Moss Balls For Bettas?

[GuppyGoddess]

Hi Everyone,

I've been hunting online and am finding that the cost of moss balls, after shipping, would be about the same price I'd pay locally for one. . .$8.00 plus tax. That is for a single ball.

I'm thinking of getting just one for now. How much would this benefit my Betta's home? Is it worth it to pay that much?

 

[Curiosity101]

Why specifically a moss ball? There are plenty of other plants that would benefit them much more. Examples being...

Amazon Sword
Lily
Anacharis (Aka Elodea in the UK)
Cabomba
Dwarf Hair grass

Then there are things such as small bits of bogwood to create hidey holes and things for the fish to swim through. You can attach plants such as anubias and java moss to the wood to add additional plants for them to rest on an interact with.

 

[loraxchick]

^^agreed
moss balls look nice and do have some benefit to water quality, but for $8 you could buy several BUNCHES of easy growing plants like anacharis(aka elodea) wisteria, camboba. these are all fast growing plants that really dont require a ton of light (lower light will grow slower but still grow relatively quickly). make sure you take the plant weights off and plant them individually, rather than stuff the whole group in the substrate. bettas love real plants. the more the merrier. so if you want the best bang for your buck, stick with these plants. moss balls are nice, and different, but id go with some stem plants for the water/fish's sake
and yes, moss balls are $8 a piece here in NY. so youre not getting ripped off
cheers

 

[Curiosity101]

Just a note to you oversees peeps.

Look on Ebay.co.uk
Moss balls are cheap over here... 3 large ones for £3.95 + £1.95 Delivery (presumably would be more to go overseas)
But eitherways that's $9.42 by my reckoning. So depending on how many you want, and how much postage is. It's probably alot cheaper to buy from the uk.

 

[loraxchick]

Just a note to you oversees peeps.

Look on Ebay.co.uk
Moss balls are cheap over here... 3 large ones for £3.95 + £1.95 Delivery (presumably would be more to go overseas)
But eitherways that's $9.42 by my reckoning. So depending on how many you want, and how much postage is. It's probably alot cheaper to buy from the uk.

OP is from the US

 

[Curiosity101]

Ah...just check the Airmail prices...it's actually only going to be around £2 for the ACTUAL postage. So you wouldn't have thought the seller could reasonably charge more than...£3 ish... which is $4.80

Here is a link to the Uk postal service and the airmail prices... Royal Mail

I know they're from the US.
Hence peeps <-- The s. lol.

 

[loraxchick]

DUH..i missed that. and it was right at the TOP
oh well. now weve managed to take over the thread

 

[Honeythorn]

If they're as expensive as that ( and they do seem rather expensive at that price !! ) then skip the mossballs and go for bunches of stem plants like Cabomba, Elodia and Hygrophyllia. Floating plants like Frogbit , Riccia and water lettuce are good or lurking under.

All live plants are good for your tank. They use up a bit of Nitrate ( weekly water changes are still nessescary ) and make the whole thing a hell of a lot more natural for the fish. Make at least one area , such as a corner or one side densely planted so the fish can hide, then have a clear space for and ornaments and swimming freely .

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Okay, thanks everyone. The reason I am considering moss balls is because they're asthetically appealing to me! Also, the ones I found at the local store look healthy and pretty. I've having a difficult time finding a shop that has great, healthy, lush, green plants. I figure if the plant cannot make it in the store, there is no way I can keep up with it at home. I do have live plants in my guppy/pygmy cory tank and they're doing well, but after I planted them, I soon found three snails, so I hesitate to go back to that LFS. (actually, I found four. the other had been sucked up by my filter - lol)

Oh, and when I was looking on eBay it seems that after converting currency, with shipping, I won't be saving much money. . .not enough to risk ending up with poor quaility plants that I cannot return.

My bettas really need live plants, though. Even with silk plants, the plastic "stems" seem to bother my double-tailed little guy.

