# My office bowl (Updated Pics 10/22)



## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

The lighting is pretty haphazard at the moment. What I need is a lamp that I can set directly above the bowl but I've been limiting myself to what I can find at goodwill so no luck so far.

No shrimp/fish yet. I'm considering a betta as I don't think my office ever dips below 60F.


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## Kehy (Feb 5, 2012)

Unless that bowl is much much bigger than how it looks, I would skip the betta and just do shrimp. The wood takes up too much swimming space for the betta, but shrimp would love the extra room to crawl around on. Other than that, looks good


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

It's pretty big. While the wood takes up a decent amount of space. I'm guessing its about 4 gallons. It's about 1' tall and 1' wide. Anyway it has to sit for a while, as it has only been running for a week.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

I don't know if this helps but coffee cup for scale.


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## Kehy (Feb 5, 2012)

well, the wood looks like it takes up a good 1-2 gallons. I still say shrimp, just imagine how it would look with some CRS or cherries all happy and crawling around on it. Your choice though.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

It's all good. I wouldn't mind picking up some CRS... we shall see.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Ended up adding a paradise fish, pretty funny guy. He's earned the nickname "murder fish" at the office as he kills anything I put into the bowl with him (shrimp and snails).


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## Newman (Jul 3, 2010)

have you measured the gallons in this bowl? 2 gallons most likely. I recommend re-homing the paradise fish. It really does not belong in a system like this. too small, too cold(if its in the 60Fs), not enough filtration(lots of nice plants though!).

I'd just do orange shrimp in that bowl, or something similar. 

bowl looks great


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## Acro (Jul 7, 2012)

Beautiful, but I have to say, very little swimming space.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

He seems fine to me, been in there for a month or so. I have measured the volume and its 4 gallons. The fish looks a lot bigger then he really is in the picture as the bowl distorts the image. As far as filtration its a walstad so biological filtration, also gets weekly water changes. As far as temps its a 24hr call center with a pretty constant temp of 70.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Some new pics.


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## Newman (Jul 3, 2010)

certainly looks awesome. perfect use of the awkward wood coming out of the bowl. now its looks great with emergent growth.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Thanks Newman, the Ludwigia ended up working great right at the water line.


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## paybackranch (Jan 5, 2010)

Very impressive....I wasn't sure about the wood with the first photos, but the whole bowl looks great now! I love nanos and this one is awesome! I am thinking of doing something similar now with all of the great ideas I have been looking at for the last several months on this forum.

What bulb are you using for lighting??

Melanie


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Thanks! Just using a 13watt 6500k CFL. It's been working fine although I wish I had a taller lamp so I could move the bulb further away from the bowl.


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## Coldnorthtoy (Mar 26, 2012)

idleivey said:


> Thanks! Just using a 13watt 6500k CFL. It's been working fine although I wish I had a taller lamp so I could move the bulb further away from the bowl.


You could try something like this; I have this sitting on the mesh top of my 5.5 gallon Glass Shrimp tank, and it works nicely. You could possibly clamp it to the cubicle top and it should sit perfectly over the bowl.

...And I have that bowl at home. With nothing in it. I think it's coming to work with me tomorrow.


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## Disher (Apr 1, 2012)

This is sweet! Do you add any ferts, or just a weekly water change? How much water do you change out with the water change?


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Disher said:


> This is sweet! Do you add any ferts, or just a weekly water change? How much water do you change out with the water change?


