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How to: Natural Planted tank

2M views 662 replies 146 participants last post by  Caelth 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Natural Planted tank: Soil based with lots and lots of stem and floating plants. Common snails and shrimp complete the little ecosystem-everything has a job.

Plants functions as the filtration-All livestock and anything organic function as the ferts-When the organics start to break down and decomp-they naturally produce CO2 that the plants need. Shrimp also shred dead/dieing organics/plant matter so that it will break down faster and eat some algae. Snails-eat organics and dead/dieing plant matter and some algae.

Soil based tanks are as close to a complete ecosystem you can create in a closed system/aquarium. Everything works together to create the Balance.

It can take about 3 months for a soil based tank to mature. Once the soil has started its life under water, is alive and full of critters/microorganisms. I like to remove my filter or water movement in my 10gal and under tanks. I do use water movement in my 20gal and larger.

Nitrogen cycle-in properly setup soil based tank with lots of plants you don't need to worry about the nitrogen cycle or do anything special-It happens on its own. The silent cycle.
Often with heavy planted tanks-it will take a long time if ever to see the nitrate reading we normally look for that tells us cycling stage/completeness-But the nitrogen cycle is happening-its silent.

If you properly setup the soil based tank-you can safely add all your livestock on the same day you set it up.

Once mature-water changes are limited and this can vary from once a month to 4-5 times a year. If you want that really clean tank floor with an organized look-the soil based may not be for you.
Over cleaning-water changes and vacuum can upset the balance, however, your water should always look crystal clear-this tells you that you have good balance and the plants, microorganism, shrimp, snails and fish are doing their job.

Dirt-Look for organic type potting soil, top soil or use dirt from your yard. You don't want any added ferts, chemicals...etc.....
Sift the soil or pick through it to remove any large pieces of organics and wood.
In 1-10gal tanks use 1-1.5 inches of dirt
In 20-55gal tanks use-1.5-2 inches of dirt
In over 55gal-use 2-3 inches of dirt

Cap-use either-pool filter sand, play sand or small diameter gravel.
The cap is to help hold the soil in place and you only want to use half as much cap as you do soil.

Hard scape-If using large based items-like big rocks or driftwood-along with more than 1 inch of dirt. Place the hard scape item on top of the first 1 inch of dirt-then add the rest of the dirt and cap.

*Hint: Place the filter and heater in the tank before you place hard scape items. This will help you with proper placement and then place the hood if you are using one to check that everything will fit properly-You want the overflow of the filter to be directed over a hard scape item so it doesn't cause a kick up. Check the intake to insure that it isn't too low to the dirt/cap line-you may need to shorten the intake or place a flat rock under it so it doesn't suck up the soil/cap and ruin the filter.

Lights-proper lighting is really important-without the proper color temp bulb the plants can't see the light to use it for photosynthesis. Without good plant growth the soil based tank will crash.
You want-"Daylight" 6500k bulbs-watts will vary based on length of bulb.
You want to change both the bulb and the starter every 12 months-even if they still work since florescent bulb intensity can be lost over time.
The partition between the light and plants-need to either be removed all together or ensure it is kept clean for best light penetration to plants.
Photoperiod-keep the lights on 10-12 hours. Plants naturally are on 10h/day PP with 1 hour before and after of less intense light.
*Too short a PP or wrong color temp bulb, old bulbs can trick the plants into thinking its a season change and time to go dormant, die or flower.
Poor plant growth can result in poor water quality. You should need to make your first plant trim in 7-10 days after planting.

Algae: Its normal, expected and a sign of a healthy system, however, since this is a closed system-even the good algae needs to be manually removed on occasion. With soil based systems that have proper balance you shouldn't have algae issue-you will have some-but as long as you have enough of the right species of thriving plants-they should out compete problem algae.

Plants: If you can't start a soil based tank with enough of the right species of plants-DON'T set one up...It is important to have enough of the right species of plants on hand, correct lights from the start-otherwise the system might crash.
You want to start with lots of fast growing stem plants and some floating plants. You can add the moss, ferns, anubias to your hard scape items and add some rosette plants too.
Plants I like to use:
Stem plants:
Najas indica (naja grass)
Cabomba caroliniana(green)
C. piauhyensis (red)
Hygrophila dfformis (westeria)
H. corymbosa (giant hygro)
H, siamensis (thin leaf)
Ludwigia natans
Rotala indica
Rosette plants:
Vallisneria americana-var Biwanesis
V. spiralis
Sagittaria subulata
S. platyphylla
Cryptocryne walkeri
Crypt-bronze
C. wendtii
Echinodorus bleheri (amazon sword)
E. ozelot
E. tenellus (chain sword)
Other:
Nymphaes stellata (red lily)
Aponogeton ulvaceus
Microsorium pteropus (java fern)
Vesicularia dubyana (java moss)
Floating plants:
Pistia stratiotes (water lettuce)
Limnobium laevigatum (frogbit)
Lemna minor (duckweed)

