yngwiemalmsteen Posted February 11, 2004 Share Posted February 11, 2004 I am thinking of starting a plant tank with only a handful of fish with no filter. Is anybody doing this successfully? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burek Posted February 11, 2004 Share Posted February 11, 2004 No matter what you gotta have a filter its the first and main thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mianos Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 Unfiltered planted tanks are discussed quite often on the APD aquatic plants mailing list. )Even if the tank has fish as long as it's not very deep many fish will be fine.) This is an old reference: unfiltered disucssion There was some recent dicussion as well as a web page with lots of photos but I can find them at the moment. You can search Fins You will find the dynamics of the tank will be quite different to filtered tanks so you may have different problems and lack of some common problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brett4Perth Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 Filters are by no means necesary in all tanks. You can have a nice small tank with some plants and a small number of fish. The plants remove most of the ammonia/nitrates from the water and the surface of the gravel/plants/decor provides homes for enough bacteria to mop up the rest. The main issue is not filtration but water movement. Water movement is very advantages for improving gas exchange (oxygenation), preventing temperature stratification and providing nutrients to the plants. I also think it helps to decrease algea problems in some instances. Most filters provide both functions, but in a lightly stocked tank with lots of healthy plants the water circulation is the most important. Cheers Brett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OziOscar Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 I have a 12" cube with some stricta, java fern and some Echindorus spp. cuttings with my last golden gourami (sold the rest, this was a stray buck who was too antisocial to pass on in good conscience - he is a total thug to his own kind), 10 neons and the last serpae tetra (his buddies ended up as Oscar poo ) with a tiny (about the size of a pack of fags) Resun 300 l/h filter with a pad of 1" x 1.5" x 1.5"... It's not much more than a baby powerhead. Stuff all mechanical filtration, plants giving most of the biological filtration and they all seem happy so far... The only thing I think that makes it work is the water movement to improve oxygen content in the water. Cheers - OziOscar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hieuc Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 if the tank has lots of the plants u cant get away with minimal filtration. in my 3ft tank all i have running is a tiny tiny box air powered filter in one corner. and a small internal corner filter which i use after doing water changes and to disperse ferts. i usually dont use this as the discus fish dont like the fast flow. here is what is looks like 3ft discus tank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosmiccreepers Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 Hey hieuc, that tank is FANTASTIC!!!!!! What kind of plants do you have in there? I think i see java fern and a few crypts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
searlesy Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 I have a 3ft tank, with bolbitus, java moss, red melon swords, a couple of different anubias and a plant that I always forget the name of, I will probably remember as soon as I press submit, but it is a broad leafed plant, with a single long stem white cup type flower that is commonly seen in offices. Fish wise, there is a a pair of angles, a pair of rainbows, eel tailed cat, upside down cat, lemon tetra, silver shark and one gourami. All I run on the tank is a dynaflow 2, and I probably only change the cartridge a couple of times a year, and only do a water change maybe 3 times a year if its lucky, and everything has been thriving like this for the last 4 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zappy Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 Hi Searlesy, That plant wouldn't be a peace lily (spag..) plant would it? If it is do you have it totally underwater or just the roots? I was thinking of using this plant but thought it grew slowly? How quick does it grow? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mianos Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 hehe, I am answering a question without looking at the photo you are referring to but hey it's the internets so that's normal. The common aquatic plant 'Anbias' is related to and looks very much like the Spathiphyllum but the Anubias grows fully submersed and the 'spath' is a terrestrial that can survive under water for some time but will eventually wither. check the moral high ground: The Moral Highground Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoolig Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 My first tank, in 1952 was angle iron framed 48x 18x18 very heavily planted, no air or filter, the Corys went through the 1/2 inch of mulm like snow ploughs, I often used to find tiny fry of Danios, and Tetras hiding on the top leaves of the Swords, a friend? gave me a pair of large Blue acaras, a week later I was the owner of 200 hundred more, I fed them sifted Daphnia, the original fish wisely kept to one end of the tank, after 2 weeks I syphoned out the fry, and took them to the lfs, the owner asked me to loan him the parents for a display, I was paid with fish food. PS Catching the fry took me half the day, one time I was to slow and had 6 fry in my mouth. PSS I ran this tank for a year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebe Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 I've just set up an unfiltered 12" cube tank in my office, stocked with Crypts, java fern and java moss and some temporary hygro and cabomba from my 4' planted tank (which lives on the net here: http://au.f2.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/asil_s...rron/my_photos) Next week I am adding 6 neons to the cube. No filter. The plan is it will be stocked lightly enough that the plants will consume any ammonia. So basically I don't think you need a filter in every tank, and put my money where my mouth is! L Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PHL Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 After playing around a bit, I've come to the conclusion that for planted tanks, you don't need a filter, but you do need water movement to circulate the nutrients, and for gas exchange (not just between the water and air, but between the plants and water). In a large tank without, I had problems with hair algae that just went away when I added water movement; I think in smaller tanks that may not be an issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
searlesy Posted February 17, 2004 Share Posted February 17, 2004 Hi Searlesy, That plant wouldn't be a peace lily (spag..) plant would it? If it is do you have it totally underwater or just the roots? I was thinking of using this plant but thought it grew slowly? How quick does it grow? Thanks mianos nailed it, it is spathaphillum (buggered if I know how to spell it), and it was initially fully submerged, but has since grown out the top of the tank and is now growing emersed, which I think is how if naturally grows around waterways. At any rate, it has been doing well for quite a while, but if it starts to go downhill, I will take it out and stick it in the garden, like a few other plants that LFSs have sold me, assuring me they were aquatic plants... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xinguinsis Posted February 17, 2004 Share Posted February 17, 2004 I think you also need to consider the amount of bacteria that would be in your substrate which with resonable water movement shall do quite abit of filtering once properly matured. Regards Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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