Paranoid Betta "Mom"...again

I'm back with another concern: fin rot. There's a very thin black border around Python's fins and I know that can be a sign of fin rot. I do daily water changes and suck up any poop when I see it. I'm cycling a 2.5 Gallon (well trying to, going to the pet store on Thursday to get an API test kit, Stability, and Prime) I know the first thing that's gonna be asked is "can you get a picture?" So I tried. My phone wouldn't focus and if it did, Python kept moving. So I tried using an actual camera on Underwater Mode, no luck. The red light scared Python, there was too much reflection from the sides of the tank and again, Python kept moving. But I was never actually able to see the black on the screen, which makes me believe that if it doesn't show up in a picture it's nothing to worry about? Maybe it's a coloring I've never looked close enough to see? Or maybe her colors are changing? (not sure of her age). Should I add aquarium salt to my shopping list? And at this point is a fish-in cycle my best bet? Does anyone have any pictures of fin rot they could show me? I'm probably just being paranoid but better safe than sorry.

 

Is this the tank without a filter?

Some bettas have a marble gene that does allow for color changes.

 

Paranoid Betta "Mom"...again

Unfortunately it is. It's called a Marina EZ Clean, I thought it would make water changes easier but I'm not sure how much it actually works...

Fingers crossed that it's just a normal color change.

So if you zoom in on this picture (taken Sunday) you can vaguely see it around the edge of her tail

 

Yeah I remember now. I've seen those kind advertised before and it won't really work for cycling so I would do a fish in cycle with the 2.5 gallon (his new home).

Plus you need an ammonia source to cycle a tank with fishless cycle, so you would need some pure ammonia if you were going that way.

For fin rot salt isn't always needed unless it gets very bad. Mostly one can cure fin rot with time, water changes, and a cycled tank.

 

I have pure ammonia (I bought it a week ago to test my Seachem Ammonia Alert) Just haven't had a chance to buy Prime and Stability yet. A fish-in cycle scares me as I'm not home every second of every day and I'd be afraid I'd spot an ammonia spike too late.

 

I understand, I prefer a fishless cycle myself. Are you at least home once a day to test it daily?

 

yes, most days I'm gone all morning but come home around 2:30. I would have time to check it in the morning but not to do a water change. Sundays, though, I might be gone all day. I would be more comfortable doing fishless(as I've never cycled a tank before) but I also don't want to lose or harm Python either way.

 

Well the choice is yours, if you wish to do a fishless cycle then feel free to. The sooner phython is out of the unfiltered tank though the better.

PS: Just to let you know my tone isn't as harsh as that sentence up there may seem.

 

Any way to speed up the fishless cycling process? And also, when I fill the big tank, do I condition the water before it goes in the tank or after? and when should I put rock and decor in? (don't worry, you didn't sound harsh at all!)

 

You can add in any rocks and decor right away. Cycling won't effect it. The only ways I know to speed up cycle is to add bacteria supplement which you will be doing with stability.

You can do either way with prime. I fill the tank then put in the conditioner aka prime. It's basically whatever works for you.

 

Are there step-by-step instructions on cycling anywhere on this forum or other websites? I've read all the articles on why cycling is important and what the nitrogen cycle is but I'm still a bit fuzzy on how to actually cycle a tank

 

I have a 2.5 and did fish in cycle with my Betta. As long as you have prime on hand and test twice a day, you should be able to do it. What I did was test in the morning, put some Prime in and went to work. When I got home I dealt with the problem and did the water change as needed. Let things settled for an hour and retested. If needed another water change. Rinse and repeat the next day. . I used Seachem Aquavitro Seed though.

 

So after looking at older pictures, the black border on the tail is just a coloring that's been there but I've never actually noticed before, yay, not fin rot! But nevertheless I will cycle the tank ASAP and move Python into her new home as quickly as I can. And I'll definitely continue to monitor her. (But hopefully not have any more false alarms! )

 

No worries about false alarms, better to learn it's that then not asking and it being serious.

 

I believe dosing stability will make a fish in cycle much more doable. At least according to the bottle, if you dose every day for a week then fish can be added early because the stability substitutes for your biofilter until its established.

 

alright definitely picking up a bottle of Prime and a bottle of Stability tomorrow. Petsmart has 2 sizes of each, do I get the 3 oz or should I get the larger ones?

 

If it's for you 2 gallon, yeah get the smaller ones. They will last awhile. You only need 10 drops of each in your tank. But cost effective wise, the bigger bottles are cheaper.

 

Paranoid Betta "Mom"...again

while this thread is still active, I've got a few questions about cycling.
1. Would a snail help to speed up the cycle? (just the snail, no betta)
2. Can a snail and a betta live together in a 2.5 once it's cycled or is that overstocking?
3. how much ammonia do I need to initially add to start the cycle?
4. while cycling, when would I need to do water changes?

EDIT: should this be moved to its own thread?

 

I know this isn't answering any of your more recent questions, but a fish-in cycle with Betta isn't too difficult. Test everyday an make sure you use prime and you should be fine. I've done it with two of my Bettas so far.

 

To answer.

1 nope, actually the snail is to low of a bio load.

2 is this a 2.5 gallon tank? If so, yes, but not to many. Like 1 or 2.

2.5 yep

3 normally it's 1 to 2 drops per gallon. I normally go on the low.side, and test to see if it's at 1 to 2 ppm before I add more.

4 if no fish are in the tank, it depends on if your cycle stalls or not. Generally not needed.

 

so just to confirm: 1-2 ppm of ammonia to start the cycle? and then after that all I have to do is daily testing.

 

And add some more until you see nitrates. Depending on what you use, you can see changes with in 24 to 48 hours.

 

Just some extra information, a snail is not at all a good thing for cycling not just because of the small bioload but they are too sensitive too. Many snails would die in a tank not cycled, much more sensitive then your betta.

Yes you dose ammonia up to 2PPm, test daily, and watch the nitrities go up. Eventually those will go down and you will get Nitrates. You may have to keep dosing ammonia to keep it at least at 2PPM while cycling.

 

Thank you! I'll probably start another thread tomorrow(or add on to this one) once I actually start the cycling process. And I definitely will not get a snail until the tank is completely cycled!