Hi, My Name Is Zee And I Am An Addict....

[txzee]

It started two weeks ago while looking for a toy for my sisters new puppy in the walmart pet section... There I saw him depressed, stewing in what looked like month old water and poop. My heart sank, and that's when I knew I was hooked.
 
Alright I'll cut the melo dramatics, I'm new to the forum also new to the hobby just a general mid twenties n00b. For the last two weeks I've been binge researching and learning through trial and error.
 
Meet Neptune my I don't really know how old "rescued" male betta fish.
 

 
I named him Neptune because he and the planet Neptune share the same color & because the planet Neptune in astrology is associated with insincerity, deceitfulness & deviousness. Neptune deceived me big time, how you ask? He survived, and wow I'm really glad he did.
 
When I first got him, he lived in a one gallon bowl that I bought the same day I bought him, I was in a hurry and just got the first thing I saw. He lived in the bowl all of three days then he was put in a 10 gallon tank with filter and heater.
 

 
I put sanded sea glass at the bottom (but not before boiling it twice and rinsing)!
 

 
I've obsessively checked the water chemistry on a daily level and when I installed the tank I let it cycle 24 hours after putting in water conditioner and bacteria supplement. Everything looks good in terms of levels (PH AMMONIA NITRATES ETC) everything except water hardness. My hardness is off the charts and I don't know what more to do about it. I thought of doing 50% water change with distilled water but I'm not sure.
 
Neptunes fin rot has cleared up and the only thing weird about him is that he only swims on one side of the tank usually and really fast then normal speed then really fast again...
 
He hasn't been eating since making the switch to the 10gal and I haven't put in any plants or rocks because I ordered some beautiful glass rock/slab, white stones and silk plants online and they haven't come in yet. I've added a video to see if any of the PROs can tell me if his swimming is eratic because it just doesn't look right to me.
 
http/youtu.be/3g4wksNIkc8

 

[NickAu]

Nice fish.
 

It started two weeks ago while looking for a toy for my sisters new puppy in the walmart pet section..

That's how it starts.
 

There I saw him depressed, stewing in what looked like month old water and poop.

walmart pet section

 
In Australia they would find that the RSPCA would have them in court so fast it's not funny.

Our powers | RSPCA Australia
 
 
 

the only thing weird about him is that he only swims on one side of the tank usually and really fast then normal speed then really fast again...

 
I bet he can see his reflection in the glass.  I had the same problem with my betta I tried everything, Painting the back and sides of the tank black, Live plants, Silk plants, In the end I had to line the back and sides of the tank with 3d background.
 

the only thing weird about him

Wait till you have had him for a while, and then say "the only thing" LOL.
 
Mine loves his plants, He spends most of the day exploring the jungle the more tangled the plants the more he "must" swim thru it, And he loves his new Lilly pad, seems to make comfortable  bed.

 

[txzee]

Yea that will be here next week too. I ordered one of those "candy" backgrounds because I'm going for a winter wonderland theme since its hot as hades In my lovely state of Texas. So you don't think its anything bad? At fist I thought well maybe he's just not used to the space in the tank but It's been a while already...

 

[LyraGuppi]

It started two weeks ago while looking for a toy for my sisters new puppy in the walmart pet section... There I saw him depressed, stewing in what looked like month old water and poop. My heart sank, and that's when I knew I was hooked.
Oh no..
Alright I'll cut the melo dramatics, I'm new to the forum also new to the hobby just a general mid twenties n00b. For the last two weeks I've been binge researching and learning through trial and error.
 
Meet Neptune my I don't really know how old "rescued" male betta fish.
 

 
I named him Neptune because he and the planet Neptune share the same color & because the planet Neptune in astrology is associated with insincerity, deceitfulness & deviousness. Neptune deceived me big time, how you ask? He survived, and wow I'm really glad he did.
 
When I first got him, he lived in a one gallon bowl that I bought the same day I bought him, I was in a hurry and just got the first thing I saw. He lived in the bowl all of three days then he was put in a 10 gallon tank with filter and heater.
 

 
I put sanded sea glass at the bottom (but not before boiling it twice and rinsing)!
 

