thanks alot.




[span class="edited"][Edited by JTF 2004-08-14 07:18][/span]

Java fern is a very hardy plant...it might be able to make it through the water changes. The best way to find out is to experiment.

The lighting won't be good for maintaining temp. With no heater on and the lighting on, the temp will rise during the day, and fall at night. There are a few options. Some people use reptile heat pads to heat their tanks. Wal-Mart makes a small heater (7.5 watts). You could also buy a top of the line 25 watt heater. I say top of the line so there would be a smaller chance of the heater malfunctioning.

Dry Almond leaves are ususally used for breeding bettas. They aren't neccessary for your tank. However, I don't know how many to be used and how often.

HTH

Yes the light is a bad idea. It will cause the temp to fluctuate too much. The last test I ran on a similar set up the water temp would rise to about 82 degrees when the lamp was on.

Java fern will do fine in the tank as long as it is in a well lit room. It will also be fine with your water changes. It is a very hardy plant and short of letting it dry up it is almost impossible to kill.

I often wondered the right answer to your question about the leaves myself. Allot of the Asian breeders use it for breeding only, before, during, and right after. Allot of them also use it all the time. In the US it seems that most of the bigger breeders do not use them at all, so I don't know. Hopefully someone can answer this question better, yay or nay, but i think there really isn't anything thats says one way or the other.

Great info. So the lights that comes with the tank, shouid I just use it for show and buy a small heater as suggested. Do bettas need 10-12 hrs of light each day similar to a community tank?

Yeah the light in the room should be enough, unless it is a dark room. Just turn the light that came with the tank when you want to get a good look at him.

A 25 what heart will do just fine. Don't skimp on the heater. Even at only 25 watts if it broke in the on position it will cook Mr Betta in no time.

Great tips, I'll buy a 25 watt that you can set the exact temp.

If the bulb that came with the tank is a 15 watt I would just replace it with a 10 watt power compact fluourescent. It doesn't get hot like incandescant and is good lighting.

I use the incandescent light on my betta tank during the summer, when it just needs to be bumped up a couple degrees, but I think during the winter, I'm going to have to so the same thing as you, get a 25 watt heater, and I'll probably turn it into flourescent. Good Luck!

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish