Self Sustaining Tank Setup!

[Rivercats]

If it doesnt add anything I dont really care. I will leave the dead leaves from the plants I am growing in the tank but I think I will pass on adding them lol

They add tannins, although Indian Almond leaves leech much more than the oak and beech. Tannins will darken the water but they also help soften water and they have anti-bacteria and anti-fungal properties as well.

I've only seen a couple tanks that I liked how they looked with dried oak leaves in them.

 

[GodFan]

ok yall thanks! Tht tank is gorgeous! I know the scarlets wont eat the dult shrimp but the babies they will for sure!

 

[BBradbury]

Self-Sustaining Tank

Hello GF...

Just one more post on the idea of a very low maintenance tank if we can. A thought occurred to me. If your aim is that type of tank, then the substrate could be just about anything. The plants are what makes the low maintenance possible, so you could even have no substrate. Doubtful the fish would care, they just need pure water conditions.

I've attached a couple pics of some of the tanks I've changed. These are 55 Gs, heavily planted and stocked. They used to require I remove and replace half the tank water weekly. About 125 - 150 gallons per week. Now, with the added land plants. I change out 10 gallons weekly.

It's doubtful the tanks would win a beauty contest. But, might be right for someone interested in having a lot of fish and plants without needing to put in much time doing maintenance, like me.

Just a thought.

B

 

[Tetra1990]

Hello GF...

Just one more post on the idea of a very low maintenance tank if we can. A thought occurred to me. If your aim is that type of tank, then the substrate could be just about anything. The plants are what makes the low maintenance possible, so you could even have no substrate. Doubtful the fish would care, they just need pure water conditions.

I've attached a couple pics of some of the tanks I've changed. These are 55 Gs, heavily planted and stocked. They used to require I remove and replace half the tank water weekly. About 125 - 150 gallons per week. Now, with the added land plants. I change out 10 gallons weekly.

It's doubtful the tanks would win a beauty contest. But, might be right for someone interested in having a lot of fish and plants without needing to put in much time doing maintenance, like me.

Just a thought.

B

Those type of stands scare the heck outta me!!

 

[GodFan]

Hello GF...

Just one more post on the idea of a very low maintenance tank if we can. A thought occurred to me. If your aim is that type of tank, then the substrate could be just about anything. The plants are what makes the low maintenance possible, so you could even have no substrate. Doubtful the fish would care, they just need pure water conditions.

I've attached a couple pics of some of the tanks I've changed. These are 55 Gs, heavily planted and stocked. They used to require I remove and replace half the tank water weekly. About 125 - 150 gallons per week. Now, with the added land plants. I change out 10 gallons weekly.

It's doubtful the tanks would win a beauty contest. But, might be right for someone interested in having a lot of fish and plants without needing to put in much time doing maintenance, like me.

Just a thought.

B

Ok sweet! I will have low biolad so it will be even lower maintenance! Can you give me an in detail description of what you did and upclose pics?

 

[StrawberryBlonde7]

Just a thought on food production , a self cloning crayfish would be a good idea, only need one once it starts reproducing it keeps going.

 

[GodFan]

Just a thought on food production , a self cloning crayfish would be a good idea, only need one once it starts reproducing it keeps going.

That would be really cool but they would kill my fish and I would worry about them escaping...... I can remember a time when I was afraid to walk through my room because one of these stinkers was running free.......

 

[BBradbury]

Self-Sustaining Tank

Hello again GF...

OK. Attached are some tank pics. Excuse the quality. Remove all the potting mixture to expose the roots. Emerse the roots of the Chinese Evergreen and aerate them, to get good water movement for nutrient use. The leaves remain above the water to take in CO2 from the air.

The fish provide the nitrogen in their waste. The nitrogen dissolves in the water and the plants take it in for food and keep the water pure for the fish. The plants and fish thrive in the nutrient rich and pure water conditions. I just replace water lost to evaporation.

You have a balanced tank that requires very little maintenance. This is a simplified description, but the system works.

B

 

[GodFan]

Thanks! I LOVE the way that looks! What all types of plants did you use?

 

[StrawberryBlonde7]

I have had one of these crayfish with platies with no issue at all.maybe I am just a lucky one?