Once the hard scape items and fully planted-make water only changes until the water is clear-Turn on the filter and heater-Once at temp-add the livestock after proper acclimation.
If you don't have trumpet snails that burrow to add-be sure and poke the soil a couple of times a week with either chopstick, wooden spoon...etc.....This will help prevent anaerobic soil. Once you make your first trim, plants are thriving-the roots of the stem plants will help prevent anaerobic soil by pulling oxygen into the soil layer.

You will need to make 1-3 times a week 25-50% water only changes for the first 1-2 weeks-Then decrease as you see plants growing/thriving to 1-2 25-50% a week. By the 3 month stage and provided plants are thriving and you have had to make at least 4-5 trims on the stem plants-Reduce water changes to monthly 50% and remove the filter if you want. As the tank matures-plants thriving you can use your judgment on water changes and reduce them further.

I don't use any added ferts or inject CO2-neither are needed in soil based balanced systems-They make everything they need if allowed, however, adding an extra pinch of fish food weekly is a great plant food for NPT's.

Once you have 1 thriving soil based tank-you will soon need another tank due to the plant growth.

Links to more info on NPT's
https://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=84915
https://www.bettafish.com/album.php?albumid=2903

 
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#606 ·
IKR?! gah so frustrating. XD I cleared one of my tanks with it but now my spec is getting the BGA.

The only thing that kills blue green algae is api erythromycin. It destroyed all of it in my shellies tank. It will kill it in literally a couple of days.
Posted via Mobile Device
If nothing else works I might have to try that out. Thanks =)
 
#607 ·
No, that's not the only thing that will kill it. Manual removal, blackouts, H2O2, extra oxygenation, and proper parameters go a long way and can eradicate it or get it to the point of being unnoticeable.

Erythromycin will take care of it, but quite honestly it should be kept as a last resort. Using antibiotics like that does no one a favor in the hobby... The more we unnecessarily or improperly use antibiotics, the more risk there is of antibiotic resistant pathogens killing fish while the only thing we can do is watch. My opinion, and the growing one, is that if something can be taken care of without antibiotics it should be.
 
#609 ·
Most plants can handle a three day blackout, better than BGA at least... Or you can remove them, rinse off any BGA, and put them in another tank for the blackout.

Blackouts that long aren't too great though, for the plants, tank, and fish... That's also kinda a last resort thing, but not as much as antibiotics.
 
#610 ·
note taken. =)
 
#617 ·
In the past few days, have managed to gather the live plants - cabomba, anacharis, and java fern, plus a couple of bacopa and wisteria cuttings (from the mother plant in the big tank), but haven't found any MTS. Big-box pet stores here don't carry them; will check out the LFS. Hoping to get the 3gal set up tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the live plants are happy and thriving in Chief's 3gal tank. Was amazed to literally see roots form so quickly on the cabomba and bacopa (it's only been a couple of days), and the wisteria too. I suppose they like their new home. Almost inclined to leave the tank as is. Almost.


(Chief, the photobomber, loves all the hiding places he has now.)
 
#623 ·
In the first post it says that you can add your betta the same day that you set up the planted tank but I have little bits of soil floating around the top of my tank that snuck through the gravel. Is it still okay to add my betta? Or will he try to eat the dirt bits?
 
#624 ·
^I added Chief the same day I set up the NPT. Prior to adding him tho, I did skim the top for the small amount of dirt around the edges. Did a partial water change two nights ago; water tests today were spot on. The earlier pic posted shows some of the plants before it went to full NPT. Here it is now.



Chief's sleeping spot is right over the cave, nestled in the anacharis.
 
#631 · (Edited by Moderator)
Provided that you have enough of the right species of plants that are actively growing-little if any care is needed on a soil based system-even when stocked heavy, however, with your first NPT-I recommend that you take it slow at first until you get the hang of them-they are not without problems-that said, I have found that I have very few issues with any of my soil based heavy planted tanks-with or without filters-lightly or heavy stocked-To date I have several that haven't seen a water change in over 5 years-only top-offs-never any fish/livestock issues or water quality issues.

