A Few questions...

Question
I am interested in purchasing a betta, I am a beginner when it comes to fish, and it was a spur of the moment decision, and I purchased "Aquatic Gardens Bernie's Betta Cove Deluxe Kit" as seen here http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.aspx?R=4317&Nav=1&N=0&Ntt=beta+cove&sku=100133...

Now, I have not purchased the Betta yet, as I am not ready yet and still have a few questions. Is this set up good enough for a Betta to be happy and healthy? I have a couple small fake plants in the tank, and about two inches of gravel at the bottom. I have yet to purchase a heater, and until reading the questions and answers here, I didnt know I needed to.

My mother owned a few bettas, one dying soon after purchase and the other two living a few years, and all were kept in one of those Vases with the plants in them. she never had a heater to accomodate the Betta but if it is like you say, and makes for a healthier fish, then I am all for it!

A couple other questions. I have a dehumidifier in the basement that takes the moisture out of the air and produces distilled water. Is this water good to use in the tank? I would assume it would be, but I figured I would ask the Experts. Also, if it is ok to use, would I still need to use the conditioner?

Also, the air pump that came with the Aquarium vibrates and is quite noisy, will this bother the Betta? I have heard that they are sensative to noise and I dont want to freak the betta out right off the bat. If the noise does not bother the Betta, should I keep the air pump on 24/7 or should I turn it off occasionally?

Another question, with my mother previous betta fish, and some fish I have seen in the pet store, they get something that looks like a worm coming out of their stomach area... I was worried for the previous betta and thought it was dying as it was starting to act sluggish, but good thing my mom didn't listen to me because after a while, he was happy and healthy again and the 'worm thing' was gone.

I think thats all for now, thank you for any help!

Answer
Hey Stephen,

For starters, I really dislike putting ANY fish into a tank smaller then 10 gallons. In fact, the smallest tank i recommend to anyone is a 15 gallon long tank. 15 Gallon long tanks, although sometimes harder to find a place for, are much better environments for most fish. Because of it's length, fish have room to swim faster, have more hiding place, and feel safer with distance between them and something scary. it's really the best way to go. A small tank (5 gal or less) is hard to keep a handle on. Water quality changes very quickly in a small tank, and rapid changes can be fatal to fish. Personally, I think the 15 long is the way to go. If you feel that you can test your water often, and take the steps necessary to keep a small tank at top-notch health, and don't particularly want to keep other fish, go small. 2-3 gallons. In a 15 long, you can mix your betta with other peaceful fish like plecostomuses, tetra, danios, and aquatic frogs. Diversity is quite pleasing in a tank! Keep that thought in mind.

As far as your betta setup, a typical betta can do well in a 1 gallon vase, if you are super careful, and know how and what to do with the water to keep it safe. Most people should be using a 10 gallon, with a filter, and a heater. 76*F is ideal for betta, they are a community tropical and thus should be treated as one. Live plants are always better then fake, as they provide air, ammonia filtration, nitrate and nitrite filtration, and help stabilize pH. However, live plants require iron supplements and are not particularly easy for a beginner to keep. Other then live plants, you seem to have all you need as is.

Distilled water is usually not a good idea, simply because you will tend to think "it's pure water, i don't need to do this, or that to it". I boil my tap water, add novaqua, and amquel. After it cools to room temperature, i add it to my tanks. That's 3 different ways of conditioning water all in one! This is a bit extreme, and i DON'T recommend it to anyone but an expert. But NovAqua and AmQuel should be used as directed on tap water. It's the best I've found on the market for toxin control and water conditioning.

pH, hardness, salinity, temperature, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, Oxygen, and chlorine are the main problems in tanks. A standard test kit covers most of this, Amquel and NovAqua will correct most of those problems too. Live plants help with a lot as well. The main concerns you have when using those products are temperature, hardness, and salinity. Adding aquarium salt is not needed, especially for a beginner. Temperature is easily controlled with a heater. Finally, hardness can be raised with baking soda (be conservative. a little goes REALLY far) or lowered with peat moss. Regular tests of water quality are a must.

Air pumps, i feel, are over rated. A standard filter creates enough surface agitation to aerate a tank well. Live plants and algae also help with that. If you do use it, see how your fish reacts. I use mine for maybe an hour a day, because my guppies play in the bubbles. But the frogs strongly dislike the rapid water movement. Every animal will show signs of likes and dislikes to noise, water movement, tank mates, etc. Use your best judgement, no one will know exactly what your fish likes better then you will.

The "worm" in the stomach area could be waste. Fish poop is often a light brown color, and comes out of the bottom of the fish between the tail and stomach, near what's called the anal fin. If it's not waste, it could be a parasite or worm. Odds are, if you didn't buy one with a parasite, then it was waste. All fish do it, so don't worry.

Hope that covers everything! let me know if you need anything else, or if i missed something! Best of luck!