how can i clean my fish?

Question
QUESTION: I recently about 2 months ago or 3 bought a Betta fish from Wal-Mart and he was feisty and lively and everything..i regularly clean his tank but i haven't had much time so now when i have a chance to clean him he is dirty.. in the past few weeks he hasn't been eating that much because i put him on diet he was eating up to 7 or more pellets and i thought he should cut back so i have been feeding him 3.. I know that was wrong of me but i thought it would help because he was getting so big.. so now all the food floats to the bottom along with his tremendous poop..that's the problem..sometimes he runs through the rocks at the bottom..i noticed that one day i was home with him..but how would i go about getting him clean?

ANSWER: Hello Coco,
Do you mean the actual fish is dirty?
If you do it may be that your fish has some sort of infection but if you mean the tank, keep 50% of the water thenclean the tank and replace 50% woth tap water with water conditioner.

The best thing you can do for your fish is buy a 5 gallon tank with a weak filter and a heater, that way his tank will stay cleaner for longer and he will be happier and healthier, and possibly live longer.

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QUESTION: Yes he is dirty..all over..his coat use to be a beautiful red with blue and green like color going down..now he is like brown and dirty everywhere..i feel so bad..the guy at the store and some sites I have read said you don't need a filter..so i haven't used one just try and clean the tank every week and put fresh spring water in it..from your expertise how what would be the best method? and should i use a filter or no filter w/ or w/out spring water?

Answer
Yeah they dont need a filter but its better for them, it keeps water movement and it helps clear the poop and makes life happier for them.
People who dont use filters often dont have there fish for long.

So i'd advise atleast a sponge filter, but you want a filter thats too small for your tank, as filters arecreated for a certain amount of litres, so say your tank was 10 Litres you'd go for one that was made for 5 Litres as they dont like currents but they need it too lean there tank.

Im not sure about the spring water, i use tap water and water conditioner to make the tap water safe, but im sure that water is ok, but like i say they prefer to have heaters.

Also you need a few hiding places for him.

His colour may have faded or gone becuse of lack of the right nutrients in his diet, so what do you feed him?

Or a lack of light, but you seem to get algea alot am i correct? and algea only grows where there is a light source and water so im sure he's getting the right light source as long as its not direct sunlight.