cleaning a fish bowl?

Question

We have 2 guppies and 2 tetras in a fish bowl..I have no idea how big the bowl is but its probably about 4x the size of the small ones you can get a beta in? anyways we got the fish yesterday and today i noticed the water is cloudy. i am afraid to use tap water and i didnt really think to ask the lady at the pet store what type of water to use to clean it. she told me i did not need a filter or anything for these fish they do fine in bowls. so what should i do to keep the fish healthy and what type of water should i use? any ideas would be helpful.

well the fish have lots of room the bowl is very wide. the tetras are barely and inch long the guppies are bigger but the bowl seem large enough for them.

a 10 gallon tank for 4 extremly small fish is overkill!! i know that a 10 gallon tank is as big as the pet store had all the tetras in and there was LOTS in there ..

first of all thank you to the ppl who answered the question.Obviously i didnt ask this to be insulted. my children were given a fish bowl for x mas its not small i have had way smaller ones in the past that i kept several fish in for about a year or longer. lifespan of these fish are about 2-3 years anyways and thats from the dam book about them. so settle down a little.I wanted fish that did well in a bowl but no betas cuase the ones at the store didnt look very good. but i never really liked bettas anyways they are too crazy when it comes to other fish i do plan on getting bigger tank later just need kids to get use to it. little fish are not really my thing, the lady at the store was probably not all that informed but she told me they would do fine in the bowl i have since it was larger then any of the ones they sold there i can get a small filter from walmart that will fit i was asking for info on what is best but 10 gal tank for 4 fish that are an inch long. is way to big for me

my house is constant over 70 i live in an appt i can control the heat so yea it actually has been 82 in the house for the past 5 days at least in the room where fish are (main room) i have had the fish one day i used bottled water to put in bowl when i brought them home with the little bit of the water they were in since thats what i was told to do i floated them in the bag with a little water left in it and slowly let them into the water. i feed them a little bit of flakes 2 times they ate them all up. i know its bacteria i know its bad wanted to know right now what i should do as the lady at the store is not of anyhelp. i have no conditioner for water i do have bottled spring water its what i use for baby formula no clorine but it has minerals in it since its spring water,is this ok to use to clean tank FOR THE MOMENT TILL I CAN GET BETTER EQUPITMENT??

Answer 1

Well, I have guppies too and they need a filter, filters help a lot, so i think you should trust me, they have very small filters like the one i have and they can fit in that sized tank.

When you clean out the tank, if you choose to have no filter, then you have to put the fishes in seperate cups, or if you want to put them together then a large bowl. You have to clean the tank and add arrowhead water or tap water, but if you put tap water you have to add a soolution that can clean out water especially for your type of fish, the petstore sells that, but it usually comes free when you buy your tank. Then when you are done cleaning and filled the water, you add the fishes in. Add all the dirty water that they are swimming in the cup with, because they are used to the old and not the new water.

But i would recommend a filter, it is quick and easy and gets rid of their poop more instead of a could water. Don't forget, if you don't have one yet, to get an oxygen bubble machine, so the guppies have a chance to survive.

Also, you should get a bigger tank, because i have 4 guppies and they have a tank probably double your size.

