MY DIRTED FILTERLESS FISH ROOM TOUR …NOVEMBER 2023  

Thank you it’s greatly appreciated 🙏 Yes I have found sand capping my dirt is the winning ticket for plant growth. 😁Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you so much 🙏 I’m extremely in awe and grateful for the response to this video the last 6 days. Lucas from LRB commented on here yesterday and like I told him he was a big inspiration for my fish room but so are were you Father Fish. It all started watching his channel and wanting to do filterless tanks then I found you and was inspired beyond belief by the beauty and simplicity of a natural tank and I am completely grateful. So thank you sir 🙏❤️😁👍

Thank you very much and thank you for watching 🙏😁👍

Thank you Paul, it’s greatly appreciated 😁 Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much it’s greatly appreciated 🙏 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you and thanks for the idea. I was struggling trying to mount those higher in the tank because they wouldn’t sit on any of the hardscape. That’s a great idea I may have to try it. Thanks for watching it’s greatly appreciated 😁👍

Thank you very much! I absolutely love that their is never one way to do things in this hobby😁👍 Thanks for watching

Thank you very much and welcome 🙏

That’s awesome, that’s the thing ,everyone thinks you need filters… in some cases absolutely but if you can have a deep substrate and live plants you can go without. I have a Fahaka puffer tank and goldfish pond that don’t have filters and still my nitrates never go above 10 ppm. And you are correct it drastically cuts down the amount of maintenance needed. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thanks you very much, there are so many benefits to these styles of tanks and love trying to promote it. Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you Jeff! Very much appreciated 🙏 I love those stands. They are very sturdy and can be built to accommodate any tank. I look forward to seeing some more content from you friend 😁 Thank you for watching and have a great weekend yourself 😁👍

You’re very welcome! With a sand cap I never have had an issue with the dirt escaping unless I pulled a bigger established plant out. Now with gravel as a cap that’s a different story. I’m happy my video could help because I absolutely love this style of tank and would encourage more people to do them. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much I appreciate it. Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you I appreciate it and thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you! I love this hobby and love sharing it. Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much 🙏 I appreciate it and thanks for watching 😁👍

Wow that sounds like an amazing experience to create very much a natural ecosystem. I’m glad you liked the video and honored and flattered I could inspire you to set up a permanent tank. This comment honestly made my day and has always been my goal with this channel, if I can help or inspire one person it’s worth it. 🙏 Thank you and thank you for watching 😁🙏

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Thank you very much I was honestly taken aback by the success it’s given me and very grateful for it. Thank you for watching I appreciate it 😁👍

Thanks Tara I appreciate it!😁 I love those swordtails as well. I don’t want to pull the females and put in breeder boxes so I’m holding the thick plants will save some from getting eaten by mom and dad and uncle and aunt 😂 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you, I appreciate it very much and thanks for the support 😁👍

Thank you and thanks for watching it’s greatly appreciated 😁👍

Thank you very much🙏 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you, very much appreciated 👍 I love the natural look. I always say I want my tanks to look like I took a picture at the bottom of a lake or river 😁 Thanks for watching

Thank you, they are pretty cool👍 Thanks for watching 🙏👍😁

Thank you very much! In the past I had a few with gravel caps but had some issues with it so I went to sand. With my tanks anyway the plants have grown so much better in sand. Thanks for watching 😁👍

@pattys_aquatics I used molar clay as a cap thinking it's a high CEC substrate, so it should store nutrients from the soil. However, it was almost neutrally buoyant, and I think gas built up under it because they was no pressure on the soil. The two tanks with sand in, I've never been able to get crypts to grow like that ever

@@aquaticfanaticsuk that sounds like an interesting cap to use. I have had luck with crypts growing in sand myself but who knows with water or any other conditions could be different that either helps them grow for me or makes it harder for you.

