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I agree with Darrel. I love the simplicity of the eheim classic filters. They are just a bucket with a pump and thats it! No fancy gadgets and they are easy to clean and maintain and go on forever!

I'm a fan of Cabomba myself. I have some in my current tank. It grows really quick even without co2 and you have a nice bushy effect in no time. Before you know it you are replanting the tops often to form a new plant. If you're after a jungle look cheap you can't go wrong with some vallis. I...

Just be patient with it. It will grow in time and won't all come together overnight. I nearly gave up on my tank recently as all the plants were looking a bit crap and were melting. I was trying to go low tech and not add any co2 or liquid carbon but my lighting wouldnt allow for me to do this...

Thanks for the reply. It was just the one fish, all others were fine and still fine this morning. I never actually touched the food with my hands. I just put the frozen cube in my fish net and defrosted them in the tank then released the krill. Could it be that they weren't defrosted properly...

Hi all. I fed my fish earlier some krill which were quite big. I came back to the tank 10 minutes later to find one of my harlequin rasboras floating upside down and then pointing downwards. It then died shortly after and its colour totally faded like fish do when they die. Do you think that it...

When I was running co2 on my 125l tank I was running the co2 at 2bps to get the drop checker to go green. In your tank you would need 3 or 4 bps to get enough co2

That carpet looks really nice. What are the specs of your tank and what fertilisation are you using?

I had the same filter and was also disappointed with flow rate. I love my Eheim 2215. Its an old workhorse and its got gimmicks and the flow is constantly good even when I haven't cleaned it for a while. Its also very easy to clean and virtually silent.

Definately ease off on the amount you feed the fish. You could also try adding liquid carbon to your tank which should help get rid of the algae that you have.

I have an eheim classic 2215 filter and I'm very pleased with it. Even when its not been cleaned for ages it dodoesn't really lose much flow at all. I had a tetra external filter before and it would lose most of its flow within a month!

Looks awesome I've always had a soft spot for blackwater tanks

Looking great and plants look like they are growing really well. Are you adding co2 or are you using liquid carbon?

James D. Do you mind if I ask what the reason is for doing 50% water changes twice a week in a non co2 tank?

Hi Alastair, I've just been having a good read of your journal and its looking really good. Wish I had the room for such a big project! Sorry to hear about your crypt melt. Why do you think they melted. My crypts seem to grow really well and then a few leaves just melt for no apparent reason...

The plants will do the cycling for you if you have enough. I've never had a single fish loss by adding them straight away to a planted tank. The plants will use up any ammonia from the fish as food.

Looks good with the rippling of the surface from the current. How many litres is this tank?,

I've heard that the EX1200 is a good filter and is about the turnover you want to aim for.

When I was running my Rio 125 high-tech before I went low tech, I used a fluvial fx5 with the flow turned down a little bit. It was ideal and not too much flow at all. I'm now back to the standard filter now which is fine form low tech. The only problem with the fx5 is that it doesn't have a...

Also what lighting are you using on this tank? Are they T5s? Just wondered as I am trying a low tech Rio 125 with the standard lighting too.

Very nice tank I really like it. What floating plants are you using? Also what are the big red leaved plants in the background?

Lovely mate. Looks like you'll have a few berried females soon looking at the size of their saddles! I had some yellow shrimp last year and they bred a couple of generations and then unfortunately they all died for no apparent reason. I would love to get some yellow shrimp again and breed them...

From previous experience it just wipes off plants easily as it is a bit slimy. Remove as much as you can and then do a water change. Lower lighting levels should definitely help. How long contour have then lights on for?

Is there any way that you can dim the LEDs to lower the light levels? Also if the tank is getting too much natural light, this can cause algae too.

Hi. Brown algae is normally caused by too much light. What kind of lighting do you have and how long do you have it on for?

I did the second treatment on Saturday after a large water change. How much longer do you think I should leave it until I do another water change and turn the temperature back down to 25°c?

