# 1/2 Gallon Pico Cube



## ohyeahcrx (Mar 21, 2008)

Emmersed growth is the way too go!


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## chase127 (Jun 8, 2008)

i wouldnt subject any fish to that small "tank"... some shrimp maybe, but no fish.


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## Renegade545 (Oct 28, 2007)

chris127 said:


> i wouldnt subject any fish to that small "tank"... some shrimp maybe, but no fish.


I agree, croaking gouramis are small, but not small enough for this tank.


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## luckydud13 (Jun 21, 2008)

Where did you get that tank?


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## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

I don't think the Moss will grow emersed...


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

ZooTycoonMaster said:


> I don't think the Moss will grow emersed...


Of course the moss will grow emersed, It will just look a lot different than it will in the submersed stage.
I agree on the fish thing, 1/2 liter is very small


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

moss is already growing emersed... straight up as flame moss should.
it's 1/2 gallon, a liter is NOT even close to a gallon, nice try though.
It's a marina 1/2 gallon cube betta tank. it's made to fit with their line of decorations/betta products.
when i consider what fish fits in what tank... or "tank" i go through a simple list...
1. how big will the fish get.
after working at pet store for a very long time, i've never seen a croaking gourami get big enough to even scoff at a tank this size.
2. can a fish survive in the tank in the long run
considering gourami's have a labyrinth organ the lack of surface agitation from no filter (ignoring the O2 output from the plants) shouldn't be a problem. Also a heater to keep the water at a CONSISTENT tropical temperature was also taken into consideration.
3. How hard will the maintenance be to keep a fish healthy in this tank.
it's a 1/2 gallon tank, i could do water changes until the cows come home.

As far as i'm concerned, this fish will live in better conditions than 99% of the people that come into my pet store and purchase fish. The last thing i need is a lecture, don't let 1400 posts go to your head.


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## Aquarist_Fist (Jul 22, 2008)

stev0205 said:


> it's 1/2 gallon, a liter is NOT even close to a gallon, nice try though.


 It's still *way* too small...



> when i consider what fish fits in what tank... or "tank" i go through a simple list...
> 1. how big will the fish get.
> after working at pet store for a very long time, i've never seen a croaking gourami get big enough to even scoff at a tank this size.
> 2. can a fish survive in the tank in the long run
> ...


Two other questions worth considering are


Will the fish be happy in the tank or merely surviving?
Does my tank at least halfways resemble the fish's natural habitat? A rice paddy or pool may be tiny, but they still have swimming space and thousands of gallons of water.



> As far as i'm concerned, this fish will live in better conditions than 99% of the people that come into my pet store and purchase fish. The last thing i need is a lecture, don't let 1400 posts go to your head.


That, unfortunately, doesn't mean anything at all. I don't understand why you are being so defensive. You asked for feedback and you got it. If four out of seven people comment on the fish issue, maybe there is some truth to it.


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## jinx© (Oct 17, 2007)

You do realize that the bag you bring your fish home in will likely have more water in it than this tank will hold?...:confused1:

I don't have 1400 posts but I think I'd stick to snails or a shrimp or two.


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## deleted_user_16 (Jan 20, 2008)

1/2 gallon, get some shrimp


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## ZooTycoonMaster (Jan 2, 2008)

stev0205 said:


> 2. can a fish survive in the tank in the long run
> considering gourami's have a labyrinth organ the lack of surface agitation from no filter (ignoring the O2 output from the plants) shouldn't be a problem. Also a heater to keep the water at a CONSISTENT tropical temperature was also taken into consideration.


That's what people say about Bettas, and they keep them in bowls. 

Assuming this is the Croaking Gourami's natural habitat (a rice paddy in Thailand):









Do you think they'd want to live in a 1/2 gallon tank???

It may be shallow, but it has lots of area to swim around in.


