goldfish and betta fish

Question
Hey Lynda!!
    I have another question to ask you. You said that my betta fiush would get sick in water below 80 degrees, and that my goldfish would get sick in temperatures over 74 (I think you said.) However, my goldfish tank is way overheated it is at 79 degrees. My goldfish seem to be fine though. I want to lower the temperature but I don't have a heater on my tank. How do I lower the temp.? Also, my betta aquarium is at 76 degrees. He also seems to be doing just fine. How do I raise the temp. without a heater on the tank? I have one more question to ask you. I ran out of drops that get rid of the chlorine in the water. My betta tank needs to be cleaned very bad. Can I use bottled water? If I run out of water from the bottles can I use distilled water instead? If I can't use either of them how long would wtaer from the tap have to sit in order to be safe to use? I have company coming over tomorrow (It is 9-25-09) and I want the tank to be nice and clean. I'm worried that I'm, not taking care of my fish correctly and I want to make sure that I'm doping all that I can to make their lives happy and healthy.   Thanks for helping out!
                                                -Tara

Answer
Hi Tara,
There is nothing you can do right now to change your Betta's water.  You cannot change him from tap water to Distilled water or Spring water.  To change him to Bottled water could be deadly, as the water chemistry would not be the same as what he is use to.   Bettas do better in tap water.  Bottled water lacks the right minerals to keep fish healthy.   You will have to let the tap water sit for 24 hours before doing a water change.  There are small bottles of chlorine remover at Walmart that are not expensive, it would be safer to buy one.  I think they have them at the pet store to for about $3.00.
You need a heater to heat a betta's water, nothing else will work.  Using a lamp to heat the water is a big NO NO.  This would stress the betta since they prefer the light of day, and it would cause your water to fluctuate.  Fluctuating water is deadly for fish.   The only proper way to do this is with a heater, there is no other way.  As for the goldfish, it is very costly to buy equipment to keep the water cool.  There is nothing you can do about that.
Lynda