Thank you @Father Fish! I appreciate the comment. I definitely love and agree with your methods. You have been sharing lots of valuable knowledge for many years! I've got so much more to come!
I'm an advocate for creating natural ecosystems in aquariums. I try to understand what's going on inside the tank by observing rather than reacting prematurely. Thanks for the view and comment! 😁😁😁
Awesome! Being disabled I'm getting back to enjoying my aquariums. I have a 29 and a 20 running right now. Though the 20 isn't leaking yet I can see that it's just a matter of time. I have another 20 ready for a fresh build. I ordered Father Fish's pack of soil amendments to which I also add crushed egg shells and dried banana peels.
I haven´t set up a tank for some time now, moved around and haven´t really taken the time to get going again! But for a couple of months now I have really been missing a nice tank to watch and relax i front of. My last tank was about 70 gallons (280l) and it run for years, no water changes but a lot of topping of (I stole water from it to water my plants in my windows... ) We have verry pure/clean water here were I live in sweden, low on chems, minerals and quite soft to, so this setup in this vlog sounds allmost to good to be true, I am going for it!!! Thank you for a lovely, short and no nonsens vlog, you got me as a follower with it!
Please keep posting your microscope footage. This is some of my favorite content. You get crisp video and some of the angles you captured 👌. The rotifer shots near the beginning, you can almost see the full corona. Very nice.
Great video, very pleased to see this being promoted more widely. It’s not just a more healthy environment for your fish, but a much more dynamic one to watch and learn from.
You should sell these as a kit! I'd purchase a kit ! Also just ordered more scuds for my new tank :) Thank you Phillips! If you ever get a "starter kit" I'd buy it immediately!
You must be reading my mind! I know I keep saying there's so much in the works but there really is... Things never seem to move as fast as my brain does. At some point, there will be a pretty thorough product line, including culturing kits of all kinds and jar/tank kits.... Daphnia and live green water cultures are next and will be on the website very soon... They keep telling me to stop throwing out dates. 🤣🤣🤣
Happy to found your Channel Philip. I also believe in same philosophy of Natural Style aquariums. No need to overcomplicate things by adding expensive filters, CO2 Injectors and other expensive equipments. as they say "Nature Finds its way", Just let it find don't disturb the process. I have two 5 Gallon Nature Style Palladarium in my House running for 1 year now, without any water change for a year. I would love to share pics and videos of it with you. I would love to discuss more on this topic with you.
Hello there! Thank you so much for the comment. I would love to see pictures of your tanks and talk more. I agree with you. No need to overcomplicate things. It really can be simple. Mother nature is already doing her thing! You can email me if you'd like at phillipsfishworks@gmail.com Thanks again 😁😁😁
@@phillipsfishworks awesome! I subbed with notifications and just bought a 6 pack of scud balls from you! I keep all my tanks with 3 inches of sand with guppy grass and pathos. Tons of leaf litter and pond culture. All tanks are platies guppies with bettas in each. I just top off and let nature do her thing!
Thank you so much for the order! We appreciate it tremendously! Sounds like you have the perfect environment for scuds or any aquatic life for that matter. I get so excited when I find people who are keeping aquariums this way. Personally I love platys and guppies! I'll have some videos coming out soon showing what's inside of the breeding barrel system... Thanks again for the order. I will be sending you an email soon with shipping details. 😁😁😁
In my planted tank, I haven't had to do a water change in over five years I think. I literally only top off with natural spring water and rinse out the filter from time to. Once your plants have taken proper root and growth. Everything is good from there. Provided that you have good water with the nutrients to plants need. That's if you're not dosing.
Sounds like an amazing ecosystem! I love those long term planted tanks. When you get up and really look at them you can tell a difference between them and newer tanks. Can't rush the process! Thank you so much for the comment and watching the video!
Jusf found your channel . Nice voice, you ash re very easy to listen tomand understand. Will set up my first tank this weekend . I am going tio try a dirted bottom . Wish me luck . 😊
Discovered your channel today - so much great content! That soil layer - if I set up a nano without that soil later - but if do everything else you noted - will it still be possible to create a natural tank (if I skipped the soil)? I started 2 weeks ago before I saw your channel. Right now I only have sand, a few sagittaria, and a billion spider plants rooting, and a pothos. Air stone. Added bladder snails last night. Later will get your scuds. Will add a few white clouds after things establish - what would you recommend for the white clouds for feeding?
Thank you for this video! This is very helpful for a starter like me! I'm looking to start natural aquaria as well. I was wondering: do you first treat the leaf litter, or do you put it in the aquarium straight from gathering it outside? I have one nano cube tank in which I keep a few snails from my old pond. It has several leaves from the pond, but since they come from the pond I don't mind about that. I added some daphnia's and yesterday I noticed some copepods appearing as well (I guess they came from the leaf litter, since I didn't put them in 😁) I now want to set up a small aquarium specifically for snails and in the future two larger aquaria in which I'd like to add guppies, pygmy/dwarf gourami's and some algae eaters together with some ramshorn snails and daphnias. (I will first set up the aquaria and slowly build them up, before putting in the livestock) How well do these fish do in a natural aquarium like yours?