It sounds to me like your treatments have killed off your filter bacteria and you are having an ammonia spike possibly. It sounds like your fish are getting some kind of fungal infection. Have you tried doing a very large water change because I've found this to do the world of good when fish are...

Is lack of co2 the only cause for holes in leaves? Surely there must be other important nutrients which can cause this too?

Very nice Martin. Your or and a looks very happy in his new home. I really miss goldfish sometimes and would love to set up a large tank for fancy goldfish.

I haven't got any shrimp so it shouldn't be a problem. How long should I treat the tank for with the temp at 28°c?

Thanks Alastair. I've treated the tank now with Interpret no white spot treatment. I think they mist of had white spot when I got them because its only the gouramis which have white spot. All the other fish I bought from the same shop the other day are fine and showing no signs of white spot. I...

Hi everybody. I bought some honey gouramis the weekend and one of them seems to of developed white spot. I was wondering which treatment is best in a planted tank. I don't want to medicate the tank if I can help it so I was going to raise the temperature to 30 degrees along with water changes to...

What about some Celestial Pearl Danios?

Well I've had the surface ripple now for a few days now and have already noticed a difference. The plants seem to be growing faster and more healthy. It could just be me but there definitely seems to be an improvement.

In your opinion clive, would you say that a high tds level is detrimental to the health of shrimp? As the most important factor these days when keeping shrimp seems to be TDS.

What species of fish do you have in this tank Clive?

Which direction do you have the nozzle on the jewel filter pointing at the moment?

Have you cleaned your filter well?

Hi Claire. I really like your new layout, it certainly makes the hobby far more relaxing and enjoyable when you go back to basics. Are you running co2 on this tank nor are you going low tech? I've gone low tech now as I don't have the time these days to be constantly trimming and tweaking all...

When I had a BGA outbreak a few years back, I found the only way to get rid of it was to clean the filters thoroughly and dose nitrate heavily. Also doing a 50%-75% water change every week. Eventually it just gave up and was gone within a few weeks. I am convinced that a dirty filter was the...

Well I've pointed the filter outlet slightly towards the surface causing a ripple. I will let you all know what happens and if I notice a difference in the plant growth. Many thanks

I guess they were hoping that the previous events would be more popular than what they were. They probably didn't make much if any profit out of the precious shows.

Thanks guys this is very interesting. Is this a recent discovery in the planted tank world because I've only just recently heard that surface agitation in a low tech tank is beneficial to the plants.

Thanks Alastair. I might try aiming the filter outlet more towards the surface then and see if the plants grow any faster. I was just always under the impression that in a non co2 tank, surface agitation was a bad thing in regards to plant growth as you can't keep what little co2 you have in the...

When I was running co2 on my 125l, a 2kg fire extinguisher would last about 5 months

Hi everybody sorry I haven't been on here for a while its been very hectic the last 6 months with moving house and stuff. I was wondering whether surface agitation is a good thing in a low tech tank to introduce co2 or a bad thing. I always thought that with low tech you had virtually zero...

How lovely

They actually come from lakes or rivers so if they are from rivers they would have much more current than that. I actually think it looks quite natural

Sorry, here are the latest photos. Untitled by Matty213, on Flickr Untitled by Matty213, on Flickr Untitled by Matty213, on Flickr

Hi all, just another quick update on my tanks progress. Plants are all still growing but very slowly. The crypts are really starting to grow in now as are the echinodorus. Fish are all happy and seem much happier in a non co2 tank with hardly any ferts. I have added some azolla caroliniana which...

Thanks Faizal! I am probably going to do what has been suggested with the rocks and add some pebbles. Just got to wait for the redmoor to sink on its own. It seems to be taking ages to sink, anyone know how long it should take to sink on its own. I tried lifting off the rocks on the weekend and...

Hi everybody. I just had 10 minutes spare to take a few new photos of my tank. Crypts are still steadily growing nicely and the Echinodorus Red diamond is getting some lovely red leaves now. No real maintenance this week, just feeding the fish and water top ups from evaporation from the hot...