 
I've obsessively checked the water chemistry on a daily level and when I installed the tank I let it cycle 24 hours after putting in water conditioner and bacteria supplement. Everything looks good in terms of levels (PH AMMONIA NITRATES ETC) everything except water hardness. My hardness is off the charts and I don't know what more to do about it. I thought of doing 50% water change with distilled water but I'm not sure.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/421488-cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first/I suggest you give that a read, because usually tanks don't cycle in 24 hours. What are your specific water stats? (Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia) About the hardness, my eleven bettas live in medium-hard water and are just fine.
Neptunes fin rot has cleared up and the only thing weird about him is that he only swims on one side of the tank usually and really fast then normal speed then really fast again...
 
He hasn't been eating since making the switch to the 10gal and I haven't put in any plants or rocks because I ordered some beautiful glass rock/slab, white stones and silk plants online and they haven't come in yet. I've added a video to see if any of the PROs can tell me if his swimming is eratic because it just doesn't look right to me.
One thing about the glass..poo and stuff can get trapped under it very easily, so in the future (if you're having troubles) a substrate would be better.
http/youtu.be/3g4wksNIkc8
Bettas can live for a while without food, he may just be kinda shocked from the move.
His swimming resembles my betta's whenever I come over. Bettas kinda learn you're the person that feeds them and will dance for you sometimes.
I'm sure the cover will help him out.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

Welcome to the world of bettas! If water stats are fine then the swimming thing could possibly just be him seeing his reflection like the others mentioned. Once you get some plants and cover in there then the swimming should clear up. I would check water states daily!!! Tanks don't usually cycle in just 24 hours (cycling can take some time) so be on top of that. Ammonia spikes can come out of no where it seems in freshly set up tanks.
What kind of foods are you feeding him? If it's just one type try giving him something else to peek his appetite. I feed mine three different kinds of food and I'm hoping to get a small tank to culture some daphina in once I get the room (if I ever have room for another tank ).
You see really dedicated to learning how to properly care for a betta so keep up the research and the good work!

 

[RCA]

Welcome to the TFF and for giving your Betta the best home you can. With the glass beads, I once read that these have been known to leak liquid inside into the water and kill fish. Once I read this I elected to remove them from one of my tanks.

+1 with LyraGuppi, re the food getting trapped.

If you can get some Bogwood or Almond Leaves, these assist softening the water, making it more like water these fish like.

+1 I would not worry about the swimming as with the plants etc in place there will be more for him to explore. Just check the filter is not too strong as Bettas do not tend to be strong swimmers.

Check out the pinned post about Betta Care, under the more tab on the main menu, this will assist you further with your boy.

Look forward to more pictures.

 

[txzee]

Wow you've all been very helpful! Do you think switching to small river rocks/pebbles is better than seaglass? I don't like the way gravel looks and I thought the sea glass looked great but if its not safe then it isn't really an option is it?
 
I cant wait to get the tank decorated I got five silk plants one 4" one 7" one 9" and two 16"

 
Also got an anemone, and 6 cool aquarium rocks.
 
 

Everything is on its way should be here by Friday. Now as for the numbers I totally freaked out over the glass thing and went to get a fresh reading.
 
NO3 is at 20
NO2 is at 0
PH is at 7.0
KH is at 120
GH is at 180
 

 
I was feeding him The betta flakes but I read fishmeal was bad for fish and plus the flakes make your tank dirtier so I've been giving him the national geographic color enhancing pellets and frozen beef heart (but not often I've only done it twice at the end of the weeks because I hear its hard to digest.) he loves the beef heart and anything else really, I should have named him PIG.
 
 

 
I'm a very visual person so I like pictures

Hope I didn't overwhelm anyone. Thanks!

 

[LyraGuppi]

That tank will be very pretty when it's decorated! Pebbles wouldn't leak anything, but like the food could get stuck under them like the glass, but them again, that problem is easy to fix. If you decide against pebbles, have you checked out sand? A black sand would look magnificent!
(I don't have much experience with glass pebbles leaking anything, so I wouldn't know if they were safe for tanks or not)
Nah, I like Neptune better But yes, bettas are extremo pigs!
 
