10222 DAYS old - THE ULTIMATE LOW TECH AQUARIUM ** MUST SEE ** 

I’d just like to say a huge thank you to George. It was a pleasure to meet you and chat about my 28 year old aquarium . It’s wonderful for me to see my aquarium portrayed so professionally, and to share it with everyone. :)

This is to the detriment that many RU-vid channels sell us their views based on their companies who support them and not from the interest of the hobby. George is one of the few who’s always stayed true to the hobby and is brave enough and mature enough to venture into this honest approach of the hobby. Thank you for your honesty, transparency and being you George!

the way i immediatley recognized the tank bc the wrinkley narrow leafed plant. Its the only tank ive ever seen with one of thoes. Im glad his page and tanks getting out there showing people what they can do, and do it with realitive ease

I have known James for over 10 years and have always been amazed by his beautiful low-tech freshwater aquariums. He has recently set up a saltwater low-tech aquarium which will no doubt go to show that keeping a saltwater aquarium is as easy as keeping a low-tech planted one. What James has and most people don't is patience.

I think George mentions it towards the end of the video. I think it’s easier to see and feel balance than it is to describe. To touch on allelopathy, it is just as much a process of synergy as it is inhibition. Plants can use these chemicals to assist as well as deter. Lastly, Liebigs law states that growth is dictated by the most limiting nutrient. There is no mention of deficiency. Once the tank is stable, things will continue forward. Then it’s just a question of time. Great video, thanks.

George your statement about other people's judgement of what is right and what's done wrong is bang on. I love seeing other people's aquariums period. Love the Hobby and always appreciate you sharing great aquariums like this one. Thanks to both of you for sharing this beautiful tank, CHEERS mates.

Difficult hi tech tanks are nice in the short term. But for years? some might tire of too much interactive maintenance even if its from strong plant growth. By the 5th year,I'm happy with just Anubias,Crypts,moss and ferns and some other here and there plants in a 920 liter aquarium. I don't miss all the stem plant pruning,thrive or dive that they do!

one of the most relaxing tanks I have ever seen. A real piece of nature.

I used to maintain an aquarium at a primary school I was working on. It was a 160liter eheim. At the start I researched a lot. Got the most fancy filtration and even co2 at some point. I never really got the balance right. After a while I just 'neglected' it for a couple of weeks. the only thing I did was washing out the pre-filter. I removed the co2 and after a while the aquarium began to thrive. The water became crystal clear. People often looking at the aquarium said, it mustve been a lot of work. But eventually the scape took care of itself, with only minor maintenance. It gave me a lot of peace knowing that nature will take care of itself. The secret? I think let the aquarium balance out, let it rest. Don't overstock with fish. Don't overfeed and get a good cleanup crew. I got 3 nerites. about 15 otocinclus, 15 corydoras and 2 flying foxes.

In the end the aquarium got close to Father Fish style, just with different path. Deep substrate, plants growing steadily, all kinds of creatures living in the tank... nature taking it's course with minimal maintenance needed. Stunning aquarium!

Aging like a fine wine. Beautiful ❤ I would personally call this the perfect aquarium. Sit back, relax and watch mother nature

I love low tech aq ❤

Imagine a 28 years timelapse. That would be amazing.

George, it seems obvious that this aquarium had a major impact on you. Listening to your voice and how you were trying to verbalize its effect on you, just blew me away. Cheers.

