What to do with a one gallon tank? I know this is a hotly debated topic, but I'm going to go ahead and stock it with a single betta, and keep a close eye on it.

This tank has been collecting dust since we moved the goldfish out of it almost immediately last year. I decided I wanted to restore it to service. It looks like the only thing I can reasonably put in there is a single betta, and even that seems debatable.

There's not much to design or first steps. I took out the tank, set it up, added some water, and treated it. I'll probably add a second artificial plant, since it seems bettas like to have the opportunity to hide sometimes, and right now there's only one small plant in there.

I'll toss in some quick start bacteria when I put the fish in, but from what I read I can't really expect such a small tank to cycle anyway, so I'm just going to have to check the chemistry frequently and do a lot of water changes.

UPDATE: After several days of watching the fish in the old environment, and reading up on betta care, I completely redesigned the aquarium and put a little bit of thought into it.

My first concern was water volume, both total volume, and usable volume that the fish can swim in. The undergravel filter had a tube for the airstone that came up almost dead center of the tank's space, and the fish kept bopping into it. I was also concerned about the water flow through the undergravel filter and the constant noise and surface bubbling from the air stone. The fish seemed reluctant to go to the surface to breath because of all the bubbles. I was also worried about the harder plastic edges of the artificial bush damaging the fish's fins when he swam past or tried to hide.

For my design, I eliminated everything that was previously in the tank except for the fish, completely removing the undergravel filter and the airstone. I replaced the gravel with a more natural-looking gravel, and used less of it so there would be more volume for water. The old hard plastic plant went away, replaced with a softer plastic plant with longer, wavier fronds that the fish can hide among without damage. I also added a small "sunken pot" feature to give him something to hide behind. I added a betta hammock near the top so the fish can relax near the surface if he likes. Last in my list, but actually first to be implemented, I added a backing on the aquarium with a scene of a coral reef, using scrap from the backing I put on the goldfish aquarium.

It looks a lot cleaner now, and gives the fish still water and more swimming volume, with a rest area and safer hiding spots.

This tank uses an air stone and under gravel filter.

A seven-watt incandescent bulb provides light. The switch for the light doesn't work properly, though, so I'll probably short it to be always on, then put the light on a standard wall timer.

I'm trying betta flakes and betta pellets, to decide which this fish prefers. When we're on vacation I've got seven-day feeder bricks.

With this tank I'm inspired to put some equipment to use, and pick my OWN fish instead of letting the kids pick all the fish. This one is mine, dammit. The kids picked the goldfish, and they'll probably pick the tropicals, too. This one is for me.

My goal: provide a healthy environment for the fish despite the small tank size.