90 Gallon tank!! For cheap!

[dr_girlfriend]

I got a 90 gallon tank for $30! I am thinking of doing a "natural aquarium" with it. No CO-2, no fert dosing, no high lighting(1.5-2wpg), no water changes (my favorite part)!
After hearing Tom Barr speak at an event, I have the courage to move forward. He said that he has even grown riccia and glosso witht this method. It just takes alot longer for growth.

 

[Fluff]

Good deal!!! Congrats.

 

[TankGirl]

What a sweet deal! Lucky duck!

I am all for the natural aquarium idea. I have a 5.5gal (tomorrow this tank is being moved over to a 10gal) that has no filtration and to see the difference, look at the thread in the link below. In the first post the pic of the 5.5 gal was taken pretty soon after having unplugged it. In the last post is a picture of the absolute jungle that it has become. This tank has been looking about the same for nearly a year, with very modest growth but it looked nice. Now the thing is out of control and it has to be the increased concentrations of ammonia and nitrite at the bottom with all the gunk, I guess. It is really amazing.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=42075

I have friends who are running large tanks this way and they do use powerheads to keep some water moving (I have had a bit of trouble with the water getting too cool where it is away from the heater). Best of luck and keep us posted with that project.

 

[dr_girlfriend]

I'm still debating on wether to use a filter or just a powerhead for circulation. The speaker I listened to uses filters, but its not necessary. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one attempting this venture. Seems everyone on this board and others are all high-tech, which I am also doing with my 10 gallon. As far as the heater, I don't know if I'll use one. My house doesn't get any cooler than 69-70 degrees and is usually 72-75. So maybe thats one problem out of the way.
Your tank looks great TG! I'll definitley keep updating, take alot pics along the way.

 

[TankGirl]

I think Diana Walstad uses filters, but she does not use any media in them, and I don't know if Tom Barr uses media or not. Have you visited naturalaquariums.com? Also subscribe to Aquarium Plants Digest, if you don't already, as Tom frequently posts there and there are lots of good discussions.

Your large tank is going to be so much easier to keep balanced than a tiny tank, and I am excited for you. I'm not ready to unplug my 55 (though I am getting lots of friendly pressure from my no-tech buddies) but someday I'd like to try a larger setup this way. Based on my experience with my 5gal I am sold on the idea. Fish choices must be made carefully, as you know, so I'm interested to see how yours works out.

I still can't get over the price of this tank! People certainly get amnesia when it comes to reselling aquarium supplies (thank goodness )

 

[fisch]

I just started a 10gal natural aquarium. I use a powerhead for water movement but no filter other than the plants. I would recommend checking out Diana Walstad's book Ecology of the Planted Aquarium. I got mine at aquariumplants.com. Check out the forums at aquabotanic too. There is a low tech forum moderated by Diana.

Good look with the new setup. I wish i could find a 90 gal for $30.

 

[dr_girlfriend]

I actually bought that book about a month back, and it sparked my interest. Thanks for the tip to subscribe to the magazine I certainly will do so. (My husband will just LOVE more fish paraphanilia )
I'm really excited and kind of scared to do it on this large a scale, but I guess you are right that it will actually be easier than a smaller tank.
I can't believe I got that tank so cheap either! They started the bidding at 20 dollars I think and someone who I was bidding against stopped at $30! I was willing to go quite higher, but I won't complain!!
Thanks fisch for the info on the forums! You should check out one of these auctions. Maybe you'll luck out too!

People certainly get amnesia when it comes to reselling aquarium supplies (thank goodness )

Really!!! I got a 20 gallon eclipse system with flowerhorn for $90 a while back. They just wanted to get rid of it and they didnt want the fish anymore (which was apparent by the condition she was in). Which wasn't to bad of a deal. But the fish turned out to be worth about 3-4 times what I paid for everything!

 

[TankGirl]

Aquarium Plants Digest is a message board, one of the kind where you send your posts as e-mails and then you get an email with a bunch of posts in it that you read through them as a "digest." Check it out here:

http://www.actwin.com/mailman/listinfo/aquatic-plants