aspects

hopefully the DW will sink soon, then i can finish scaping, but for now heres the pico





heres a link to the tank build if anyone is interested

my FW pico project

Butterfly

Thats cool! I like the way it looks. What kind of fish do you have in there?
carol

aspects

currently just 4 green neons. its only 1g, so i cant go too crazy with it.

ATKINSON

Cool tank!

aspects

thanks

aquarist48

That looks very nice Aspects! When you have time, if you would be so kind as to fill out your profile aquarium information it would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Ken

aspects

is it required?
i have far too many tanks to fill out a form. lol

also,i edited the first post to include a link on the tank build for this project.

aquarist48

Hello Apsects. No, it is not a requirement but it is helpful to others and lets others know a little about your fish keeping experience. You don't have to list them all. If you want, just list a couple of your favorite tanks. It's up to you
Thanks!
Ken

aspects

i see. thanks ken

aspects

tied some more java ferns today, and moved the DW around a little bit.

jwokmuba2

hi aspects, i like your creation, looks nice, my only concern is 1 gallon is not enough for 4 neons, i think they would be happier in a 10 gallon with about 6 neons minimum.

aspects

thanks for your concern, but i am well aware of their needs, and i can assure you that they will be perfectly fine in this tank. this is probably the most overfilterd tank you have ever seen, and the water parameters are pristine to put it lightly.
due to their very small adult size, the tanks ridiculous filtration system, and regular WC (cutting down hormones released in the tank), they will be just fine in this tank. in fact i will probably end up adding a couple more.

jwokmuba2

i did see the filter in the back of the tank, looks pretty big, just making sure, keep up the good work.

aspects

the filter is a 5 gallon wet/dry system powered by a 60GPH return pump. it also incorporates a 20GPH "refiltration system" (based on a concept used in AquaClear HOB filters) inside the sump, which passes the water in the sump through the media a second time both to aid the nitrogen cycle, and polish the water.

heres a link to the build thread if youre interested

my FW pico project

Lucy

I'm not sure I understand, if you're well aware of your fish's needs than you know they need more swim room than a 1g allows.
It's not all about filtration and water changes.

Tony G.

Im with lucy on this one. Its not so much about GPH but about space. Sure, the neons look small, but i saw your other thread and the tank itself looks really thin...

it would make a great snail tank though

aspects

They have more than enough swimming space, as they will likely grow to be only an inch long.
Traditional stocking guidelines are for novice fish keepers with no knowledge of water chemistry and species needs, and I assure you I have not fallen in that category in many years, and am more than certain that not only are these neons happy, but are being spoiled.
If following blanket stocking ideas works for you, that's awesome. They are good guidelines to follow for novice keepers. I however prefer to think outside of the box.

Lucy

Novice or expert, fish need room to swim.
Again, not doubting your knowledge about water chemistry and keeping things in balance.
I'm not talking about the 1" per gallon guideline.
I'm talking about a schooling fish being able to move.
If thinking outside the box means putting fish in an area that they don't have room to swim, you've achieved that.

Nice aquascaping though.

Tony G.

The guideline has many faws. i agree, but the fact that this is a website that people (novice keepers as you call them)come here for information, if they notice you keep 4 tetras in a 1 gallon tank, they will say to themselves:
"He did it, why cant i"
that´s when they start thinking, man i can keep a 10 inch oscar in a ten gallon tank..

I follow the "blankets idea" (as you call it) because of the fish´s needs, not for my pleasure.

EDIT:
Also, there is no need to be rude if we disagree. You asked for an opinion, you got them...

aspects

again, they have more than enough room to swim. maybe the still picture threw you off, but i assure you they are not stuck in the position in the picture, they do actually move
contrary to what you might think, they have more than enough space to swim freely around the tank.

the measure ment of the tank is 7x4x9. giving it an area of 254. at 1" (which they are not even 1" yet, but for the sake of comparison, we'll go with it), that is the equivalent of 4 guys playing football on 3/4 of a regulation sized football field.
youre right. thats not nearly enough space

if youre not going by the 1" per gallon guideline, id love to know how you came up with it not being enough space to swim.