Thanks! No ferts or any additives. I pretty much top off weekly and have been doing bi-weekly water water changes of 50% or so. The tank has also been cycled fully for a month or so. Before then I was doing weekly 50% changes.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

Please rehome that paradise fish. I have a trio myself and they are very active fast swimming little things that really deserve an absolute minimum of 2ft of swimming space. They have an intelligence and insatiable curiosity similar to the larger preds (and a ferocity to match) so he is likely bored out of his mind too. To those saying get a heater, its probably not worth it unless the tank is close to freezing. These fish are very hardy and do very well at room temp or even in ponds if you live somewhere it wont freeze over. I know how easy it is to make these sort of mistakes but a little research would show you how colourful a healthy paradise fish is. Here are my ladies and they are no where near as colourful or as large as a male:











I started out with them in a 29g but they needed more space and are now happily enjoying a 75g with the male and some fast swimming shoalers but as you can see they still spar over territory.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

ony said:


> Please rehome that paradise fish. I have a trio myself and they are very active fast swimming little things that really deserve an absolute minimum of 2ft of swimming space. They have an intelligence and insatiable curiosity similar to the larger preds (and a ferocity to match) so he is likely bored out of his mind too. To those saying get a heater, its probably not worth it unless the tank is close to freezing. These fish are very hardy and do very well at room temp or even in ponds if you live somewhere it wont freeze over. I know how easy it is to make these sort of mistakes but a little research would show you how colourful a healthy paradise fish is. Here are my ladies and they are no where near as colourful or as large as a male:
> 
> I started out with them in a 29g but they needed more space and are now happily enjoying a 75g with the male and some fast swimming shoalers but as you can see they still spar over territory.


My fish is quite happy in his environment. I don't know where you get 2ft of swimming space as their natural habits don't typical support that. As far as being bored I guarantee my fish gets more attention then yours do. I sit a play with him throughout the day, 8 hours a day 5 days a week. When I'm not around for those 2 days my cube mates often come over to say Hi. 

He gets fed live food weekly and I stock the tank with small pond snails that he spends much of the day hunting for and eating. He is constantly active and entertained.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

idleivey said:


> My fish is quite happy in his environment. I don't know where you get 2ft of swimming space as their natural habits don't typical support that. As far as being bored I guarantee my fish gets more attention then yours do. I sit a play with him throughout the day, 8 hours a day 5 days a week. When I'm not around for those 2 days my cube mates often come over to say Hi.
> 
> He gets fed live food weekly and I stock the tank with small pond snails that he spends much of the day hunting for and eating. He is constantly active and entertained.


My recommendation comes from owning and watching my own fish. They use every inch of my 75g but I think a single (probably stunted) specimen would do ok in a 2ft aquarium if it was as beautifully planted as your bowl. 

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/macropodus-opercularis/

Possibly the most respected source of caresheets about atm and that suggests a minimum of 30 inches. Hes a fish, he doesn't need human companionship but he does need space to hunt, swim, nest and do everything else that comes naturally. From your photos he looks very pale, as the only occupant of the tank he should have strong dark colours to proclaim his health and dominance. He looks like one of my ladies when they have just lost a fight and are signalling their submission. Its a very clear sign of stress and has alerted me to problems in the past.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

ony said:


> My recommendation comes from owning and watching my own fish. They use every inch of my 75g but I think a single (probably stunted) specimen would do ok in a 2ft aquarium if it was as beautifully planted as your bowl.
> 
> http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/macropodus-opercularis/
> 
> Possibly the most respected source of caresheets about atm and that suggests a minimum of 30 inches. Hes a fish, he doesn't need human companionship but he does need space to hunt, swim, nest and do everything else that comes naturally. From your photos he looks very pale, as the only occupant of the tank he should have strong dark colours to proclaim his health and dominance. He looks like one of my ladies when they have just lost a fight and are signalling their submission. Its a very clear sign of stress and has alerted me to problems in the past.


The recommendation you site is for a *pair* of fish, a fish that is notoriously territorial. I don't see how that applies to my case. I also don't what "clear sign of stress" you see but his color and activity are fine so your going to be more clear.

