Betta Has Passed. What Now?

HI Ladies and Gentlemen.

Today is a sad day for me. My Superdelta Betta named Poirot (so named because of the curled french mustache he has on his upper lip) has passed after a two week and 2 day fight with dropsy. CURSE YOU ALL TO HECK DROPSY!!!

Any way. Now I have to clean and disinfect his 5.5 gallon tank. Is there a proper way to do it? Your guidance/advice is appreciated as I have never dealt with a post dropsy tank. I understand that dropsy is a symptom of another ailment. So, disinfecting is warranted.

Another issue I have to figure out is, my betta had a single zebra nerite snail as a tank mate. He is still in the tank, and thriving. What do I do with him? I don't want to simply take him out and put him in my guppy tank as I can't disinfect him to do so. Do I simply have to say goodbye to the snail as well?

Thank you for your advice.

 

2 weeks ago I had a 10 gallon divided tank with two male betta. One died from fungus the other from fin rot. ( I tried to save them...) I took all the plants out and washed them in warm water. I emptied the tank completely and let the sponge filters dry out. Now I had a moss ball (you have a snail) I couldn't kill him, so I squished the water out of him and put him in another betta tank. Now I scrubbed the tank with warm water and boiled some water for the gravel, rocks and ornaments that could handle heat. (careful not to ruin them). Id say put Mr.Snail in clean water to make sure he dosent die. Then replace the betta and add the snail again. Voila clean tank!

 

I had read that because dropsy is not a disease itself (merely a symptom of an underlying problem) that it is not contagious. Dropsy in this case I believe is due to my inexperience as a fishkeeper. I believe that I over fed too many dry floating pellets. I suspect that he ate too many (again my fault as I fed too much). These pellets are very dry and expand exponentially in the fishes stomach. This I believe led to constipation which I was treating with 3 days of fasting followed by light feedings of daphnia (he would not eat peas). Unfortunately, I think the damage was already done. Dropsy was merely the final overture.

So, if this is infact the case. Does anyone feel that a full disinfecting is needed? Or should I just disinfect to be sure?

 

I don't think you need to get rid of the snail! Just put him in a small tupperware container and float the container in your guppy tank so water temp is regulated.

As for cleaning out tank, I would use bleach. I used to work in the food industry and we use bleach to sanitize dishes and utensils (3 compartment sink....wash/rinse/sanitize). I think we used 1 teaspoon of bleach per gallon of water. That's a pretty strong ppm mixture. I think the sanitizing time was 10 seconds before the dishes/utensils were removed to be air dried.

If I were in your situation, I would remove the snail and all live plants (and anything else that's living) from the tank and add 5 teaspoons of bleach directly into the tank...and stir. I would let that sit in the tank for an hour. Then take tank and everything that was in the tank and hose it off a few few times with a garden hose (showerhead). Rinse everything well. That should kill anything that was in the tank.

I know others used a vinegar mixture to disinfect a tank. I personally prefer bleach. I just make sure to use Prime or another dechlorinator when it's time to add fish.

 

Dropsy is not contagious but like you said is a indicator that it was a other disease that was present, since the tank is only 5 gallons disinfect the tank to be sure.

 

I don't think you need to get rid of the snail! Just put him in a small tupperware container and float the container in your guppy tank so water temp is regulated.

As for cleaning out tank, I would use bleach. I used to work in the food industry and we use bleach to sanitize dishes and utensils (3 compartment sink....wash/rinse/sanitize). I think we used 1 teaspoon of bleach per gallon of water. That's a pretty strong ppm mixture. I think the sanitizing time was 10 seconds before the dishes/utensils were removed to be air dried.

If I were in your situation, I would remove the snail and all live plants (and anything else that's living) from the tank and add 5 teaspoons of bleach directly into the tank...and stir. I would let that sit in the tank for an hour. Then take tank and everything that was in the tank and hose it off a few few times with a garden hose (showerhead). Rinse everything well. That should kill anything that was in the tank.

I know others used a vinegar mixture to disinfect a tank. I personally prefer bleach. I just make sure to use Prime or another dechlorinator when it's time to add fish.

I used bleach only when I bought a used tank from someone.... This isn't contagious so its not necessary.

 

Once I've disinfected the tank, gravel, and all, how long should it sit to air dry before it's safe to set it back up?