I'm glad I watched this. My aquarium is 9 years old. Tetra plant substrate and fine gravel has not been changed. The tank is 28 litres and has blue jelly shrimp, 3 old Amano shrimp who are 7 years old and 6 Borus Maculatus. It's heavily planted with cyrocorine Wendtii which has grown up to the water surface, anubis and some mosses. I do a 40% water change every 2 weeks and clean the filter, check on the heater. Fill the tank up and with declorinated tap water and feed the plants with Tropica Specialised plant fertilizer. Tank is crystal clear and the animals are healthy. I was thinking, maybe I need to take the tank down and start again because of it's age. But seeing this aquarium, so beautiful. I'm going to leave it up and running. I don't have any issues with it. Some of the cryt are starting to look a little frail on the odd leaf. But I will tr Trim them back, like you, add some root tabs and carry on my usual maintenance. I also Do gravel vac superficially when I do my maintenance. Love your aquarium. Beautiful job. Nice and simple. 😊

I am glad that you are showing more and more natural style aquariums, nothing wrong with the high tech's but the natural ones are my favorites.

i have been doing less and less water changes on my tank, never done a gravel vacuum and not taking the plant runners out anymore and i just see the plants perk up way more, its like they communicate to each other that they can grow again and expand more without interference, its so nice to see and its also nice that this 28yr tank stability can be something achievable. am amazed that the silicone seals are holding for this long

One of my favorite things about this hobby is the potential for so many paths, and so many different results. George, thank you for always seeking out new paths and styles and coming to them without judgement. I always thoroughly enjoy your content. James, thank you for sharing. I stumbled upon your channel a week ago and it was funny to see your tank on George's channel. I new it was yours right away with the crypts and crynum right up front. Cheers to you both!!

I have a low tech not because I enjoy the process but because I just don’t have the time… however, I ordered a high tech setup that’s maintained by an aquascaping company in the pantry of my office and I absolutely love both! I used to have the time to do more high tech stuff so paying others to maintain a tank always didn’t sit well with me. However, after a few months I strongly believe paying for a professional aquascape and maintenance service is worth every penny!! The time spent also balances out the costs as I get to spend more time with family and be more involved in my work!

George, come to the dark side of aquascaping, low tech, never a need to rush things, and plants are beautiful in their own way without that extra co2

Lovely - thanks for sharing this gem. My hypothesis is that sufficient, vigorous plant growth, where the surplus is harvested regularly, will create a stable aquatic environment for a whole range of parameters, No water change required. There are many examples - and this is a great one.

Fantastic aquarium. I myself have moved onto this more ecosystem based tank slowly but surely. I've done the whole co2 thing and huge weekly water changes. I'm now weaning myself off that method and now doing smaller less frequently changes and even just using air powered spong filters. In turn I'm definitely enjoying the hobby more.

My first proper aquarium was a Rio 125 that I got for free when I was buying a secondhand bike! It was at a local farm, we were checking out the bike in an old barn and I noticed the old dusty aquarium standing in the corner. That farmer said I could have it if I bought the bike. The seals were great and I added a separate eheim filter. Ran for 8 years till I had to move!

I was kicked out of multiple "beginner" aquarium groups due to wanting to follow these exact steps! I now have 2 tanks over 1 year old, zero water changes. THIS IS THE REAL way to do it!

There are so many ways to run an aquarium and give fish and plants a healthy environment! He has found a great way! I follow a completely different approach, rather short-lived aquascaping, 50% water changes every week, a powerful filter with 10 tank volumes per hour, pressurized CO2 and daily fertilization. But I'm also fascinated by his approach!

So beautiful ❤ thank you both for sharing this

Thank you so much George for finding James and for creating and sharing such a beautiful video! Its inspiring and humbling a lot to see such masterpieces created by Masters! Thanks for introducing us to a master in this Aquarium Hobby! I sincerely admire and appreciate your humility in creating videos on low tech tanks and showing us that Low tech Aquariums can be beautiful too. 🙏😇

George, it is refreshing to see a style of aquarium focused on that is so dramatically different from your own. Not so much that anything is wrong with your style (because your tanks are absolutely amazing ❤), but there is more than one method to success. I had been feeling like the method I use was wrong whenever I watched you working on your tanks. I most am between the styles with minimal hands-on. Thank-you for featuring such an amazing ecosystem! ❤❤❤

Wow, what a calming beauty this tank is. And it must be so wonderful not being busy worrying and adjusting it all the time. I want a tank like this and I think you, George, should give at least one tank like this a good go.