That tank is looking amazing Tom such lush plant growth :thumbup:

Looking very lush. Love the mix of greenery and rocks

Thanks gill. That's what I'm after something that grows really quick and blocks the light out a bit as I'm not using co2 now. Does it grow well under the aquarium hood?

Hi all, I'm having problems with frogbit dying off in my newly setup low tech tank. I think the humidity under the hood is what it doesn't like. I'm looking for a more hardy and much faster growing floating plant. I was thinking of using some azolla caroliniana as it looks quite nice and grows...

Hi, i have the same tank as you, and the lighting is more than adequate to grow pretty much any plant you want. As long as you are adding enough co2 which is evenly distributed across the whole tank then you shouldn't have any major algae problems. If you want to save some money then an EI...

Fantastic looking tank joe:thumbup: l. I wish my floating plants would multiply that quick. What floating plants are they? Think im going to have to remove the covers from my tank to lower the humidity and hopefully they will grow much better. Looking forward to seeing the tank progress.

Thanks Rick and for all the positive feedback it makes the whole thing seem worthwhile. :happy: The tank is actually more of a yellowy colour at the moment because of the tannins leaching from the wood. I just hope it stays looking so clean and algae free like it is now. I will continue adding...

Thanks tim. Once the wood has finally decided to stay down on its own, I will probably remove that rock and attach some moss to it and then place it back where it is.

Hi all, Just a quick update on my tank. Its been running just over a week now and the plants seem to be growing in slowly but nicely. I did a quick 10l water change yesterday to vaccuum up some debris from the crypts which was from the filling of the tank. The echinodorus have sent out a few new...

Hi, I'm sure Tetra do an oxygen test kit, I'm not sure how accurate it would be though. Is there much movement on the surface of the water?

So I've added some floating plants now which will hopefully cover the water surface eventually. Thanks to Kapk for the floating plants. I've also turned the rear reflector upside down to reduce lighting levels as suggested by Ady. Plants are slowly growing and crypt cover seems to be getting...

Eheims are just like German cars, overpriced but not actually any better or well built than anything else! They built up their reputation of being precision engineers and reliable products during the 70s and 80s but nowadays it's just all mass produced rubbish. But the trouble is people are...

Thanks Ady, I've got some floating plants coming tomorrow hopefully so that should be good. Will a low photoperiod compensate for the higher light level or does it not work like that? I'm going to keep the stones in there and move them once the wood sinks on its own. They were a bargain, I...

Lovely looking tank well done. Loving the discus!

Ok so here are a few photos I took tonight as promised. Hope you like them. Excuse the large rocks on the wood, they are holding it down until it decides to sink! IMG_4260 by Matty213, on Flickr IMG_4263 by Matty213, on Flickr IMG_4265 by Matty213, on Flickr IMG_4264 by Matty213, on Flickr

Hi all, I thought I would start my first journal on here as I have never got round to doing one before. The tank is a juwel rio 125 which I've had set up as a high tech co2 tank for the last few years. I have recently moved house, so I decided to completely rescape and go low tech as I will have...

Hi all, I was just after some recommendations for substrate for my low tech tank project. I will be temporarily rehoming my fish whilst I convert my tank to low tech, so I'm preferably after a substrate which won't leach much ammonia. What is everybody's favourite soil for a low tech tank. Many...

Thanks Faizal for the encouragement. I am looking forward to going over to low tech. I am getting my own place very soon and could really do without the 50% water changes and pruning and faffing about when I'm going to have other things to do.

My only issue is the lighting really, I don't want to have more algae growth than plant growth. The high tech stuff has made growing plants very easy really and there seems to be a lot more skill in growing a nice planted tank with no co2 or ferts than with co2.

What kind of water turnover am I going to be aiming for, for a low tech tank. Will the internal juwel filter be ok on its own?

