How to change water in 2.5 gallon aquarium?

Question

I have my fish in a 1 gal jar so far - I was thinking of getting him a 2.5 gal aquarium....how much and how often would I change the water.

Is there some simple way to do this? I dont have the ability to test water for ammonia, etc...

I am living in a guest room - so its not like I have a lot of space for "Stuff" - I'm glad just to be able to have a fish bowl, y'know?

But I was thinking of maybe getting an itty bitty aquarium.

Any ideas

Answer 1

Make a partial water change of 25% every week. Don't remove the fish because it only stresses him. Also vacuum the gravel every 2 weeks. There are small gravel vacs available for little tanks in many fish stores these days. Use regular tap water and add a water conditioner right to the tank before slowly pouring in the new water. Distilled water is not good for your fish because it is missing important trace elements and minerals. Because the tank is so new, you may have to do a water change every other day until it breaks in. Here is a link to my article on new tanks; http://www.xanga.com/Expert_Fish_Help . The best fish choices for a tank the size you have now are zebra danios, cory cats, male guppies, and other fish that are non-aggressive and stay small. Or, a male betta is a good option. You basically want no more than 2.5 inches of fish in there. That's the rule of thumb for smaller fish like these. One inch of fish per gallon, calculated according to their future adult size. Goldfish cannot be kept under that rule because they get big and create a lot more waste than other types. hope this helps

Answer 2

Basic Fish Bowl Maintenance

In a typical fish bowl, you should change about half of the water every day or every other day to remove these waste products before they reach toxic levels. Yes, this is a larger water change and more often than we typically recommend, and yes, it is stressful to the fish, however, this stress is less threatening to the fish than not changing the water. Many people find it beneficial to have a second bowl handy and transfer the fish from the dirty bowl to the clean bowl frequently. This gives the bowl owner an opportunity to clean fish waste, debris, and excess food out of the gravel and decorations in the dirty bowl while minimizing the stress on the fish.

How do I Reduce My Fish Bowl Maintenance?

There are several things you can do to reduce the care requirements of a bowl.
First, get a top for the bowl. Having a top on your bowl reduces water loss due to evaporation and reduces the amount of debris that collects in the water from the environment. Tops are available for many sizes of bowls and most small tanks.
Second, get a filter for your bowl. There are box filters (both powered and unpowered), sponge filters, and under gravel filters available that are small enough for fish bowls. Most people find the sponge filters and corner filters to take up too much room in their bowls, and opt for the under gravel filters. If you are using a filter in your bowl, remember that the filter will need maintenance as well, and should be cleaned or have cartridges changed regularly. For an under gravel filter, this means either vacuuming the gravel when you do water changes or stirring up the gravel to free the debris caught in it so you can remove this debris when you do your water changes.
Third, agitate the water in the bowl. This can easily be done with a small water pump or an air pump. This will make excess food and other debris more visible so it will be easier to tell if you are over feeding your fish or if there is other debris collecting in the bowl. This also makes it easier to see the debris in the tank so you can more readily remove it when doing your water changes. Additionally, this increases the surface area greatly, improving gas exchange. In most cases, having a filter in your bowl agitates the water sufficiently.

In a bowl where you have provided maximized surface, are agitating the water and providing filtration, and have the bowl covered, water changes can usually be reduced to twice weekly. However, remember to watch your fish for signs of ammonia stress (gasping at the surface, lethargy, loss of appetite, loss of color, and inflammation of the gills, eyes, and possibly fins) or excess debris in the water, such as fish waste or uneaten food, and perform extra water changes as necessary.

Feeding

Feed your fish sparingly. The most common reasons for premature fish death in the hobby are over feeding and inadequate maintenance. Feed your fish only once a day, and in a bowl, only what they COMPLETELY consume in under a minute.

Answer 3

It's like siphoning a gas tank. (Although it should be noted I don't condone that behavior).

You get a hose, stick it in the base of the tank (the rocks and stuff).

Suck on the tube until it is right about to get in your mouth.

Then divert it to a bucket.

Dump out the old and add new water. It's better to let the (tap) water settle for 24 hours before adding it to the tank. Also you can add some stabilizers to the new water to make it the right pH and stuff.

Good luck.

Answer 4

You have to get a siphon tube to suck the water out, or you can get a tall skinny bucket. About the ammonia you wont have to test the water, just keep changing the water(20%) once a month. Just dont forget to buy some water conditioner because the chlorine in tap water will kill your fish. If you cant afford water conditioner(5$) you can just get a bucket fill it up with water and the chlorine will evaporate in a few days leaving behind fresh water for the fish.

Answer 5

Tests for aquariums are relatively really quite inexpensive and truly are a must for successful fishkeeping and they are very small and do not take up any room at all. You really must test your water, and the smaller the tank, the more this is a necessity. Regardless of size, you must do weekly 20-30% water changes, substrate siphoning and other tank maintenance as prescribed. Btw... for that small of a tank, I hope your fish is a betta. Goldfish are not suitable for this size tank.

Answer 6

I had the same problem. I loved having fish but I did not really have the room for allof the equipment nor the time to care for them so I came up with a brilliant idea.

I put each fish in a jelly jar full of water then placed them in the freezer. Of course they froze solid so now I can visit with my fish anytime I want but I no longer have all of the extra tasks and I've saved spave in my small apartment.

And I can even take them with me on a long drive. I just fill a cooler with ice and place the jars in there and off we go.

Answer 7

LoveLifeAndOthers, she is talking about a saltwater tank. If she mixed 1 tbs per 5 gal. of water, everything in her tank would die. Buy a Hydrometer and measure the salinity in your tank and then mix a 5 gal bucket to the SAME salinity. Most salt mixes are ABOUT 1 cup per gallon but to get it right, you NEED a hydrometer.

Answer 8

You can do a 20% water change every 2 weeks if there are not too many fish in there. They have these plastic hoses/siphon that you drain out the water.

Answer 9

Take a 1/4 of the water out every week and replace it with either bottled water or tap water with a water conditioner.

Answer 10

Plants help the reduction of algae. Also if you get a small pump, you wont have to change it but a couple time every few months. Go to wal-mart there cheap!