Just found your channel. Thanks to RUclips for the recommendation. I really appreciate the clear explanation of the natural setup. I am very interested in the setting up this process for my aquariums. I am a new subscriber and student.
Thank you so much for the comment! The natural way is an amazing journey. You can learn so much when you observe more and react less… keep watching my videos. I'll have more coming out soon about building tanks and all the rest!!!
Enjoyed seeing Phillips frown on adding commercial chemicals for a quick fix…and that those chemicals might destroy good bio elements…and, in the long run, damage the balance needed for a healthy biome.
Planning to convert my 75 gal to this natural-style method and getting some microfauna going, but I have a large bristlenose pleco and other bottom feeders that would make short work of cucumber slices, lol. Will that be an issue?
The microfauna will feed on the waste from the pleco. So they will still get their share of the cucumber one way or another! My advice would be go slow and add things to your tank and observe. Watch it change and grow overtime! Thanks for the comment!
_Here at Phillips Fish Works, we grow our fish and microfauna in naturalistic setups. This means we try to mimic mother nature by using live plants, leaf litter and other natural objects to create habitat for a thriving population of microorganisms. These tiny critters living in the nooks and crannies of our tanks and barrels provide a nutritious snack for our fish._ *it will be very interesting to see it!* 👍
If I collected sand off of the river beach and didn’t bake it, would that be ok? I want to add a light layer of dirt in my new tank for my big pleco, but currently in my other tank that is store bought sand and plain dirt under the sand, my pleco like to stir everything up from time to time and ruin my water. Could I get away with just having live sand off the beach and not straight from the river and it be ok for my tank?
Hi fish lovers, I have a question! I have never had fish until now, and I got a 10 gallon, almost heavily planted and I also have many wqter lettuces at the top! . I only have one betta and 10 very young blue dream shrimp in it! I have sand as a substrate! I and trying to make it very natural! Would you guys recommend to vacuum it for cleaning?
Would you be concerned with adding plants/leaves which you know have planaria on them (due to observing the sample in a Resurrection Jar)? Or would you first add a dewormer? Is there anything you would be concerned with and recommend a prophylactic treatment for (e.g., tape worms which may come from a creek sample)?
My only real concern with planaria is the fact they are so hated and stigmatized that I do make a real effort to make sure there are none in the cultures I sell... The reality is, unless you do some kind of chemical treatment, there is no way to bring in natural material like plants or otherwise and not also bring in planaria. They are the one creature I have found in every wild location I have collected from. So what's wrong with having them in your aquarium? They do a pretty good job at cleaning up messes. It is possible to get huge populations of them growing in fishless systems which may be problematic but in most situations they're really not a problem. Manual removal with bated traps or other similar options work a great... The problem with treating (especially if you don't see a problem) is you don't really know what you're killing when the most important creatures in your aquarium are too small to see... Again there are situations where treating for parasites may be necessary But to do it for planaria or as a precaution is unwise in my opinion. 😁😁😁
@@phillipsfishworks thanks for your response! I tried to kill the planaria in the Resurrection Jar as recommended by Alex on Fishtory. However, everything seemed to have died from the recommended dewormer (most visibly the scuds) except the planaria.
Yes, I think more often than not that's what people are doing with them. Keep in mind with the presence of fish the small visible creatures will definitely be hiding. Thanks for watching!
Hey Phillips. The information is very helpful thanks. Help me I build n natural pond and add plants add fishs so the problem is the water becomes brown muddy colour I change the water 2 3 times so when I refill it water is crystal clear but after 2 or 3 days it became brown muddy again. Can you me in this pls
Excellent video…!!! I love natural aquariums Just subbed I wish I could purchase a microfauna culture from you…but I’m in Australia and I don’t think it’ll get through the customs
Thank you so much for the comment and watching the video. I appreciate the sub. Yeah, I can't ship to Australia But I appreciate the interest! Stay tuned. So much more to come.
In my 85L tank i have some kind of Turbellaria worms in soil, when my pleco swimin' , he stirs the soil, and that worms goin' on free swimming on aquarium, after that my glass tetra eatin' em.
well this works well with small fishes or very minimally populated tanks... but I really don't know how to make this work if I want to care for fancy goldfish....small fishes are beautiful but I personally prefer the fancy goldies - do you have any advice how to make it work? - natural aquarium for fancy golds?