 

[GodFan]

I have had one of these crayfish with platies with no issue at all.maybe I am just a lucky one?

Platies are much bigger and more active than the planned species. They could probably be ok with platies.

 

[brennae]

I'm interested in this idea also, following this thread.

 

[aqua_chem]

Can you redefine your goals for me? I'm not sure what you're aiming for?

The thing about the PT.net thread that you linked is that it was set up essentially from the ground up to be what it is. The problem that most people experience is that they are not willing to compromise 'traditional tanks' to such a degree that he did to get what he has.

Things that he did right that were important to success:

He adds detritus and uses a MH to create algae and feed the micro-invertebrates that he intentionally added (ostracods in his case). He then let them sort their business out over 3 months. Imagine someone letting their tank sit essentially unoccupied for 3 months. Then he added 7 nano fish (Bororas maculata, a micropredator in the it's really only going to eat the ostracods)and let them chill for another month, and then added the only macro predators (a category that most fish that we like are included in, including/especially badis) almost half a year after the tank was first started so that an ecosystem could develop that could support them. Another critical thing to remember is that for a 3'x3' tank, this tank is massively understocked, a hugely important factor for the ecology of the tank (see the Rule of 10 in ecology).


Key Points:
Bottom up complete ecosystem
Long establishment period
Custom designed tank with large footprint
Added detritus
Immensely understocked
Strong light (but not excessive)

 

[Autumnsky]

One of my favorite plants for cleaning the water is the Arrowhead house plant Syngonium, Nepthytis has a huge variety of leaf shapes and colors to combine or select from. Keeps the water in excellent condition and never had as beautiful house plants as when I was growing giant vases of these.

A small side note is that some plants, parts of plants and sap from plants could be toxic, (and different parts could have varying degrees of toxicity). You may want to consider letting houseplant cuttings harden off/heal cut in a non fish container of tank water, if you happen to be using cuttings.

And as with everything check toxicity in relation to roots (if fish might be root nibblers) and plant parts safety for the sake of children, cats, dogs, pet birds, and fish, etc.

 

[BBradbury]

Self-Sustaining Tank

Thanks! I LOVE the way that looks! What all types of plants did you use?

For GF...

There are several land plants that will work: Chinese Evergreen (Aglaonema) varieties work best. Those in the pics are Cutlass and Gemini. Pothos and Philodendron, second best.

I like to mist the plant leaves in the morning, because they are tropical. I mist them with a diluted aquatic plant fertilizer and also add a little of the liquid fert to the treated replacement water.

Go for it. You don't have to commit to a lot time and effort.

B

 

[Wyomingite]

I've never tried anything like this to the extent you are, but I have tried to maintain a reproducing colony of inverts in a tank with a pair of fish on numerous occasions as a supplemental food source (both dwarf cichlids and badids), and have always ended up with the fish strippin' the prey to nothin' in a short period of time. Even a 20 gallon was inadequate to maintain a colony of copepods, ostracods, or daphnia with a single pair of fish for any significant length of time, IME, even after the inverts had had months to establish themselves.

If the badis won't eat the shrimplets (as someone stated in an earlier post they are compatible) then I would think yer gonna be overrun with shrimp before long. Ya may end up havin' to feed the badis daily after all. The extra feedings, shrimp population growth and die-off could cause water quality issues. Most of the plants ya chose are slow growin', low-light species. I use hornwort as a "nitrate sponge", it grows like a weed in good lighting, but the lighting ya have may not be enough. And I still hafta do WCs every two weeks. The addition of house plants looks like it may serve the same purpose.

WYite

 

[GodFan]

Can you redefine your goals for me? I'm not sure what you're aiming for?

The thing about the PT.net thread that you linked is that it was set up essentially from the ground up to be what it is. The problem that most people experience is that they are not willing to compromise 'traditional tanks' to such a degree that he did to get what he has.

