Will this Filterless Tank work?

T

tmwtyh

Registered Member
Feb 19, 2005
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Vancouver, Canada
www.vatican.va
10 Gallon Tank:
Filterless because I need absolute silence in my room at times. Can I make it up by with a heavy planted tank + clam(s)?

Plants:
Limnophila aquatica (i think)
Water Sprite
Mini Swords (I think)
Indian Fern
Christmas Moss
Green Cabomba
Jave Fern
Red version of Pond Penny??

Fish:
2 Mollies
2 Platies
3 Swordtails
2 Kuhlii Loachs
2 Trumpet Snails
2 Drawf Frogs

Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0.5
Ph 6.5

The plants seems to be eating up the ammonia/nitrite/nitrate really well. It's been 2 months now and I just vacuum any poop I see on the bottom once a week and do 10% water changes every 2 weeks. The fish don't look too crowded (lots of hiding space), nor stressed and everything seems fine. I read that circulation could be a problem, so I'm looking into getting a clam or 2. I'm wondering if anyone gone with the, plants + clam, combo before to take the place of the filter. If so how did it go?
 
Everything you wrote there should equal dead fish... but if it's been working for 2 months, then who am I to talk? :)

Everyone on this forum would say that's a lot (too much probably) fish for a 10 anyway... with just natural circulation it would get worse I would think.
 
I dont think it's a good Idea, but maybe you could get one of those air pumps? they hum slightly. It could probably work if you do like daily water changes or something. Or maybe get a fan to blow on the surface for some irritation? (I dont know if that's been done before, just and idea I had) maybe you should've just put it somewhere that you dont need silence? But hey, if it's worked for two months than I'd leave it. "If it ain't broke don't fix it!" lol.
 
You could do it yes the plants will eat up some waste but I think you will have to change water (more than 10%) every day or two also you will also have to vacuum more often I would say every second day.

You also do have too many fish for that size of a tank and may have issues with not enough oxygen in the tank.

Why don't you look at a filter an just turn it off when you need the silence?
 
I use whisper 15s mad by tetra on both of my ten gallon tanks they are completly quiet when full to the bottom lip of the spill and the filter bags are 1.89 at wal mart they seem to keep the tank really clean my two tanks has 4 fish one has 1 3" angel, a 2" cory cat, a 3" rainblow shark, and a dwarf frog, the other has 2 2" beunos aries tetras, 1 3" electric yellow cichlid, and a 3" plecostamus and plastic plants in both (no natural sun in either room) also I change 25% every week with aged/treated water. They have been up and running for about 10 months now
 
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Most filters are very silent. You might try filling up your tank more. I use the penguin filters and they are a little loud when the tank is missing some water. But when it is filled to the top, it seems perfectly silent.

What kind of filter were you using? It is possible to tweak some of them.
 
As is indicated by a couple of people, you are heading for disaster. 2 months is far from a good test, and your water changes are helping, but would need to be more frequent, and higher volume. There are filters that are dead silent no noise, nada zilch zippo. Internal cannisters, RFUG, and really good quality external cannisters are silent. Likewise there are ways to virtually silence good Hob's, and sump overflows so they could be used also.

A non filtered non-circulated tank will build up nasties, there has been some experimentation into these techniques, and only the most controlled environments will work in this manner. the primary criteria for success is huge volumes of water, really good plant growth, and small number of fish. You are not working in the same realm with those experiments, and most Of them i've researchedcold only be considered marginally successful despite the controls used.

I would look into at least a powerhead with a sponge hanging on it. this would provide mechanical filtration and circulation at a nominal cost, and still be dead silent if it was fully submerged and not hooked to a venturi. Oxygen will be produce in great quantities by your plants, if they remain healthy and light, ferts (natural or subsidized) are balanced, the tank could succede long term if water changes and vaccuming are done. but you still really are overcrowded and the risk of something going haywire in a your tank is very high.
JMHO,s Good luck with whatever you do.
Dave
 
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