Can definitely be done with goldfish. With the use of large rocks, it's easy to create areas where small creatures can hide and thrive, but the goldfish cannot disturb them. There are plants that are goldfish friendly as well. Have found jungle val to be very useful for this! Send me an email at phillipsfishworks@gmail.com and I will send you a picture of my daughter's goldfish tank... Also, nothing wrong with having leaf litter and seed pods in a goldfish tank. The creatures will hide and thrive within them and the goldfish won't mess with them much. They may disturb them every now and again but there's also nothing wrong with that. Good luck!
i gathered some mud and water from a small river near me, put it in a jar and was told to stick it in my aquarium... which is a medium gravel 60 gal with fish and plants already in it... is this a good idea? thank you
This can be a hot topic... There's nothing wrong with introducing wild samples into your aquarium. But there are things you want to look out for... Probably should observe it for quite a while before introducing. Also you could put a fish in with the wild sample before you add it to your tank. If you want to be cautious anyways. Thanks for the comment
Does anyone find pool filter sand is almost a thing of our past. Most companies that deal in the ground/above ground pools, are turning to glass mixes. So I, who ran out of sand am having a hard time finding any.
@Mark franklin I don't really boil anything that goes into the aquarium... They can be fresh or I do slice up some veggies and put them in a jar or bag unrefrigerated for a few days. This starts the rotting or break down process and makes them a little softer. It wouldn't hurt if they were a little slimy and nasty. Usually the shrimp jump right on the nasty ones... Hope this helps. Good luck! Thanks for commenting and watching. 😁😁😁
@@darthplagueis3400 Well, that's a great start. No real need to tear everything down. You can add things like leaf litter or other botanicals. I do have microfauna cultures on my website. Any of that would be very beneficial... Leaf litter and seed pods act as a great habitat and food source for microorganisms. The wood you already have in there along with your substrate will be good habitat as well.
@Phillips Fish Works thanks I will definitely check out your website too. When I do a new aquarium whenever that is I will try out the dirt method. I stumbled on this stuff while checking out other aquarium content seems a very good method
Hair algae is useful for all kinds of things. There are situations where you might not want a lot of excess of it. But many types of fish love eating it and so do scuds and other microscopic creatures... It might be an eye soar in a beautiful planted display tank but for purposes of growing microfauna and baby fish, it's useful.
@@phillipsfishworks I have a lot of it in one of my smaller tanks, and am just wondering where it would do the most good. I actually think it’s kind of pretty, like a floating green cloud. But I’ve never heard anyone talk about what the benefits are, or could be. Thank you for your time!
I didnt start my tank the way you did I literally just put some aquarium gravel I bought from walmart in there and just a few plants with no fish I waited about 3 months before adding any type of fish or shrimp and no joke as soon as I added them all I did was drop some fish flakes once a day for them to eat and there was an explosion of life now my plants took over the tank to the point where I cant see and of ita inhabitants when I do spot them I'm amazed by how healthy they seem my shrimps have gotten to almost 2 inches long!
@@phillipsfishworks this is the most interesting aquarium video I've seen on RUclips so far looking forward to see what you post in the future thanks for the heart!
is Prazipro harmful to microfauna, and if so is there any safe treatments for disease or pests that wont harm microfauna? ex, finrot, other common issues
It really depends on how much you're feeding and to a lesser extent how many fish you have. Overstocked and heavy feeding is a recipe for water quality issues. Especially without a filter. A simple spongefilter or air stone may be all that's necessary. How long the tank has been set up and how it's been set up are huge factors as well. Mature, heavily planted tanks make great candidates for filterless aquariums. New setups that are overfed and have a low diversity in microfauna do not... Hope this helps. I always say experiment and try things out. It's not something only the experts can do. Thanks for the comment!
Your totally fine… depends on the fish, and set up... But definitely possible. If you didn't have too many fish. Lots of factors like how old the tank is. Is it planted? Things like that
@Benjamin Mellor Yes, you did see stonewort! Good eye, many confuse it for hornwort. Shoot me an email and I will see what I can come up with. Phillipsfishworks@gmail.com I don't typically sell a lot of plants because I'm always in need of so many more but I will see what I have to spare.
To keep the treatment "knives" sharp I think it's often a good idea to have a natural baseline in order to know when and how to target something if you want to treat it. Antibiotics saves lives everywhere all day, but using it when it's not necessary is a recipe for disaster.
You can set up a natural aquarium in any size container... If it's very small like a gallon or so I wouldn't recommend fish but 8 gallons is great. You might give it 3 or 4 weeks for the microfauna to start really establishing itself. That's a guideline not a rule. In some situations you can do less time in others you need more. It all comes down to how much habitat or hiding places the little creatures have and what kind of populations you're starting with... Hope this helps. Thanks for the comment!
