New Fish...cloudy Water Already?

[softball44]

I just got a new betta (first timer) and I did everything that the man told me to do I let tap water sit for over 24 hours then I put a aqua culture betta care kit tablet in the water. then I poured the betta and the water he came in..in the 2 gallon tank...It has been 1 full day since I have got him and the water is really cloudy...he seems to be fine and swimming but i dont understand how the water got so cloudy so fast. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP...also should I get a heater for a glass tank? because I dont think the water is to warm but he doesnt seem to mind it and is not turning white at all...

 

[Chad]

There are a few reasons this can happen. One reason is a bacterial bloom. This isn't a bad thing it just means there is a lot of bacteria in the water. Normally we wait several weeks to put a fish in a tank so that it has time to build up beneficial bacteria. This bacteria helps to break down the fish's waste matter.

The other reason can have to do with the additives you used to treat the water. Some of them cause an initial cloudy period that generally goes away pretty quick.

There may be other causes (such as the substrate not being rinsed) but those are the two that jump to mind. The bacterial bloom is my best guess of the two.

 

[Essjay]

Just to add -

Unless the tank is in a warm room, you do need a heater. Bettas are tropical fish and should have warm water.

Your tank is quite small and you haven't cycled it before getting the betta. It is quite likely the tablet will do nothing to cycle the tank, or maybe speed it up a bit. I have never come across a reference to any of these bacterial products saying they cycle the tank instantly. So until your filter is cycled in a few weeks time (you do have a filter?) you will need to be doing daily 50% water changes. That should also help with the cloudy water.

 

[softball44]

Just to add -

Unless the tank is in a warm room, you do need a heater. Bettas are tropical fish and should have warm water.

Your tank is quite small and you haven't cycled it before getting the betta. It is quite likely the tablet will do nothing to cycle the tank, or maybe speed it up a bit. I have never come across a reference to any of these bacterial products saying they cycle the tank instantly. So until your filter is cycled in a few weeks time (you do have a filter?) you will need to be doing daily 50% water changes. That should also help with the cloudy water.

I do not have a filter system....so I just take out 50% of the water every day and add new water??? and what do u mean cycled?

 

[Essjay]

Fish beathe out ammonia and it's in their waste. The problem is that ammonia burns their skin and gills, which makes it hard for their gills to work properly. We use filters in our tanks to hold bacteria. One type of bacteria uses ammonia as food and turns it into nitrite. Nitrite is also toxic (it stops the fish's blood absorbing oxygen) and the second type of bacteria which grows in the filter uses nitrite as food and turns it into nitrate which we remove by doing water changes. This process of turning ammonia into nitrite and then nitrate is called the nitrogen cycle, and the process of growing the bacteria in the filter is called cycling the filter. It takes several weeks to cycle a filter.

You don't have filter so there is nowhere for the filter bacteria to live. This means that the ammonia will build up in the water as there is nothing to turn it into nitrite and on into nitrate. So you have to do the filter's job and remove the ammonia before it hurts the fish.
You will have to do this by taking some water out every day and replacing it with clean water that has been warmed to the same temperature as the water in the tank, and that you've added dechorinator to. Water companies add chlorine or chloramine to the water supply to kill germs, but it irritates fish. Dechlorinator, also called water conditioner, removes the chlorine/chloramine.

It is a good idea to replace half the water every day, and once a week also clean all the fish waste off the bottom of the tank. During this weekly clean, I would replace as much of the water as possible, not just half of it.



Edit: what does the tablet you add say it does? Is this a dechlorinator/ water conditoner?

 

[softball44]

Fish beathe out ammonia and it's in their waste. The problem is that ammonia burns their skin and gills, which makes it hard for their gills to work properly. We use filters in our tanks to hold bacteria. One type of bacteria uses ammonia as food and turns it into nitrite. Nitrite is also toxic (it stops the fish's blood absorbing oxygen) and the second type of bacteria which grows in the filter uses nitrite as food and turns it into nitrate which we remove by doing water changes. This process of turning ammonia into nitrite and then nitrate is called the nitrogen cycle, and the process of growing the bacteria in the filter is called cycling the filter. It takes several weeks to cycle a filter.

You don't have filter so there is nowhere for the filter bacteria to live. This means that the ammonia will build up in the water as there is nothing to turn it into nitrite and on into nitrate. So you have to do the filter's job and remove the ammonia before it hurts the fish.
You will have to do this by taking some water out every day and replacing it with clean water that has been warmed to the same temperature as the water in the tank, and that you've added dechorinator to. Water companies add chlorine or chloramine to the water supply to kill germs, but it irritates fish. Dechlorinator, also called water conditioner, removes the chlorine/chloramine.