Absolutely a masterpiece. Patience is the real choice for aquarium. I've achieved it 20 years ago but moving was so hard for my aquariums I'm just starting again and seeing your aquarium gave me faith and a new goal. Thank you for the inspiration

Functionality is a form of beauty. Sometimes i watch youtubes of aquascaping efforts and get bored. I find them to be try hards, and they just do the same things over and over. Something curated organically, over a long period of time, with a willingness to let natural processes to take place, is inherently more rewarding to learn about.

This is the type of aquarium I want to keep in my future home!

Beautiful tank, it actually inspired me and I will take a similar approach with my tank, I will soon start working on a new project (non aquarium related) and this is perfect because I really don't want to tear my tank down, I just need it to be less time consuming, thanks for sharing!

I set up a nano low tech Aquascape 10 months ago and it was looking bad and had algae problems for the first 6 months. It has finally balanced out after lots of small tweaks and all the plants are constantly pearling and growing super well with almost zero algae, except for a bit on the rocks but I don't mind it. I'm growing the plants with low light, basic gravel and just a slow flowing sponge filter. it has been my favorite tank I've built. I don't think ill go back to high tech tanks for quite a while and if I do I'll just use low amounts of co2 and low to medium light. I prefer this style because I find the fish seem to like the more natural tank better then tanks with super bright lights. I also found the low tech tanks to be easier to take care of because they seem to be less prone to imbalances. The low tech tanks are less maintenance so that can be a good or bad thing depending on the person, I just added one fast growing stem in the back of the low tech tank because personally I love trimming plants and getting my hands in the tank. but that being said the main thing I've learnt with this tank is the less you change in the tank (but still trim plants and change water) and the more you just let nature do its thing the tank will just look better and stay that way for a long time.

You have to love the look of low energy aquariums.

Those crypts are mesmerising! So wonderful to see a super long-term project like this.

This is beautiful. Thank you.

My first serious aquarium was a Juwel as well. Not sure what they were called back then (30-35 years ago) but it measured 100x40x40cm, so roughly 160 litres with some Eheim canister filter in the cabinet below. It still holds a special place in my heart, and I am still considering the brand for a future, bigger tank. Keep these kind of videos coming, George. I'm loving this. 👍

Just beautiful!

Beautiful natural aquarium. Very interesting chat, thank you for sharing your insights 🌿

What a gorgeous advertisement for low tech tanks! How lovely and rare to see a lotus reaching for the light as a feature.

I love the idea. I've recently had really huge bba (and other algae) issues (partially my fault as disturbed substrate quite a lot) in one of my tanks and couldn't decide if i should to re-scape it or leave it how it is. Left it for couple months and it's turning to really nice scape right now.

Thanks a lot. Best wishes.

Looks magnificent well done sir 👏

Beautiful composition. Incredible natural balance.

Very inspirational.. and so different to my experience.. just keeping plants alive for more than a few months has proven so challenging.. with all my research, attention to detail and even C02 injections.. its still takes so many of my brain cells to make it work.. its definitely not as simple as just 'leaving it', which highlights the artistry and science this man has.. the eye for detail he is noticing.... plus a lifetime of experience.. I'd never pondered adding worms into the tank to help aerate the substrate, and keeping 4 types of snails (for different roles).. would love to learn more about those concepts!

That was special, thank you!❤

Nice. I've been seeing his videos from the algorithm lately.

Absolutely incredible ,i was born in 1993. My tank running with the same substrate from 2017 it's a newborn 😂.