Agree with almost all things, except the substrate. A thick sand layer can compact over time and it won't allow water movement in the substrate. Instead of that, you can use a clay based aquasoil. It doesn't have to be the expensive nutrient rich kind, just some small sintered clay balls. If you're on a stricter budget, crushed lava rock can work too. And addig extra calcium is only necesarry if you're not doing water changes. In general be careful with adding anything that can alter water parameters and test your water. KH should never be higher than GH.
Thank you so much for the comment and watching the video. I hear what you're saying about the sand. I've heard people say that before and I wonder what their personal experience with it is. I have used sand a long time and prefer it as my base substrate. But I'm sure other substrates work well for many, no doubt... As far as adding the extra calcium it really all depends on your particular system and what you're keeping in it. I primarily keep and breed hard water loving fish as well as breed high numbers of snails and shrimp. I also use lots of botanicals like leaf litter and seed pods. The breaking down of all the organic material coupled with the large number of snails and shrimp growing out really takes a toll on my KH. I learned the hard way a long time ago that It was not only beneficial for me to add things like crushed coral or shells but it is necessary. Even with my water changes. Plus you have to really consider your source water chemistry... Having said that there's no denying that everyone is having a very different experience considering their water supply, choice of tank materials and the animals they're keeping in it. Thanks again for watching the video. Your comment is appreciated and valued. Good luck on your aquarium journeys! 😁😁😁
Get a snake expert, one who's excellent in handling rattlers and king Cobras......... Then hire him to toss 30 of these critters in thru' the back door..... Guaranteed to get a female and or male squatters out in a Flash! Saw what I did there? 😊
You're dead right, people are fed bs in petshops / aquariums to have these like sterile tanks, & it's COMPLETELY wrong, mine is a dirt tank-plants growing like crazy, water crystal clear & fish flying around like speedboats 😂, keep spreading the TRUTH 👍👍
Thanks for watching and I definitely appreciate the comment! Love your feedback and I agree with you. Your "fish flying around like speedboats" comment cracked me up. 😁😁😁
I added dirt to my tank. Unfortunately my pleco likes to stir everything up every once in a while and create a mud pit 🥲 but I love that I added dirt and don’t regret it…most of the time haha
I have only wild tanks stuff from lakes streams and peddles. Water too from lakes. 1month i let it settle and then set big life (snails and fishs and shrimps) and all go well
Nice. Happy to see new You Tubers taking up the cause of creating natural systems.
Thank you @Father Fish! I appreciate the comment. I definitely love and agree with your methods. You have been sharing lots of valuable knowledge for many years! I've got so much more to come!
@@phillipsfishworks would be happy to help
@Father Fish I've got a few ideas. Was planning on reaching out to you in the next few days.
Oh wow you got the 🐐 FFs attention👏
I'm an advocate for creating natural ecosystems in aquariums. I try to understand what's going on inside the tank by observing rather than reacting prematurely. Thanks for the view and comment! 😁😁😁
Awesome! Being disabled I'm getting back to enjoying my aquariums. I have a 29 and a 20 running right now. Though the 20 isn't leaking yet I can see that it's just a matter of time. I have another 20 ready for a fresh build. I ordered Father Fish's pack of soil amendments to which I also add crushed egg shells and dried banana peels.
I haven´t set up a tank for some time now, moved around and haven´t really taken the time to get going again! But for a couple of months now I have really been missing a nice tank to watch and relax i front of. My last tank was about 70 gallons (280l) and it run for years, no water changes but a lot of topping of (I stole water from it to water my plants in my windows... ) We have verry pure/clean water here were I live in sweden, low on chems, minerals and quite soft to, so this setup in this vlog sounds allmost to good to be true, I am going for it!!! Thank you for a lovely, short and no nonsens vlog, you got me as a follower with it!
Thank you so much for the comment! Glad you got something out of it. Set something up and keep experimenting! More content to come!
Please keep posting your microscope footage. This is some of my favorite content. You get crisp video and some of the angles you captured 👌. The rotifer shots near the beginning, you can almost see the full corona. Very nice.
Absolutely! More to come very soon. Hope to have more microscope footage in the next week. Thanks for watching and the comment!
I enjoyed the entire video everything was just beautiful
@YOUNGTROPICAL Thank you sooo much! I appreciate you watching and value your comment! 😁😁😁
Great explanation at the end
Great video, very pleased to see this being promoted more widely. It’s not just a more healthy environment for your fish, but a much more dynamic one to watch and learn from.
Yes! Fascinating to watch and learn from. It's a parallel for all environments. Thank you for the comment and watching!
@@phillipsfishworks is it necessary to listen the music to have natural aquarium?
No, it's not fascinating to watch the video, it's annoying!
This natural ecosystem content is always interesting to watch. Keep it up Phillip.
Thanks for watching and the comment! I've got lots of videos in the works. 😁😁😁
You should sell these as a kit! I'd purchase a kit ! Also just ordered more scuds for my new tank :) Thank you Phillips! If you ever get a "starter kit" I'd buy it immediately!