As far as sources for tank size I find this white paper written by University of Michigan professors to be much more applicable. The paper is a study of early and adult social behavior in paradise fish. If you read you will see that they use tanks ranging from .5 gallons, 2.3 gallons, 5 gallons and 10 gallons to conduct their experiments.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

idleivey said:


> The recommendation you site is for a *pair* of fish, a fish that is notoriously territorial. I don't see how that applies to my case. I also don't what "clear sign of stress" you see but his color a activity are fine so your going to be more clear.



My comments that he looks stressed were based on his colour, he looks very pale in your photos and that is a sure sign of stress in this species. If thats just a trick of the light then I apologize but even with a flash Ive never seen my chap look so ghostly. This is another trustworthy care sheet that has a recommendation for a single specimen. 

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile55.html

This is the first one on google, it happens to be from a very good forum that provides advice for new fishkeepers.

http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/modules/caresheets/caresheet.php?caresheetID=203



idleivey said:


> As far as sources for tank size I find this white paper written by University of Michigan professors to be much more applicable. The paper is a study of early and adult social behavior in paradise fish. If you read you will see that they use tanks ranging from .5 gallons, 2.3 gallons, 5 gallons and 10 gallons to conduct their experiments.


I'm not sure animal testing labs have the best track record when it comes to animal welfare. Its also not a justification of bad practice to say that someone else does worse, that would just be a race to the bottom. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, you obviously care about your fish but he really would benefit from some extra space.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

This could go back an forth all day but I will say that your dismissal of my last source seems flippant. They are studying the behavior of the fish, putting them in an environment that would unduly stress them would defeat the purpose of the experiment. 

By saying that "I'm not sure animal testing labs have the best track record when it comes to animal welfare" your completely avoiding the point with an inflammatory statement. I did not site an animal testing lab at all, rather a scientific study done by a major educational institution.

Finally the assumption that that these are "bad practices" simply because they deviate from your own shows a clear bias.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

idleivey said:


> This could go back an forth all day but I will say that your dismissal of my last source seems flippant. They are studying the behavior of the fish, putting them in an environment that would unduly stress them would defeat the purpose of the experiment. By saying that "I'm not sure animal testing labs have the best track record when it comes to animal welfare" your completely avoiding the point with an inflammatory statement. I did not site an animal testing lab at all, rather a scientific study done by a major educational institution.


An animal testing lab that is part of the University of Michigan is still an animal testing lab. I believe animal testing is a necessary evil but its not an excuse to treat pets the same way : /



idleivey said:


> Finally the assumption that that these are "bad practices" simply because they deviate from your own shows a clear bias.


I believe that keeping an animal in conditions that don't allow it to exhibit natural behavioral patterns is bad practice. Since you appear to enjoy a scientific approach maybe the only way to find out for certain is to move your fish to a larger tank and do plenty of personal observation. There is no substitute for personal observation and experimentation IMO and I promise once you see the difference you would never even think about returning him to a bowl.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

ony said:


> I believe that keeping an animal in conditions that don't allow it to exhibit natural behavioral patterns is bad practice.


Source: Pseudosphromenus cupanus inhabits lowland streams, freshwater ponds and even ditches. It is a hardy species and is a very excitable bubblenester and jumps more often than other bubblenest building fishes (Chhapgar and Manakadan 2000).

So my bowl is a ditch in this example. It's still a natural condition in which the animal lives, as you said. To say that the fish would be "happier" in a larger environment is projecting human emotions on the fish of which it does not posses. If the fish is health and active it's "happy".


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

idleivey said:


> Source: Pseudosphromenus cupanus inhabits lowland streams, freshwater ponds and even ditches. It is a hardy species and is a very excitable bubblenester and jumps more often than other bubblenest building fishes (Chhapgar and Manakadan 2000).
> 
> So my bowl is a ditch in this example. It's still a natural condition in which the animal lives, as you said. To say that the fish would be "happier" in a larger environment is projecting human emotions on the fish of which it does not posses. If the fish is health and active it's "happy".