Thank you very much! I appreciate it. I’m actually taken aback at the response I have received from this video thus far. Just happy people enjoyed it 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics nothing better than all natural aquariums! 🙏😁

@@ThePlantedTankTV I have to agree with you there 😁👍

@@pattys_aquaticshey man I forgot to ask. What do you use for lighting? 💚

@@ThePlantedTankTV standard old led shop lights. Cheap and bright. That’s the way I like them 😂

Thank you and thank you for that information. I actually was considering only having my air stone on at night a while back but wasn’t sure. I even asked the question on a forum and got destroyed with comments about how I will kill my fish and yada yada yada. 😂 I most definitely will have to try this. Thank you very much and thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much! I have to say you and your fish room is what first inspired me to go filterless and start natural tanks. I don’t know if my fish room would look like it does today without watching you 🙏 Thank you for watching 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics 🙏Glad I could help inspire it! :)

Thank you very much! I love this hobby and love to share my experiences hoping it could help anyone down the road. Thank you for watching and the support 😁👍

Thank you, I do as well . I feel it makes it look more natural. I just have to keep it in check by pulling some out occasionally or it can over run the tank. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much it’s much appreciated 🙏

Thanks Jeff, I appreciate it immensely and thank you for the support 😁👍

Thank you very much! I have a video on my experience with a resurrection jar if you’re interested. It was a very cool experience to say the least. Thank you for watching 😁🙏

Thank you much appreciated. Was thinking of doing an updated tour but may wait till fall again. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you 🙏 much appreciated 😁👍

Thank you very much! I no longer use any fertilizers. I use to put liquid fertilizers in but I stopped a few months ago and they still grow like crazy. There is a lot of nutrients in the dirt. As far as lights I used to have them on for a whopping 15 hours a day . Only because it was convenient for me ( I usually do maintenance and film in the early morning hours and feed fish after supper ) but cut the hours down this summer to 10 hours. Only algae I deal with in these tanks are string algae but I think it’s from the actual light. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much 🙏 And thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you, I absolutely love low tech , no tech planted natural aquariums. The natural beauty of them attracts me to them and your set ups sound right up my alley😁 Thanks for watching and subbing I appreciate the support 😁👍

Thank you very much! Your very kind 🙏 Well there were some more changes in my fish room since I filmed this so stay tuned. I appreciate your support my friends and thanks for watching 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics your welcome bud, as we said it’s coming on amazingly (already was) apologies we don’t get to watch all your videos but we catch up when we can! (Kids/dogs annoying distractions) but we fully support and love your channel even if we miss some vids, always!!!

@@Aquadiction no need to apologize I get it. Some weeks I fall so behind on watching videos because life gets busy. I just truly appreciate the support and am very grateful 😁👍

Thanks Jesse, I’m taken aback by the amount of views and subscribers I got from this video. I’m truly grateful for the support 🙏 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you I really appreciate it! I really love everything with keeping this style of tank and love sharing it. Thank you for watching 😁👍

No thank you for watching, it’s much appreciated 😁👍

Thank you, yeah I have found that sand capping my dirt grows my plants much better. Actually working on a video about it. And you are correct those guppies swim everywhere, when you get a big enough school of them it’s amazing to watch Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much and thank you for watching 😁👍

Thanks again, I actually am in the process of making a video on the importance of sand 😁 Can never have enough 👍 Thanks for watching Chris

Thank you very much!! I’m sorry to hear , that is my biggest fear with this hobby having a tank spring a leak. But I’m happy to hear you might get back in this crazy hobby 😁 Thank you for watching 😁👍

there are many kinds of madness🤪🤪@@pattys_aquatics

Thank you very much it’s greatly appreciated 😁👍

Thank you I appreciate it! I believe there is just so much natural beauty in these tanks. I’m glad you liked them. Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you! I love this style of tank as well. There is nothing better in my opinion than having your aquarium look like a snapshot of the bottom of a lake or river 😁 Thanks for watching I appreciate it greatly 🙏👍

Thank you very much 🙏 😁👍

Thank you I appreciate that and I’m glad you enjoyed my tour . There’s always something I want to do in there and love every part of it . You are correct on the longer piece of slate. Another person said that as well and was going to get one. It would be easier to cover the branches they drop their eggs on as well. Thank you very much for the kind words and thank you for watching 😁👍

Yeah, stumbled across this style of tank a couple years ago and fell in love with it. It had been an amazing experience. Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thanks it’s much appreciated 😁Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much. I actually have success with red root floaters with very minimal surface agitation. I’m currently growing in my 100 gallon tub with them for an upcoming swap meet. Already half full 😁 Thank you for watching I appreciate it 🙏👍

I have run air stones (they typically were off when I film to cut down noise) but I am in the process of removing them completely. I use cheap old LED shop lights in my tanks. I have an older video on them if you’re interested. I actually plan on making a video on the fish bowl in the near future. It hasn’t been touched since summer and didn’t have adequate lighting so a lot of the plants died off but the shrimp are still alive. I want to get a light for the bowl and rescape it. Thanks for watching 😁👍

No but I am a bakers man😂

Thank you very much! Thanks for watching 🙏😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics did you ever use a filter in any of the tanks?