You must be reading my mind! I know I keep saying there's so much in the works but there really is... Things never seem to move as fast as my brain does. At some point, there will be a pretty thorough product line, including culturing kits of all kinds and jar/tank kits.... Daphnia and live green water cultures are next and will be on the website very soon... They keep telling me to stop throwing out dates. 🤣🤣🤣
haha I am super excited for kits!!!!! I'd LOVE to have a scud kit because I've ordered SO many scuds from you already@@phillipsfishworks
I’m digging your content!!! Definitely need to grab me a bag or two.
@Patrick Hamel you wouldn't regret it! Thanks! I appreciate the comment. Plenty more to come!
Love it! 👏🏾 Beautiful video. This is the way.
Thank you so much!
I am all for eco system aquarium
I think it is the most fun
and the best overall
Happy to found your Channel Philip.
I also believe in same philosophy of Natural Style aquariums.
No need to overcomplicate things by adding expensive filters, CO2 Injectors and other expensive equipments. as they say "Nature Finds its way", Just let it find don't disturb the process.
I have two 5 Gallon Nature Style Palladarium in my House running for 1 year now, without any water change for a year. I would love to share pics and videos of it with you.
I would love to discuss more on this topic with you.
Hello there! Thank you so much for the comment. I would love to see pictures of your tanks and talk more. I agree with you. No need to overcomplicate things. It really can be simple. Mother nature is already doing her thing! You can email me if you'd like at phillipsfishworks@gmail.com
Thanks again 😁😁😁
@@phillipsfishworks I have sent videos on your mail. Do check it out when you get time.
Cool video
Wonderful! I agree with everything you said. Too bad for the pet shop industry once people get ahold of this natural method.
Perfect! Well said for a natural ecosystem!
Thank you! I really appreciate the comment. I'm an advocate for natural systems. I've got more videos to come. Keep an eye out!
@@phillipsfishworks awesome! I subbed with notifications and just bought a 6 pack of scud balls from you! I keep all my tanks with 3 inches of sand with guppy grass and pathos. Tons of leaf litter and pond culture. All tanks are platies guppies with bettas in each. I just top off and let nature do her thing!
Thank you so much for the order! We appreciate it tremendously! Sounds like you have the perfect environment for scuds or any aquatic life for that matter. I get so excited when I find people who are keeping aquariums this way. Personally I love platys and guppies! I'll have some videos coming out soon showing what's inside of the breeding barrel system... Thanks again for the order. I will be sending you an email soon with shipping details. 😁😁😁
I love your videos. So much great information
In my planted tank, I haven't had to do a water change in over five years I think. I literally only top off with natural spring water and rinse out the filter from time to. Once your plants have taken proper root and growth. Everything is good from there. Provided that you have good water with the nutrients to plants need. That's if you're not dosing.
Sounds like an amazing ecosystem! I love those long term planted tanks. When you get up and really look at them you can tell a difference between them and newer tanks. Can't rush the process! Thank you so much for the comment and watching the video!
Such wise advice! Thank you. I finally achieved a balance tank after a few initial hiccups doing more or less you have suggested
Thanks for watching and your comment! More to come! 😁
I subbed , I'm your 131st subscriber.
Awesome! I appreciate you subscribing and commenting. There's definitely more to come.
Fantastic content.i will be ordering
Awesome video
Jusf found your channel . Nice voice, you ash re very easy to listen tomand understand. Will set up my first tank this weekend . I am going tio try a dirted bottom . Wish me luck . 😊
Good luck on your journey! Thank you very much for the kind words. Much more to come. 😁😁😁
Discovered your channel today - so much great content! That soil layer - if I set up a nano without that soil later - but if do everything else you noted - will it still be possible to create a natural tank (if I skipped the soil)? I started 2 weeks ago before I saw your channel. Right now I only have sand, a few sagittaria, and a billion spider plants rooting, and a pothos. Air stone. Added bladder snails last night. Later will get your scuds. Will add a few white clouds after things establish - what would you recommend for the white clouds for feeding?
5:28
That sea weed looking this.
What kinda feed is that?
It's usually called dried green seaweed. You can buy online or at your local pet store. Thanks for watching in the comment.
This is very informative❤
Thanks for watching!!!
What heater for a tropical set up? Something affordable to run hopefully haha
Thank you for this video! This is very helpful for a starter like me!
I'm looking to start natural aquaria as well. I was wondering: do you first treat the leaf litter, or do you put it in the aquarium straight from gathering it outside?