1) How many 4 gallon ditches have you seen? Thats barely a pothole, let alone a pond or a river. A body of water that small is likely to dry up before the next rainy season.

2) Paradise fish are incredible survivors but just because yours is alive and still moving it doesn't mean that it is healthy. I understand that you want to think your pet is happy as you obviously care about him but you aren't doing him any favours. 

3) The species we own is Macropodus opercularis.


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## STS_1OO (Nov 28, 2012)

If it grows to be more than 2", I'd say its too cramped in a * heavily * planted tank that won't have all 5G of volume as available swimming space. 

If it grows to be more than 3-4" then a 20G at the smallest. 

There are more exceptions at the 1-2" level but next to none at the 4" level. 

That's usually the role of thumb before its reviewed on a case-by-case basis. However, I would say that the 3-4" rule is pretty universal regardless of the fish you have.


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## STS_1OO (Nov 28, 2012)

Also, when making the size argument please be aware that you have * far * less than 5G of available volume for the fish. It's probably closer to 2.5. It's tough to say how big a ditch or stream in its natural environment is, but I think we can all agree that its likely to be more than 2-3G. 

Again, this is your choice. But let's be real here lol.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

If he isn't stunted he should be 4 inches and quite chunky.


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## james1542 (Sep 8, 2011)

Thanks for sharing your bowl, it looks quite amazing.

And People just lay off the witch hunt over the paradise fish. It looks like it's doing quite fine, the OP will have a better idea of how the fish is faring than you do from looking at a few photos as they can observe their behavior and use their best judgement as to whether it appears healthy. Taking it back to the LFS would probably lead to a much worse end to this fish. The average LFS fish probably ends up in an overstocked 10 gallon community tank where it succumbs to poor water quality or possibly a lethal dose of chlorine. To dispatch fish behavior work as "animal testing" is purely ludicous, its actually more valid than even someone with 2 paradise fish in a 75 gallon tank because it's actually providing valid scientific information about this species, avaiable to all in the annals of peer reviewed journals. If you actually get into the concepts of animal ethics you will find that a fish in captivity is best off euthanized, they belong in the wild, and they can't go back, so be grateful for the enjoyment you are getting from keeping your fish and stop trying to chastise others who are doing the same. Anabantoid fish are well suited to an unfiltered tank, many of them are fine unheated, as these are the conditions they inhabit in the wild. Sure they may be reported to grow to 4", this fish doesn't look to be 4", in fact, it looks like about 2.5" and 30-40% of that is tail, if it grows rapidly and is clearly distressed, I'm sure the OP will find it another home.


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## jarvitron (Aug 6, 2012)

A-frickin-men to that. Put em away and zip it up. 
Awesome bowl, I think it looks great, and I wish my job would let me keep a bowl on my desk.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

james1542 said:


> And People just lay off the witch hunt over the paradise fish. It looks like it's doing quite fine, the OP will have a better idea of how the fish is faring than you do from looking at a few photos as they can observe their behavior and use their best judgement as to whether it appears healthy. Taking it back to the LFS would probably lead to a much worse end to this fish. The average LFS fish probably ends up in an overstocked 10 gallon community tank where it succumbs to poor water quality or possibly a lethal dose of chlorine. To dispatch fish behavior work as "animal testing" is purely ludicous, its actually more valid than even someone with 2 paradise fish in a 75 gallon tank because it's actually providing valid scientific information about this species, avaiable to all in the annals of peer reviewed journals. If you actually get into the concepts of animal ethics you will find that a fish in captivity is best off euthanized, they belong in the wild, and they can't go back, so be grateful for the enjoyment you are getting from keeping your fish and stop trying to chastise others who are doing the same. Anabantoid fish are well suited to an unfiltered tank, many of them are fine unheated, as these are the conditions they inhabit in the wild. Sure they may be reported to grow to 4", this fish doesn't look to be 4", in fact, it looks like about 2.5" and 30-40% of that is tail, if it grows rapidly and is clearly distressed, I'm sure the OP will find it another home.