@@wallycheladyn1190 yes when I dirted my first 5 tanks but then decided to go filterless. And haven’t used them since. The deep substrate is the key to making this work with minimal maintenance 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics I just started my first tank a few months ago. I followed Father Fish's advice, dirt substrate with the sand cap, water top offs only. The aquarium is doing well, but I also added a sponge filter. The filter just takes up a lot of real estate.

@@wallycheladyn1190 yeah, there is nothing wrong with filters but really liked the fact I would have more room in the tank for plants and scape. I use an air stone for water circulation for my heaters but that’s it.

Thank you very much,I have guppy tanks with hundreds in along with shrimp and snails and my nitrates still stay below 10ppm. So it is completely possible to do some serious breeding in them. The deep substrate is the key. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Mine always dropped their eggs on the hardscape as well. Then whenever I see the females egg tube dropping more I know she is close so I move the slate coasters around and now they have been dropping them on those. Just wish they would raise them on their own instead of eat them🤷🏻‍♂️ Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thanks Chris, I’m very happy I went to all sand caps in these tanks. They make a huge difference and you are correct natural is best. That’s too bad I love Val, I have a couple types of plants I just can’t get to grow in my tanks as well. Brazilian pennywort is one. I tried it numerous times and always died on me 🥲 Thanks for watching 😁👍

That’s awesome, enjoy and have fun with it. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you and yes I have. I had 100% sand substrate in all my tanks before I started down the dirted tank rabbit hole 😁 I found they grew plants very well I just used fertilizer where I don’t in my current tanks. Also was successful running no filters in all sand as long as it was deep enough. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Not at all, I actually made a video on them , they are just standard led shop lights. Very cheap affordable and bright 😁 Thank you for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much!! I would love to show you I’m just not sure what you’re talking about. Track base like sand? Let me know and I will tell you. Thank you so much for watching I greatly appreciate it 😁👍

Thank you very much! I have pool filter sand in two of my first dirted tanks but I live by a Great Lake , Lake Michigan and have been getting it from the shores there lately. And it’s free 😁 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you and appreciate the feedback. I’m sure there may be a nutrient deficiency of some sort in a tank or two the large portion of the algae in my opinion is from my lights. I use a led shop lights and since I put them in I get hair algae . The reason I suspect the lights is it always starts growing in the same spot in all the tanks that get it. I’m not saying you’re wrong, I just believe that is the main contributing factor. Algae doesn’t bother me ( except for black beard ) it looks somewhat natural but that being said I would prefer not to have it on my plants. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you and welcome to the hobby. It can be a bit intimidating when you first start with how much information that is out there. What kind of plants did you try? What type of substrate? How long has your tank been set up? Maybe me or someone else out there can help😁 I honestly am not sure on how many gallons that hex is . I’m assuming 20-25 gallons I got it from my son when he didn’t want it anymore. Yes the plants filter the water but the deep substrate is the key to control the nitrates. It creates a denitrifying bacteria. Non of my tanks go above 10ppm nitrates. I absolutely feed my fish😁 some say I over feed but that’s the best part of keeping fish. Don’t be sorry for questions, I will always answer anything I can or point you in the right direction if I can. Thanks for watching 🙏😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics cool thanks so much. Oldest tank is about 7 months. Only substrate i have is gravel. I had java fern, anubias, glued them to wood. Both died. Right now i have amazon sword which is green and alive but not really growing. Other is Wisteria which i like and doing good so far in my 20 gal. I use the aquarium coop liquid fertilizer but man that added so much algae to my tanks. I had beautiful fish in my 29 gal everything good then next day white cloud filled the tank. I added prime but i guess was too late all my fish died. Not sure if ammonia bloom or bacterial. Oh i had vulsaneria too but died and never grew. My goal is to have my tanks looking like yours one day they’re beautiful.