Wow this is amazing. Thank you so much for sharing! Certainly taking some notes for my next tank setup ❤

Awesome video as always.

já tenho visto muito sobre aquariofilia , espero que esse vídeo marque um antes e depois para que se torne um vídeo histórico , parabéns 🙌🏻

My aquariums of 30 years ago were just like this tank,because there simply wasn't the technology available. Just simple substrate and easy plants and let it take its course. My first attempt at using co2 was actually from a soda stream drinks machine. I modified it with some air line and would pump the button a few times to add carbon dioxide to the water. I first discovered Amano in practical fish keeping magazine....and became hooked. He was a God to me. Ireland had very few decent fish shops back then and trying to get any special products was very difficult indeed. Crypts were always a reliable plant along with Amazon swords....and a carpet was the stuff of dreams...impossible back then. Seeing this tank really brought back good memories and how satisfying it was and is to keep a natural ecosystem aquarium. It looks fantastic and the fish are so happy. Thanks guys for keeping it real and reminding us of the good things in life and the hobby. Cheers. 💚

Love this. Less is more.

That is such an awesome aquarium. I think the still water and the tetra mix matches perfectly. Reminds me of a prestine natural environment

This is such a dream tank, the carpeting cryptocoryne (Crypt! Carpet!), the clumps of limnophila, the lotus with its pads, and that center piece plant, the crinkly octopus like leaves (what's the name again?), such wonderful aquarium.

Great interview!

what a beautiful tank, love the fact there is no intervention, it looks amazing.

beautiful tank

I find this method much easier really in the long run, and it saves a lot of money , I’ve let my plants propagate on their own, and if certain plants didn’t thrive in my tank I didn’t go out and buy more. I just kept what did well without a lot of fuss. So I am very much in agreement with these strategies. Plus we are not buying into the whole buy buy buy waste waste waste , which is not good for our environment really. Just my thoughts. One question I’d like to ask , how long are your fish generally living in this tank ? Roughly

Awesome tank, super interview, thank you both for sharing 👌

Amazing!

Love it ❤

Amazing! I hope I could run my tank for as long as I live.

Viewers may not be aware that German scientists now believe that water has memory. Long thought to be a myth. Maybe that is the reason why this tank is what it is, improving over time? Reference : Prof Bernd Kroeplin. Videos are on youtube. Books have been published. Probably the most incredible scientific work that I have heard of. It is like someone telling you that Mickey Mouse was a real person. Amazing video. Thanks for sharing.

Very nice!

Very cool!!😍😍😍😍😍😍

amazing setup and lovely 20+ year planted tank. watched the whole thing and it is awesome! i loved his explanations of an aged mature tank vs. a cycled vs. 6 month old tank. I like how he revealed he had hydra and worms in his tank. overall a very beautiful eco system here. thanks for a wonderful interview. love these types of videos! now for me to think about and design my forever tank :)

Amazing tank

Its pleasant to see another aquarium of such an age. The first 5-10years of mine was a little chaotic but the 10-20+ years have been somewhat like this tank. Its been a wonderful experiment of just letting a tank be and have it do its thing. fish come and go, have lots of plants and a thick substrate and wow, its amazing to see.

I love this. Completely refutes everything being pushed (except export) by the industry.

What an amazing scape, very different from what I’m used to

I came to the hobby recently and got a dirted tank which now turned to 6 tanks. Mess a little with CO2 but I decided not to run it any more since adding fertilizers to then remove them didn't feel like the way to go. Thanks for this amazing video just confirmed the path I want to follow.

The Juwel Rio range is timeless! I got my Rio 240 this summer, I hope it holds up for 30 years at least. :)

Very cool

One of the better video's 👍

Hello my freind George. Very beautiful your fish. Like. I wish you all the best and new success.

Loved this video. Amazing what time can do

One off the best low tech vids/tank I’ve seen. I run the same tank but vision but a little over stocked so do some water changes. Amazing tank that you.

Amazing that. Nature finds a way despite us creating an artificial environment and dumping a bunch of garbage/excess nutrients in and just leaving it alone, eventually nature finds a way to break it all down and create a self sustaining ecosystem. Works outside of an aquarium too. The key is 'time'.

