Tank Temp Help

[Max]

Hi.
I'm new to all this fish stuff so I might need tons of help. I'm getting a betta next weekend. I bought his tank yesterday, I wanted to set it all up before I get him. The tank is a 2.5 gallon Eclipse with a Bio-Wheel filter. I also bought a thermometer to see what the room temp is. And this is where I see the problem. I live in Arizona where the day time temp is currently 100+ degrees and night temp is low 70s. So I watched the tank thermometer yesterday and it fluctuated from 71 to 85 degrees. How can I get my tank to a consistent temp in the range of 76-82 degrees?

Thanks.

[Valtcopc]

Was that the temp of the air or the water? Because that can make a difference. I live in Florida and when I first got my bettas, I noticed that the temperature changed every day, similar to yours. (Didn't help that at the time the tank was near the window...oops ) Make sure your tank is set up somewhere where no external heat can affect the tank (preferable somewhere away from windows, heat and air vents, etc.). Also try getting the water in the tank going and get a temp gauge for it and see how that temp goes. With a 2.5 gallon tank, you might not need a heater for it.

Hope this helped a little bit!

[palepinkvase]

Hi and congrats are your new Betta

I don't live in such a warm environment, so my concerns are keeping the water warm! Placement of the tank greatly influences the water temperature. As valtcopc mentioned, you don't want to put the tank near window where sunlight will affect the temperature throughout the day. Do you have or can you buy one of the glass Galileo thermometers? I find that they are an excellent means of telling the temp. as the glass globes move in relation to the temp. If you can find the coolest place in your home, that would probably be the best place to set up the tank as you can purchase a water heater to warm the water if it becomes necessary. Good Luck with your new fish!

[abm]

Hi Max, and welcome!

With a 2.5 gallon tank I would feel safe in suggesting you get a 25-watt heater to keep your water from going below 78 or so. As for keeping it from warming over 82 with your hot climate, valtcopc and PPV both make excellent suggestions about keeping the tank away from windows. I assume your home is air conditioned which should help, but try to locate the tank in a room with few fluctuations if at all possible. Bettas need a constant temp, ideally around 78-80 degrees Fahrenheit, and temp swings of more than 2-3 degrees in a day cause a great deal of stress to the fish, which can in turn lead to a susceptibility to illnesses. (Did you know what you were getting into? )

Just a personal note: my bettas don't like the bio-wheels. Bettas, with their long fins, tend to have issues with the currents set up by many filters; when you put your fish into the tank, watch him carefully and see if it looks like he's either avoiding the area where the water comes out, or is having trouble avoiding the intake area. Either situation can pose major safety issues for your betta and if this occurs the filter should be removed. Are you planning to try to cycle the tank? 2.5 gal is small but not impossible to cycle (or so I'm told - I'm chicken, haven't cycled my tanks yet and do 100% water changes on all my tanks so who am I to tell you how to do it?) If you cycle the tank obviously you'll need a filter, but if you decide to do 100% changes, you can safely remove the filter. Some bettas seem to like the currents, others simply learn to deal with them, and still others get caught and damage their fins and become ill. You'll just have to see how your guy does.

Anyway, best of luck with your upcoming family addition and keep us posted on your doings!

[Max]

Hi again everyone.

The tank is sitting in the coolest room, away from windows/sunlight.

The tank thermometer is stainless steel and it hangs inside the tank. Last night, the temp read was at 86 degrees.

So I'm not concerned about keeping the water warm, but rather cooling it down and keeping it down so that I can eventually put a fish in there (hopefully this weekend!). ;D

The tank's hood houses a daylight fluoroscent lamp, I think if I kept the light off all times it might keep the temp a couple of degrees cooler, but don't bettas need light? Although a couple of degrees still doesn't put it into the safe zone temps.

I've posted on other boards about this and others have suggested putting a fan over the tank but I don't have a set up like that.

Is there anything else I can do?

ABM - I was thinking of cycling the tank but after reading a little about the fishless cycle it kinda sounds like a pain. With such a small tank, I might just do 100% changes and lose the bio-wheel. Not sure yet.

Thanks guys.

[twoluvcats]

bettas don't need a light...I have the same problem...keeping tanks cool in the summer...I keep my lights off almost all the time. I have one "cooler" tank where I turn on the light for about 2 hours in the evening to warm it up a bit for overnight. I'd keep your lights off and watch the temps to see if it makes a difference...you'd be suprised how much heat those lights put out. 82-84 is an ok temp for a betta...really the big thing is constant temp...you don't want to be swinging from 65-86 in the course of a day. HTH