@@K0NY718 with the anubias and Java fern what part of the plant did you put the glue on? I always try gluing the roots. Heard if you put it directly on the rhizomes it could potentially kill them. Amazon swords are slow growers in my experience. And makes sure you put root tabs in for them that’s how they feed. I used the coops easy green when I used fertilizer and it is good. If you were getting a lot of algae may just need to cut back on fertilizer or the time your lights are on. How old is the tank the fish died in. If it wasn’t cycled that can cause a bacteria bloom (cloudy water) and potentially kill fish. Just give it time and more experience and they will look awesome 😁👍

Thank you 🙏 the lights I use are just cheap shop lights 2500 lumens . Everything in my fish room is cheap and easy. Thanks for watching and if you have any questions feel free to ask😁👍

Thank you I’m definitely going to be trying that. Thank you for watching 😁👍

I have an air stone running but that’s the only source of current in the tank. They lay eggs continuously but on the branches of my hardscape. I finally got them to lay them on the black coasters. I just have had no luck getting them to get past the wiggler stage. I have heard of methylblue and definitely will look into that. I will just keep trying and eventually will figure it out . I don’t remove every batch though I m always hoping maybe at some point they won’t eat their future babies 😂

Thank you very much! It really depends on a lot of factors ( nutrient levels, lighting…etc) so some grow slower than others but I would consider it a faster grower in the right conditions. Thanks for watching 🙏😁👍

Honestly the sand cap helps with that immensely. When I set them up I try to put the stem plants where I shouldn’t have to remove them and only trim them. Now for the Val and dwarf sag when that starts to work it’s way to the front of the tank I pull them before they get too big and their roots take hold. Since I have such a deep cap the roots haven’t reached the soil level at that point . I have removed bigger ones I just slowly pull them and the sand backfills the hole and there is minimal mess. Now If you want to remove a big established plant that’s a different story, I had an amazon sword grow monsterous so I took it out and let’s just say the water was black. But I also had a gravel cap in that tank at the time. I learned from that not to plant big plants in areas they will outgrow. Thanks for watching 😁👍

Thank you very much 🙏 I now have 12 in my fish room. I just added 1 last week and will have that on my video for 12/8😁 Well that’s a long answer why I removed filters 😂 but I love LRB Aquatics and if your not familiar with his channel he runs his entire enormous fish room with no filters and got me thinking and wanted to try it. The fact I could remove an object from my aquarium (sponge filter)and replace that with more plants was a big plus for me. Also, because I had just started dirted tanks at that time I knew that having the deep substrate would allow me to maintain very low nitrates which mine never go above 10ppm. So after trying a few and being successful decided to pull them all and haven’t looked back since Thank you for watching 😁👍

Yes, I have watched some of LRB Aquatics videos. @@pattys_aquatics All of my small outside tubs have no filters. I do run homemade filters on my three larger goldfish tubs. My largest with no filters are 120 gallon diy ponds and they all do well. I do run filters on my six planted tanks inside.

I always try to get 1 inch of dirt but sand you just need a minimum of 2 inches. I like to put a little more. Typically have 3-4 inches of sand. Thank you very much for watching I appreciate it 😁👍🙏

I just released a video of a how to set one up with my 75 gallon Puffer tank if your interested 😁 Thanks for watching it’s much appreciated 🙏👍

Absolutely go dirted if that’s what you want to do. You can make one of any size . I hav a fish bowl and gallon jar dirted. It can work. Have fun with it and thanks for watching 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics thank you😍🙏

@@maharanigladys if you have any other questions feel free to reach out 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics thx😍😍 I wanna ask again😅🙈... My small aquascape, is i need to add biofilter like bioring and the friends in my hang on filter?

That’s a red tiger lotus. One of my favorite plants in my tanks. They will shoot out lily pads eventually and adds another layer to the scape😁 Thank you for watching 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics thank YOU! Great video!!

No idea who that was till I looked him up 😂 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Not necessarily, if it’s working for you that’s all that matters. Some people like the gravel cap. If you want sand you can also just add a couple inches of it over your gravel as well if you’re fine with a deeper substrate. I did this with one of my tanks but the other two I removed as much as I could without hitting that soil level too much. . Thanks for watching 😁👍

Congrats that’s awesome with the tank set up, not so much with the possible dead shrimp. Honestly I only float bags for temperature then empty everything into a net and release them into the tanks. I know some shrimp can be touchy depending on the type of water you have. You could drip acclimate them. I know someone that could not get snails or shrimp to survive in their tanks no matter what but eventually found out since they were on well water the supplement they were using in their water softener was not good for them. They switched that and now are fine. So there could be a large possibilities of reasons they may not have survived. Thanks for watching 😁👍

