betta fish and their upkeep

Question
Hi, recently I've been looking into getting a betta fish and have been looking around at all the different chemicals you can use to adjust the water to their needs.I was wanting to know what do I NEED to keep a betta alive and happy for 5 years?What products do you use yourself?Are certain brands better than others?(if so what are they and where can I find them?)Is there a book that is considered the bible to betta fish keeping?Do you know of any good websites where they discuss betta topics in depth?Are white LED's suitable for plants?(I'm looking for plants that are tall so my betta could rest near the surface when he sleeps, and something really easy to care for).If the plants need sunlight,how much time per day would you recommend for certain plants? thanks for taking the time to read this I extremely appreciate it:)

Answer
Alonso,
I do not add any chemicals to my Betta tanks. Too many can harm him/her. When one of mine gets sick or injured, the only thing I add is aquarium salt. To keep a Betta happy and healthy and to live a long life, he has to have the right size tank. The minimum size is 2.5 gallons, but all my males are in their own 5 gallon tanks. Make sure yours has a heater. They are tropical fish and need to have their water at 80 degrees at all times. They do not require a filter. You will have to do weekly water changes. You will do this by removing 25% of his water replacing it with clean conditioned water. You will want to feed your Betta food made just for them. It comes in a pellet form. You will supplement that with live and/or frozen blood worms and brine shrimp. You will want to fast him once a week. The day after the fasting, feed him a shelled cooked pea cut into bite size pieces. This will help prevent swim bladder disease. As for the plants, the only one I use is java fern. I have enclosed an awesome website that will answer any question you might have.

http://www.bettatalk.com/