It is a good idea to replace half the water every day, and once a week also clean all the fish waste off the bottom of the tank. During this weekly clean, I would replace as much of the water as possible, not just half of it.



Edit: what does the tablet you add say it does? Is this a dechlorinator/ water conditoner?

It says it clears the chlorine out of the water so that it is safe for fish.....also will a heater work in just a glass tank bc mine looks like a huge wine glass...

 

[Hmongol]

also you should never dump the water that a fish came in with from the store. It can start health water issues.

 

[Essjay]

The tablets are your dechlorinator. You'll need to use one at every water change to remove the chlorine from the new water. Once you've used them all, you'll find it easier to use a liquid one. If you read the bottles in the shop look for one that says it detoxifies ammonia. These have something in them that turns the ammonia into a less toxic form - that's less toxic not non-toxic. But the effect only lasts for about 24 hours so they are a way to help the fish between water changes, these products should not be used instead of water changes.



I'm not sure about a heater for a giant wine glass shaped tank. How warm is the room where the tank is? Bettas should be kept at around 78 deg F (25 deg C). If the room is that warm, it'd be OK without a heater. But if the room gets colder overnight in winter you will need some sort of heater.
You can't use the usual stick shaped heater as you wouldn't be able to attach it to the curved sides. If it's like a wine glass, I assume it's on a stalk? So a heater mat that goes under the tank can't be used either.
I don't know which country you are in, but if it's the USA you could try something like this http/www.amazon.com/Submersible-Betta-Bowl-Heater-7-5w/dp/B006OP6C5M/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1346613364&sr=8-4&keywords=heater+betta+bowl Look on google for things like that.


I wouldn't worry too much about putting the shop water in with the betta. As you only have the betta in there and he'd been living in that water before you took him home, it should be OK. It's when you are adding more fish to a tank that you have to be careful because the water the new fish come in might have bugs that would infect the fish already in your tank.

 

[Flute]

The other potential issue is how much water can a wine glass hold? Can't be a great deal? I'm sure your betta would thank you if you got him a 5gal tank that you could run a filter and heater in, and put some plants and made some hiding spaces for him

 

[softball44]

The other potential issue is how much water can a wine glass hold? Can't be a great deal? I'm sure your betta would thank you if you got him a 5gal tank that you could run a filter and heater in, and put some plants and made some hiding spaces for him

It holds 2 gallons and he has a hide place in there and a plant....he has a lot of room to swim in...

The tablets are your dechlorinator. You'll need to use one at every water change to remove the chlorine from the new water. Once you've used them all, you'll find it easier to use a liquid one. If you read the bottles in the shop look for one that says it detoxifies ammonia. These have something in them that turns the ammonia into a less toxic form - that's less toxic not non-toxic. But the effect only lasts for about 24 hours so they are a way to help the fish between water changes, these products should not be used instead of water changes.



I'm not sure about a heater for a giant wine glass shaped tank. How warm is the room where the tank is? Bettas should be kept at around 78 deg F (25 deg C). If the room is that warm, it'd be OK without a heater. But if the room gets colder overnight in winter you will need some sort of heater.
You can't use the usual stick shaped heater as you wouldn't be able to attach it to the curved sides. If it's like a wine glass, I assume it's on a stalk? So a heater mat that goes under the tank can't be used either.
I don't know which country you are in, but if it's the USA you could try something like this http/www.amazon.com/Submersible-Betta-Bowl-Heater-7-5w/dp/B006OP6C5M/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1346613364&sr=8-4&keywords=heater+betta+bowl Look on google for things like that.


I wouldn't worry too much about putting the shop water in with the betta. As you only have the betta in there and he'd been living in that water before you took him home, it should be OK. It's when you are adding more fish to a tank that you have to be careful because the water the new fish come in might have bugs that would infect the fish already in your tank.

Im going to go and get him a heater today and yes I am from the US...and the room temp is 75 in my house...I am going to attempt to do a water change...do I take him out when I switch water or just leave him in there?

 

[Essjay]

One of my bettas is in a 6 gallon tank, I leave him in there when I do a water change as it's less stressful than catching him to take him out. But when you clean the tank, if you do a bigger water change at the same time as I suggested you may want to take him out for that just so you can empty just about all the water.

If you get your heater, turn it off about 10 mins before you take the water out. I don't know if the kind of heater that would fit in your tank are like the glass ones, but the glass ones can shatter if they are switched on when out of water. And it's always a good idea to switch off electrical things before putting your hands in a tank.

 

[Chad]

+1 do whichever will stess the fish the least.

 

[babystarz]

I leave all of my bettas in their tanks during water changes, they don't mind and they're quite used to it. Just make sure you're not pouring the new water too close to the fish

Also if the tank is curved you can buy one of these to hold a heater: Heater Stand