He will never grow rapidly in such a small volume of water due to stunting. This basically means that the fish slows or stops growing externally, the internal organs are compressed until something stops functioning. There's often very little sign of damage until the spine starts starts warp under the the internal pressure or the swim bladder is damaged. If conditions improve in time stunting can be reversed, if not its permanent and ultimately fatal. Just to be clear I've not gone into ethics here and I'm not going to, my only beef is with the sheer quantity of misinformation in this hobby. If we don't speak up once we learn better it's endlessly perpetuated, if there is anyone in this thread who hasn't fallen foul of bad fishkeeping advice at some point I would be surprised.


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## GreenBliss (Mar 7, 2012)

1 Paradise Fish in 20 gallon tank:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wd4pzswYsQ


Looks lovely.


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## Acro (Jul 7, 2012)

idleivey said:


> Source: Pseudosphromenus cupanus inhabits lowland streams, freshwater ponds and even ditches.
> 
> So my bowl is a ditch in this example . . .


Pictures of "ditches" (notice the large volume of water).
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...981b89c930dbbb&bpcl=39468505&biw=1280&bih=611

Pictures of puddles (notice the small volume of water).
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...3f94b08708c562&bpcl=39468505&biw=1280&bih=611

Bowl = a puddle, not a ditch. Just something to think about. Do with it, what you will.
Either way, good luck.


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## Acro (Jul 7, 2012)

To the OP,
There have been several smart and experienced Planted Tank members giving advice. Most have the same thoughts about the bowl. They are not attacking you, they are just trying to help you and your fish. They are expressing what they believe will help your fish live a fuller healthier and longer life. And if the fish can live a fuller healthier and longer life then you, the OP, will be able to enjoy the fish more and be happier because of that. 
I strongly suggest you take their concerns and advice into consideration. It is natural to put up one's defences when one feels attacked, but try to really absorb the advice that has been given. If the advice does not work for you, then abandon this post, do things your way and move on.
Either way, good luck.


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## james1542 (Sep 8, 2011)

I'm intrigued, I know you denounced animal research as evil, but where are the studies providing the data for this stunting theory of yours(and don't give me some gold fish paper because goldfish are not paradise fish, they probably diverged 15 million years ago so they are not same). Why would the skeleton, muscles and epithelium cease growing, but the organs continue growing? That doesn't make any sense. And if your just going off of, oh I see deformed fish in small tanks, well, there are so many factors that cause skeletal deformity in fish it's impossible to just declare one thing as the culprit accurately. It could very well be genetic, temperature, viral, bacterial, pH, nutritional, physical trauma-all well documented causes of skeletal deformity, but it's the tank that is 3 body lengths in diameter?

I agree with you that it's probably not the best choice in stocking a 4 gallon bowl, as you have a lot less margin for error with a fish that will basically max out your carrying cap when fully grown (maybe in a year or 2.....c'mon man the average lifespan of a tank now a days is probably 3 months...sad I know). But keep an open mind, you might learn something about balancing a heavily stocked, low tech planted bowl tank at your office! Just because some one else does something diffrently than you doesn't automatically make them wrong. I know no body is trying to attack the OP as a person, but you have effectively hijacked their tank journal, and told them to get rid of their fish, or stop posting here. What is wrong with you guys. If you really want to do something about the abuse of aquarium fish, you should be protesting out side the pet shops selling these things to whoever shows up with 6 dollars, or telling the breeders who puts thousands of them on the market each month to stop producing them.

I look forward to the next update, I hope all the BS doesn't discourage you from participating in this forum in the future. Thank you for taking the time to share with us.