I have one nano cube tank in which I keep a few snails from my old pond. It has several leaves from the pond, but since they come from the pond I don't mind about that. I added some daphnia's and yesterday I noticed some copepods appearing as well (I guess they came from the leaf litter, since I didn't put them in 😁)
I now want to set up a small aquarium specifically for snails and in the future two larger aquaria in which I'd like to add guppies, pygmy/dwarf gourami's and some algae eaters together with some ramshorn snails and daphnias. (I will first set up the aquaria and slowly build them up, before putting in the livestock) How well do these fish do in a natural aquarium like yours?
Just found your channel. Thanks to RUclips for the recommendation.
I really appreciate the clear explanation of the natural setup. I am very interested in the setting up this process for my aquariums. I am a new subscriber and student.
Thank you so much for the comment! The natural way is an amazing journey. You can learn so much when you observe more and react less… keep watching my videos. I'll have more coming out soon about building tanks and all the rest!!!
Keep going bro
Enjoyed seeing Phillips frown on adding commercial chemicals for a quick fix…and that those chemicals might destroy good bio elements…and, in the long run, damage the balance needed for a healthy biome.
Planning to convert my 75 gal to this natural-style method and getting some microfauna going, but I have a large bristlenose pleco and other bottom feeders that would make short work of cucumber slices, lol. Will that be an issue?
The microfauna will feed on the waste from the pleco. So they will still get their share of the cucumber one way or another! My advice would be go slow and add things to your tank and observe. Watch it change and grow overtime!
Thanks for the comment!
_Here at Phillips Fish Works, we grow our fish and microfauna in naturalistic setups. This means we try to mimic mother nature by using live plants, leaf litter and other natural objects to create habitat for a thriving population of microorganisms. These tiny critters living in the nooks and crannies of our tanks and barrels provide a nutritious snack for our fish._
*it will be very interesting to see it!* 👍
If I collected sand off of the river beach and didn’t bake it, would that be ok? I want to add a light layer of dirt in my new tank for my big pleco, but currently in my other tank that is store bought sand and plain dirt under the sand, my pleco like to stir everything up from time to time and ruin my water. Could I get away with just having live sand off the beach and not straight from the river and it be ok for my tank?
Hi fish lovers, I have a question! I have never had fish until now, and I got a 10 gallon, almost heavily planted and I also have many wqter lettuces at the top! . I only have one betta and 10 very young blue dream shrimp in it! I have sand as a substrate! I and trying to make it very natural! Would you guys recommend to vacuum it for cleaning?
Is cuttlefish bone sufficient to buffer or should I get shells as well?
Would you be concerned with adding plants/leaves which you know have planaria on them (due to observing the sample in a Resurrection Jar)? Or would you first add a dewormer? Is there anything you would be concerned with and recommend a prophylactic treatment for (e.g., tape worms which may come from a creek sample)?
My only real concern with planaria is the fact they are so hated and stigmatized that I do make a real effort to make sure there are none in the cultures I sell... The reality is, unless you do some kind of chemical treatment, there is no way to bring in natural material like plants or otherwise and not also bring in planaria. They are the one creature I have found in every wild location I have collected from. So what's wrong with having them in your aquarium? They do a pretty good job at cleaning up messes. It is possible to get huge populations of them growing in fishless systems which may be problematic but in most situations they're really not a problem. Manual removal with bated traps or other similar options work a great... The problem with treating (especially if you don't see a problem) is you don't really know what you're killing when the most important creatures in your aquarium are too small to see... Again there are situations where treating for parasites may be necessary But to do it for planaria or as a precaution is unwise in my opinion. 😁😁😁
@@phillipsfishworks thanks for your response! I tried to kill the planaria in the Resurrection Jar as recommended by Alex on Fishtory. However, everything seemed to have died from the recommended dewormer (most visibly the scuds) except the planaria.
Awesome, how does your lighting system work?
Can you use these cultures in an established tank? I have a nutrient base with sand on top, and plenty of plants (and fish).
Yes, I think more often than not that's what people are doing with them. Keep in mind with the presence of fish the small visible creatures will definitely be hiding. Thanks for watching!
Hey Phillips. The information is very helpful thanks. Help me I build n natural pond and add plants add fishs so the problem is the water becomes brown muddy colour I change the water 2 3 times so when I refill it water is crystal clear but after 2 or 3 days it became brown muddy again. Can you me in this pls
can I put a half a milkweed pod in
Fantastic video!
Thanks I really appreciate the comment!
Excellent video…!!! I love natural aquariums Just subbed
I wish I could purchase a microfauna culture from you…but I’m in Australia and I don’t think it’ll get through the customs
Thank you so much for the comment and watching the video. I appreciate the sub. Yeah, I can't ship to Australia But I appreciate the interest! Stay tuned. So much more to come.
In my 85L tank i have some kind of Turbellaria worms in soil, when my pleco swimin' , he stirs the soil, and that worms goin' on free swimming on aquarium, after that my glass tetra eatin' em.