Balanced aquarium ✔️

wow i am so impressed. i really wish i had a tank like this

Low tech = High nature

I would like to see you experiment with a large nature aquarium. Loving this new focus you’re having on a natural approach. Could this tank have undetectable nitrates because ammonia has been consumed by the plants before it got a chance to convert to nitrite/nitrate?

That's what normal people want to have, no CO2 etc. crazy stuff. So strange for me was, when I was a kid before 33 years I have made natural aquarium after asking what to do. My aquarium was stable with no water change or cleaning for 1 year. Yeah, after that I had to clean some plants or glass. I could not enjoy this hobby after several years and now my daughter wanted to have 1 fish! Just one! The problem was that I had to buy at least 10 gallon tank for 1 fish, because that's the low today, so I decided to ask what to do, what would they recommend us in the shop. So they have told me, that I need a fancy filter, super light, gravel and soil etc. I had to use chemicals, and not only one, but around 5 to be able to start. After that I calculated the bill, and it was around 400 without aquascape or plants or fish...It was crazy!!! And I had to put the tank and wait for 2 months to cycle? (As a kid before 33 years I went to the local shop with glass, that I've cut by myself, so that they can put silicone or glue, and it cost me like 5-10 dollars. ) So I bought the 10 gallon tank, and we went with my daughter to the backyard and took some dirt, a good part of sand on top, some stones and plants from the shop and after 1 day she had snails, after 2 days shrimps and after 3 days several fish, the tank is stable with air stone, sponge filter, one heater and thermometer already 6 months with 0 water changes, no CO2, just small amount of food 2-3 times per week max. So the cost was around 150, and we are happy and not sad waiting the tank to cycle?

Please set up a tank like this, George. 🙏

My tanks are a low tech tanks and have been running for 5 and 3 years without a hitch. I use soil and sand cap.

25:00 Do it George :D

My Amano is pretty close to 10 years old. I'm pretty excited to hear about these ones being double that! I was really worried I needed to get some more.

What’s that beautiful little white fish with long fins swimming around? Absolutely stunning tank

😊 boooy that tank is peaceful af I’m tryna be a fish a live inside it.

Must be the best video I’ve seen

Hi George, very good indeed. One of my favourite videos from you. Many thanks. Sorry, I can't get the link provided above to take me to the RU-vid site maintained by James. Photo period would be good to know. His lighting intensity is quite modest and his water in the tank is pretty neutral and the plant choice is very sensible. All factors I think. Mature substrate, fish waste, floating plants I am sure are part of the success story, but I have certainly not matched this, nor come close without at least low intensity Yeast generated 24 C02 injection. Makes my high tech tank seem like a profoundly over manicured high maintenance frantic contraption - even though I only top up, no regular water changes for me - and out of the rhythm of nature, nature the very thing I am supposed to paying homage to. Gone all Zen as well!

What's really impressive is the fact that he's had tank for so long and no duckweed

Beautiful!! What’s the name of the long green crypt plant?

Food for thought. Perhaps it could only work on such a large tank? After two years in my Rio 180 my crypts died as the substrate went bad, very sulphurous when i dug it out, but that was inert gravel 2-3 mm, perhaps too fine plus it was capped with sand.

It bugs me when the high tech contingent call tanks balanced ecosystems given everything that is recommended to be added, and then strip them down after 6months. Great to have this content shared in the "aquascaping" community. Agree with so many of the comments here. And what you guys have said in the video here, nature has for sure different timescales than we so often want or are shown to expect. Thanks George for sharing this content

And I understand that the fish food introduces nitrate and phosphate. But how does this work with iron fertilization? This is not introduced into the tank with fish food. Where does the iron come from?

Great Tank. How many hours is the light on?

The basis of where the ocean is in billions of kalpas, the earth is based in billions of ages. A age in the aquarium is set in infinity.