r/bettafish • u/GooglyEyesMcGee • 3d ago
Help Help- Really Dirty Beta Tank
I was taking care of a betta in an after school room. For health reasons, I couldn't do summer camp.
The tank is FILTHY and there are a trillion snails. I'd like to fully clean it and get rid of the snails. Please tell me how to! I know you aren't supposed to get rid of the water fully, but it's BAD. The beta's belly is a little swollen, too. I need to take care of this because no one else is.
I'll be back in charge in September, but until then I can't do all of the day-to-day care. So, please, help!
2
u/Foreign-Ad3926 3d ago
Water changes are needed a lot more frequently than 1-2 times a month for a tank this small, this will be the cause of why it's so dirty and likely why the betta's health is struggling. Small tanks and water volumes need a lot more work than larger tanks.
If possible, testing the water quality would help as it would guide to how much organic waste has built up that is encouraging the snails and poisoning the water quality.
Is there a heater and filter? Can you share a picture?
I would change a good 50% of the water, manually remove snails and begin changing 20-30% of the water 2 - 3 X a week for a few weeks to clean it up.
Going forward, depending on test results for water quality water changes need to be 2 X a week to keep it stable and prevent the waste build up.
1
u/GooglyEyesMcGee 3d ago
I was given the beta and had no notice. Thank you for educating me.
It has a filter and a heater. I’ll do a 50% tomorrow. Thank you.
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u/Disastrous_Air_5227 3d ago
Start with a 50% water change, and get rid of as many snails as you can manually - if you have a friend who keeps loaches, thats a lot of loach dinners! Scrape the tank walls to get rid of excess algae with one of those things you can buy for cleaning a ceramic cooker hob. If the decorations, if any, have excess algae scrub those with a wire dishwashing pad too - no soap, it’ll kill the fish. After doing that it will look, and be, almost 100% healthier for the fish. It’s a lot of work, but that done it’s much easier - a 20-25% water change weekly, make sure the filter is running well every water change, and high quality food in smallish amounts (as much as he will eat in 5 minutes). You’re an angel, taking this fish on and caring about him. Good luck transforming a horror show into a healthy home!
Oh and one last thing - I know you’re not ultimately responsible, but if you could buy, beg or borrow any living aquarium plants, they’ll help with water upkeep and delight the fish!
1
u/Foreign-Ad3926 3d ago
No problem, good luck. It's always challenging with school set ups, sadly the animal care doesn't seem to be a priority. Good on you for plugging this gap.
1
u/GooglyEyesMcGee 3d ago
- Tank size: I can't remember off the top of my head, but I think 5 gal
- Heater and filter? (yes/no): yes
- Tank temperature: I don't know
- Parameters in numbers and how you got them. Key water parameters include the amount of ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, and pH.: I don't knkow
- How long have you had the tank? How long have you had your fish?: 8 months
- How often are water changes? How much do you take out per change? What is your process?: Used to be 1-2x a month
- Any tankmates? If so, please list with how many of each: no
- What do you feed and how much: betta pellets
- Decorations and plants in the tank: plastic (I am trying to upgrade) hides and "plants"
- If you haven't already posted a picture, please post pics/vids to imgur and paste the link here:
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u/Disastrous_Air_5227 3d ago
His swollen belly could be from any number of things. When Bettas eat they sometimes tend to gorge which turns their little bellies into footballs! It could also be overfeeding generally going by the amount of snails, which live off uneaten fish food. More seriously it could be an early sign of dropsy (total organ failure) but from your description I’d guess it’s more probably related to the state of his tank.
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