Large modified Walstad

[PhillyBrownDog]

My folks are handing down their old "monster" tank. I'm not clear on what size it is. My mom says 80 gallons; I remember it looking more like a 120. I won't have measurements for a while but want to start planning.

I want to go low tech as possible with this. What's the optimum water depth for a Walstad-type setup? If this tank is deeper, what are some simple ways to compensate? Alternatively, any thoughts adapting the technique for a paludarium?

 

[myswtsins]

I do not know of an optimum water depth but certainly extra tall tanks are going to be more difficult to light, no matter what method you use. Not a lot of ways to compensate unfortunately. Can go a bit deeper with the substrate but that can lead to other problems. Only thought for a walstad paludarium is I'd like to see that.


Important things to consider with Walstad tanks...Keep it simple and keep the fish load very low. Walstad is great for what it is but many people try to adjust it to better fit our ideas of what we want from a fish tank.

 

[PhillyBrownDog]

Upshot of doing it on a budget is that I'll only be able to add a few things at a time. Monitoring water quality as I go should help me optimize bioload.