Answer 2

Hi Clarie - I'm sorry it's been so frustrating for you to get some simple answers to your questions. I use a new turkey baster because I want to draw the dirty water off the bottom. Pouring it out from the top of the bowl isn't going to help much, if at all. If not a baster about 4 feet of airline is fine. One end of the airline needs to be attached to something straight like a barbecue skewer. Use a rubber band to attach the airline and skewer together. This will act as your guide to make sure you can pull debris from the bottom. Always have 2 empty 1 gallon water jugs laying around. One is for the dirty water to go in. The other is to fill and let sit so it will always be room temperature. You do not take the fish out. The only time you should have to do that is if algae has built up so the point it has to be dealt with. Put him in the cup he came in for 100% water changes, or something similar. Your 1 gallon with sitting water is where you put the water conditioner. I don't know your bowl size so here is a gauge - An adult male Betta in a 1 gallon needs to have 25% water changed every 3 days (from the bottom). So if your tank is 1/2 gallon a 25% water change every other day. Food. Being in such a small space feeding needs to be very small portions. 1 pellet AM - 1 pellet PM and a small portion of dried bloodworms every other day. If you have gravel maybe rethink that. It's just too hard to find the poop in a quick 25% water change. Bare bottom isn't as pretty. The fake gems or something will work. Something bigger than gravel. Caution: some bagged 'aquarium' items at dollar stores leach out some cloudy stuff that cannot be rinsed away. You will find something that works for you. Hope this helped.

Answer 3

First Tetra will not do well in a Fishie bowl.
About the only fish I keep in bowls are single Bettas (no other fish) or occasionally guppies or Endlers livebearers.

Bowls really make poor homes for any fish as there is no filter or heater (which the Tetra needs unless you are in a very warm climate). Yes I keep bowls, but I use extra maintenance and care.

The cloudy water is likely bacterial cloudiness caused by a lack of bio bacteria (see this article I use for reference: http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Nitrogen_Cycle.html )

If U place marbles on the bottom or better porous coarse gravel this will give at least some area for these bio bacteria to thrive, just make sure to only rinse this with de-chlorinated tap water so as to kill of these bio bacteria.

In the bowls I have kept, I change water regularly and use Wonder shells to keep the bowl clear and provide electrolytes that your guppies especially need between water changes ( see this web site: http://americanaquariumproducts.com/MedicatedWonderShell.html )

Additional Info:
Your bowl is still small for what you have, and your problem is very likely cloudiness caused by lack of good bio cycling.
Another suggestion (besides the Wonder Shells) is a sponge filter. These work pretty good in bowls and there are some small sizes available (be carefull of some of the cheepie ones though). Again from the site I reference, this article about Sponge filtration may be of help to you: http://americanaquariumproducts.com/sponge_filtration.html

Answer 4

First of all, you definetly need a filter and you need to buy a bigger tank. They cannot survive in a little bowl. It's like forcing your family to live in a small box. They need alot more room, at least a ten gallon tank. You also need a heater or they will die. Once you get the ten gallon tank and all the other supplies you could clean the tank by using a gravel cleaner you could buy at the pet store. Clean the gravel and suck out all the leftover food and poop. After that you add clean tap water into the tank and use a water conditioner, one that gets rid of chlorine. Last, tetras are schooling fishes and they need to be kept in groups of at least five. If they don't they will get stressed and die. Have a heart and buy a bigger tank and 3 or more tetras. Don't listen to the store lady, she doesn't know a thing about raising pets.

Answer 5

Never ask "is this OK" to someone with something to sell,they will lie every time. Unless the temperature in your home is consistently 75 degrees F., or more, your fish need a heater. You are right ,you can't use untreated tap water,the water must be dechlorinated. It also should be the same temperature as the water in the bowl. The cloudiness is a "bacteria bloom",and it indicates that you have been overfeeding. Left-over food and it's by-products should be siphoned out of the bowl within an hour of feeding.
Don't go back to the same store to purchase the stuff you need,that would be rewarding them for LIES.

Answer 6

I bought a jug of distilled water but I emptied that out and use the jug and fill it with tap water and let it sit for several days (with the lid just sitting on the top to keep dust out) before I use it for my betta fish. There is stuff you can buy (drops) too that you can put in tap water to help eliminate chemicals in the water. My fish does just fine with just having the regular tap water that has been sitting. I've had him for about 6 months now and he is very happy and healthy.

Answer 7

well, aside from cleaning the bowl, you CANNOT keep fish in a bowl. no fish will live for more than a year in a bowl, and a very painful year for the fish it would be!

Answer 8

just give ur fish back to the pet store ur a noob