I have always added livestock the same day I set a soil based tank up-If you properly set a soil based tank up-it shouldn't be cloudy and it should be ready for stock the same day. Due to the soil and plants the nitrogen cycle is pretty much established already-even without a filter since the plants will provide oxygen for the bacteria.
 
#632 ·
OFL, I think my 75 gal is getting to the point of no water changes with my current stocking. I haven't seen any fluctuations in almost a year and plantd are flourishing. Though, I think I'll continue to weekly or every other week water changes. It encourages me to trim and maintain my plants. And to grab the forks at the bottom from veggie feedings. Haha. What I'd give to have carinvores in my tank XD
 
#634 ·
Keep up with the water changes. There's all sorts of stuff in the water that standard test kits don't test for, so just because your base parameters are ok doesn't mean that you're not building up dangerous levels of other stuff.

A simple water change works wonders as a reset for anything nasty that could be building up. Doesn't have to be on a rigorous set schedule (as you've discovered), but I wouldn't give them up entirely, or let them go ridiculous amounts of time between changes...
 
#633 ·
Tried my first NPT, but my gravel cap wasn't thick enough/poured water too fast and now I have a horrendously hazy tank. :oops:
 
#635 · (Edited by Moderator)
When dealing with a properly setup soil based tank with active growing plants-the tank can take care of itself once mature IME.

When you have active growing live plants that take care of ammonia, nitrite, nitrate-the decomp of the organics also help in keeping the DOC under control-its as near to a complete ecosystem that you can create in a closed system.

A lot of really neat things happen in these type of systems that can't happen in a standard system even tanks that are planted-The soil is what makes the difference-That said, even with soil based systems things can go wrong but nothing like regular systems-you have a lot more wiggle room so-to-speak-of course provided that the NPT is in active growth and setup properly.

Fishy-sounds like your system is working out for you nicely-I usually do my trims and re-plants when I need to top off so I don't off set water and make a mess...lol...then I top off-I have several tanks that haven't seen a water change in well over 5 years or more and one of my 5gal NPT without a filter stocked with lots of snails, RCS and a Betta pair-keeps giving me more fry non-stop-My 55gal has about 50 or so mixed sex/varied age Betta from just that tank alone-sure be glad when its warm enough to get them outside....lol...
 
#637 · (Edited by Moderator)
I use a lot of the 1gal pickle jars, interesting looking container that are at least half to 1gal or more for NPT's-no filters or heaters, however, I do monitor temps to maintain at least 70F for the Bettas I keep in them. Many feel that 70F is too low, however, my Bettas tolerate, thrive and spawn in temps as low as 66F...so mine must be tougher than most. Lower than 66F stress the Betta too much to be safe IME, that said, I have never had a Betta die in water temps unless it drops down to 40'sF and risky in the 50's long term IME

I use all kinds of things outside in the warmer months, however, these are not true NPT's so-to-speak-some do have dirt and all of them have live plants but just not planted per se'-these are generally used for spawning and rearing fry in once the water temp reach at least 66F and night time temps are at least 70F
 
#638 ·
I'm wondering if I have enough plants in here now? I took everything out because the nitrite levels were the prettiest magenta for over a week and it looked like maybe my substrate was too thick. SO I started over and it's about an inch shallower.
1.5 inch bottom including cap


Here is what is looked like before and the nitrites were perpetually above 5.0ppm so I removed Rengar and ordered a palm filter since the lil one wasn't doing anything. I thought it had enough plants I was wrong.



So I'm wondering now what if anything can i do to make this a more viable home. I have TONSSS of other plants floating in two other tanks just need a lil help on what to change.
 
#639 ·
Does anyone have experience with foreground plants? I want to cover my Fluval EBI with a carpet but I can't seem to find any. I think the light the kit comes with is good. But I see people doing a dry start and adding CO2 or other additives and I'm not very experienced so any tips of what carpet plant that will grow well in my fluval ebi and I wont need to add a lot of stuff. Or if I do please tell me!
Could anyone explain a dry start and why its good? Curiosity wise.
 
#641 ·
Re-starting in the hobby

Wow. Just read through this whole thread. What a wealth of information! Planning to bring my 40g bowfront back to life and would like to do it as inexpensively as possible and create a tank that is both lovely and low maintenance.

I was wondering - there is a pond near my house and the flora in there is just starting to sprout. Unfortunately, there is also a lot of algae for the new growth to fight through. If I were to harvest plants from there do you think it would be awfully risky to use them (after I wash them down and remove the detritus and algae) in this type of tank?
 
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