Snake tank = Aquarium

[Foxrun402]

Sooooo I have a 20g long that was used as my feeder tank for Suzi.... and a few others.

My problem is....

I have cleaned this tank numerous times with WipeOut! (Dimethyl Benzyl Ammonium Chloride)
And glass cleaner once in a while....

My friend bought a Betta fish.... It's in this tiny tank and I find it rather uncomfortable for this fish. I want to donate my 20 gallon to her so that her Betta "Spike" can have a good home with room to grow old and swim around as a fish was intended to do. I can't stand it when people buy a Betta fish and leave it in the container it came in, or think that a small vase is good enough! I feel the same about people who do this with any species of fish....

Is there any way I can make this tank safe to hold water and support fish again?

Thank you in advance !

Jonathan!

[d_virginiana]

idk about the glass cleaner, but I know Wipe-Out can be safely used to clean frog terrariums and water dishes. Since they absorb chemicals directly through the mucous membrane of their skin, their sensitivity is kind of on par with a fish, which is breathing it.
You could do rinses with scalding water, followed by scrubbing and another rinse to be absolutely sure.

[chris-uk]

Rinse it. Fill it up and leave early it for a few days. Discard the water. Rinse again.
That's going to be a huge home for just a betta. Best to have some cover it can hide in - some sort of cave, some plants or fake plants. If you have the conditions right you should find that the little chap will build a bubble nest (my last two betta have built nests). I don't have one at the moment, the last one died about 4 months ago, but he was in a separate 60l tank because he got stressed and aggressive in the bigger community tank.

I hate people getting a betta and keeping it in a tiny bowl or jam jar too. They might survive in there, but they don't thrive.

[ConcinusMan]

idk about the glass cleaner, but I know Wipe-Out can be safely used to clean frog terrariums and water dishes. Since they absorb chemicals directly through the mucous membrane of their skin, their sensitivity is kind of on par with a fish, which is breathing it.
You could do rinses with scalding water, followed by scrubbing and another rinse to be absolutely sure.

Scalding water will often break glass. Use 3% hydrogen peroxide people. The H2o2 molecule is unstable and once poured out and exposed to air and light, will break down quickly into hydrogen and o2 gas (which is why it bubbles) leaving nothing but h2o and a sterile surface behind.

BTW male bettas don't need nor want large open volumes of water. They would get stressed out in just a 10 gallon with no other fish if it wasn't heavily planted. Do a little research. I kept bettas that lived happily for years in quart to half gallon volumes with plants. If I put them in anything larger it needed a heater and they didn't like the large volume one bit it stressed them out. They like being confined / having a very small area to guard as their territory. I wouldn't keep them in the original cups but a quart is just fine and exceeding 2 gallons is totally unnecessary and even not so good. I could have told you that your betta would stress (sometimes to death) in a large tank and/or tank with other fish. They don't just keep them in cups singly and sell 1/2 gallon "betta tanks" to punish/torture them. There's a very good reason for the small volume. I assure you they do thrive in small volumes if you keep the water clean and add 1/4 tsp of aquarium salt per gallon.

[kueluck]

Can't help you on the fish thing, but do you have a back up tank for quarantine if you need to separate Suzie and Xena? Hate to see anyone stuck without a back up. Just curious.

[jwolfe152]

i think ConcinnusMan's peroxide idea would be best done after an initial wash with warm soapy water and a good rinse so that there is no residue left

[ConcinusMan]

i think ConcinnusMan's peroxide idea would be best done after an initial wash with warm soapy water and a good rinse so that there is no residue left

I just use warm water and a scotch pad to clean up urates/feces. Once the glass looks reasonably clean I wipe it dry then wipe well with the peroxide and let it sit. wipe up excess then let it dry. works fine! As far as glass cleaner goes I've never had any issues with Glass Plus , even with snakes still in the tank. Apply to paper towel then clean the glass. It doesn't bother the snakes. Just don't use Windex or anything with ammonia in it. Glass plus is ammonia free and nothing in it that's particularly toxic. You would think white vinegar would be better but the snakes go nuts and hate the smell from it. Glass plus doesn't bother them.

[Mommy2many]

No soap for fish! You can use baking soda and rinse well. Also, make sure your sponge or scrubbie has no soap in it. As for the Betta Fish, I have kept mine in a glass jar I bought at Walmart (looks like a large vase), it cost I think $3.00 and I bought a pothos plant from petco that lives in water. The plant sits in a small plastic dish on top of the vase and its roots provide places for the betta to hide and sleep. All you need to do is change the water every week. I used distilled water (maybe .98) at grocery store or walmart. Add some glass rocks to bottom and your fish has a great home without too much room!

[ConcinusMan]

My friend bought a Betta fish.... It's in this tiny tank and I find it rather uncomfortable for this fish.

But the fish doesn't, trust me. 1 quart to a half gallon is more appropriate. They would be uncomfortable in a 20 L unless it was quite congested with vegetation and visual barriers to make him feel boxed in a bit. In addition you can't keep them in that volume of water without a heater and some are too hard to adjust low enough in that volume of water. Water needs to be in the 70's, perhaps 80 max.

As I said before if it's a 20 L for reptiles do NOT fill it with water.

Now back to the glass cleaning... if you're talking about that white mineral buildup, that needs an acidic cleaner. White vinegar at full strength helps somewhat but muriatic acid (concrete cleaner) is much more effective. If the buildup is organic in nature, it needs a highly alkaline cleaner.