self-sustaining aquarium

surferdude375 · 02-10-2006, 08:49 PM

Hi. I am new to this forum and need to do a school project. I would like to crate a self-sustaining brackish tank(or at least as close to possible). I would like to know if this is even possible and any possible ideas on fish and their different foods which could all live in the tank. Thank you for any help.

**TheOldSalt** · 02-11-2006, 11:29 AM

You'd need a BIG tank to do it. I'm talking 5-6 thousand gallons if you want fish in it. You can make a 5 gallon sealed unit using algae & a few tiny shrimps.
What you're thinking about is called "the dynamic aquarium." googling that name will show you some stuff.
The small sealed unit version is called a "geniscycle" and you can probably still buy one on the internet somewhere.

**Cichlid Man** · 02-11-2006, 01:14 PM

I've never done brackish dynamic tanks, but I've done freshwater.
I had an 8 foot tank with a few minnows in their. I never touched that tank. It was so good to watch even though the fish where nothing special.
I had a lot of blanket weed in there, and the minnows fed off of daphnia that used to breed in the weed. I also had the minnows bred a couple of times. The tank was running for about 7 months, but then I got board and had it turned into a cichlid tank.
My advice is if you want fish, the bigger the tank the better the results, just like Oldsalt said.
You could get away with it in a 6 foot tank. But for a school project it's one hell of an invesment.
I would just go shrimps and winkles in a small tank, things like that.

azn1stknightsou · 02-13-2006, 12:41 AM

I actually was planning to do something similar to this as well. Now exactly what is your definition of self-sustaining? What cannot be added to the tank in order for it to be considered self-sustaining in your opinion?

micstarz · 02-13-2006, 03:29 AM

Hm..

A few shrimps and some winkles and snails, like CM said. If you are not thinking along biotope lines then brine shrimp even.

02-10-2006, 08:49 PM	#1
surferdude375 Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 1	self-sustaining aquarium Hi. I am new to this forum and need to do a school project. I would like to crate a self-sustaining brackish tank(or at least as close to possible). I would like to know if this is even possible and any possible ideas on fish and their different foods which could all live in the tank. Thank you for any help.

02-11-2006, 01:14 PM	#3
Cichlid Man Super moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 2,100	I've never done brackish dynamic tanks, but I've done freshwater. I had an 8 foot tank with a few minnows in their. I never touched that tank. It was so good to watch even though the fish where nothing special. I had a lot of blanket weed in there, and the minnows fed off of daphnia that used to breed in the weed. I also had the minnows bred a couple of times. The tank was running for about 7 months, but then I got board and had it turned into a cichlid tank. My advice is if you want fish, the bigger the tank the better the results, just like Oldsalt said. You could get away with it in a 6 foot tank. But for a school project it's one hell of an invesment. I would just go shrimps and winkles in a small tank, things like that. __________________ If you have a big enough tank with enough hiding places, pH of around 7, you can keep virtually any fish together as long as all the fish are around the same size and these two groups of fish are avioded: Serrasalmus Tetradon(figure eights and dwarfs are the exception). I keep a successful community of fish in a 4 foot tank including the following families: Cichlids, tetras, loaches, gouramis, barbs, rainbows, livebearers, killiefish, catfish, puffers.

02-13-2006, 12:41 AM	#4
azn1stknightsou Shark Bait Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Sacramento Age: 19 Posts: 84	I actually was planning to do something similar to this as well. Now exactly what is your definition of self-sustaining? What cannot be added to the tank in order for it to be considered self-sustaining in your opinion? __________________ God has a sense of humor. Want proof? Just go to Walmart and look at people.

02-13-2006, 03:29 AM	#5
micstarz Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Hong Kong Age: 14 Posts: 658	Hm.. A few shrimps and some winkles and snails, like CM said. If you are not thinking along biotope lines then brine shrimp even. __________________

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02-11-2006, 11:29 AM	#2
TheOldSalt Darth Ichthyos Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 4,358	You'd need a BIG tank to do it. I'm talking 5-6 thousand gallons if you want fish in it. You can make a 5 gallon sealed unit using algae & a few tiny shrimps. What you're thinking about is called "the dynamic aquarium." googling that name will show you some stuff. The small sealed unit version is called a "geniscycle" and you can probably still buy one on the internet somewhere.

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