What kind of water pump and filter can my Betta fish tolerate?

I have a lovely Betta and I put him in a 12 gallon tank - more room than he needs but I want him to be happy. Obviously, tank maintenance is a concern of mine. I want a pump and filter that will not move the water too much for him and allow him freedom of movement, but I just can't tell what pump and filter would be right or how much they would cost.What kind of water pump and filter can my Betta fish tolerate?If he is all that you have in the tank then you won't need a whole lot of filtration. Which is great because you want a pretty calm situation for a Betta. You could use a sponge bio-filter that is driven by an air pump, or you could use a small power driven in tank filter. Marineland makes a line called Duetto Filters. Their Mini filter is adjustable for flow rates as low as 2 and as high as 40 gallons per hour. I think this would be a very good filter for your application. I have used Duettos before myself and they are dependable, easy to maintain and do a pretty decent job. If you can't find one locally, they are available at http://www.DrsFosterSmith.com and cost about $20.What kind of water pump and filter can my Betta fish tolerate?lowWhat kind of water pump and filter can my Betta fish tolerate?The best filter for a Betta tank (or at least one of the best) is a simple sponge filter driven by a gently bubbling air pump or an air stone. Some of the advantages of this sort of filter are, the air flow can be adjusted to suit the water level and surface conditions, if you have more than one tank you can have extra sponges %26quot;seasoning%26quot; so you will always have a cycled filter, and they are inexpensive and reliable. Some popular brands are %26quot;Jungle Labs%26quot; and %26quot;Hydro-sponge%26quot;. They are both quite versatile and should you wish to use one in a larger tank the Hydro-sponge can also be driven by a powerhead. Also maintenance is as simple as rinsing the sponge in some of the aquarium water while doing routine small water changes.

Some of the disadvantages are that really quiet air pumps can be a little expensive or that less expensive air pumps can be a little noisy.Either way this sort of set-up will probably be the least expensive.