marke14

Forgive me for being naive here, but I am going to set up my new 75 gal tank (pics here) in the El Natural style.

I've always loved planted tanks, and I think you can't overemphasize the importance of plants in keeping algae at bay, purifying the water, and just adding to the tank in general.

So my question is ... this tank is up against a wall and will not be getting much sunlight - like nearly none. Is this still considered an El Natural setup (i.e. I am going to lay down topsoil and gravel for the substrate, and avoid dosing, except probably a yeast CO2 generation system)?

Does the sunlight matter (assuming the tank is well-lit otherwise), except from an academic sense, for an El Natural setup?

sb483

Just my opinion: the sunlight doesn't matter, but the CO2 injection does. If you're injecting CO2 via whatever means, it's moving further away from a true El-Natural setup.

Not that there's anything wrong with that. Plenty of posts here describe El-Natural tanks w/ CO2 injection. I personally have 2 tanks without any injection; fish and bacterial decomposition provide CO2 for plants. Both my tanks are in front of windows, but even if they weren't (& had only fluorescent lighting), I would still call them El-Natural tanks.

marke14

I hear you. I suppose for the "purists" adding anything (including fluorescent lighting) would technically disqualify the tank as "el natural."

The main thing is I want a really well-balanced system, heavily planted, that doesn't require dosing in order to look good. The concept of using topsoil as a substrate has intrigued me since I got back into this hobby, and I want to go for it.

I think I'm going to head to Home Depot tonight on the way home for a bag of cheap-o topsoil, so I can open up the bag and let it air out for a day or two. Should be just in time for my mom to fly in to stay with us ... welcome, Mom! Never mind the topsoil in the living room (we live in an apartment).

cs_gardener

To me, that statement is what having an El Natural tank means, particularly the well-balanced part. I don't think the source of light is all that important. Sunlight is ideal for growing plants but you have to make do with what you've got.