Things that he did right that were important to success:

He adds detritus and uses a MH to create algae and feed the micro-invertebrates that he intentionally added (ostracods in his case). He then let them sort their business out over 3 months. Imagine someone letting their tank sit essentially unoccupied for 3 months. Then he added 7 nano fish (Bororas maculata, a micropredator in the it's really only going to eat the ostracods)and let them chill for another month, and then added the only macro predators (a category that most fish that we like are included in, including/especially badis) almost half a year after the tank was first started so that an ecosystem could develop that could support them. Another critical thing to remember is that for a 3'x3' tank, this tank is massively understocked, a hugely important factor for the ecology of the tank (see the Rule of 10 in ecology).


Key Points:
Bottom up complete ecosystem
Long establishment period
Custom designed tank with large footprint
Added detritus
Immensely understocked
Strong light (but not excessive)

Essentially I want to not need to do anything except top off the water. I dont mind feeding but would like them to be without food for a few weeks.

One of my favorite plants for cleaning the water is the Arrowhead house plant Syngonium, Nepthytis has a huge variety of leaf shapes and colors to combine or select from. Keeps the water in excellent condition and never had as beautiful house plants as when I was growing giant vases of these.

A small side note is that some plants, parts of plants and sap from plants could be toxic, (and different parts could have varying degrees of toxicity). You may want to consider letting houseplant cuttings harden off/heal cut in a non fish container of tank water, if you happen to be using cuttings.

And as with everything check toxicity in relation to roots (if fish might be root nibblers) and plant parts safety for the sake of children, cats, dogs, pet birds, and fish, etc.

Thanks! I forgot all about toxicity! That plant looks pretty cool too!

For GF...

There are several land plants that will work: Chinese Evergreen (Aglaonema) varieties work best. Those in the pics are Cutlass and Gemini. Pothos and Philodendron, second best.

I like to mist the plant leaves in the morning, because they are tropical. I mist them with a diluted aquatic plant fertilizer and also add a little of the liquid fert to the treated replacement water.

Go for it. You don't have to commit to a lot time and effort.

B

Thanks! I love the plants you picked!

I've never tried anything like this to the extent you are, but I have tried to maintain a reproducing colony of inverts in a tank with a pair of fish on numerous occasions as a supplemental food source (both dwarf cichlids and badids), and have always ended up with the fish strippin' the prey to nothin' in a short period of time. Even a 20 gallon was inadequate to maintain a colony of copepods, ostracods, or daphnia with a single pair of fish for any significant length of time, IME, even after the inverts had had months to establish themselves.

If the badis won't eat the shrimplets (as someone stated in an earlier post they are compatible) then I would think yer gonna be overrun with shrimp before long. Ya may end up havin' to feed the badis daily after all. The extra feedings, shrimp population growth and die-off could cause water quality issues. Most of the plants ya chose are slow growin', low-light species. I use hornwort as a "nitrate sponge", it grows like a weed in good lighting, but the lighting ya have may not be enough. And I still hafta do WCs every two weeks. The addition of house plants looks like it may serve the same purpose.

WYite

Well I will try. It may not work without feeding but I know badis eat shrimplets so at least they wont overrun the tank.

 

[aqua_chem]

Top-off and feed only is probably the easiest setup to get up and running, and BBradbury's setup will be ideal for that. As far as no feeding goes, that will dramatically limit your stocking. Easiest would probably be to have a leaf-littered tank loaded with scuds or something as well as shrimp, and maybe a few minor-league predators, but it will take some serious planning on your end.

 

[GodFan]

Top-off and feed only is probably the easiest setup to get up and running, and BBradbury's setup will be ideal for that. As far as no feeding goes, that will dramatically limit your stocking. Easiest would probably be to have a leaf-littered tank loaded with scuds or something as well as shrimp, and maybe a few minor-league predators, but it will take some serious planning on your end.

Yea I would like to try but if I can get it to top off and feed only Ill be happy.

 

[Borderlesscott]

Speaking from experience, Scarlet Badis do not eat RCS or the babies, I actually sell RCS I breed in a tank with Scarlets. I've never seen them eat young shrimp or adults, some of my RCS adults are bigger than the Badis. In a tank that's going to be really overgrown, if there is even a slight chance the Scarlet Badis are going to prey on the young, they will more and likely be very elusive till of a safe size, I honestly think this part will not work.