If you’re looking to bring home a little Betta fish friend, then you’ll want to make sure you’ve got everything set up for their arrival. The most important thing to do to that end is getting a Betta tank to suit their needs. Here’s everything you need to know about the Top Fin Betta tanks.
Top Fin offers Betta fish tanks in 2, 3, and 5-gallon sizes, as well as an all-in-one Betta aquarium starter kit. The all-in-one kit includes a 3-gallon tank, LED, 20-Watt heater, test kit, filter, net, leaf, and ceramic rings.
There’s a lot to keep in mind as you shop for the perfect home to put your Betta fish in, and setting up an aquarium specifically catered to a Betta fish’s needs is important to keep them healthy and happy. The rest of this article will walk you through the Top Fin Betta tank, whether it’s worth it, and how to get started with your Betta fish.
What Is the Best Size Top Fin Tank for Betta?
One of the most common (and most often wrongly answered) questions about Betta fish is regarding what size tank they need. Betta fish, also called Siamese Fighting Fish, hail from the rice paddies of Thailand, and are used to shallow, long bodies of water that they may even jump between.
But that doesn’t mean that they are happy in cramped living conditions, and, at minimum, you should have a 5-gallon tank to keep your Betta fish happy and healthy.
2-Gallon Tank
Top Fin’s 2-gallon tank is not suitable for a Betta fish. It’s simply way too small to house a Betta fish. Cramping your Betta fish by limiting its space will cause it to be unhappy, pulling in its beautiful colors and diminishing its quality of life.
Worse yet, not changing out your water frequently enough (which is nigh impossible on such a tiny tank) can cause an ammonia buildup in the tank, which will quite literally burn away at your Betta fish’s body, causing a condition called fin rot.
3-Gallon Tank
The story is much the same with a 3-gallon tank. It’s not big enough to house even 1 Betta fish, even a juvenile, much less 2 or more.
Putting a Betta fish in a 3-gallon tank is not only hurting its quality of life, but it also places far too much strain on the tank in terms of bioload, which is a measure of the amount of waste in the water column produced by your fish.
Bioload can be anything from poop to uneaten food or decaying plant matter. Even if you have a filter, 3 gallons is just too small a space to adequately keep up with the bioload, essentially leaving the Betta fish in a downright unlivable environment.
Concerns about the bioload regarding 3-gallon tanks applies across the board almost universally. The only thing you can feasibly keep in a 3-gallon Top Fin tank are shrimp, since they are minute and have an extremely small bioload.
5-Gallon Tank
Betta fish can be kept in a 5-gallon tank if you have a filter and conduct water changes regularly. A 10-gallon tank is more ideal, but a 5-gallon tank is workable.
You’ll also want to make sure that your tank is heavily planted since it helps to simulate the Betta fish’s natural environment and will contribute to their overall happiness as well as oxygenating the water.
Regardless of what size tank you have, you should never put two Betta fish together, especially two males, since they will hound each other relentlessly and fight to the death.
You should only put a male and female together in a much larger tank, and only if you are planning to breed them (a long and laborious process that isn’t for the faint of heart). You should instead pair the aggressive Betta fish with other, more passive ditherfish like Rasboras, Cories, or Guppies.
Top Fin All-in-One Betta Aquarium Starter Kit: Is It Worth It?
The Top Fin All-in-One Betta Aquarium Starter Kit comes with a whole bunch of essentials when it comes to setting up a Betta fish tank. Below are all of the components included in the Top Fin Starter Kit:
- 3-Gallon Glass Betta Aquarium
- Hood with Feeding Door B
- Bright White LED
- Thermometer
- 20 Watt Heater
- Water Test Vial
- Top Fin EF-S Element Filter Cartridge
- 4-inch Nylon Net
- Top Fin Bettaflo Integrated Filter
- Betta Leaf
- Ceramic Rings
The tank is made of glass and measures 14 inches long, 7.5 inches wide, and 8.9 inches high. You can only purchase this tank setup kit at PetSmart or on their website. The kit sells for $39.99.
As you may have guessed by now, the Top Fin all-in-one kit fails on one simple metric—it’s just too small for Betta fish. As such, you’re better off looking elsewhere if you want to prolong the life and happiness of your Betta.
Is Top Fin Water Conditioner Good for Betta Fish?
Top Fin Water Conditioner is suitable for Betta fish and is worthwhile for treating tap water, removing chlorine, and protecting the slime coat on your fish.
Betta fish don’t need a brand-specific water conditioner, but they certainly do need a water conditioner in general. Without one, your fish tank will be overrun with harmful chemicals that can kill your fish.
Do Betta Fish Need a Bubbler?
Betta fish are unique in that they do not need an air bubbler. They can quite easily survive in oxygen-depleted waters, and they actually have a special organ that allows them to breathe at the surface. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t oxygenate your water for filtration purposes, but Bettas themselves do not need a bubbler.
Final Thoughts
Betta fish are a great pet to keep, but their requirements are often a lot more demanding than the industry standard would suggest. If you’re going to keep Betta fish, you should do your best to keep them in a suitably sized tank that’s heavily planted and do water changes regularly.
