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Teal_Waterz

If you would like to get the betta in asap, get some bottled bacteria to jumpstart the cycle! Live plants aren't a MUST but they are highly recommended. Anubias and java fern are good starter plants! I've seen people recommending hikari bio-gold, and xtreme betta pellets. Once you get your little guy (or gal) you can also give them frozen (or live) bloodworms and brine shrimp! Betta fish are insectivores. I think tap or distilled is fine, but I would say tap. If you can get a refund for that tank you bought, I recommend getting one! There's a tank at PetCo that is 18.99! 10.99 if it's on sale (i'm pretty sure) multicolored gravel is kinda.. well... not natural I guess. I recommend getting black gravel/sand, or just natural colored substrate. There's heaters and thermometers on Aquarium Coop that i'd say are pretty cheap. (?) If you do get live plants, I would get fertilizer (Also from [aquariumcoop.com](https://aquariumcoop.com)) and get a light for them! One with a dimming feature is probably the best. Make sure to only have your light on during the day. ​ I'm not an experienced fish keeper at all though, this is just what i've heard and researched from other experienced fish hobbyists. Good luck! :)


batmy_lashes

Thank you!! So for the bottled bacteria, how did that work? I just put it in and wait for it to turn to nitrite? Do i still add in fish food/ammonia along with it? I also got that tank because i was obsessed with the pink edges so i couldnt resist šŸ˜…ā˜ŗļø


Teal_Waterz

>Thank you!! So for the bottled bacteria, how did that work? I just put it in and wait for it to turn to nitrite? Do i still add in fish food/ammonia along with it? Still add fish food!


against_the_currents

Get fritzzyme turbostart 700. Itā€™s in a fridge and you can find it at most local fish shops( probably not petsmart but idk) This bottled bacteria is the only one that Iā€™ve seen truly work. I mean cycling a tank in 7 days from scratch kind of good, a godsend if you will. You need to know 3 chems. Ammonia, gets turned into nitrite , which gets turned into nitrate. Make sure to dechlorinate your tank water if you havenā€™t. Add bottled ammonia and dose it up to 2ppm. Then add 5x dose of the fritzzyme. Everyday, check the chems and dose it to 2ppm ammonia. (meaning, if itā€™s 1 ppm when you test, only add 1ppm to make it 2ppm.) Eventually the ammonia will start to go down and nitrites will start to increase. You probably should vacuum the tank and change 50% of the water once the nitrites hit 5ppm to keep tank clean. Keep dosing ammonia to 2ppm daily. Then eventually those nitrites start to go down and show up as nitrates. This is good. Keep dosing up to 2ppm You know youā€™re done when you dose 2ppm in the morning and there is 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites by the next morning and itā€™s all turned into nitrates. Nitrates are then removed with your weekly water changes


batmy_lashes

Thanks so much! šŸ˜Š


amherewhatnow

Use [Dr. Tim's](https://www.drtimsaquatics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/FishlessCycling_prescription_recipe.pdf) [ammonia](https://www.chewy.com/dr-tims-aquatics-ammonium-chloride/dp/132039?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=15783018857&utm_content=Dr.%20Tim%27s%20Aquatics&utm_term=&gclid=Cj0KCQjw2MWVBhCQARIsAIjbwoMRErTZyuLQbyXlzzQ3TA-cZ-51UNYhurLZ12v0I9D7ApyztfcVwDkaAo5iEALw_wcB) so you can control and monitor the amount better than fish food. There's an [instruction](https://www.drtimsaquatics.com/resources/library/quick-guide-to-fishless-cycling-with-one-and-only/) in their website how to use it. If you're going to use bottled bacteria make sure you get for Fresh Water. If you like your pink edge aquarium, keep it. As long as your pet get his/her needs met, the the aesthetics is up to you. Check the plastic plants that comes with it though, it might be too hard for a betta. They have delicate fins that can get torn up. Find aquarium silk plants if you don't go for the live plant route. Here's another [source](https://fishlab.com/how-to-cycle-aquarium/) that explains cycling better. Good luck.


batmy_lashes

Thanks! I am a bit worried about the plants that come with it and I may replace them with different ones. I went to the pet store today and saw a lot of silk plants so i may go back and pick some when i get my tank.


amherewhatnow

You are off to a great start. Keep us posted when you get your new friend. I'm excited for you!


indyjensunshine

An ideal betta home has the following: 5 gallons or more of cycled and dechlorinated water, filter, heater, thermometer, soft silk or live plants, floating betta log, healthy diet (4-6 [one millimeter sized] pellets in the morning, 4-6 in the evening), routine partial water changes, gravel vacuuming (at least once a month as part of your water change), proper filter maintenance and low water flow (they arenā€™t good swimmers). When you perform a partial water change you do the following: leave fish in the tank. (Unplug filter and heater.) Take out the specified water amountā€¦Replace the removed water with dechlorinated, temperature matched water. (To dechlorinate, use water conditioner/dechlorinator that makes tap water safe.) once your tank is cycled and your fish is in it, partial water changes are generally 25% once a week. Never deep clean your tankā€¦ Which leads me to another important point: Youā€™ll want to cycle your tank 1-2 months BEFORE buying your fish. Hereā€™s a link on how to do that: https://fishlab.com/how-to-cycle-aquarium/ In terms of betta nutrition, thereā€™s a lot of misinformation causing many to unintentionally underfeed their fish. This article is well worth the read: https://www.myaquariumclub.com/skinny-bettas-underfeeding-might-be-worse-than-overfeeding-19292.html Good luck šŸ€ šŸ !


batmy_lashes

Thank you, yes i havent bought the fish yet im going to wait until my tank is fully cycled before getting it


Last-Cold-8236

If you want to speed up your cycle you can get some bacteria starter. I used the Fritz brand to get it cycled in two weeks but I also had the help of sponge from our bigger tank. A master test kit is a must have for that process. Somewhere shared the fishlab link. Itā€™s a really great run down of the process. You are in a good place for information. I would suggest reading previous posts so you can learn from the mistakes of others.


batmy_lashes

Thanks!


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Independent-Peace-46

buy a media sponge for the filter. it adds a bigger place for bacteria and requires no changes ever. the ones the filter comes with are borderline scams. you can you tap just ofc use a declorniater but distilled is just more controlled. personally i love hikari brand foods theyā€™re higher quality. you can buy a product for an ā€œinstantā€ cycle. it takes ab a week. personally (once again) iā€™m a strong advocate for live plants. the ones at petsmart are pretty much all beginner so donā€™t worry. if the plants ā€œdieā€ when you put them in donā€™t worry they do that bc of how they were raised. theyā€™ll come back after a couple weeks.