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## ony (Apr 1, 2011)

james1542 said:


> I'm intrigued, I know you denounced animal research as evil, but where are the studies providing the data for this stunting theory of yours(and don't give me some gold fish paper because goldfish are not paradise fish, they probably diverged 15 million years ago so they are not same). Why would the skeleton, muscles and epithelium cease growing, but the organs continue growing? That doesn't make any sense. And if your just going off of, oh I see deformed fish in small tanks, well, there are so many factors that cause skeletal deformity in fish it's impossible to just declare one thing as the culprit accurately. It could very well be genetic, temperature, viral, bacterial, pH, nutritional, physical trauma-all well documented causes of skeletal deformity, but it's the tank that is 3 body lengths in diameter?
> 
> I agree with you that it's probably not the best choice in stocking a 4 gallon bowl, as you have a lot less margin for error with a fish that will basically max out your carrying cap when fully grown (maybe in a year or 2.....c'mon man the average lifespan of a tank now a days is probably 3 months...sad I know). But keep an open mind, you might learn something about balancing a heavily stocked, low tech planted bowl tank at your office! Just because some one else does something diffrently than you doesn't automatically make them wrong. I know no body is trying to attack the OP as a person, but you have effectively hijacked their tank journal, and told them to get rid of their fish, or stop posting here. What is wrong with you guys. If you really want to do something about the abuse of aquarium fish, you should be protesting out side the pet shops selling these things to whoever shows up with 6 dollars, or telling the breeders who puts thousands of them on the market each month to stop producing them.
> 
> I look forward to the next update, I hope all the BS doesn't discourage you from participating in this forum in the future. Thank you for taking the time to share with us.


Entirely unscientific but I made a mistake with an over large batch of paradise fish fry when I was new to the hobby myself. Paradise fish grow very fast in good conditions and should be ready to breed within a year so your suggestion that the OPs should reach adult size in a year or two is ridiculous. I'm not suggesting the OP discard his fish, merely upgrade its tank but I think you already knew that.


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## Soil (Oct 22, 2012)

I too keep blue paradise fish. I have a pair (male/female) and a few platys in a 150 gallon tank. Yes, they move around alot, but about every two weeks or so they spawn and the male barely moves at all since he's guarding the nest.. perhaps in a 15 cm radius. Their natural habitat is overgrown backwaters where there is no open water and they sit around waiting for pray or poke around to find things to eat while roaming slowly.. 

I think bigger is better with these fish, but I also think they'r one of few fish that wont really care about small tanks, as long as its vegitated.

As for stunting, if Im not totally off, it happens because the water gets saturated with hormones. Regular waterchanges should do fine to prevent it


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## james1542 (Sep 8, 2011)

For most fish, they don't max out for a few years. they could mature in say 4-5 months of age true, but most fish keep growing throughout life. To me I guess I'm mostly concerned more with water quality and agression management than tank dimensions. I've kept dozens of sub-adult Apistograms-together in 5 gallons of water, without any harm to the fish. Of course they were on a much larger recirculation system with their waste products constantly being flushed away, but the point is they didn't have much space but they never developed any deformities. I agree it's a dicey move to select a fish of this size for a 4 gallon tank, but by the OP's restraint in just adding the one fish (any others would probably be killed by it) and clearly their ability to maintain a lushly planted aquarium, all looks fine to me. And like Soil mentioned, this species is probably one of the few of this size that could work in this setting. Had they selected a 4" rift lake cichlid it would end horribly, a 4" angel fish-horribly, a 4" goldfish-horribly.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Thanks for the kind words james, I had sort of stopped looking here but I can post another update 

Here it is in its current state, upgraded the hardware a bit courtesy of my local goodwill. Sorry about the pictures, I need to bring something better then my cellphone camera to work. 




























edit: Here it is from the other day before the water change so no micro bubbles everywhere.


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## Disher (Apr 1, 2012)

What's that plant growing out of the bowl? I tried to look at previous posts but got annoyed from all of the arguments lol I like the wooden stand the bowl is sitting on!


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Thanks!

