# Betta "Pacing" Glass



## JJ09 (Sep 11, 2014)

My betta would do this only when the tank light was on, and he was often flaring his gills and fins, so I think it was due to the reflection.


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## AquaAurora (Jul 10, 2013)

tlriot said:


> I just moved my betta from an acrylic tank to a 5g glass aquarium. When I first introduced him to the space he explored the area, but now he mostly "paces" up and down the sides of the tank. Parameters are ok, and he is eating and showing normal colors. Is this just a case of him seeing his reflection? Or still "learning" his new space? I'm worried it is stressing him out. I don't see a difference in his behavior with lights on/off, but who knows what happens at night.


He is doing what is called "glass surfing". The betta can see his reflection in the glass, but does not know its a reflection, he assumed its an intruder and is trying to chase it out of his territory. This is obviously not going to be successful as the 'other betta' just never seems to go away.
Some bettas get use to/over this with time but some are very agressive and never stop glass surfing.

There are a few fixes:
1:* add a lot more live/fake silk plants around the walls of the tank* so teh betta can't zip along teh glass-he has to go around these plants which "breaks line fo sight" and he is more likely to forget about "the other betta"/move on.
2: a lil' DIY project involve *lexan or acrylic* sheets, (recommend lexan from home depot-doesn't shatter as much as acrylic),* a cutting tool* (wood blade on a saw, utility knife, etc, and *krylon fusion* spray paint.

a copy and paste of one of my DIY (have done it again recently but didn't take photos when working no it. side note: measure cut, make sure it fits (put in all peices) then spray paint
*DIY Anti Reflection Background*
This is a GREAT fix to glass surfing bettas. Glass surfing is the act of the betta going back and forth constantly against the glass They are chasing their refection because they see it as an intruder betta and are trying to chase it off 9rather unsuccessfully). This can stress bettas because to them, they never get left alone. Some fixed include adjusting lighting and angle of light, adding more decor (fake/live plants) around the side and back wall to reduce amount of visibility and make it harder to surf the glass. But my most successful fix for it was this DIY insert made to remove reflection.
*Materials Used:*
Acrylic sheet
Krylon *Fusion *Black

*Tools Used:*
Sharpie
Electric Saw

*Other Material and Tool Options:*
Lexan polycarbonate
Utility knife
razor blade.. just about any durable cutting tool

*Photos:*




Sorry no paint application photos

*Details:*
So one of my bettas glass surfed a lot in quarantine. TO keep it from being a problem in his final tank (and from him seeing another betta who is also on the desk in a tank next to his) I needed an aquarium safe way to paint inside the tank glass. Putting a background against the outside of it does not stop reflections. I looked into aquarium safe paints but non bound to glass. Some Googling led me to Krylon Fusion spray-paint. its commonly used in saltwater setups for DIY pvc plumbing for filters and for acrylic in tank sump boxes. More Googling said 48 seemed to be a decent cure time before use. I got acrylic sheets at my Home Depot and sanded one side to give a rough surface to let paint adhere to better. After spray painting that side I noticed the texture of the sanding showed through the paint so the acrylic was flipped over and the un-sanded side was painted. I let the acrylic sheets sit over 48 hours then did a 48 hour water test just to be safe. It turns out the un-sanded side took the pain better, and with only one coat per a side not giving a fully solid black (its transparent enough you can see dark shadows of objects behind it) it was good enough for use. A back and one side wall piece were made and tucked into the tank using 'egg crate' (a plastic light diffuser) that were being used for rocks in the tank. The beta does not glass surf the dark sides but one side wall was left un-coverd and he is glass surfing there so I will most likely make another piece to go in..
If you use Kyrlon read its directions and warnings. I strongly suggest using it outside, if done indoors without proper ventilation it can be dangerous. It was too cold to spay outside so this work was done in a room with a door to the outside nearby opened with a fan sucking the air out. If you make these sheets make sure they are secure against the tank wall. Mine are anchored under the substrate and I put a tiny piece of black tape at each corner at the top just to be safe.
I used Kryon Fusion and it seems to be the one other aquarium hobbiest use.. however I cannot say if other versions of Krylon (non 'fusion') are aquarium safe.

The tank has been set up for over a year and a half now and Aristocoles (ee betta boy in there) has had no issues with the Kyrlon...and its held up well. I'll will make 3 more Krylon fusion painted pieces for my other betta's cube and paint his canister pipes black eventually.

