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I consider myself to be a pretty well knowledged fish keeper. Yet, ive never ever kept a male betta. Ive only had tanks with small schooling fish, cause i enjoy them the most ! but i want to put betta in my kitchen for good show. Now i know lots of people do not think the betta tanks that our sold at places such as wal-mart are not big enough. But i just bought one that has one of those dividers so you can have 2 male bettas ??? well i bought it and took out the divider. So i only want to keep 1 male betta. Now i put some spare gravel from my 15g in it and filled it up and added a little something to take the chlorine out. I know bettas like still water and dont need an air pump. But what about a HEATER ??? i mean the temp from the tap i used is about 75 degrees. But if i just leave the betta on the kitchen table, all day and all night, who knows how much cooler the water willl get ????

any comments ??????

Chances are the temperature of you house wouldn't be as much of a problem as the drastic change it would cause in the tank. Sure, bettas can "survive" in lower temps, but the fluctuation would be stressful. I think a heater is probably a good idea.

You can buy a small heater, maybe less than 50W. It's better to play safe.

I also have 1 Male Betta & i have a 50W heater for him.

:88)

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Member of the Malta Aquarist Society - 1970.
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I have a planted 3 gal. bio-wheel thingy setup with a single male betta in it. Because I live in Minnesota, I use an 8" heater (I think it's 25w). I keep our house at around 68-70f when it's furnace running season and in the spring and fall, when the windows are open, it can get much cooler than that. Seeing as you're in Canada a heater seems to be a real good idea. I'm sure the fish would appreciate it come Jan/Feb or those chilly spring and fall nights when your windows are open.

O Tempora O Mores

If you are talking about those tiny divided things for two bettas..that are like 8"-10" long maybe.. I don't think you can get a heater small enough to be stable in there..someone help me out here?

The easiest way to see if temperature will be a problem is to set up the tank with a thermometer in it. Leave it for a few days and check it regularly, especially at night and early in the morning. If it gets too cold, get a heater.

I have a 25 watt heater in a 3 gallon tank. It was going to be a betta tank, but it's currently home to hundreds of cory eggs. The betta's in a smaller container with no heater and he's doing alright.

He had an air pump and he loved playing in the bubbles. It was so cute to watch. I had to shift it over to the other cory fry tank, and I think he misses it. But I'll get him his own pump soon, as well as a heater and a bigger tank. I'd put him in with the fry, but they're still bite-sized.