Ramie

No fry for me. Lol

Thanks ill check that out!

Pros and cons of box filters as your only filter..10 gallon...does anyone use them?

What are some plants that arent "floating plants" but could be grown/kept floating?

Im kinda digging the frogbit

I will check...but idk anyone in my area who keeps fish...and we only have a petsmart. The closest actual fish store is 2 hours away. But maybe craigslist or fb marketplace.

Where does one get duckweed?

Low light but some from a window a good part of the day...and i put a "not very well fitting but will do for now" glass top on it so it gets some light from an overhead light in the evening but the light is pretty high up. The lid/light the tank came with causes him to see his reflection too much..even with matte backgrounds etc. I actually have a fluval plant nano light to go on an upgrade but we have to do some renovations/repairs near where that tank is going to be set up first so he is still in the 5..i suppose i could see if it would fit on my 5 gallon and not cause a reflection problem. But id have to take it off the tank every night because i switch lids as i worry the glass lets out too much heat at night.

Thank you all for these suggestions! I have very low light right now. No tank light at all. What might not die? Lol

Whats some good floating plants for a 5 gal with one betta and low light?

@Daniel so..is an independent heater controller just like an external thermostat that shuts power to them off if they overheat the water or does it do other things.

@Ken Dyer @Daniel my room is currently 62ish but can get down to 40ish at its coldest in the winter. My 50 watt zacro heaters kept my water stable at 79 throughout last winter. But maybe they had to over work. Not sure. My fish died last spring and im getting another one soon but when i got my heaters out to prepare i saw cloudy discoloration on the glass on the inside in the same spot on them both. No other signs of damage. So...im just not sure.

@Ken Dyer would 50 watts be more than enough for a 5 gallon in a cold room....or is 100 watts better...or just gonna be way too strong?

Looking for best heaters for 5 gallon and 10 gallon...brand and wattage...any that will work for both in a cold house in the winter and hot in the summer....i plan on upgrading to from a 5 to a 10....anyone use the jager trutemp in either of these size tanks...how is it? Thank you!

This is all very informative.

Who here has mixed distilled with tap to lower pH and/or soften water. What was your experience?

@GardenStateGoldfish My pH at least is definitely stable. Id feel better if it was a stable 7.6 or even 8...but maybe i am over reacting. I did have one betta live 4 years in a vase on water from this same well. But that was 15 years ago before i knew they really needed tanks...and possibly when they were a little less over bred...idk if wells change. Maybe i should just leave it as it is and see how the next one does. I might have just had a weak fish...my last fish was only with me 11 months...he seemed to be doing really well until the end. Thank you for your input. I really do appreciate it.

I think i read a few years ago it was all bad really...spring because it varies so much so some is good and some isnt... and drinking because of the "added minerals for taste" that actually arent good for fish...but i think theoretically you can use distilled...its chemically basically the same as RO depending on the accuracy of the distillation process...but you cant use it as it is...not without putting minerals back in...but the pH is very low so you have to fiddle with that too it seems..but who really knows...i get different info all the time..im having a hard time keeping it straight. My KH is fairly high..but the test strips are kinda iffy on that...it always looks between 180ppm and 300ppm. I have a liquid kit now for KH but havent had time to really get it out and use it to get a more accurate number. May i ask how long you have had your bettas in water that hard? Im hoping im just over reacting.

@KoolFish97 im not trying toget a perfect pH..just one a little closer to neutral. And the hardness worries me too. What happened was Seachem told me the pH/GH long term could have been the reason my last fish developed dropsy. So that's what has me worried. Before i just figured if it was stable they would adapt..so i also dont want to make it too unstable....the tank id had running was literally at 8.4 for 11 months..its what it come out of the tap at also...but the only organic thing in it was the fish.....so...i want moss balls and pothos at least this time around...so....would you just throw a betta...which i really would prefer to keep...in it as it is...no chemicals...and just have some extra ogranic life and tannins and just...watch it but it should be fine?

@Ben_RF well..since you have done all that before and been through it...what would you do if you were me? And your tap was 8.4 pH and at least 300 GH...use spring water?..mix tap with distilled and maybe add replenish or equilibrium to supplement minerals? Just leave it alone and hope they do ok? Not sure which way i should go.

@JaredL i dont have the tank set up currently....wanted everything settled from the start so im not trying to change things with a fish in there.... How long does it take for the water to "mix" to get the reading of what it will be? Hours? Days? Has that been stable for you?

@Ben_RF does walmart spring water work well for you? Do you keep betta? I have also considered using bottled drinking water but i heard it is too mineralized...not minerals that effect GH but ones added "for taste" but arent good for fish...but spring water and drinking water are different. Is that brand and type successful for you if you are using it? I plan on having several moss balls and some pothos. As far as plants. Thank you for your response.

@yannachka I plan on using distilled from the store and testing that and seeing how it goes and if its a viable option. My closest fish store that isnt a petsmart is 2 hours away...but i could ask where they get their fish from and what their parameters are. Have you tried to change your parameters and had any luck with that? What did you do? Im unsure if its worse to leave them as they are or try to change them and risk instability.

@toverbeck95 i enjoyed watching that and found it helpful. Thank you.

Thank you. That is very good to know. Not sure what ill do yet....still gathering opinions and info..but this is definitely helpful to know if i ever decide to use the stratum. And im sorry you had to deal with swimbladder issues like that....they are just so prone to it...i assume with all the breeding....still 2 and 3 years is doing pretty good!