Added bonus: black non reflective background in tank means diatoms (aka brown algae) is not noticeable on it compared to on clear shiny glass)

*As a side not: * I also made a lid with the acrylic to compare with my Lexan lids... in less than 6 days it was bowed more than my over 6 month old Lexan lids.. not good lid material.. but the sheets in the tank have no bowed. I had to replace the lid with a Lexan one as the corners had turned up far enough on the acrylic that the betta could easily jump out.


most recently: 2.5g


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## tlriot (May 10, 2014)

Well this is the news I really wasn't hoping for. No way am I putting more money in this set up. Any chance he gets over it? Otherwise it's back into the POS acrylic tank and I have a really nice empty tank.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


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## AquaAurora (Jul 10, 2013)

tlriot said:


> Well this is the news I really wasn't hoping for. No way am I putting more money in this set up. Any chance he gets over it? Otherwise it's back into the POS acrylic tank and I have a really nice empty tank.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


It depends on the fish. If he's still doing it after a week than I'd say "no". But some do get use to it. Having more decor against the glass really helps.
If you're trying to save $ you can get silk fake plants from dollar stores/craft stores and with a little work remove any metal wires and anchor them in the tank. Costs less than buying fake plants at the petstore.


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## tlriot (May 10, 2014)

AquaAurora said:


> It depends on the fish. If he's still doing it after a week than I'd say "no". But some do get use to it. Having more decor against the glass really helps.
> If you're trying to save $ you can get silk fake plants from dollar stores/craft stores and with a little work remove any metal wires and anchor them in the tank. Costs less than buying fake plants at the petstore.


The footprint of the tank is pretty small and it is already really loaded with plants. He's also moving behind the plants already against the glass. I've put a could hundred into building and scaping this, so I'm not going to sacrifice the appearance of the tank for the chance it might fix the problem. I would rather just put him back in the acrylic tank where I know he's ok.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


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## Clinton Parsons (Apr 11, 2016)

I ran an experiment in college using tryptophan-doped food in hopes of increasing serotonin and reducing aggression, then we compared that to a control group and bettas with prozac (forgot the concentration) added to the water. We found no correlation/statistical significance, although studies in freshwater edible fish showed reduced aggression. I also noticed behavior. They are seeing their reflection. Tweak your light positioning.

Fish aren't terribly smart. If you have a vibrant red potted plant or something else he could see, he could be responding to that as well. Just brainstorming. Or maybe he's just a few fries short of a happy meal.


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## AquaAurora (Jul 10, 2013)

tlriot said:


> The footprint of the tank is pretty small and it is already really loaded with plants. He's also moving behind the plants already against the glass. I've put a could hundred into building and scaping this, so I'm not going to sacrifice the appearance of the tank for the chance it might fix the problem. I would rather just put him back in the acrylic tank where I know he's ok.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


Sorry tis not what you wanted to hear. Looking at your signature's link there's a lot of exposed space against the side walls still


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## JJ09 (Sep 11, 2014)

Clinton Parsons said:


> Fish aren't terribly smart. If you have a vibrant red potted plant or something else he could see, he could be responding to that as well.


Haha, so right. I once had a betta that displayed to the colors in test tubes when I set them near his bowl. I know that was it because I moved the tubes away and he calmed down, I put them back and he displayed again. It was pretty funny.


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## tlriot (May 10, 2014)

JJ09 said:


> Haha, so right. I once had a betta that displayed to the colors in test tubes when I set them near his bowl. I know that was it because I moved the tubes away and he calmed down, I put them back and he displayed again. It was pretty funny.


When he was in his holding tank he loved to watch me do water tests. No aggression, he just came to that side of the tank and watched me do them, and then he'd swim off.



AquaAurora said:


> Sorry tis not what you wanted to hear. Looking at your signature's link there's a lot of exposed space against the side walls still


It's ok. It's not my only option, just disappointed he's not adapting to his home. The problem with my tank is more floor space for planting, and he seems pretty dead-set on pacing, so I don't want to mess with my scape and him still go for it all the time, or just move his aggression to the front of the tank.



Clinton Parsons said:


> I ran an experiment in college using tryptophan-doped food in hopes of increasing serotonin and reducing aggression, then we compared that to a control group and bettas with prozac (forgot the concentration) added to the water. We found no correlation/statistical significance, although studies in freshwater edible fish showed reduced aggression. I also noticed behavior. They are seeing their reflection. Tweak your light positioning.
> 
> Fish aren't terribly smart. If you have a vibrant red potted plant or something else he could see, he could be responding to that as well. Just brainstorming. Or maybe he's just a few fries short of a happy meal.


I'm pretty sure it's his reflection, he does it on both sides of the tank and doesn't seem fixed on anything nearby. I also can't see anything that's bright enough that he'd get upset. He is a plakat, and in my personal experience, they seem more aggressive than their flowy-finned friends. Unfortunately I can't adjust the light much and when I do so by hand he doesn't seem to care. He was happy in his acrylic setup, so he'll be moved back in there as soon as I have it scaped.


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## Altheora (Aug 10, 2016)

I had a betta that paced for about a week and a half after being moved into his new tank, but he got over it. 

Good luck with your betta!


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

My betta was a glass surfer when he was new, seems to have gotten over it...

This fear of their own their reflection is why I always tell people to use plastic tubs when trying to breed them.


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