Stats look good!
Oh! Forgot to say, my water is 180 GH too.

And no, pictures are worshiped here on the TFF.

 

[NickAu]

 
but like the food could get stuck under them like the glass

I feed my Betta Atison's Betta Pro, It floats, I give him 1 pellet at a time he eats them all, there is no wasted food to get stuck any place,  The only time this may be an issue for me is when I give him brine shrimp some bits make it to the bottom and they are quickly cleaned up by 2 Plecs, 2 Apple snails, and 5 cherry shrimp.  While I used silk plants while I was messing around with the tank and 3d backgrounds, I have gotten rid of all the silk plants now and put all the real plants back in the tank, Live plants are the best.
 
My LFS guy told me not to feed beef heart to my betta, Give him Blood worm, Brine shrimp, Daphnia I also give my Betta Live fruit fly I catch for him and sometimes he gets a small fruit fly maggot ( Oh he loves those )
 
I have stopped worrying about water parameters in the tank, My tap water ph is 7.2, My tank is 15 gallons, and I change 20 Lt of water 2 times a week, The only thing I add to the water is Seachem Prime and a Indian Almond leaf.
 
As for filtration, Well lets just say I could most likely filter a small swimming pool with my set up.

 

[txzee]

I guess since its new, and I have glass.. I'm concerned about levels.
 
I'm going to look for black sand today and I'm assuming ill have to re start the cycle process all over again. How many pounds would be good for a 10gal? I cant even get a bottom feeder because I have sea glass at the bottom and it isn't uniform.
 
I'll switch to bloodworms and throw away the heart. I just saw it has more protein than the blood worms and since he was sickly and recovering I thought he could use it.
 
What filtration system are you using fish fanatic?
 
Another question I had is I know I have to condition the new water I put into the tank when I do 25% water changes but do I have to add the bacteria supplement as well? I got one at petsmart but im not sure if I should add with every change...

 

[Gvilleguy]

I have GOT to stop reading posts in the betta forum. I had one for two years and miss it, but I don't miss the maintenance on his tank. But seeing betta pics always makes me want to start up a third tank! (I have a 40 gallon community and a 10 gallon cherry shrimp).
 
Good luck with the new tank. I think you will prefer the sand substrate in terms of being able to vac up the waste, compared to the glass. And you should read up on doing a fish-in cycle in the beginners section. Just monitor the water stats and do water changes.

 

[attibones]

Those strips are very unreliable. Try to get a liquid test kit if you can. 
 
For sand, about one pound per gallon yields about an inch. So if you aren't planning on planting the tank, ten pounds would work (have a pop into Tractor Supply Co to get some blasting grit, very fine, it's basically black sand, though it is too sharp for catfish and other bottom feeders, safe for the tank, and only six dollars for a fifty pound bag). There won't be much bacteria in your glass sub at the moment since the cycle is still fresh.
 
Most bacteria supplements are not worth using. Tetra SafeStart and Dr. Tim's One and Only are the only two I know of that actually work, but there is some variance here due to shipping methods, etc. Sometimes the bacteria are dead before you can add them. 

 

[Gvilleguy]

I can add to attibones about the bacteria - I used Dr. Tim's in a bottle twice, and it worked both times to speed up the cycling of my tanks - they took days instead of weeks. My tap water normally takes a month to cycle on its own.

 

[Wildbetta]

So far everyone has given excellent advice and is what I would have advised so not going to repeat what has been said. 
 
I will comment on the food.  Beefheart is fine to feed and is actually one of the best foods to help put weight on thin fish and younger juvies.  However it is really messy and will foul the water really quickly.  So feeding it really sparingly and in some increments is best.  Watch your ammonia readings after feeding to make sure you are not feeding too much.
 
I believe you will have better luck with sand than the glass.  Although the glass is really nice looking right now, once the tank has settled for a while and you start getting waste buildup, it will not look as nice and will be a pain to clean unfortunately.  Black or white sand would work very nicely with what you are planning for the "theme" of the tank.