Manwithnofish

I didn't read much in this thread regarding how the two approaches differ with respect to algae. Do high-tech aquariums have to deal with algae to a much larger degree that the El-Naturals?

Because it's been my experience that with high tech, you MAY figure out how to get things in balance and have some peace of mind. I never found the secret. Is it just as difficult on the low tech side?

szymonw

well, in general I would say that in HT you have to control much more to keep the balance as you say. in LT nature works much more for you. the secret to run LT untroubled lies in proper substrate. the (lightning, fishes etc.) you can easily correct in case "in progress" but when you make mistake with substrate you too often have to start again.

the question I replied stayed unanswered by quite a long time but in fact i'd like to know what you all think about it as we have different experiences.

hippophagy

Hi,

I like a tank that looks like an Amano in design but with the ease of care of a Walstad. I also mix the two philosophies somewhat. I am currently using a substrate (eco-complete) that sat at the bottom of a dismantled tank for over a year. I mixed that with some flora base (at the recommendation of my LFS). I will not be vacuuming the gravel. The eco-complete had quite a bit of mulm. So much so that I had to rinse the tank a bit before I got it setup. I believe that mulm should be allowed to collect as it becomes part of the "filtration" for a natural tank. I don't use filters just a simple submersible pump to increase water flow. I am a firm believer in as many creatures in the life cycle as possible. I stock my tanks with the usual snails and shrimp but in addition I add scuds, daphnia, tubifex worms, copepods, etc. Not only do these organisms help to break down wastes but they are also a food source. I prefer no feed tanks when possible. I don't like pandering fish. Fish that feed on live food ignore humans and act more like wild fish. Seeing fish hunt is a remarkable and fascinating thing. I did invest in a metal halide light fixture and I am very happy with it. The light it throws is breathtaking and plants flourish under it. I am using the "green" ADA 150W bulb over a 45G tank. I am adding CO2 via a simple setup that feeds a mix of air and CO2 into the submersible. I bought the Hydor kit and found a generic CO2 cartridge to fit it. The plants are quite happy and I have grown a lush carpet of HC with this setup in the past. It's my understanding that most natural bodies of water have far more CO2 then what we can get in the average planted tank. I guess the approach I favor is set it and forget it. Find that right balance and then let the tank do its thing. In past tanks I have avoided water changes and only top up for evaporation. I believe in very low fish loads and very high planting. I don't trim plants normally although I might in this tank. I probably won't add ferts I'll just let the plants grow as much as they can with what's available. Anyone share my middle of the road approach?

Shawnboy

I think the difference between high and low tech is the amount of stress it creates for the individual when they are away from the tank for more than 24 hrs.

Low tech. 24 hrs = no problem
high tech. 24 hrs = I hope ________ doesn't break

my 2 cents worth

dwalstad

Thanks for a good laugh!

1aqumfish

Just to let you know we went camping for three days my Son who has a tank, see testimonial he took care or my tanks. My high tech was covered in algae when we got back. It took me days to figure out the co2 was interrupted causing the outbreak. It was just how could it be so bad after only three days when I hadn't cleaned the glass for like two months because it was running so clean. I know the algae adjusts faster to new conditions. My shrimp tanks I just told him to leave them alone so they were fine. But the NPT tank just had more babies and was doing great. I am worrying about our 10 day summer vacation already... what will happen to my 55 high tech under a teenage friends care? I am very afraid!

Tony

Jane in Upton

Well Gosh Tony....

in my opinion, ANYthing left under the "care" of teenage boys is enough to make one afraid, LOL! Yes..... a movie quote comes to mind.... "be afraid. Be VERY afraid."

That said, is there a way you could scale BACK your CO2 and lighting in preparation for your 10 day trip? Its like traveling at high speed - any little thing that goes awry has large consequences, and requires focused correction. Whereas, if you're moving more slowly, changes and permutations can be dealt with a bit more evenly, and over-correction isn't as serious a problem as it is at high speed.

If your tank inhabitants are established, you may be able to scale back without disrupting the balances that are in place. I think one of the previous posters mentioned their CO2 running out, bulbs getting old, and their tank just naturally migrated towards lower tech, without major problems.

On a side note, I was just reading the mineralized soil thread, and see that some folks are able to do quite a bit with this substrate method, both high tech and low tech. I will probably try this as a hybrid of sorts, raising the light levels as I have with some NPTs which have been up and running for an extended amount of time. Once the initial flush of nutrient availability in an NPT setup settles down (and with it the algae) I've had a good deal of success with raising the light levels.

As to the thread topic, I agree it really boils down to the amount of time and effort one is able to devote to your tanks. Personally, I like that my NPTs will chug along without a lot of supervision when necessary.

For the last two years, I've barely paid attention to my tanks, shutting down some and transferring flora and fauna to the couple that have been limping along. Amazingly, they've gotten by with lights on timers, feeding when I think of it, and some half-hearted water changes every 4 or 5 months. Thankfully, an encampment of worms and the natural proliferation of edibles has supplemented the fish. Having low-temp dried daphnia on the menu has helped - the eggs hatch, so on days I forget to feed, there's been other sources. The last month or two, I've finally been able to pay attention to them again, and I've been pleasantly surprised at what is still going in them! I lost a few geriatric red line rasboras, but the harlequins and danios are still going strong. And behind some overgrown Najas, I even uncovered several plants I'd long since written off as gone! Little groups of rooted plants have been welcome discoveries - Crinum calimistratum, some E. angustifolius and different crypts have all been slowly puttering along, hidden from view. Several types of Hygro had become emergent (VERY wild looking) and I was most astonished at the water parameters when I finally brought myself to do some testing. Expecting the worst, and that my poor fish had acclimated to terrible conditions, I could hardly believe when all water parameters were great - ph 7.0 (spot on - that NEVER happens!), ammonia 0, nitrites 0 and nitrates negligible! I measured 4 dKH, and 3-4 dGH. I was absolutely floored at these good readings! Of course, now that I've been messing around with it again, the numbers are not nearly as good - my tap water is hard as rocks, and since I weeded, I've noticed more nitrates. But it is good to be able to SEE the fish again, LOL!

Anyhow, I've been pleasantly surprised at how my little 30 gallon NPT has chugged along with minimal input from me. Granted, it had that overgrown-pond look, but for next-to-no maintenance for a protracted period of time, I really think I'm ahead of the game! I'm sure if it had been a high tech tank, it would have become a smelly algae pool long ago.

Yeah, I'm hooked on low tech.
-Jane

gr8nguyen1

bettys step by step article on dianes book stated that after laying down the soil to scatter some crushed shells. can anyone tell me why this is. and also would it be ok for me to use the cuttlefish bones i have for my tortoise

davemonkey

It's for calcium. IF you have very hard tap water, you probably don't need to do this. I'm not sure about cuttlefish bones, but I'd assume it would be similar.

-Dave

dwalstad

If your tapwater has a GH of 4 or more, you don't need to worry about adding a calcium source.

However, if you have really softwater with a GH less than 4, you can use cuttlefish bones. All bones and shells contain calcium carbonate.

Remember that the more ground up the material-- whether egg shells, oyster grit, crushed coral, cuttlefish bones, dolomite lime pellets, seashells, etc-- the faster it will leach calcium into the water.