Lucy

Let's look at it this way. For the sake of this conversation your fish are 1"
Your tank tank is 7". This means the fish can swim what, about 4 or 5" before it has to turn around.
Keep in mind this is my opinion. No rules or guidelines, just the behavior I've observed with my fish.
Just because it can be done, doesn't mean it should be done.
Your football analogy is flawed. They get to stop playing ball and walk out into the big wide world, your fish won't have that chance.

aspects

if someone reads this and decides to do it, with no knowledge of whats actually going on in the tank, i have absolutely nothing to do with that. i do not control the actions of others.
nowhere in either thread did i "suggest" anyone else tried this. nor did i tell anyone it was a good idea, or something they should try. however you try to place the blame, it is just not the fact. i know you think i singlehandedly control the actions of every fish keeper who reads my thread, but that is not the case.
just because someone makes a movie about a murderer, does not mean thet are encouraging all the viewers to go out and murder someone.

you follow blanket ideas, because you were told that those were the fish's needs. the fact of the matter is, the whole practice of fishkeeping is an entirely man made concept, as are the "rules" that follow. the fish didnt chose to go from a river/stream/lake/ocean into a fish tank. and unless you are providing the same body of water, you are severely reducing its amount of "swimming space".
fish do not "belong" in tanks, and applying any man made "rules" as to stocking, are completely bogus. if you feel "overstocking" is a cruel practice because of the amount of "space" the fish have, then you are a hypocrite. clowns belong in an ocean, not a 20gal tank. period.

as a practicing fish keeper it is your duty to provide the best you can for the fish with what you have, because regardless of the available space, it is much less than the fish rightfully needs. with that in mind, i can tell you that my tank has much better water conditions than any LFS holding neons, and they are much better in my tank with "insufficient" space, than they would be at an store.

stocking guidelines are a great base concept to follow when fishkeeping. they are in place to keep aggression at bay, maintain water parameters and bioload, and overall to provide a good quality of life for the fish involved. however, these guidelines are not set in stone, and are far from being the "end all" answer to stocking.

keep in mind, this same stocking "guideline" that would have you believe 4 neons under 1" are unsuitable for a 1g tank, would also have you believe that a 3-4" beta will be fine in a tank half the size

EDIT:
i have yet to be rude, however if you would like to continue this discussion via PM, i will be more than happy to educate you in a more passionate and straight forward manner.

aspects

so fish are only able to swim back and fourth? makes me wonder why we have fish tanks over 4" high, since by your analogy, fish dont make use of any of the vertical space (or width for that matter) especially with shoaling characins. kind of makes schooling pointless.

also, ive been out of shool for a little while now, but last i checked 7-1=6 but what do i know. lol

Lucy

Not a good idea.

The width of your tank is 4", barely enough room there.
Sure they make use of vertical space but we both know that tetras enjoy more of a horizontal swim.

About the math.
If you figure the fish starts at one end of the tank, tail to the glass, he's already used up one inch before he moves. When he reaches the other side, nose (haha) to glass that's the other inch. 7-2=5.

Anyway, your fish, your tank, your decision. Enjoy it, it's very pretty.

aspects

4 x the size of the fish is barely enough room? hahahah. i think youre confused.
as a shoaling characin, tetras make use of all aspects of the available space. they are not confined to swimming back and fourth. they use all levels of the tank.
also, youre assuming the fish turns around 1" from the end of the tank, rather than next to the glass, which anyone who keeps fish knows that the fish do in fact swim along the glass.
my math is riht on . and guess what. when the football players go home after a long day on the field, i gaurantee their bedroom isnt the size of a football field. heck, their whole house is likely not even close to that size.

buy youre correct. it is my tank, and i will,and do enjoy it very much.
thanks

jwokmuba2

well i guess im goin to apologize for starting this argument,, i didnt mean to hurt anyones feelings,, just thought i would add my opinion. good luck, and i hope others will learn from this thread,, again, its and okay looking tank.

Lucy

No reason for you to apologize, you didn't start anything.

jwokmuba2

thanks lucy, your always there for everyone

TFA101

I just experienced a little scat on youtube much like this one (Tony, you already know ). I must say, I do agree with Lucy on this one with the neons being active fish and such.

@ Aspects,

Just spitballing here. If you haven't already settled down with your neons in this tank, and you have a tank that can accompany your neons, this would make a great tank for fish of the microrasbora family (if you can find them). Celestial Pearl Danios and many of the dwarf rasboras stay well under an inch long. This would be a much better habitat for these smaller fish than the neons. I plan to have a few (maybe 6 or 7) in my 2.5 gallon tank once I find a home for my foster betta.

Of course, you have the final word. Just throwing this out there just in case, or for future reference.

jwokmuba2

there are alot of people here who do not know what they are doing when the join this forum, and thats why there is a forum in the first place, to educate the uneducated, when someone i f someone was to view your thead and think " well he did it why cant i" the people are goin to get the wrong info and not be very happy with the fish and tank that they might chose, which is why i stated my fisrt post in the first place, i wasnt tryin to tell someone what to do i just want other members who didnt know to understand the risks,