They honestly are not needed anymore as far as nitrate wise. But every few months I will change 10-15 percent just from the water column not touching the substrate. I feel it’s good for the plants to get that occasional. I have no proof on that part it’s just my thoughts. Thank you for watching 😁👍

They honestly are not needed anymore as far as nitrate wise. But every few months I will change 10-15 percent just from the water column not touching the substrate. I feel it’s good for the plants to get that occasional. I have no proof on that part it’s just my thoughts. Thank you for watching 😁👍

Honestly it can depend on a lot of factors. What type of plant, your water , and nutrient levels to name a few. If they are fast growing plants for me typically a couple weeks to start spreading but to actually fill in could take a couple months. One tank I set up in September and was very bare has grown in big time and took 2-3 months. I get the need to fill them with plants initially and if you can go for it but if you have patience they will grow in. Hope that helped 😁 Thanks for watching 😁👍

@pattys_aquatics yeah it did, thanks. I know it will always depend but I wasn't sure of the general time frame to expect. Thanks

@@benwilliams3539 anytime. If you ever have more questions feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer 😁👍

Don’t keep any , I have snails but not filter feeders. The plants are my filtration 😁 Thanks for watching 😁🙏👍

Honestly not much, I remove duckweed weekly and top off the water. They don’t need water changes because the nitrates never go above 10ppm but once every few months I will do a 10-15 percent change just because no other reason 😂 And trimming plants occasionally but that’s it. I get to spend more time watching and feeding my fish this way 😁 Thanks for watching 😁👍

Funny you ask because I have a video on this coming out this Friday 😁👍 I explain in the upcoming video but I don’t feed every day, usually every 2-3 days . Thanks for watching and check out the video on Friday if it interests you 😁👍

Thank you! The hardest part of removing the filtration was actually in my head! The second guessing myself and fear of killing my fish. But once I realized it would be fine and it’s possible it’s all good now. I have been finally getting the Angels to drop their eggs on the tiles. Now its getting them to survive 😁 Thanks for watching 😁👍

I’ve never kept turtles before, that being said if you could keep enough live plants I think it could work as far as the nitrogen cycle. I would keep an eye on the parameters closely and maybe have a filter available if you have issues. I haven’t had a filter with my fahaka Puffer for some months now and have been good. The one thing that may concern me is are turtles diggers? If they dig deep into the substrate that would definitely be an issue. Thanks for watching 😁🙏👍

Hey there! Thanks for stopping by 😁👍

If your talking about the koi tank no, I was letting them pair up first 😁👍 Thanks for watching 😁🙏

I do use air stones more to help circulate the heat from the heaters and have recently been dabbling in not using them and putting them on timers. My ammonia and nitrites are 0 and nitrates are 10ppm or below. I have a few videos on my no filter process if you’re interested. It definitely seemed intimidating when I first started it but my tanks have been thriving for a couple years now without it Thanks for watching 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics love to give it a go sometime. I suppose you can only do really with very small fish, I'm more of a monster fish keeper lol. What type of dirt can you use?

@@justinstuart8382 I have a fahaka puffer tank and also a 100 gallon tub with goldfish that is no filter but having lots of plants and a deep substrate is key. Every situation is different though. I use organic potting soil and compost. Whatever is cheapest at my local hardware store

@@pattys_aquatics I see that's interesting, so obviously none that comes fully loaded with Nitrates.

@@justinstuart8382 I never tried any other than that. I do add Osmocote which is a time release fertilizer to the soil. But I couldn’t say they wouldn’t work but the organic soils will create more than enough nutrients.

An aquarium with a soil base substrate (dirt) then it’s capped with another which I use sand. Thanks for watching 😁👍

I do but not very often. Maybe once every 2-3 months and I don’t touch the bottom and only like 15% or so. I don’t need them nitrates wise but I feel for me they are beneficial for the plants to have that exchange occasionally. Thanks for watching 🙏😁👍

I don’t use sponge filters or any mechanical filters. I run only airstones which are not filters to help circulate the water around the heaters otherwise there is big temperature differences within the tank.

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Thank you, yeah that’s a shared tank with my daughter. I’m not a fan of them either but if it gets her interested in the hobby , which it does I’m ok with it 😁 Thanks for watching 😁👍

@@pattys_aquatics This is what I thought😉