I'm thinking of doing something a bit like your previous puddle Alastair, and use loads of crypts and floating plants. I'm starting to get fed up of the high tech side of the hobby now and want to slow the pace down quite a lot and just enjoy the tank and fish rather than having to tinker with...

So do you think if I took the reflectors off and added loads of floating plants then I wouldn't have too many algae nightmares!

Thanks for the reply. My tank is 125l so two 28w t5 lights are around just under 2wpg. Would this be too much light for a low tech tank?

Hi all, my juwel rio is currently a high tech system with co2 and EI dosing and very fast plant growth. However, I am thinking of re scaping this tank and making it a low tech tank. I'm currently running 2x 28w t5 lights with reflectors. Would this be too much light for a low tech setup or...

Your tank is looking amazing Alastair, you've inspired me to go low tech now. When I move house in a week or so, I'm converting my juwel rio to low tech. When I do, would it be a good idea to remove the reflectors from the lights?

Very good read indeed! I love my bristlenose pleco in my planted tank. I never get any algae on the glass or anywhere else. He keeps the tank spotless so it saves me getting wet arms scrubbing the glass!

Sounds like an interesting project. I look forward to seeing it progress

50% water change is only necessary in a CO2 injected tank with very fast growth rates. Another thing you might find alarming is that we add copious amounts of nitrate and phosphate to feed the plants, marine is the total opposite as any nitrate or phosphate is considered bad.

I've never had a problem with my bristlenose either. It never bothers the plants or eats them!

This sounds like an interesting tank. Looking forward to seeing some photos!

Any kind of humidity is bad for electronics. I've been to the amazon on an expedition a few years back. The humidity there managed to kill my iPod and my phone and people's cameras!

I'm using a TMC nano external filter on my 30l nano shrimp tank. It works a treat!

Throw the nitrate test kit in the bin as they are completely useless. The main reasons for a BGA outbreak are low flow and/or low nitrate conditions. The standard juwel filtration is good, but not good enough for a high tech planted tank. You need a very large external filter to give your tank...

Sometimes I will use carbon whilst other times I prefer to stain the water with tannins from leaves.

Lovely fish! I love orandas.

Looks like it will be a nice little setup. Any idea what kind of shrimp you are going to be keeping?

Personally I found using rain water more hassle than its worth. My fish didn't seem at all happy when I used it in my tank. If you do use it, make sure you filter it well first.

My tank is only a 30l nano with shrimp so I only use a standard dose.

Easycarbo has never had any adverse effects on my java moss.

Maybe you could add loads of assassin snails. They should take care of them!

Definately! Sometimes it is just so tempting to just let it grow how it wants to and the just cut all of the surface plants, remove the bottom sections and then replant. I think it flowers sometimes when it grows along the surface.

It's a difficult plant to tame that's for sure. I think what works well with this plant is to keep it around half to three quarters of the height of the tank so the light can reach the lower stems. I sometimes struggle to make it grow side shoots too, some stems grow them fine but others...

Hi, I've been growing this plant for over two years. The older leaves always die off eventually. I run loads of co2 and it gets everywhere but have found the lower leaves die off when the light is lower at the bottom of the tank. I just cut the top sections off, discard the lower sections and...

Hi, how's the shrimp situation at the moment? Hope you haven't had any more losses!

I agree with tim. Plants produce metabolic waste just like fish, even more so when you are using co2 and EI dosing. These wastes can contribute to algae problems. So a weekly water change of at least 30% would be sensible.

I don't think it was the sintered glass was the problem. It's so frustrating when shrimp die and you can't figure out why!

Well from now on I'm using only cold water and adding it slowly. I was also slacking on water changes too. Back to 20% a week now. I hope you don't have any more losses!

Sorry to hear your bad news! I know how you feel though. I started with 6 yellow shrimp about 6 months ago and I gradually got the population up to around 25-30 and now I only have about 6 again. I still don't know to this day why they died. I thought it was because I used a bit of hot water...

I'd love to have some more exotic shrimp but don't think I could cope if they all died after spending so much money!