water condition / food

Question
QUESTION: I use drinking water to refill my tanks, and I feed my bettas Betta Min by Tetra. I seem to have a fil  on the top of the water.  Does this skim need to be removed? Do i need to change the food I am feeding them? The last Betta fish I had only lasted about 6-8 months. I was feeding them the same food, but I was constantly cleaning the film off with a paper towel, and changing the water as much as I could.

ANSWER: Derek,

What size tank is he in? I too get that film, but it is because I feed all 12 of my adult Betta's freeze dried blood worms. The film will not hurt him, and the water changes help. Does the tank have a lid?? Sometime putting a lid on the tank helps cut down that film. I have also noticed if I put an air stone in the tank with them for awhile this too gets rid of the film. Look and see what is in his food. If there is freeze dried stuff, that is where the film is coming from. I feed all mine, a variety of things, but the best food for them is Atison's Betta Food. It is a pellet that you give them 7 of the pellets twice a day. It doesn't cloud the water at all or give off that film. You cannot buy it in stores you have to order it online. If you want the name of the company let me know and I will give it to you. I have noticed a huge difference in my Betta's color and happiness. I also add Black Water Extract to the water, and they are very happy healthy fish.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: One if them is in a common fish bowl when you think of the stereotypical "fish bowl". The other is in an octagon shaped tank which holds around 2 gallons,and has a lid. What is Black Water Extract? I think I might try getting some freeze dried blood worms, that isn't the first time i have been told to try that. How often do you recommend sucking the stuff out of the rocks?

Answer
Derek,

 Betta's need to be in nothing less than 2.5 gallons, and fish bowl are not good at all. I feed mine freeze dried brine shrimp as well as flakes, pellets, frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp. Since I also have fry, my adults get live brine shrimp once a week. Black water extract is awesome. It makes the water more like the water they come from. It does, however, tints the water yellow, but I have noticed a huge change in them once I started adding that to their water. It is made by Tetra Aqua. In a yellow bottle. I couldn't find it here where I am but a friend in Canada found it and sent it to me. I would try a family owned pet store if you can't find it and ask them to order it for you. It is inexpensive and really helps the Betta out quite a bit.

Cleaning the rock should be done at least once a month. Remember not to over clean them since they have the good bacteria that the fish need to help stay happy. If the gravel seems a bit dirty you can clean them every 2 weeks. Good luck on your Betta. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.