Sounds like a great situation going on in your tank! Thanks so much for the comment!
well this works well with small fishes or very minimally populated tanks... but I really don't know how to make this work if I want to care for fancy goldfish....small fishes are beautiful but I personally prefer the fancy goldies - do you have any advice how to make it work? - natural aquarium for fancy golds?
Can definitely be done with goldfish. With the use of large rocks, it's easy to create areas where small creatures can hide and thrive, but the goldfish cannot disturb them. There are plants that are goldfish friendly as well. Have found jungle val to be very useful for this! Send me an email at phillipsfishworks@gmail.com and I will send you a picture of my daughter's goldfish tank... Also, nothing wrong with having leaf litter and seed pods in a goldfish tank. The creatures will hide and thrive within them and the goldfish won't mess with them much. They may disturb them every now and again but there's also nothing wrong with that. Good luck!
@@phillipsfishworks Oh jungle vals works well with goldys? that's great! I have lots of them...do you think dwarf lotuses will be ok as well?
i gathered some mud and water from a small river near me, put it in a jar and was told to stick it in my aquarium... which is a medium gravel 60 gal with fish and plants already in it... is this a good idea?
thank you
This can be a hot topic... There's nothing wrong with introducing wild samples into your aquarium. But there are things you want to look out for... Probably should observe it for quite a while before introducing. Also you could put a fish in with the wild sample before you add it to your tank. If you want to be cautious anyways. Thanks for the comment
@@phillipsfishworks thank you
Does anyone find pool filter sand is almost a thing of our past. Most companies that deal in the ground/above ground pools, are turning to glass mixes. So I, who ran out of sand am having a hard time finding any.
That's great information 💯💗✌️👍 I do have a question. Do you boil your cucumber or just put it in the tank fresh? Thanks for sharing
@Mark franklin
I don't really boil anything that goes into the aquarium... They can be fresh or I do slice up some veggies and put them in a jar or bag unrefrigerated for a few days. This starts the rotting or break down process and makes them a little softer. It wouldn't hurt if they were a little slimy and nasty. Usually the shrimp jump right on the nasty ones... Hope this helps. Good luck! Thanks for commenting and watching. 😁😁😁
What advice for someone that already has the tank setup but wants to integrate without undoing the setup already in use?
What do you have for substrate now? Are you working with live plants or anything like that?
@Phillips Fish Works plant substrate fluval I think yes live plants their doing very well growing I have driftwood also
@@darthplagueis3400 Well, that's a great start. No real need to tear everything down. You can add things like leaf litter or other botanicals. I do have microfauna cultures on my website. Any of that would be very beneficial... Leaf litter and seed pods act as a great habitat and food source for microorganisms. The wood you already have in there along with your substrate will be good habitat as well.
@Phillips Fish Works thanks I will definitely check out your website too. When I do a new aquarium whenever that is I will try out the dirt method. I stumbled on this stuff while checking out other aquarium content seems a very good method
Why hair algae, what is it useful for?
Hair algae is useful for all kinds of things. There are situations where you might not want a lot of excess of it. But many types of fish love eating it and so do scuds and other microscopic creatures... It might be an eye soar in a beautiful planted display tank but for purposes of growing microfauna and baby fish, it's useful.
@@phillipsfishworks I have a lot of it in one of my smaller tanks, and am just wondering where it would do the most good. I actually think it’s kind of pretty, like a floating green cloud. But I’ve never heard anyone talk about what the benefits are, or could be. Thank you for your time!
I didnt start my tank the way you did I literally just put some aquarium gravel I bought from walmart in there and just a few plants with no fish I waited about 3 months before adding any type of fish or shrimp and no joke as soon as I added them all I did was drop some fish flakes once a day for them to eat and there was an explosion of life now my plants took over the tank to the point where I cant see and of ita inhabitants when I do spot them I'm amazed by how healthy they seem my shrimps have gotten to almost 2 inches long!
Sounds like quite an awesome little environment! Thanks for watching and the comment.
@@phillipsfishworks this is the most interesting aquarium video I've seen on RUclips so far looking forward to see what you post in the future thanks for the heart!
Thanks so much for the kind words! It means the world to me! Keep experimenting and having fun. That's what it's all about.
Can fish in captivity go all live food?
is Prazipro harmful to microfauna, and if so is there any safe treatments for disease or pests that wont harm microfauna? ex, finrot, other common issues
We need to start counting soil and water as part of the stocking
Do you need a filter in the tank?
It really depends on how much you're feeding and to a lesser extent how many fish you have. Overstocked and heavy feeding is a recipe for water quality issues. Especially without a filter. A simple spongefilter or air stone may be all that's necessary. How long the tank has been set up and how it's been set up are huge factors as well. Mature, heavily planted tanks make great candidates for filterless aquariums. New setups that are overfed and have a low diversity in microfauna do not... Hope this helps. I always say experiment and try things out. It's not something only the experts can do. Thanks for the comment!
