Coldwater plants

I've chosen the plants for my cordless coldwater set-up to be, and put together a very quick image of what they will look like together. Plants on the top with be background and are as follows, right to left: hornwort, java fern, anacharis. Plants on the bottom will be the foreground and are four-leaf clover and narrow-leaf chain sword. If I manage to find a nice piece of driftwood I'll most likely be adding some java moss as well.

My hope is that these will all grow like mad and keep me busy with weekly prunings. That way they will do a great job of filtering the bowl, and I won't have to end up trying to find a canister filter that will work with rounded sides! Anyway, I think my selection has a nice array of shades and textures. I'm really pleased with it.

I've decided upon Eco-Complete substrate in black. It's great for the plants, and will also hopefully bring out the colors in the flagfish since they tend to camouflage to their environments.

A note on goldfish

I've been racking my brain for the last few weeks trying to think of a suitable way to keep goldfish, inspired by the traditional small bowl. I searched out larger style bowls and the largest I could find, the 16 gallon BiOrb system, was still rather small for a 6-8 inch fish (larger for comets and commons), since the width was about that of a 10 gallon tank. Then I did a little more research into goldfish behavior and discovered that they are rather social fish, and would need ideally to be kept with other goldfish, making the absolute smallest size tank for 2 goldfish a 30 gallon.

Since goldfish really do need a large tank (way larger than any fishbowl I've ever seen even on the Internets!) and are very messy fish needing heavy filtration, I have to now admit my defeat. At the risk of sounding preachy, I just have to say it. Goldfish CANNOT be kept in bowls (unless you want to get an enormous drum-style tank special made and maybe not even then) and should most ideally be kept in large ponds. I hate to say it, but it's just the truth.

The "stress free" water change

The most common way for most fishbowl keepers to change the water in their bowls involves placing the betta or other fish in a separate container, dumping out the entire contents of the bowl, rinsing the gravel, then refilling it. The whole process is very stressful for your fish, and unhealthy when continued on a regular basis. Not to mention that because I keep live plants, the aforementioned method would be impossible. I say, there is a better, and much less disruptive way.

A stress free water change requires the following materials:
- container to hold water (for my 2.5 gallon bowl I use a 1/2 gallon plastic fish bowl)
- a small length of air line tubing
- a plastic cup with many holes pokes in the bottom using a fork or knife
- dechlorinating water conditioner (of course!)

I begin the siphon by placing one end of the air line tubing into the tank, and sucking on the other end. Be sure to keep an eye on the water in the tube, and place it inside the container (for me the 1/2 gallon fish bowl) before it gets to your mouth. You don't want to drink dirty tank water (although it won't kill you, so don't worry if you do accidentally)! Let the water flow into the container until it is full, or you've removed the amount of water you desire to change. To stop the siphon simply pull the end of the tubing which is inside the main bowl out of the water.

Now, empty the dirty water and refill the container at the tap, trying to keep the new water at the same temperature as the tank water. Add dechlorinator. Place the plastic cup (with the holes in the bottom) over the top of the bowl, and slowly pour the new water into the cup. Continue adding water as the cup slowly empties until the tank is full again.

See, that was easy! And your fishy friend will thank you for leaving him alone in his bowl while you changed his water.

Cordless coldwater flagfish bowl

I'm currently in the planning stages for a spherical bowl with no cords. I have chosen the American Flagfish for its small size, and hardiness, but most importantly because it is the only fish I have discovered as of yet that is both coldwater and stillwater dwelling. The great majority of fish are either tropical and therefore need a heater (cord!) or are coldwater but need the current provided by a filter system (cord!). But alas, the American Flagfish needs neither of these things to thrive, as they come from slow-moving to stagnant bodies of water in North America.

My plan revolves around stocking very lightly, most likely only 3 specimens in an 8 gallon bowl, and using only dense plant growth for primary filtration. My two biggest challenges will lie in finding plants which thrive in coldwater, and those which the fish (a notorious plant eater) won't touch. I'm starting with anacharis and going from there.

This will most likely be a fairly expensive project for its size because the bowl itself (the only one of significant size I've been able to find) will cost around $60 and because I will most likely need to purchase the fish themselves online. Depending on the availability of these things in your area, I'm confident this could be made a much cheaper project. If you find supplies cheaper, be sure to comment and fill us in.

Sebastian's chintzy betta bowl

It was important to me when first starting this project to think about the two types of fish which are most frequently harmed by the fish bowl craze; the betta and the goldfish. I decided to start with the betta both because it would be a smaller, and more manageable project price-wise, and because I couldn't for the life of me find a single bowl larger than 3 gallons. Anywhere. The goldfish would have to wait.

Anyway, to the left is what I initially came up with. I have since added many more plants, but this would be really nice just as it is, or with silk plants, should you not want to hassle with live ones. Pictured is a single live aponogeton, grown from a bulb purchased in the Wal-Mart aquatics section.

This would be a great project for a college student wanting a small pet. It is small without being totally cramped, and everything is made from practically unbreakable plastic. Need to take your fish home with you over breaks? No problem! Just unplug the filter and heater, empty halfway and carry out the door. Half-full this weighs approximately 12 pounds.

Here are the supplies I started with for my betta bowl:

- 2.5 gallon plastic drum shaped fish bowl purchased here for a total of $12.74, including shipping. While I wouldn't dare go any smaller, this is a sufficient size, and rather large as far as fish bowls go. It is 10.5 inches wide and tall. Nearly 6 inches deep.

- Nano filter made by Red Sea, purchased here for $17.98, including shipping. Note, that you cannot use this filter if you buy a glass fish bowl. This is because the lip it will hang on is round. In order to make it fit I cut two slits in the rim so it could be bent, and the filter could be jammed on. This is not difficult to do, but would be impossible with glass.

- 7.5 watt mini heater, purchased here for $9.40, free shipping. This is pre-set, meaning it will heat the water about 5-8 degrees above room temperature. Since my house stays (like most) in the low 70s, it heats to a perfect 78-80 degrees. If your home remains in the high 70s or low 80s, you could go without a heater. If it fluctuates a lot you'll want to go with something like this, which is harder to conceal, but has a thermostat which maintains a consistent temperature.

- Ordinary aquarium gravel, water dechlorinator, airline tubing for "stress free" water changes (to be described later), and a ceramic cup I had sitting around the house for a hiding spot.

All costs included, this should run under $50. Not bad for a fully functioning aquarium.