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

while it may be true that i asked for feedback on this nano tank. It is posted in the nano tank forum, on a website called plantedtank.net. There is no fish in it yet, and i didn't post a question asking about a fish in the "fish" forum. I guess i'm getting defensive because i hate when topics get hijacked away from the poster's original intention. This tank has a good amount of growing to do before i fill it. Please let me know what you think of the scape/plant choice/etc. I guess i know your opinions on fish/shrimp.


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## jinx© (Oct 17, 2007)

I wouldn't really consider it a hijack since it was honest feedback on your plans, but fair enough I guess.

From what I can tell from a top down shot it looks like it could be a cool little nano. A full tank shot from the front would be helpful in actually seeing the layout. 

The only other thought may be that your small diameter wood might be somewhat short lived and need replaced periodically.


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## Church (Sep 14, 2004)

stev0205 said:


> while it may be true that i asked for feedback on this nano tank. It is posted in the nano tank forum, on a website called plantedtank.net. There is no fish in it yet, and i didn't post a question asking about a fish in the "fish" forum. I guess i'm getting defensive because i hate when topics get hijacked away from the poster's original intention.


In all fairness, you didn't ask _anything_ in your first post of this thread. Therefore, it was assumed that you were looking for feedback of _any_ kind... and you got it. And it was all rather unanimous, too, so you should try not to get so defensive if you can help it.

That being said, I think you should post something other than a top-down shot in order to give a better perspective on what you're planning here. It _sounds_ like a cool nano, minus the fish of course, but it would be helpful to see a nice front view.

Best of luck to you.


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

yea i would post a shot from the front but the humidity is so high that you can't even see in from the front... ha i fear i have duckweed growing among the elatine triandria. i guess that's one downside of growing emersed...


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## midnightk (Sep 24, 2008)

wow the begining u kinda set your self up there  i like how u started tho . indeed maybe reconsider the stocking. i can imagine a hapy fam of CRS or tigers. i can understand how u want something to occupy the middle and top tho. u did say bettas somewhere. i have drct's that would loook amazing in that tank lol. keep it up !


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

DOH! I don't know why I thought it said half liter, I got metric on the brains lol


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## narhay (Feb 28, 2007)

5cm, up to 6-7cm fish in a 1/2 gallon? Bla bla bla flame me if you want (I won't check back) but it's too small.


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## deleted_user_16 (Jan 20, 2008)

thats 2 inches. i dont have more than a school of 1 inch fish in a 7.5 gallon

no room for a 2 INCH fish to move


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

thanks for your input on fish... By now i understand everyone's opinion on my plan. thanks thanks thanks thanks thanks thanks thanks thanks. Everyone is right...
moving on
I put some HM from my 20H into the back right corner of this tank. I know HC grows well emersed... so i'm assuming that HM will do fine as well. Correct me if i'm wrong though!
Also, My dwarf hairgrass is doing great emersed... but it obviously looks thicker than the aquatic form of the plant. Can i expect the dwarf hairgrass to go through hell once i fill the tank?


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

p.s. since nobody thinks a croaking gourami is a good idea, i've decided to go old school and put a perfectly suited goldfish into the 1/2 gallon. (flame me if you want) haha

p.p.s. joking


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## luckydud13 (Jun 21, 2008)

jeesus christ I thought you were serious


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

So I gave in and finally filled it. These are pics from about a week or two since the fill... KNOCK ON WOOD no major algae yet.


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

more pic










I'm really happy that the dwarf hairgrass is continuing to put out runners and looks healthy and not covered in algae. The HM was a big bulk that was kind of just shoved into the back corner and it's taking hold while some parts die off... i hope it looks good.

comments welcome :icon_surp


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

That moss looks really cool


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

thanks... i'm glad it hasn't had any problems switching from emersed to submersed


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## fish_fasinated (Mar 30, 2006)

what sort of shrimp do you have in there? they look very similar to the orange bee shrimp i added to my 2.5G


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## stev0205 (Nov 5, 2007)

you're right, they're orange bee. I wanted some other kinds but i think these guys are cool too


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## guitardude9187 (Aug 22, 2006)

very cool! good luck with the tank!


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