^^agreed
moss balls look nice and do have some benefit to water quality, but for $8 you could buy several BUNCHES of easy growing plants like anacharis(aka elodea) wisteria, camboba. these are all fast growing plants that really dont require a ton of light (lower light will grow slower but still grow relatively quickly). make sure you take the plant weights off and plant them individually, rather than stuff the whole group in the substrate. bettas love real plants. the more the merrier. so if you want the best bang for your buck, stick with these plants. moss balls are nice, and different, but id go with some stem plants for the water/fish's sake
and yes, moss balls are $8 a piece here in NY. so youre not getting ripped off
cheers

Yep, I'll remove the plant weights. The gal at one of the stores told me to keep them on and later I had taken the plant out because it looked ratty and at some point, my son pointed out a rusty twisty tie at the bottom of the tank. I had to use chop sticks to get it out! lol

 

[Curiosity101]

Well how about this for an idea...

Ask people in the UK classified section of the forum. It's normally cheaper than ebay, and they wont rip you off with shipping.
You could probably order a healthy job lot of plants for a good price. I may even have some available after I go home this weekend.

Plus my cabomba will almost definitely be needing a trim, may have some java moss available, a small leafy plant that's a bit like an amazon sword and some twisted vals. Can't promise anything (I'm at uni atm), but if any are available I could do you a small but very healthy selection for a good price. I'm going home this weekend...

I could weigh before posting so if you told me what limit you could go up to for plants + postage...I can sort you out a package.

Just bear it in mind.

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Well how about this for an idea...

Ask people in the UK classified section of the forum. It's normally cheaper than ebay, and they wont rip you off with shipping.
You could probably order a healthy job lot of plants for a good price. I may even have some available after I go home this weekend.

Plus my cabomba will almost definitely be needing a trim, may have some java moss available, a small leafy plant that's a bit like an amazon sword and some twisted vals. Can't promise anything (I'm at uni atm), but if any are available I could do you a small but very healthy selection for a good price. I'm going home this weekend...

I could weigh before posting so if you told me what limit you could go up to for plants + postage...I can sort you out a package.

Just bear it in mind.

That would be wonderful. If you do end up having a few plant cuttings to spare, would you PM me?

Thanks.

 

[loraxchick]

If they're as expensive as that ( and they do seem rather expensive at that price !! ) then skip the mossballs and go for bunches of stem plants like Cabomba, Elodia and Hygrophyllia. Floating plants like Frogbit , Riccia and water lettuce are good or lurking under.

All live plants are good for your tank. They use up a bit of Nitrate ( weekly water changes are still nessescary ) and make the whole thing a hell of a lot more natural for the fish. Make at least one area , such as a corner or one side densely planted so the fish can hide, then have a clear space for and ornaments and swimming freely .

yeah, the mossballs are ridiculously expensive as far as plants go.around this side of the pond anyway.
flaoting plants are also quite difficult. the only floating plant ive seen in the area is water lettuce. i have never seen frogbit and have looked around.

check out aquabid for plant deals. they even sell kits! (ie enough to plant a 20 gal., etc.).
cheers

 

[Curiosity101]

Came home to my tank tonight...full of BGA Looks like I'm in the situation of actually needing more fish... Hehe.
Trip to the fish shop for me in the morning.

So sorry I don't have enough plant cutting to be able to post.

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Came home to my tank tonight...full of BGA Looks like I'm in the situation of actually needing more fish... Hehe.
Trip to the fish shop for me in the morning.

So sorry I don't have enough plant cutting to be able to post.

Hey, sorry about your BGA. . .it's okay about not having the plant cuttings. Unfortunetly, one of my male bettas abrubtely has become ill. Yesterday he began laying at the bottom of the tank and today, he's doing the same. He's rubbing up against the substrate and then just laying there. He's still eating, but I'm thinking he isn't going to make it. Not sure what to do for him.

 

[loraxchick]

if no sign of ich, then check him for velvet but shining a light on his with the tanlights out. it will appear as a gold dusting across his body. it is not easy to see under normal tanklights and often goes misdiagnosed. will usually give the same symptoms as ich without the white dots. in the meantime doa big waterchange with a good substrate clean.
cheers