It's some form of ludwigia, it has pretty much gone entirely emergent at this point. I moved some to my PAR38 5 gallon to try the same thing.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

One last photo because I liked the way it turned out.


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## difrent7 (Nov 24, 2012)

Beautiful bowl everything looks amazing! Saw it on reddit earlier and gave it an upvote =]


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## Newman (Jul 3, 2010)

looks cool. that ludwigia is so epic, I want it


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## Tetranerd (Oct 26, 2012)

Beautiful bowl! Keep up the good work!


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## stanzzzz (Jun 27, 2010)

*Re: My office bowl (Updated Pics 01/05)*

I totally dig this bowl bro, I may add one nano kill fish in my bowl sometime soon with shrimps. Do u think I can add Otto fish or is it a bad idea

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2


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## jackrythm (Oct 14, 2012)

*Re: My office bowl (Updated Pics 01/05)*

Here is my office bowl, not quite the same though 





































Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

oohh, I love that bowl. I think I might try to find one of those. Your emersed growth looks lovely. Looks like HC, some ludwigia and pennywort? Any fauna?


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Might as well do an update while I'm at it. Growth is good. I've been aggressively trimming the tiger lotus to keep its growth more compact. And the fish is fine 










Looks like the ludwigia is getting too much light? Regardless I love the color of the new growth. This ludwigia is amazingly adaptive plant. I transplanted some in my PAR38 bowl and it is a deep red all over with very waxy leaves.


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## Newman (Jul 3, 2010)

dude...
send me some of that lol?


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Newman said:


> dude...
> send me some of that lol?


Sure Newman not a problem, I was just trimming on Thursday. PM me your address and when I pull some more out i'll send it your way.


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## Newman (Jul 3, 2010)

Sweet, let me know how much shipping is too so that i can paypal to cover for it. I'll PM you my address =)


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## javajive1981 (Feb 20, 2013)

*Re: My office bowl (Updated Pics 01/31)*

Wow! That bowl is gorgeous! I love the wood and ludwigia. I have purchased a cylinder vase for a walstad bowl but i am still planning what plants to get. 

Any tips?


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## poppyseed (Feb 23, 2010)

I seriously love that ludwigia. Looks awesome!


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

javajive1981 said:


> I have purchased a cylinder vase for a walstad bowl but i am still planning what plants to get. Any tips?


As far as plants go you could do like a jungle look land fill em with dwarf sag. With a vase a single tiger lotus would look cool, maybe with some micro swords as an easy carpet? Its going to be hard to trim the bottom of the vase so you may want to stick with stems that you can top. 



poppyseed said:


> I seriously love that ludwigia. Looks awesome!


Thanks!


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Here is an update on this bowl. Still going strong and exactly a year old at this point. I trimmed back the ludwigia as it was kinda burning out. I plan to add some s. repens to the foreground tomorrow.


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## tattooedfool83 (Mar 15, 2013)

Looks good man. I liked the emergent growth. Was the plant burning from the light?


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## JerSaint (Oct 22, 2012)

Awesome!


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

tattooedfool83 said:


> Looks good man. I liked the emergent growth. Was the plant burning from the light?


Thanks. Yeah I had the lamp to close to the surface. I've moved it up some now so hopefully it doesn't happen again.


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## tattooedfool83 (Mar 15, 2013)

I use a 3w solar flare on my bowl. The plants love it


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

tattooedfool83 said:


> I use a 3w solar flare on my bowl. The plants love it


Ohhh that looks like fun! I just went and bought a couple to play with on my 4 gallon aqueon. 

I want to change out the CFL with an LED I'm just paranoid about destabilizing the tank.


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## idleivey (Feb 12, 2009)

Finally was able to deal with the BBA and its looking good.


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## AquaAurora (Jul 10, 2013)

I've enjoyed watching the progress if this ecosystem especislly with the plant growth coming out of the bowl! How is it doing now? A photo update would be nice ^^


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