@@phillipsfishworks I can work with that! Many thanks for your reaction.👍👍
Since the day i transformed my tank into a natural planted set up . Fishes started to spawn.. and its not possible to take them out .. what do i do😅
I have a problem, the water does not just turn white, white slime coats the plants, the plants die & the filters clog.
Великолепно!❤🌿
Is it possible to put an aqua pump for my fish tank?
Do you mean have an electronic pump in the system? Thanks for subscribing!
@@phillipsfishworks yes, air pump i mean. And you're welcome
@@thetruthseeker1239 air pumps for an air stone or sponge filter work great!
@@phillipsfishworks typo error.. I mean, is it possible for my fish to survive without air pump? Sorry! 🤦♂️😂
Your totally fine… depends on the fish, and set up... But definitely possible. If you didn't have too many fish. Lots of factors like how old the tank is. Is it planted? Things like that
I noticed that you have stoneworts (I think). Could I maybe buy some?
@Benjamin Mellor Yes, you did see stonewort! Good eye, many confuse it for hornwort. Shoot me an email and I will see what I can come up with. Phillipsfishworks@gmail.com I don't typically sell a lot of plants because I'm always in need of so many more but I will see what I have to spare.
@@phillipsfishworks Okay, I shot an email.
To keep the treatment "knives" sharp I think it's often a good idea to have a natural baseline in order to know when and how to target something if you want to treat it. Antibiotics saves lives everywhere all day, but using it when it's not necessary is a recipe for disaster.
Nice video. I have an 8-gallon tank. Is this enough to set up a natural aquarium? How long should I wait before adding fish to a natural aquarium?
You can set up a natural aquarium in any size container... If it's very small like a gallon or so I wouldn't recommend fish but 8 gallons is great. You might give it 3 or 4 weeks for the microfauna to start really establishing itself. That's a guideline not a rule. In some situations you can do less time in others you need more. It all comes down to how much habitat or hiding places the little creatures have and what kind of populations you're starting with... Hope this helps. Thanks for the comment!
Agree with almost all things, except the substrate. A thick sand layer can compact over time and it won't allow water movement in the substrate. Instead of that, you can use a clay based aquasoil. It doesn't have to be the expensive nutrient rich kind, just some small sintered clay balls. If you're on a stricter budget, crushed lava rock can work too. And addig extra calcium is only necesarry if you're not doing water changes. In general be careful with adding anything that can alter water parameters and test your water. KH should never be higher than GH.
Thank you so much for the comment and watching the video. I hear what you're saying about the sand. I've heard people say that before and I wonder what their personal experience with it is. I have used sand a long time and prefer it as my base substrate. But I'm sure other substrates work well for many, no doubt... As far as adding the extra calcium it really all depends on your particular system and what you're keeping in it. I primarily keep and breed hard water loving fish as well as breed high numbers of snails and shrimp. I also use lots of botanicals like leaf litter and seed pods. The breaking down of all the organic material coupled with the large number of snails and shrimp growing out really takes a toll on my KH. I learned the hard way a long time ago that It was not only beneficial for me to add things like crushed coral or shells but it is necessary. Even with my water changes. Plus you have to really consider your source water chemistry... Having said that there's no denying that everyone is having a very different experience considering their water supply, choice of tank materials and the animals they're keeping in it. Thanks again for watching the video. Your comment is appreciated and valued. Good luck on your aquarium journeys! 😁😁😁
I disagree, actually I'm living proof that it works.
Check out father fish 👍
Thanks!
Pool filter sand is coarse enough..
It is made to allow flow thru the filter.
And plants do very well in it.
It is also not expensive. 🤔😁
Get a snake expert, one who's excellent in handling rattlers and king Cobras......... Then hire him to toss 30 of these critters in thru' the back door..... Guaranteed to get a female and or male squatters out in a Flash! Saw what I did there? 😊
Not sure I follow but thanks for the engagement. 😊
@@phillipsfishworks so sorry was s'posed to be a post about evicting squatters. Cheers!
You're dead right, people are fed bs in petshops / aquariums to have these like sterile tanks, & it's COMPLETELY wrong, mine is a dirt tank-plants growing like crazy, water crystal clear & fish flying around like speedboats 😂, keep spreading the TRUTH 👍👍
Thanks for watching and I definitely appreciate the comment! Love your feedback and I agree with you. Your "fish flying around like speedboats" comment cracked me up. 😁😁😁
I added dirt to my tank. Unfortunately my pleco likes to stir everything up every once in a while and create a mud pit 🥲 but I love that I added dirt and don’t regret it…most of the time haha
Keep a good deep sandcap Lindsay.
I have only wild tanks stuff from lakes streams and peddles. Water too from lakes. 1month i let it settle and then set big life (snails and fishs and shrimps) and all go well